The Entity Framework 4.1 DbContext is a lightweight version of the EF ObjectContext. It’s simpler to work with thanks t a streamlined surface of properties and methods. It may be just what you’ve always been looking for.

But….

Once in a while you might want to use a random method of the ObjectContext that is not available in the DbContext. .

All is not lost. The EF team built a hook in for you so that you can actually get to the ObjectContext from DbContext. It’s not as simple as a propert however, it requires a bit of casting and more.

When I know I will want the occasional benefit of the ObjectContext, I simply create a property in my DbContext class so it’s easier to get to. 

Here’s what it looks like:

   public class MyContext: DbContext
    {
        public DbSet<Blog> Blogs { get; set; }
       //other dbsets, ctor etc.

        public ObjectContext ObjectContext()
        {
            return (this as IObjectContextAdapter).ObjectContext;
        }
    }

Now when I have an instance of the DbContext, I can use features of the ObjectContext on the fly:

 db.ObjectContext()…..

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