Get file type not using the file extension c#

Question

I know this has been asked before, but neither of the solutions worked for me. I want to know if the file uploaded to my server (via a .ashx) is of type .xlsx, .xls or .csv.

I tried using the magic numbers listed here, but if I for example change the extension of a .msi to .xls, the file will be recognized as .xls... The following code ilustrates what i said:

private bool IsValidFileType(HttpPostedFile file)
{
    using (var memoryStream = new MemoryStream())
    {
        file.InputStream.CopyTo(memoryStream);
        byte[] buffer = memoryStream.ToArray();

        //Check exe and dll
        if (buffer[0] == 0x4D && buffer[1] == 0x5A)
        {
            return false;
        }

        //Check xlsx
        if (buffer.Length >= 3 &&
            buffer[0] == 0x50 && buffer[1] == 0x4B &&
            buffer[2] == 0x03 && buffer[3] == 0x04 ||
            buffer[0] == 0x50 && buffer[1] == 0x4B &&
            buffer[2] == 0x05 && buffer[3] == 0x06)
        {
            return true;
        }

        //Check xls
        if (buffer.Length >= 7 &&
            buffer[0] == 0xD0 && buffer[1] == 0xCF &&
            buffer[2] == 0x11 && buffer[3] == 0xE0 &&
            buffer[4] == 0xA1 && buffer[5] == 0xB1 &&
            buffer[6] == 0x1A && buffer[7] == 0xE1)
        {
            return true;
        }

        return false;
    }
}

Then I tried using urlmon.dll, something like the following, but it still recognizes the file as .xls

    [DllImport("urlmon.dll", CharSet = CharSet.Unicode, ExactSpelling = true, SetLastError = false)]
    static extern int FindMimeFromData(
        IntPtr pBC,
        [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)] string pwzUrl,
        [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPArray, ArraySubType=UnmanagedType.I1, SizeParamIndex=3)] byte[] pBuffer,
        int cbSize,
        [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)] string pwzMimeProposed,
        int dwMimeFlags,
        out IntPtr ppwzMimeOut,
        int dwReserved);

    public static string GetMimeFromFile(string file)
    {
        if (!File.Exists(file))
            throw new FileNotFoundException(file + " not found");

        int MaxContent = (int)new FileInfo(file).Length;
        if (MaxContent > 4096) MaxContent = 4096;
        FileStream fs = File.OpenRead(file);


        byte[] buf = new byte[MaxContent];
        fs.Read(buf, 0, MaxContent);
        fs.Close();
        int result = FindMimeFromData(IntPtr.Zero, file, buf, MaxContent, null, 0, out IntPtr mimeout, 0);

        if (result != 0)
            throw Marshal.GetExceptionForHR(result);
        string mime = Marshal.PtrToStringUni(mimeout);
        Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(mimeout);
        return mime;
    }

I was thinking that maybe I should try to open the uploaded file with some library for example ExcelDataReader but I'm not sure if this is the best approach.

Any help would be appreciated.

Answer 1

How about open file Excel by EPPlus of Interop and catch an exception if it isn't an excel file

FileInfo fileInfo = new FileInfo(filePath);
ExcelPackage package = null;
try
{
    package = new ExcelPackage(fileInfo);
}
catch(Exception exception)
{
}

Or there is a 3rd party (not tested) which verify the type of file.

FileInfo file = new FileInfo("C:\Hello.pdf");
if ( file.isExcel())
    Console.WriteLine("File is PDF");