How to get the name of the current executable in C#?

There are several ways to get the name of the current executable in C#. Each method provides different levels of detail about the executable file, from just the name to the full path.

Using System.AppDomain

The AppDomain.CurrentDomain.FriendlyName property provides the name of the current application domain, which typically corresponds to the executable filename including its extension.

Example

using System;

namespace DemoApplication {
    public class Program {
        public static void Main() {
            string currentExecutable = System.AppDomain.CurrentDomain.FriendlyName;
            Console.WriteLine($"Current Executable Name: {currentExecutable}");
        }
    }
}

The output of the above code is −

Current Executable Name: MyConsoleApp.exe

Using System.Diagnostics.Process

The System.Diagnostics.Process class provides several ways to retrieve information about the current process, including the executable name and full path.

Getting Process Name Only

This method returns the filename without the extension −

using System;
using System.Diagnostics;

namespace DemoApplication {
    public class Program {
        public static void Main() {
            string currentExecutable = Process.GetCurrentProcess().ProcessName;
            Console.WriteLine($"Current Executable Name: {currentExecutable}");
        }
    }
}

The output of the above code is −

Current Executable Name: MyConsoleApp

Getting Full Path with MainModule

This method returns the complete path to the executable file −

using System;
using System.Diagnostics;

namespace DemoApplication {
    public class Program {
        public static void Main() {
            string currentExecutable = Process.GetCurrentProcess().MainModule.FileName;
            Console.WriteLine($"Current Executable Path: {currentExecutable}");
        }
    }
}

The output of the above code is −

Current Executable Path: C:\Users\UserName\source\repos\MyConsoleApp\bin\Debug\MyConsoleApp.exe

Using System.Reflection.Assembly

The Assembly class provides another approach to get the executable location −

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Reflection;

namespace DemoApplication {
    public class Program {
        public static void Main() {
            string assemblyPath = Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().Location;
            string executableName = Path.GetFileName(assemblyPath);
            Console.WriteLine($"Executable Name: {executableName}");
            Console.WriteLine($"Full Path: {assemblyPath}");
        }
    }
}

The output of the above code is −

Executable Name: MyConsoleApp.exe
Full Path: C:\Users\UserName\source\repos\MyConsoleApp\bin\Debug\MyConsoleApp.exe

Comparison of Methods

Conclusion

Getting the current executable name in C# can be accomplished through multiple approaches depending on your needs. Use AppDomain.FriendlyName for simple name retrieval, Process.ProcessName for process-related operations, or MainModule.FileName when you need the complete file path.