Cannot implicitly convert type 'System.Linq.IQueryable<>' to 'Model'.An explicit conversion exists (are you missing a cast?)

Question

I am new in MVC, I dont know much about MVC, so sometimes i cant got the error, I am creating dual list box and move the items of listbox1 to listbox2, in first listbox fetch the data from database, so for that i have create the following.. Model.cs

public class Model
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Name { get; set; }
    public string Class { get; set; }
}

ViewModel.cs

public class ViewModel
{
    public List<Model> AvailableModel { get; set; }

    public List<Model> RequestedModel { get; set; }

    public string[] AvailableSelected { get; set; }
    public string[] RequestedSelected { get; set; }
}

in controller to fetch the data from db i have create the following

[NonAction]
private Model getName()
{
    var name = (from m in db.Models
                select m);
    return name;
}

[NonAction]
public List<Model> getAllInstituteNameList()
{
    return getName();
}

[HttpGet]
public ActionResult Index()
{
    ViewModel model = new ViewModel { AvailableModel = getAllInstituteNameList(), RequestedModel = newList<Model>() };
    return View();
}

After runnig, it throws the following exception

Cannot implicitly convert type 'System.Linq.IQueryable' to 'DemoListBox.Models.Model'. An explicit conversion exists (are you missing a cast?)

on this line

var name = (from m in db.Models
    select m);
    return name;

Please help to solve it.....

UPDATED

After following your ans.. i again got this new exception on view

Object reference not set to an instance of an object.

in this line

<%:Html.ListBoxFor(model =>model.AvailableSelected, newMultiSelectList(Model.AvailableModel, "Id", "Name", Model.AvailableSelected))%>

---

• edited

---

View

<h2>Index</h2>
<%using(Html.BeginForm()) {%>
<div>
<hr/>
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>
                       Available
</th>

<th>

</th>

<th>
                       Requested
</th>
</tr>
</thead>

<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<%:Html.ListBoxFor(model =>model.AvailableSelected, newMultiSelectList(Model.AvailableModel, "Id", "Name", Model.AvailableSelected))%>
</td>

<td>
<inputid="add"name="add"type="submit"value=">>"/>
<br/>
<inputid="remove"name="remove"type="submit"value="<<"/>
</td>

<td>
<%:Html.ListBoxFor(model=>model.RequestedSelected,newMultiSelectList(Model.RequestedModel,"Id","Name",Model.RequestedSelected)) %>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<br/>

<hr/>
</div>
<% }%>

Answer 1

Your getAllInstituteNameList expects collection of models (List). Your getName returns single Model (what conflicts with above expected type). Your getName tries to return Collection but expected result is a single Model. One more error.

[NonAction]
private List<Model>getName()
{
    var names = (from m in db.Models
                select m).ToList();
    return names;
}

[NonAction]
public List<Model> getAllInstituteNameList()
{
    return getNames();
}

EDIT

return model to the view

return View(model);

Answer 2

As you see in your code returning type of method is Model and you return a Linq object that's why it through exception.