How to get the content/type of a file at runtime

In .Net 4.5 you can use MimeMapping.GetMimeMapping:

string contentType = MimeMapping.GetMimeMapping("someFileName.pdf")
// contentType = "application/pdf"

More information

.NET CORE Using Microsoft.AspNetCore.StaticFiles

var provider = new FileExtensionContentTypeProvider();
string contentType;
if(!provider.TryGetContentType(fileName, out contentType))
{
    contentType = "application/octet-stream";
}

IDEA: put the formats and extensions data (http://www.feedforall.com/mime-types.htm) into an xml or into your project as dictionary, array or sth else for query and create a procedure for determine mimetype for extension.. i think keeping your data on xml document will be easier for modification after compiling

Important note: This answer was written in 2011, a few years before masterwok's answer was written. Whilst my answer is still acceptable, masterwok's answer is better and more concise. Use and upvote that answer instead. Everything below is for posterity.

I would just use the file extension rather than try to do something clever that may eventually come back to bite you in the arse. :)

The file extension doesn't need to be registered on your system (although I don't know exactly what you're doing with the file...). You could use something like an enum or db table which contains information on acceptable extensions if you want to filter out files.

Please see @Tolgahan's idea on this. I created a C# enum below based on this which should provide people with a starting point should they wish to create a db/enum/xml-based approach to this.

Public enum MimeTypes
{
  [Description("application/postscript")]
  ai,
  [Description("audio/x-aiff")]
  aif,
  [Description("audio/x-aiff")]
  aifc,
  [Description("audio/x-aiff")]
  aiff,
  [Description("text/plain")]
  asc,
  [Description("application/atom+xml")]
  atom,
  [Description("audio/basic")]
  au,
  [Description("video/x-msvideo")]
  avi,
  [Description("application/x-bcpio")]
  bcpio,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  bin,
  [Description("image/bmp")]
  bmp,
  [Description("application/x-netcdf")]
  cdf,
  [Description("image/cgm")]
  cgm,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  class,
  [Description("application/x-cpio")]
  cpio,
  [Description("application/mac-compactpro")]
  cpt,
  [Description("application/x-csh")]
  csh,
  [Description("text/css")]
  css,
  [Description("application/x-director")]
  dcr,
  [Description("video/x-dv")]
  dif,
  [Description("application/x-director")]
  dir,
  [Description("image/vnd.djvu")]
  djv,
  [Description("image/vnd.djvu")]
  djvu,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  dll,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  dmg,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  dms,
  [Description("application/msword")]
  doc,
  [Description("application/xml-dtd")]
  dtd,
  [Description("video/x-dv")]
  dv,
  [Description("application/x-dvi")]
  dvi,
  [Description("application/x-director")]
  dxr,
  [Description("application/postscript")]
  eps,
  [Description("text/x-setext")]
  etx,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  exe,
  [Description("application/andrew-inset")]
  ez,
  [Description("image/gif")]
  gif,
  [Description("application/srgs")]
  gram,
  [Description("application/srgs+xml")]
  grxml,
  [Description("application/x-gtar")]
  gtar,
  [Description("application/x-hdf")]
  hdf,
  [Description("application/mac-binhex40")]
  hqx,
  [Description("text/html")]
  htm,
  [Description("text/html")]
  html,
  [Description("x-conference/x-cooltalk")]
  ice,
  [Description("image/x-icon")]
  ico,
  [Description("text/calendar")]
  ics,
  [Description("image/ief")]
  ief,
  [Description("text/calendar")]
  ifb,
  [Description("model/iges")]
  iges,
  [Description("model/iges")]
  igs,
  [Description("application/x-java-jnlp-file")]
  jnlp,
  [Description("image/jp2")]
  jp2,
  [Description("image/jpeg")]
  jpe,
  [Description("image/jpeg")]
  jpeg,
  [Description("image/jpeg")]
  jpg,
  [Description("application/x-javascript")]
  js,
  [Description("audio/midi")]
  kar,
  [Description("application/x-latex")]
  latex,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  lha,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  lzh,
  [Description("audio/x-mpegurl")]
  m3u,
  [Description("audio/mp4a-latm")]
  m4a,
  [Description("audio/mp4a-latm")]
  m4b,
  [Description("audio/mp4a-latm")]
  m4p,
  [Description("video/vnd.mpegurl")]
  m4u,
  [Description("video/x-m4v")]
  m4v,
  [Description("image/x-macpaint")]
  mac,
  [Description("application/x-troff-man")]
  man,
  [Description("application/mathml+xml")]
  mathml,
  [Description("application/x-troff-me")]
  me,
  [Description("model/mesh")]
  mesh,
  [Description("audio/midi")]
  mid,
  [Description("audio/midi")]
  midi,
  [Description("application/vnd.mif")]
  mif,
  [Description("video/quicktime")]
  mov,
  [Description("video/x-sgi-movie")]
  movie,
  [Description("audio/mpeg")]
  mp2,
  [Description("audio/mpeg")]
  mp3,
  [Description("video/mp4")]
  mp4,
  [Description("video/mpeg")]
  mpe,
  [Description("video/mpeg")]
  mpeg,
  [Description("video/mpeg")]
  mpg,
  [Description("audio/mpeg")]
  mpga,
  [Description("application/x-troff-ms")]
  ms,
  [Description("model/mesh")]
  msh,
  [Description("video/vnd.mpegurl")]
  mxu,
  [Description("application/x-netcdf")]
  nc,
  [Description("application/oda")]
  oda,
  [Description("application/ogg")]
  ogg,
  [Description("image/x-portable-bitmap")]
  pbm,
  [Description("image/pict")]
  pct,
  [Description("chemical/x-pdb")]
  pdb,
  [Description("application/pdf")]
  pdf,
  [Description("image/x-portable-graymap")]
  pgm,
  [Description("application/x-chess-pgn")]
  pgn,
  [Description("image/pict")]
  pic,
  [Description("image/pict")]
  pict,
  [Description("image/png")]
  png,
  [Description("image/x-portable-anymap")]
  pnm,
  [Description("image/x-macpaint")]
  pnt,
  [Description("image/x-macpaint")]
  pntg,
  [Description("image/x-portable-pixmap")]
  ppm,
  [Description("application/vnd.ms-powerpoint")]
  ppt,
  [Description("application/postscript")]
  ps,
  [Description("video/quicktime")]
  qt,
  [Description("image/x-quicktime")]
  qti,
  [Description("image/x-quicktime")]
  qtif,
  [Description("audio/x-pn-realaudio")]
  ra,
  [Description("audio/x-pn-realaudio")]
  ram,
  [Description("image/x-cmu-raster")]
  ras,
  [Description("application/rdf+xml")]
  rdf,
  [Description("image/x-rgb")]
  rgb,
  [Description("application/vnd.rn-realmedia")]
  rm,
  [Description("application/x-troff")]
  roff,
  [Description("text/rtf")]
  rtf,
  [Description("text/richtext")]
  rtx,
  [Description("text/sgml")]
  sgm,
  [Description("text/sgml")]
  sgml,
  [Description("application/x-sh")]
  sh,
  [Description("application/x-shar")]
  shar,
  [Description("model/mesh")]
  silo,
  [Description("application/x-stuffit")]
  sit,
  [Description("application/x-koan")]
  skd,
  [Description("application/x-koan")]
  skm,
  [Description("application/x-koan")]
  skp,
  [Description("application/x-koan")]
  skt,
  [Description("application/smil")]
  smi,
  [Description("application/smil")]
  smil,
  [Description("audio/basic")]
  snd,
  [Description("application/octet-stream")]
  so,
  [Description("application/x-futuresplash")]
  spl,
  [Description("application/x-wais-source")]
  src,
  [Description("application/x-sv4cpio")]
  sv4cpio,
  [Description("application/x-sv4crc")]
  sv4crc,
  [Description("image/svg+xml")]
  svg,
  [Description("application/x-shockwave-flash")]
  swf,
  [Description("application/x-troff")]
  t,
  [Description("application/x-tar")]
  tar,
  [Description("application/x-tcl")]
  tcl,
  [Description("application/x-tex")]
  tex,
  [Description("application/x-texinfo")]
  texi,
  [Description("application/x-texinfo")]
  texinfo,
  [Description("image/tiff")]
  tif,
  [Description("image/tiff")]
  tiff,
  [Description("application/x-troff")]
  tr,
  [Description("text/tab-separated-values")]
  tsv,
  [Description("text/plain")]
  txt,
  [Description("application/x-ustar")]
  ustar,
  [Description("application/x-cdlink")]
  vcd,
  [Description("model/vrml")]
  vrml,
  [Description("application/voicexml+xml")]
  vxml,
  [Description("audio/x-wav")]
  wav,
  [Description("image/vnd.wap.wbmp")]
  wbmp,
  [Description("application/vnd.wap.wbxml")]
  wbmxl,
  [Description("text/vnd.wap.wml")]
  wml,
  [Description("application/vnd.wap.wmlc")]
  wmlc,
  [Description("text/vnd.wap.wmlscript")]
  wmls,
  [Description("application/vnd.wap.wmlscriptc")]
  wmlsc,
  [Description("model/vrml")]
  wrl,
  [Description("image/x-xbitmap")]
  xbm,
  [Description("application/xhtml+xml")]
  xht,
  [Description("application/xhtml+xml")]
  xhtml,
  [Description("application/vnd.ms-excel")]
  xls,
  [Description("application/xml")]
  xml,
  [Description("image/x-xpixmap")]
  xpm,
  [Description("application/xml")]
  xsl,
  [Description("application/xslt+xml")]
  xslt,
  [Description("application/vnd.mozilla.xul+xml")]
  xul,
  [Description("image/x-xwindowdump")]
  xwd,
  [Description("chemical/x-xyz")]
  xyz,
  [Description("application/zip")]
  zip
}