Download - ADO.net Entity Designer

8/3/2019 ADO.net Entity Designer

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ADO.NET Entity Designer in Dot net Framework 4

Introduction:

An edmx file is an XML file that defines a conceptual model, a storage model, and the

mapping between these models. An edmx file also contains information that is usedby the ADO.NET Entity Data Model Designer (Entity Designer) to render a model

graphically

An edmx file can be included in the following Visual Studio project categories:

Application projects

Class libraries

Web projects

Framework Required: Dot net Framework 4.0

Steps to Create edmx file from existing database

Open a Project to which you want to create the edmx file.


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Right-click the project name in Solution Explorer, point to Add, and then click

New Item.

Select ADO.NET Entity Data Model in the Templates pane

Enter a proper name to the edmx file and click add button on the screen.

The first page of the Entity Data Model Wizard appears.


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If you want to create the edmx from existing database select Generate from

database and click next.

The second page of the Entity Data Model Wizard appears.

In this click New Connection from establishing a new connection withdatabase.

Select appropriate Data Source (in this case the data source is Microsoft SQL

Server)

Select the Server Name from the Dropdown list

Enter proper Authentication Method, with proper credentials.

And finally select the Data Base from the list. Test the Connection and Press OK


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The Second Page ofEntity Data Model Wizard will be visible with updated

information

You can find the Entity Connection String filled in with information like

metadata=res://*/Model1.csdl|res://*/Model1.ssdl|

res://*/Model1.msl;provider=System.Data.SqlClient;provider connectionstring="Data Source=WADB\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=WA_LOGDB;User

ID=nexus;Password=***********"

Clear/uncheck Save entity connection settings check box if you do not

want connection information saved in a configuration file.

Click Next


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The third page of the Entity Data Model Wizard appears.

Select the tables present in the Database from the tree Tables, Select viewand Stored Procedure from respective tree, and

Check Pluralize or singularize (it Controls whether new entity set names andnavigation property names are pluralized).

Click Finish.

You will get your edmx file in the project, with all connection to the tables.

Like this


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Right Click to the page on the designer, and select Add Code Generation

Item.


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You will get an Add new Item box, in that select ADO.NET Self Tracking

Entity Generator.

You will get a two files with extension .tt and .context.tt


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If the table name ends with s for e.g. SMS or TruckGPS the dot net willautomatically change its name to SM and TruckGP respectively as it eliminates the last s

from table name.


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In Such cases select the table from Entity Diagram, select the Property andchange the Name to appropriate Name of the Database. This will reset the Name of the

Table in all places including the file name.

You can have more than two Entity model in same project/ solution


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But for each entity and its sub file you should provide Custom Tool

Namespace.

This will differentiate the Name space for each entity as shown below.

Namespace Report

PartialPublicClassEntities

PublicSubNew(ByVal databaseConnectionInfo AsDatabaseConnectionInfo

MyBase.New(GetEntityFrameworkConnectionString(databaseConnectionInfo,

"Report"), ContainerName)

Initialize()

EndSubs

EndClassEndNamespace

Namespace Log

PartialPublicClassEntities

PublicSubNew(ByVal databaseConnectionInfo AsDatabaseConnectionInfo

MyBase.New(GetEntityFrameworkConnectionString(databaseConnectionInfo,

ContainerName)

Initialize()

EndSub


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EndClass

EndNamespace

This Process is for SQL Database for connecting it to other database for

example of our database is Oracle the connections have to be done manuallythrough SSDL and MSL file, for details see the figure below

Here in case of Oracle the Column names are case sensitive and thus have to

be manually changed to appropriate Upper Case

E.g. the EDMX file in case of SQL Connection will have:

Which will be Case sensitive in Oracle connection and have to be manually

changed to Upper Case:

And We have to separately modify the metaData

metaData = metaData.Replace(".ssdl", ".Oracle.ssdl")

metaData = metaData.Replace(".msl", ".Oracle.msl")


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Updating the Tables/ Views from the Model Browser

If the Data Base is updated with some new column you can always go to the

Model Browser and right click the Table/ Views in the Model Browser and SelectUpdate Model From Database.


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You will see the First page ofUpdate Wizard

Here you can see three tabs Add, Refresh, Delete

In Add Tab

You can see the Additional columns present in the Tables (Database).

You can select the columns and this will be added to the Entity model.

In Refresh Tab

Here you can see the Nodes for tables, views, and stored procedures that are

included in the existing model. Any changes that have been made to thesedatabase objects will be reflected in the updated storage model. Changes to the

conceptual model are made when columns are added to a table or view.

In Delete Tab

Here you can see the Nodes for tables, views, and stored procedure. If an object

is been deleted from the database and is present in the storage model, you can

expand the corresponding node. The objects in these nodes will be deleted from

the updated new model.

Download - ADO.net Entity Designer

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