Entity Framework Arithabort ON, but still query is slow - entity-framework

Question

I have a simple query
var count = await _context.ExchangeRate.AsNoTracking().CountAsync(u => u.Currency == "GBP");
The table has only 3 Columns and 10 rows data.
When I tried to execute the query from Net 5 project it is taking around 2.3 seconds for the first time and 500ms (+- 100) for subsequent requests. When I hit the same request in SSMS it is returning in almost no time (45ms as seen in sql profiler).
I have implemented ARITHABORT ON in EF from here
When I see in SQL Profiler it is setting ARITHABORT ON but still the query takes the same time for the first request and subsequent requests.
How do I achieve speed same as SSMS query speed. I need the query to run really speed as my project has requirement to the return the response in 1 second (Need to make atleast 5 simple DB calls...if 1 call takes 500ms then it is crossing 1 second requirement)
Edit
Tried with even ADO.Net. The execution time took as seen in SQL Profiler is 40ms where as when it reached the code it is almost 400ms. So much difference
using (var conn = new SqlConnection(connectionString))
{
var sql = "select count(ExchangeRate) as cnt from ExchangeRate where Currency = 'GBP'";
SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand();
cmd.CommandText = "SET ARITHABORT ON; " + sql;
cmd.CommandType = CommandType.Text;
cmd.Connection = conn;
conn.Open();
var t1 = DateTime.Now;
var rd = cmd.ExecuteReader();
var t2 = DateTime.Now;
TimeSpan diff = t2 - t1;
Console.WriteLine((int)diff.TotalMilliseconds);
while (rd.Read())
{
Console.WriteLine(rd["cnt"].ToString());
}
conn.Close();
}

Answer 1

Your "first run" scenario is generally the one-off static initialization of the DbContext. This is where the DbContext works out its mappings for the first time and will occur when the first query is executed. The typical approach to avoid this occurring for a user is to have a simple "warm up" query that runs when the service starts up.. For instance after your service initializes, simply put something like the following:
// Warm up the DbContext
using (var context = new AppDbContext())
{
var hasUser = context.Users.Any();
}
This also serves as a quick start-up check that the database is reachable and responding. The query itself will do a very quick operation, but the DbContext will resolve its mappings at this time so any newly generated DbContext instances will respond without incurring that cost during a request.
As for raw performance, if it isn't a query that is expected to take a while and tie up a request, don't make it async. Asynchronous requests are not faster, they are actually a bit slower. Using async requests against the DbContext is about ensuring your web server / application thread is responsive while potentially expensive database operations are processing. If you want a response as quickly as possible, use a synchronous call.
Next, ensure that any fields you are filtering against, in this case Currency, are indexed. Having a field called Currency in your entity as a String rather than a CurrencyId FK (int) pointing to a Currency record is already an extra indexing expense as indexes on integers are smaller/faster than those on strings.
You also don't need to bother with AsNoTracking when using a Count query. AsNoTracking applies solely when you are returning entities (ToList/ToArray/Single/Firstetc.) to avoid having the DbContext holding onto a reference to the returned entity. When you use Count/Any or projection to return properties from entities using Select there is no entity returned to track.
Also consider network latency between where your application code is running and the database server. Are they the same machine or is there a network connection in play? How does this compare when you are performing a SSMS query? Using a profiler you can see what SQL EF is actually sending to the database. Everything else in terms of time is a cost of: Getting the request to the DB, Getting the resulting data back to the requester, parsing that response. (If in the case where you are returning entities, allocating, populating, checking against existing references, etc... In the case of counts etc. checking existing references)
Lastly, to ensure you are getting the peak performance, ensure that your DbContexts lifetimes are kept short. If a DbContext is kept open and has had a number of tracking queries run against in (Selecting entities without AsNoTracking) those tracked entity references accumulate and can have a negative performance impact on future queries, even if you use AsNoTracking as EF looks to check through it's tracked references for entities that might be applicable/related to your new queries. Many times I see developers assume DbContexts are "expensive" so they opt to instantiate them as little as possible to avoid those costs, only to end up making operations more expensive over time.
With all that considered, EF will never be as fast as raw SQL. It is an ORM designed to provide convenience to .Net applications when it comes to working with data. That convenience in working with entity classes rather than sanitizing and writing your own raw SQL every time comes with a cost.