I have a stored proc in my database and I am using Entity Framework 4 to work with the database from my code. Following instructions for importing a sproc, I was able to add it to my model and import a function to reference it. In the model browser under Function Imports, the stored proc and all its parameters appears. The access says "Public." Yet, I am not able to see it in Intellisense when I go to call it in my context object. When I do a global search on the name of the sproc, I see it appears in 3 places in the EDMX, and once in my calling code, but no code appears to have been generated for it in the Designer.cs file.
I must have missed a step or something, but as I look back through it, it's all pretty simple; I can't see where I went wrong. Has this happened to anyone? How can I troubleshoot?
if you switch to the model browser view on the .edmx file, you can see your imported SProcs under the model store node in the stored procedures folder. You can right-click them there and select "add function import" to generate the execution code in the entity data model's Designer.cs file. Unfortunately, you seem to have to do this import for them individually. If someone knows how to import them all simultaneously, I'd love to know.
Is that what you're looking for?
Take a look at this MSDN thread. On this forum, there is another thread addressing this issue in some way.
In short, it is an EF Designer limitation. You can try writing your own code to call this function, or use third-party designer like Entity Developer.
Related
I have a T4 template that generates the edmx model of my DB; I have to use this T4 template because i have to define my own localized pluralization dictionary to manage plurals/singulars.
The bad thing is that i have to manually import my stored procedures every time, after i launched my T4 template, via the 'import function' menu.
Is there a way to import the stored procedures programmatically?
Is the code of the "import function" wizard available and open source?
Mostly i'd like to see how they implemented the 'obtain column informations' to generate the result class.
The EDMX file is just XML. You can programmatically open and edit that XML file as you would any other.
I would imagine that "Obtain column information" works by using ADO to query the parameters, (see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/174223 ), populating them with dummy values, and querying the result - I think that would work, but perhaps SQL profiler would reveal more.
I have to create a new project and (as usual) is with an existing SQL Server database.
I used to use EF Code First connecting with my database, opening my EDMX model designer and then right click --> Add Code Generation Item. (http://weblogs.asp.net/jgalloway/archive/2011/02/24/generating-ef-code-first-model-classes-from-an-existing-database.aspx) Easy.
But now I've discovered there's something called EF Power Tools that allows me to do Reverse Engineer Code First (cool name!) and get the same (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/data/jj200620)
Do you know the difference between the two options? Which one is better?
Thanks in advance.
(Sorry if this question was previously asked but I didn't find it.)
The difference is that the edmx approach is not code first, but database first with DbContext API. You will always use the database as the source of model changes.
EF Power Tools produce a truly code first model with DbContext: from then on you will change the class model first and modify the database accordingly (e.g. by EF migrations).
Neither is "better". DbContext API is easier to work with than ObjectContext, but both approaches use the former. It's up to you to choose whether you want to work database first or code first. It's a matter of personal preference and it may depend on who maintains the database structure. With database first it is easier to respond to changes someone else imposes on the database structure.
As far as workflow goes for database first, adding to what #Gert-Arnold said:
With database first it is easier to respond to changes someone else imposes on the database structure.
If someone else is managing the database changes, I'm finding it far easier to use the EF Designer. You get an updated database, then just right-click in the EF Designer and update the model from the database. You can use source control to easily view what has changed.
Also, if you only need a subset of tables from the database, reverse engineering causes alot of work having to go back and remove classes and properties from the context.
I found re-reverse engineering via code-first to an existing database to be just too much of a pain trying to figure out what changed and how I needed to update code that used the context.
I have several columns that I changed from Int to BigInt.
I opened up my EF model and did an 'Update Model from Database' and expected to see those columns now be Int64s. But they are still Int32s.
(I ran it several times just to be sure.)
I double checked my database and the columns are definitely BigInts.
So... does 'Update Model from Database' not work for a change of data type? Does it need to be manually applied?
Unfortunately, you'll need to delete the items from your model and then add them back in - at least that's the only thing I have managed to get working.
There is at least one third-party tool that is supposed to help with this, but have not tried it personally.
I'm using VS2008 SP1. If you change the datatype in the "ModelView" (CSDL) of the edmx, errors will occur because the "DatabaseModel" (SSDL) is not updated. You have to edit the *.edmx manually (XML). That is not so hard as it sounds.
You can simply search for the Property that the "Error List" of VS provides you (search in files is maybe the best solution for this). Go to the line where the wrong datatype appear and fix it.
e.g. you changed float to nvarchar(50) on the database --> go to your model and change Double to String --> validate --> Error.... --> Search for the property and make following changes:
<Property Name="YourChangedProperty" Type="float" />
to
<Property Name="YourChangedProperty" Type="nvarchar" MaxLength="50" />
This works very well if you know exactly what you've changed on the database. If you've made countless changes, you would have to analyse your changes with some DB-compare tool or regenerate the whole model.
Not very nice. But it "works".
take care
M
Correct - data types don't appear to update automatically. You can simply change the data type in the model view using the Properties window and change the Type to Int64.
Answer
For the specific scenario you mentioned, you will need to manually change the Type from Int32 to Int64.
There are a number of ways that this can be done, but the easiest is probably just to open the model (using the default editor) and change the Type of the property from Int32 to Int64.
Explanation (from MSDN Library)
The ADO.NET Entity Data Model Designer (Entity Designer) uses the Update Model Wizard to update an .edmx file from changes made to the database. The Update Model Wizard overwrites the storage model as part of this process. The Update Model Wizard also makes some changes to the conceptual model and mappings, but it only makes these changes when objects are added to the database. For example, new entity types are added to the conceptual model when tables are added to the database, and new properties are added to entity types when columns are added to a table. For details about what changes are made to the .edmx file, see Changes Made to an .edmx File by the Update Model Wizard.
For your scenario, the important thing to note is that the update model wizard is updating the .edmx file with your changes, but only to the storage model. When changes are made to the definition of existing columns, the conceptual model is not updated. For a complete description of changes made by the update model wizard, please see the "Changes Made to an .edmx File by the Update Model Wizard" link above.
You need delete your EF model and than create again and will work.
This may be an older question, but it is most assuredly still relevant today as the issue has not changed. As such, I thought I'd offer a synopsis of the research performed to date on the issue, including some observations of my own:
This failure to update the existing data-types is by design, based upon notes attached to Microsoft's documentation on the topic, as reported in the answer from timb. (Note that Microsoft appears to have either moved or purged the linked document and current documentation does not refer to this issue, but similarly worded notes can still be found elsewhere in archived documentation. Reference) The "Update Model from Database..." wizard does not update those changes, and instead pushes the onus for resolving the issue back onto the developer, in order to avoid making incorrect automatic changes which could theoretically corrupt the Model in ways which were not intended by the developer.
As such, there are really only two ways to resolve the issue, without resorting to third party tools:
Delete the affected tables from the Model and re-add them with the "Update Model from Database..." wizard, as noted in the answer from E.J. Brennan. The potential weakness of this method is that it doesn't always succeed, particularly if the original model was generated using a previous version of the Entity Framework, which can sometimes force the developer to perform significantly more work than might otherwise be necessary to complete the task.
Manually adjust the affected fields from the graphical model viewer, by right-clicking on the field in the table and selecting "Properties..." from the contextual menu. NOTE: Do not make manual changes directly to the Model .cs files from a code window, as such changes will be reverted the next time the "Update Model from Database..." wizard is run; if the changes are performed from the graphical model viewer, they will persist beyond re-running the wizard.
Also if you work with MySQL on Windows - recreating model may also wont help. Schema is somehow cached in MySQL. So if model is not updated even after recreation try to restart MySQL service and VS to be sure. After that model should be successfully updated.
I solved this by modifying the .EDMX file with a text editor.
Find your value and change it's type. Then correct the type in other errors that will be shown in the debugger.
I work with EF 4 (not with Self-tracking entities currently). I've added some columns (non of them is a key and all of the are nullable) to one of my entities, and got the Number of members in conceptual type does not match with number of members on object side type exception.
I've followed the accepted answer here but all I got from that was that this entity does not appear in my edmx anymore. I've re-added it from DB, but I keep getting the same exception.
I think the problem is that I've copied the csdl/ssdl/msl files to my executing assembly directory. I'd like to copy the updated files, but they're not created again (they were once created in the obj\Debug\edmxResourcesToEmbed folder of my EF project), not even after removing them.
Any way to get those files created again?
Thanks.
P.S: As I don't want to publish excess amounts of code, I don't add anything yet but I'll be happy to add needed information, I'm just not sure what exactly is needed.
So if you want to create the csdl, ssdl amd msl files, do the following:
Go to your edmx file.
Click on the GuI screen that shows the model.
Switch to the property window (I didn't know that it needs to be accessed from the GUI area and not by right clicking the file in the Solution Explorer.
In the Metadata Artifact Process select Embed in Output Assembly.
Done and done, the files will appear in Debug\edmxResourcesToEmbed under obj or obj\x86, depends on your build definitions.
I'm sorry if this seems to simple to explain, but I was in need for those instructions (msdn was not a great help) and I hope it might help others.
I tried to follow this link to map stored procedures to Custom Entities, but when I did so I could no open the EDMX file in the VS 2008 designer.
so looks like it is causing some issues.
Does anyone know how to map Stored procedure results to custom Entities in Entity Framework?
In VS2010 and EF4 this is extremely easy todo.
When you do a function import it there is an extra option for returning the collection as a complex type. Even better there is a feature # the bottom of the 'Add Function Import' dialog that will attempt get the columns from the stored proc result set. Finally, it gives you the option todo a one-click 'Create New Complex' type based upon the result sets. It appears the EF team saw this as a pain and took all necessary steps to make this easier.
We have a large project that we are about to start on (large meaning 30+ developers and taking 2+ years to complete). We were weighing the options of using standard ADO.Net, EntityFramwork, or a 3rd party ORM like LLBLGen. What we are seeing so far is that the Entity Framework 4 release is a much more full featured ORM. I would be very skeptical # using EF in VS2008 mostly because of the issue you are talking about in this post + how EF handled the FK's in the VS2008 release (http://blogs.msdn.com/efdesign/archive/2009/03/16/foreign-keys-in-the-entity-framework.aspx)
I just successfully solved this problem I was having after following the same walkthrough link you provided. (I suppose this answer is for anyone who finds this unanswered question in their search.)
My problem was that I was not opening the ssdl file correctly. You MUST open it by right clicking the edmx file in the solutions window --> "open with" --> "xml (text) editor" or else the file will not be built properly after making changes, and you won't be able to see the graphical representation of your model. As long as you complete his tutorial editing ONLY the ssdl section of the file, it will work. Just be careful. Opening the ssdl portion of this file in external programs such as Notepad ++ WILL NOT WORK.
Hope that helps someone. My problem is now passing SelectedItem property of a listbox displaying an entity query result as a parameter to my makeshift st