Suggestion required for Data access layer.

Question

I have a big Application in DotNet framework and now i am going to redevelop in dotnet Blazor. In data access layer i have used ADO.net,now i am confused that i should keep ADO.net or should change this to entity frame work or any other ORM.please suggest which one is good.

Answer 1

@inam

I believe that all tutorials showing how to use Blazor are using the ADO.NET Entity Framework weather that be a Blazor Web server-side or client-side solution, which would probably be using the generic repository pattern. I am not a fan of the generic repository pattern becuase it is too inflexible to change. And besides, the repository pattern is a domain pattern not a data persistence pattern. Also, EF is already using the Repository pattern, and it's not good to repeat the pattern over EF.

https://martinfowler.com/eaaCatalog/repository.html

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.data.entity.dbcontext?view=entity-framework-6.2.0

https://www.infoworld.com/article/3117713/design-patterns-that-i-often-avoid-repository-pattern.html

https://programmingwithmosh.com/net/common-mistakes-with-the-repository-pattern/

I only bring up the Repository pattern, becuase that's what all the tutorials concerning an ASP.NET anything or the Blazor client-side teach. :)

Some developers like to use Dapper, a micro ORM, for queries and use EF for data persistence in the same solution.

You talk about the DAL, and if you go in that direction, I like to use the DAO pattern in the DAL using EF.

.https://javarevisited.blogspot.com/2013/01/data-access-object-dao-design-pattern-java-tutorial-example.html

DTO(s) travel through layers, tiers or services and not the ORM model objects.

https://www.codeproject.com/Articles/1050468/Data-Transfer-Object-Design-Pattern-in-Csharp

Now if were me, I would consider having an ASP.NET WebAPI with the DAL sitting behind it using EF for CRUD.

No, I wouldn't have a Blazor solution client-side a desktop solution, a big solution, becuase it's too heavy of a footprint on the Windows O/S desktop, and anything can go wrong that could cause problems.

I would have the Blazor client-side make the calls for CRUD with the database using an ASP.NET WebAPI. The WebAPI is static on a Web server for the most part using the DAL doing CRUD using EF is kind of static too instead of having to push EF changes out with Blazor client-side solution to every machine, IMHO.

HTH

Answer 2

Best idea is to use Entity Framework Core for working with data, see the following for an idea for basics while there is more to it yet easy enough once you get into it.

See also How to Implement Blazor CRUD using Entity Framework Core? Detailed Demonstration