Using Dynamic Data, ASP.NET developers can create powerful, datadriven sites with amazing speed and efficiency, eliminating massive amounts of manual coding. ASP.NET Dynamic Data Unleashed is the first complete, practical guide to Dynamic Data for every experienced ASP.NET developer.   The author thoroughly demystifies Dynamic Data, helping developers understand exactly what they can do with the framework and make it more accessible than ever before. He provides tested code to solve a wide variety of problems, explains how and why that code works, and identifies key tradeoffs and alternatives.   Packed with breakthrough techniques for improving developer productivity, this book combines a hands-on tutorial, “drill-down” explanations of advanced techniques, and real-world development scenarios.   Detailed information on how to…  Use Dynamic Data components to overcome common real-world user interface development challenges   Understand how ASP.NET Dynamic Data builds on strengths of WebForms, Entity Framework, and LINQ   Develop simple custom templates to dramatically reduce code duplication   Generalize templates to leverage metadata and generate user interfaces dynamically   Create web pages for data entry, data filtering, and diverse views of data   Use Data Annotations to implement powerful validation logic   Write simple, yet effective automated tests to systematically verify the business logic   Create complex interaction rules that aren’t limited by single entity objects or types   Optimize I/O-bound business logic by implementing it with T-SQL constraints, stored procedures, and triggers   Implement role-based security with dynamic UI trimming   Generate entire data-driven web applications, complete with CRUD pages, complex business rules, integrated navigation, and security   Extend Dynamic Data to support advanced scenarios   Decide when Dynamic Data should be used instead of or together with ASP.NET MVC  

Table of Contents:
Preface     xv PART I Dynamic Data Fundamentals 1 Getting Started     3 Creating a New Dynamic Data Application     4 Creating a Data Model     6 Metadata in Entity Framework and Dynamic Data      12 Field Templates and Dynamic Controls      13 Data Annotations     17 Entity Templates      18 Grid Columns and Dynamic Fields     22 Filter Templates     25 Page Templates and URL Routing     29 Summary      35 2 Entity Framework      37 Understanding Entity Model     38 Creating Entity Model      38 ObjectContext and Simple Queries     43 Associations      43 Querying Across Associations     46 Modifying and Saving Entities      46 LINQ to Entities      47 Query Execution      47 Object Identity     48 Lazy and Eager Loading      49 Projections      49 Sorting     50 Grouping     51 Joins      51 Composing Queries      52 SQL Translation      53 Compiled Queries      55 Extension Methods     57 Entity Lifecycle     60 Tracking Changes      60 Optimistic Concurrency Control      61 Transactions      64 Read-Only ObjectContext      65 Entity Model in Depth     66 Mapping Entity Type to Multiple Tables      71 Entity Type Inheritance     72 Inheritance Mapping     73 Stored Procedures     74 Insert, Update, and Delete Stored Procedures     78 Summary      82 3 Field Templates      85 Read-Only Templates      86 Field Value Display Format     87 Edit and Insert Mode Templates     89 Field Value Edit Format      93 Changing Existing Field Template     93 Data Binding      96 Creating a New Field Template     99 Field Template Lookup Rules     104 Data Annotations      104 Type Names     104 Type Aliases     105 Type Fallback      105 Control Mode      106 Mode Fallback     106 Navigation Columns      107 Field Template Lookup Algorithm      108 Built-in Field Templates      111 Boolean      111 Boolean_Edit      111 Children      111 Children_Insert     111 DateTime      112 DateTime_Edit      112 Decimal_Edit      112 EmailAddress      112 Enumeration      112 Enumeration Edit      113 ForeignKey      114 ForeignKey_Edit      114 Integer_Edit     114 ManyToMany      114 ManyToMany_Edit      115 MultilineText_Edit      115 Text      115 Text_Edit      116 Url      116 Summary      116 4 Entity Templates      117 Creating an Entity Template     120 Composite Entity Templates     122 Generic Entity Templates     123 Dynamic Entity Templates      124 Edit and Insert Entity Templates      129 Entity Template Lookup Rules     131 Template Name     131 Template Mode      132 Entity Template Lookup Algorithm      133 Built-in Entity Templates      134 Summary      135 5 Filter Templates      137 Filtering with LINQ     138 Creating a Filter Template      140 GetQueryable Method      143 OnFilterChanged Method      143 DefaultValue Property      143 Dynamic LINQ Queries     143 Building Search Pages with Filter Templates      145 QueryableFilterRepeater Control     148 Filter Template Lookup Rules      150 Built-in Filter Templates     151 Boolean      151 Enumeration      151 ForeignKey      151 Summary     151 6 Page Templates      153 Built-in Page Templates     154 Details Page Template     155 Edit Page Template      159 List Page Template      163 Insert Page Template     169 Creating a New Page Template      172 Custom Page Templates      174 URL Routing     180 Action Route Parameter     180 Table Route Parameter      180 URL Parameters Versus Query Parameters      181 Dynamic Hyperlinks     182 Route Evaluation and Constraints      183 ViewName Route Parameter     185 Page Template Lookup Rules      185 Summary      186 7 Metadata API      189 Metadata Classes at a Glance     189 Metadata Explorer     191 The MetaModel Class     192 Data Model Registration     192 Accessing MetaTable Objects     193 Global Model Registration     195 Scaffolding Support      196 The MetaTable Class      196 Entity Definition     196 Data Annotations      198 Data Access Support      201 Presentation Logic Support      202 Security Support     203 The MetaColumn Class      203 Property Definition     204 Property Kind     206 Data Annotations      207 The MetaForeignKeyColumn Class      211 Presentation Logic      211 The MetaChildrenColumn Class     213 Summary      214 PART II Dynamic Data in Real-World Applications 8 Implementing Entity Validation     217 Validation Framework      217 Validation Error Messages     219 Validation in Entity Framework     221 Customizing Entity Framework Code Generation     227 Replacing Built-in Code Generator with Text Template     227 Customizing Text Template to Change Context Base Class     228 Customizing Text Template to Generate Static Constructors      229 Automated Testing      230 Creating a Unit Test     231 Test Isolation     234 Testing Validation of Different Properties     235 Integration Testing Versus Unit Testing     237 Declarative Validation     238 RequiredAttribute      238 RangeAttribute     239 StringLengthAttribute     241 RegularExpressionAttribute      242 EnumDataTypeAttribute     244 DataTypeAttribute      245 Imperative Validation      245 CustomValidationAttribute      245 Validating Multiple Rules      250 Reporting Multiple Errors     252 Validating Entity State Changes      256 Accessing Original Property Values with ObjectStateManager     256 Accessing Original Property Values in Validation Methods      257 Handling DBNull Values      259 Summary      261 9 Implementing Business Logic     263 Entity Design     264 Measure Impact of Inheritance on Query Performance      264 Keep the Conceptual and Storage Models as Close as Possible     268 Default Property Values      269 Property Interaction Rules      272 OnPropertyChanging Partial Methods     273 ISavableObject Interface      273 Entity Interaction Rules      275 Implementing Entity Interaction Rules in BeforeSave Methods      276 Implementing Entity Interaction Rules as Entity Methods     277 Implementing Entity Interaction Rules as Context Methods      278 Validation Rules      280 Validation Rule Design      281 Validation of Related Entities     287 Entity Deletion Rules     289 Reusing Entity Validation in Business Rule Methods     290 Saving Changes     292 Managing Transactions     293 Invoking Business Rules in Web Applications      294 Error Handling     296 Business Rules in the Database     298 Integrating Database Validation in Dynamic Data Applications      299 Implementing Validation Rules in Triggers      304 Implementing Business Rules in Stored Procedures      306 Summary      308 10 Building Custom Forms      309 Multimode Entity Templates      310 Custom Templates      310 Dynamic Templates      312 Creating Dynamic Label Control      315 Extending DynamicControl      319 Configuring Field Templates     321 Specifying a Field Template Explicitly      321 Configuring Field Templates Declaratively      322 Configuring Field Templates Programmatically      323 Creating Custom Field Templates     324 Implementing Interaction Between Field Templates      327 Accessing Initial Field Values of Other Columns     330 Accessing Modified Field Values of Other Columns     331 Initial Implementation of the Region_Edit Field Template     332 Improving Encapsulation of Field Templates     334 FieldValue Property     336 FieldValueChanged Event     337 AutoPostBack Property      337 Extending Existing Field Templates      337 Using Entity Templates to Control Field Templates      341 Extending DynamicControl (Again)      343 Taking Advantage of the UnleashedControl in Entity Templates     345 Summary      347 11 Building Dynamic Forms      349 Basic Form Layout     350 Configuring Appearance of Labels      352 Prompt Annotation      354 Description Annotation     356 Configuring Field Templates     357 Making Properties Read-Only     357 Overriding Default Field Templates      359 Configuring Appearance of Values     360 Enum Properties and Enumeration Templates     361 Extending the Enumeration Field Templates     362 Custom Data Types and UI Hints     368 Specifying Field Template Parameters      370 Extending Dynamic Data to Support Control Parameters      372 Field Template Interaction in Dynamic Forms      378 Fixing the FindOtherFieldTemplate Method      381 Creating Additional Dynamic Entity Templates      383 Extending Metadata to Support Entity UI Hints      384 Extending Page Templates to Support EntityUIHintAttribute     386 UnleashedEntity Control     386 Building a Dynamic Two-Column Entity Template      388 Summary      393 12 Building Custom Search Pages     395 Displaying Information from Related Entities      396 Column Sorting Across Related Entities      400 Building Custom Search Pages      401 Overcoming Limitations of Dynamic Filters      403 Using Replacement Filter Controls      405 Filtering Based on Related Entities      407 Initializing Nested Filter Control      409 Implementing Query Logic      411 Using the Parent Filter Template     419 Summary      420 13 Building Dynamic List Pages     421 Extending Filter Lookup Rules     422 Extending the FilterFactory Class     423 Extending the MetaTable Class      427 Extending the MetaModel Class      429 Building Dynamic UI with Custom Properties      432 Implementing Support for Custom Properties     433 Model Providers     434 Sorting of Custom Properties     446 Specifying Sort Expression for Custom Properties in Entity Model     446 Extending Dynamic Data to Support Sort Expression Metadata      447 Generating Metadata Attributes      450 Summary      452 14 Implementing Security     455 Table Scaffolding      456 Route Constraints      457 Web.Config Authorization Rules     458 Limitations of Configuration-Based Rules     461 Metadata Security API     462 Modifying Dynamic Templates to Support the Security API     464 Implementing Row-Level Security     472 Security Annotations      476 AuthorizationAttribute      477 CustomQueryAttribute      487 Summary      493 Index      495