Tips and Tricks
Hopefully if you're reading this you've noticed that I've started a series of Tips recently.
The tips will mostly apply to Entity Framework or Data Services.
Seeing as I expect to have a lots of tips, it probably makes sense to have some sort of index.
That is what this is post is, as I add a new tip I will add it to this page too.
If you have any suggested topics for tips please let me know by leaving a comment or emailing me directly at Microsoft (Alexj is my alias at Microsoft, and emails at Microsoft are in the form alias@microsoft.com)
Without further ado here are what I have so far:
Tip 55 - How to extend an IQueryable by wrapping it
Tip 54 - How to improve performance using Statement Expressions
Tip 53 - How to debug EF POCO mapping issues
Tip 52 - How to re-use Types with the Data Services client
Tip 51 - How to load EF metadata from arbitrary streams
Tip 50 - How to query a Data Service using JQuery
Tip 49 – How to find your Data Service bug
Tip 48 - How to host a Data Service in WCF
Tip 47 – How fix-up can make it hard to change relationships
Tip 46 - How to exclude a property using Code-Only
Tip 45 - How to swap EF metadata at runtime
Tip 44 – How to navigate an OData compliant service
Tip 43 – How to authenticate against a Data Service
Tip 42 – How to create a dynamic model using Code-Only
Tip 41 - How to execute T-SQL directly against the database
Tip 40 - How to materialize presentation models via L2E
Tip 39 - How to set overlapping Relationships - EF 4.0 only
Tip 38 - How to use Code Only with Astoria
Tip 37 - How to do a Conditional Include
Tip 36 – How to Construct by Query
Tip 35 – How to write OfTypeOnly<TEntity>()
Tip 34 – How to work with Updatable Views
Tip 33 – How cascade delete really works in EF
Tip 32 – How to create a database from SSDL – EF 4 only
Tip 31 – How to compose L2O and L2E queries
Tip 30 - How to use a custom database function
Tip 29 – How to avoid LazyLoad or Load() reader issues
Tip 28 - How to implement an Eager Loading Strategy
Tip 27 – How to Implement BeforeSave Validation
Tip 26 – How to avoid database queries using Stub Entities
Tip 25 – How to get Entities by key the easy way
Tip 24 – How to get the ObjectContext from an Entity
Tip 23 – How to fake Enums in EF 4
Tip 22 - How to make Include really Include
Tip 21 – How to use the Single() operator – EF 4.0 only
Tip 20 – How to deal with Fixed Length Keys
Tip 19 – How to use Optimistic Concurrency with the Entity Framework
Tip 18 – How to decide on a lifetime for your ObjectContext
Tip 17 – How to do one step updates with AttachAsModified(..)
Tip 16 – How to mimic .NET 4.0’s ObjectSet<T> today
Tip 15 - How to avoid loading unnecessary Properties
Tip 14 - How to cache Entity Framework Reference Data
Tip 13 - How to Attach an Entity the easy way
Tip 12 - How to choose an Inheritance Strategy
Tip 11 - How to avoid Relationship Span
Tip 10 - How to understand Entity Framework jargon
Tip 9 - How to delete an object without retrieving it
Tip 8 - How to write 'WHERE IN' style queries using LINQ to Entities
Tip 7 - How to fake Foreign Key Properties in .NET 3.5 SP1
Tip 6 - How and when to use eager loading
Tip 5 - How to restrict the types returned from an EF Query
Tip 4 - Conceptual Schema Definition Language Rules
Tip 3 - How to get started with T4
Tip 2 - Entity Framework Books
Tip 1 - How to sort Relationships in the Entity Framework
Enjoy.