Entity Framework (5-1), With .Net Core MVC, Database-First --- Scaffold-DbContext

Note: this article is published on 01/18/2025

After I wrote several articles on this site, I found out it seemed almost for every article, I needed to set up a sample application associated with an entity framework if accessing the database. And, every time, I needed to rewrite the setup process from scratch in order for a new reader to follow along easily. Even for introducing a very simple concept, such as Caching, I needed to spend 80% of the time setting up the sample app, and only 20%  on introducing the Caching concept itself.

Therefore, I think it is better to write a basic model such as entity framework sample for various approaches, and then I can reuse them when needed. I made a list of the series of articles below, I will write them one by one, while the Entity framework overview and concept will be covered in the article (0):

• Entity Framework (0), Overview
  • Entity Framework (0-1), Overview Additions
• Entity Framework (1), with .Net MVC, Code-First
• Entity Framework (2), with .Net MVC, Database-First
• Entity Framework (3), with .Net MVC, Model-First 
  • Entity Framework (3-0), Entity Data Model (EDM) 
  • Entity Framework (3-1), with .Net Console Model-First 
• Entity Framework (4), with .Net Core MVC, Code-First
• Entity Framework (5), with .Net Core MVC, Database-First 
  • Entity Framework (5-1), With .Net Core MVC, Database-First --- Scaffold-DbContext --- this article
• Entity Framework (6), with .Net Core MVC, Model-First
• Entity Framework (7), with .Net WPF, Database-First
• Entity Framework (8), with .NET Core Web API, Stored Procedure
• Entity Framework (9), with .NET Core Web API, Stored Procedure Implementation
• Entity Framework (10), with .Net WebForms, Database-First
• Entity Framework (11), with .Net Core Razor Pages Code-First 
  • Entity Framework (11-1), with .Net Core Razor Pages Code-First (2)
• Entity Framework (12), with New .Net Core MVC Code-First
  • Entity Framework (12-1), DbContext Register and Lifetime
• Entity Framework (13), with .Net Core Code-First Summary

Introduction

This article is a detailed discussion of the Reverse Engineering command used in the article Entity Framework (5), with .Net Core MVC, Database-First: Scaffold-DbContext.

There are two parts for this article:

• A - AI Result for Scaffold-DbContext
• B - My sample from work

At the end, you have an MVC app that can consume a database directly through entity framework.

A - AI Result for Scaffold-DbContext

AI Result from Copilot | Microsoft 365 Copilot

The Scaffold-DbContext command is used in Entity Framework Core to generate entity type classes and a DbContext class based on an existing database schema. This process is known as reverse engineering. Here’s a quick guide on how to use it:

1. Install the necessary tools:

   • For Package Manager Console (PMC) in Visual Studio:

     Install-Package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Tools
     

   • For .NET CLI:

     dotnet tool install --global dotnet-ef
     

2. Run the Scaffold-DbContext command:

   • In PMC:

     Scaffold-DbContext "YourConnectionString" Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
     

   • In .NET CLI:

     dotnet ef dbcontext scaffold "YourConnectionString" Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
     

3. Parameters:

   • YourConnectionString: The connection string to your database.
   • Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer: The provider for your database (e.g., SQL Server).

4. Example:

   Scaffold-DbContext "Server=(localdb)\mssqllocaldb;Database=YourDatabase;Trusted_Connection=True;" Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
   

This command will generate the entity classes and the DbContext class in your project, allowing you to interact with your existing database using EF Core [1], [2], [3]

B - My sample from work

Scaffold-DbContext -Connection name=CoreDb -Provider Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer -Project "Willdan.Viewpoint.LADWP.DataAccess" -OutputDir CoreModels -ContextDir Context -Context CoreContext -Tables Application, FieldOption, FieldReference, NaicsCode, NotificationHistory, NotificationHistoryAttachment, NotificationHistoryRecipient, Organization, OrganizationLaborRate, OrganizationMaterialSupply, Organization_Program, Role, User, UserMetaData, User_Program, User_Role

Command Reference --- EF Core tools reference - Scaffold-DbContext

 

Reference

• EF Core tools reference (Package Manager Console) - EF Core
• Reverse Engineering - EF Core | Microsoft Learn
• Entity Framework Core with Existing Database