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How to add DbContext In Startup.cs without using Entity Framework?

I am currently working on a project where I am developing a class library that later on will be uploaded as a nugget package, such that if a user creates a.NET Core application, she/he can download the nugget package and use it accordingly.
Essentially within the class library, Entity Framework, Nethereum and other packages are installed as dependencies. One of my goals is not to require users to add Entity Framework to their application (since the nugget package (, i.e. the class library I am building)) already has it installed. For that reason, there is a DbContext that accepts the database connection string in the class library and builds the options.
public class BEFDbContext: DbContext
{
public BEFDbContext(string connectionString) :
base(SqlServerDbContextOptionsExtensions.UseSqlServer(new DbContextOptionsBuilder(), connectionString).Options) { }
public DbSet<ApplicationEvent> Events { get; set; }
}
Next, the user has to create another class in the application code that extends the BEFDbContext class found in the class library.
public class NewDatabaseContext: BEFDbContext
{
public NewDatabaseContext(string connectionString):base(connectionString){}
}
So far so good, however, at this point, I would like to 'initialise' the NewDatabaseContext class in the Startup.cs class. Generally, one would use Entity Framework and would add the code as such:
services.AddDbContextPool<NewDatabaseContext>(options =>
{
options.UseSqlServer(Configuration.GetConnectionString("defaultconnection"));
});
However, as I mentioned before One of the goals is to not require users/developers to add Entity Framework to the application (once again since we have it in the class library).
So, my question is How I can add the NewDatabaseContext class as DbCcontext in the Startup.cs without using Entity Framework?

Since you wanted the alternative response you can use Extension methods
in your library add the following code
public static class ServiceCollectionExtensions
{
public IServiceCollection AddApplicationDbContext<T>(this IServiceCollection services, IConfiguration configuration) where T : BEFDbContext
{
services.AddDbContextPool<T>(options =>
{
options.UseSqlServer(Configuration.GetConnectionString("defaultconnection"));
});
return services;
}
}
then in the startup of application you can use
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
...
services.AddApplicationDbContext<NewDatabaseContext>(Configuration);
...
}
You can have variations of this as per your need. Like accepting the connection string instead of the whole Configuration, etc.
This answer uses generics and extension methods. If you want more details then please checkout:
Generic methods: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/csharp/programming-guide/generics/generic-methods
Extension Methods: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/csharp/programming-guide/classes-and-structs/extension-methods

Logging using AOP in .NET Core 2.1

I want to implement AOP for the logging in my .NET Core 2.1 solution. I've never used it before and I've been looking online and cant seem to see any examples of people using it with Core 2. Does anyone know how i would go about this?
For example what packages to use for AOP and have any example code to get me started? Im using the built in DI with .net core so i dont need to worry about that part.

Microsoft DI does not offer advances scenarios such as interceptor or decorators(there is a workaround for decorators using Microsoft DI: https://medium.com/#willie.tetlow/net-core-dependency-injection-decorator-workaround-664cd3ec1246).
You can implement AOP by using Autofac (https://autofaccn.readthedocs.io/en/latest/advanced/interceptors.html) or Simple injector with dynamic proxy. Both have a really good documentation. Simple injector doesn't have an out of the box solution for interception because of their design rules but you can add an extension for it (http://simpleinjector.readthedocs.io/en/latest/aop.html).
Here is a basic AOP scenario from the official SI documentation:(http://simpleinjector.readthedocs.io/en/latest/InterceptionExtensions.html) :
//Add registration to the composition root
container.InterceptWith<MonitoringInterceptor>(serviceType => serviceType.Name.EndsWith("Repository"));`
// Here is an example of an interceptor implementation.
// NOTE: Interceptors must implement the IInterceptor interface:
private class MonitoringInterceptor : IInterceptor {
private readonly ILogger logger;
public MonitoringInterceptor(ILogger logger) {
this.logger = logger;
}
public void Intercept(IInvocation invocation) {
var watch = Stopwatch.StartNew();
// Calls the decorated instance.
invocation.Proceed();
var decoratedType = invocation.InvocationTarget.GetType();
this.logger.Log(string.Format("{0} executed in {1} ms.",
decoratedType.Name, watch.ElapsedMilliseconds));
}
}

Disclaimer: I am the producer of this solution
Microsoft does not provide an AOP solution out the box for Net Core. However, I have produced a 3rd party project which may help. It works directly with Net Core and plugs in via the ServiceCollection registration in your application.
What Microsoft does provide is a library called System.Runtime.DispatchProxy which can be used to create proxy objects for your classes. However, this proxy isnt particularly useful or feature rich on its own and would require a lot of extra code to get something that is on a level with Castle Proxy (the well known Dynamic Proxy library)
With that in mind, I have created a library which wraps the DispatchProxy into code that can be easily injected during the ServiceCollection configuration in the application startup. The trick is to have a way to create attributes AND a paired interceptor that can be applied to your methods. The attribute is then read during the Proxy wrapping and the relevant Interceptor is called.
This is an example Interceptor Attribute
public class ConsoleLogAttribute : MethodInterceptorAttribute
{
}
This is an example Interceptor class
public class ConsoleLogInterceptor : MethodInterceptor
{
public override void BeforeInvoke(IInterceptionContext interceptionContext)
{
Console.WriteLine($"Method executing: {interceptionContext.CurrentMethod.Name}");
}
public override void AfterInvoke(IInterceptionContext interceptionContext, object methodResult)
{
Console.WriteLine($"Method executed: {interceptionContext.CurrentMethod.Name}");
}
}
This is how it would be applied to your method
[ConsoleLog]
public void TestMethod()
{
}
And then finally, this is how it would be added to your ServiceCollection configuration (assuming that the class you wanted to Proxy was called [TestClass]:
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
// Configure Simple Proxy
services.EnableSimpleProxy(p => p.AddInterceptor<ConsoleLogAttribute, ConsoleLogInterceptor>());
// Configure your services using the Extension Methods
services.AddTransientWithProxy<ITestClass, TestClass>();
}
Take a look at this GitHub project: https://github.com/f135ta/SimpleProxy

Using Repository method in controller (ASP.NET Core)

I use repository method to get all data from DB.
Here is the code of it:
public class ExperienceRepository
{
private readonly ToSeeDatabaseContext _context;
public ExperienceRepository(ToSeeDatabaseContext context)
{
_context = context;
}
public List<Experience> GetAllExperiences()
{
return _context.Experience.ToList();
}
}
I need to call GetAllExperience from controller.
So at first I need to declare repo as private property
I do it like this
private ExperienceRepository _exprepo = new ExperienceRepository();
But it says, it need
Severity Code Description Project File Line Suppression State
Error CS7036 There is no argument given that corresponds to the required formal parameter 'context' of 'ExperienceRepository.ExperienceRepository(ToSeeDatabaseContext)' TooSeeWeb C:\Users\EugeneSukhomlyn\source\Workspaces\TooSee\Too See Web\Too See Web\Too See Web\Controllers\ExperienceController.cs 14 Active
How I can solve it?

Since you are using dependency injection, the preferred way would be to inject the DB context to the repository.
You probably have already code similar to this in the ConfigureServices method of your Startup.cs file (or in the place where you configure your service collection if you are not using ASP.NET Core) to set up the context for dependency injection (if you don't you should add it):
services.AddDbContext<ToSeeDatabaseContext>(options =>
options.UseSqlServer(Configuration.GetConnectionString("ToSeeDatabaseContext")));
Since your experience repository already accepts ToSeeDatabaseContext, it is already ready for dependency injection. Now you have to inform the DI framework about ExperienceRepository, so that it can inject it to its consumers. So in ConfigureServices you add:
services.AddTransient<ExperienceRepository, ExperienceRepository>();
Now can use dependency injection whenever you want to need the repository. In your consumer (eg. an ASP.NET page) you can use constructor injection to get a repository:
class MyExperienceConsumer {
private ExperienceRepository _exprepo;
public MyExperienceConsumer(ExperienceRepository exprepo) {
_exprepo = exprepo;
}
}
If your consumer is an ASP.NET page controller, this is all you need to do, since the MVC framework will create the controller for you and use DI to give you the repository. If you need to instantiate the consumer yourself you need to do so with the help a service provider from the DI framework, so that it can do its magic (assuming you have a service collection). When you use ActivatorUtilities, the DI framework will inject the repository into the constructor:
IServiceProvider serviceProvider = serviceCollection.BuildServiceProvider();
MyExperienceConsumer consumer =
ActivatorUtilities.CreateInstance<MyExperienceConsumer>(serviceProvider);
In any case, you can use the DI framework to do the heavy lifting for you.

Your ExperienceRepository class have one constructor that requires a ToSeeDatabaseContext as parameter.
You are trying to create a instance ExperienceRepository with no parameters. The compiler can't find a constructor which doesn't take any parameters, producing the compiler error.

.NET Core 2.0 Modular Dependency Injection

I am trying to build a library that has core and extensions packages like Entity Framework and its database providers.
What I am trying to do is when I register that library with dependency injection, I want to give specific implementation as a parameter.
Think EF. In order to use sql provider on EF we need to register it with SQL provider passed as option parameter like the following.
services.AddDbContext<ApplicationDbContext>(options =>
{
options.UseSqlServer(Configuration["ConnectionString"]);
});
I would like to build similar structure. Lets say my framework will provide film producer. It will have producer.core package for framework related classes and two extensions package called Producer.Extensions.Hollywood and Producer.Extensions.Bollywood.
If I want to use Hollywood provider, I need to install core package and Hollywood extension package. On registration it should look like
services.AddFilmProducer(options =>
{
options.UseHollywoodProducer();
});
I could not find even a keyword that will point me a direction. I tried to read entity framework's source code but it is too complicated for my case.
Is there anyone who could point me a direction?
Thanks in advance.

I'm not sure if I completely understand your requirements, but DI and extensions are an easy thing in .net core.
Let's say you want this in your Startup.cs
services.AddFilmProducer(options =>
{
options.UseHollywoodProducer();
});
To implements this, create your library and add a static extension class
public static class FilmProducerServiceExtensions
{
public static IServiceCollection AddFilmProducer(this IServiceCollection services, Action<ProducerOptions> options)
{
// Create your delegate
var producerOptions = new ProducerOptions();
options(producerOptions);
// Do additional service initialization
return services;
}
}
where your ProducerOptions implementation might look like
public class ProducerOptions
{
public void UseHollywoodProducer()
{
// Initialize hollywood
}
public void UseBollywoodProducer()
{
// Initialize bollywood
}
}
If you wish to use the passed ProducerOptions in your service, there are two ways to do it. Either use dependency injection again, or directly access the service by using service provider in your extension method
var serviceProvider = services.BuildServiceProvider()
IYourService service = sp.GetService<IYourService>();
And now you have the original Use piece of initialization working.
Hope it helps.
Edit:
To clarify. To inject your options in the service, you can use
services.Configure(ProducerOptions);
in your extension method, and pass to your service constructor via
public YourService(IOptions<ProducerOptions>)
You can then simplify or complicate your options as much as you want.
A useful link for this kind of extensions might be the CORS repository for .net core: https://github.com/aspnet/CORS
Edit after comments:
I think I've got it now. You want packages to extend and implement specific options, kind of like what serilog does with different sinks. Piece of cake.
Scrap the ProducerOptions implementation.
Lets say you have a base package with initial empty structures (BaseProducer library) and an interface
public interface IProducerOptions
{
// base method signatures
}
Your service extension now becomes
public static class FilmProducerServiceExtensions
{
public static IServiceCollection AddFilmProducer(this IServiceCollection services, Action<IProducerOptions> options)
{
// Do additional service initialization
return services;
}
}
Now you create a new package with specific "Hollywood producer" options and you want to extend the base option set
public static class HollyWoodExtensions
{
public static void UseHollywoodProducer(this IProducerOptions options)
{
// Add implementation
}
}
Create as many packages and IProducerOptions extensions as you like, and the added methods will start appearing in your Startup.cs
services.AddFilmProducer(options =>
{
options.UseHollywoodProducer();
});

Dependency injection resolving by name

How can I inject different implementation of object for a specific class?
For example, in Unity, I can define two implementations of IRepository
container.RegisterType<IRepository, TestSuiteRepositor("TestSuiteRepository");
container.RegisterType<IRepository, BaseRepository>();
and call the needed implementation
public BaselineManager([Dependency("TestSuiteRepository")]IRepository repository)

As #Tseng pointed, there is no built-in solution for named binding. However using factory method may be helpful for your case. Example should be something like below:
Create a repository resolver:
public interface IRepositoryResolver
{
IRepository GetRepositoryByName(string name);
}
public class RepositoryResolver : IRepositoryResolver
{
private readonly IServiceProvider _serviceProvider;
public RepositoryResolver(IServiceProvider serviceProvider)
{
_serviceProvider = serviceProvider;
}
public IRepository GetRepositoryByName(string name)
{
if(name == "TestSuiteRepository")
return _serviceProvider.GetService<TestSuiteRepositor>();
//... other condition
else
return _serviceProvider.GetService<BaseRepositor>();
}
}
Register needed services in ConfigureServices.cs
services.AddSingleton<IRepositoryResolver, RepositoryResolver>();
services.AddTransient<TestSuiteRepository>();
services.AddTransient<BaseRepository>();
Finally use it in any class:
public class BaselineManager
{
private readonly IRepository _repository;
public BaselineManager(IRepositoryResolver repositoryResolver)
{
_repository = repositoryResolver.GetRepositoryByName("TestSuiteRepository");
}
}

In addition to #adem-caglin answer I'd like to post here some reusable code I've created for name-based registrations.
UPDATE Now it's available as nuget package.
In order to register your services you'll need to add following code to your Startup class:
services.AddTransient<ServiceA>();
services.AddTransient<ServiceB>();
services.AddTransient<ServiceC>();
services.AddByName<IService>()
.Add<ServiceA>("key1")
.Add<ServiceB>("key2")
.Add<ServiceC>("key3")
.Build();
Then you can use it via IServiceByNameFactory interface:
public AccountController(IServiceByNameFactory<IService> factory) {
_service = factory.GetByName("key2");
}
Or you can use factory registration to keep the client code clean (which I prefer)
_container.AddScoped<AccountController>(s => new AccountController(s.GetByName<IService>("key2")));
Full code of the extension is in github.

You can't with the built-in ASP.NET Core IoC container.
This is by design. The built-in container is intentionally kept simple and easily extensible, so you can plug third-party containers in if you need more features.
You have to use a third-party container to do this, like Autofac (see docs).
public BaselineManager([WithKey("TestSuiteRepository")]IRepository repository)

After having read the official documentation for dependency injection, I don't think you can do it in this way.
But the question I have is: do you need these two implementations at the same time? Because if you don't, you can create multiple environments through environment variables and have specific functionality in the Startup class based on the current environment, or even create multiple Startup{EnvironmentName} classes.
When an ASP.NET Core application starts, the Startup class is used to bootstrap the application, load its configuration settings, etc. (learn more about ASP.NET startup). However, if a class exists named Startup{EnvironmentName} (for example StartupDevelopment), and the ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT environment variable matches that name, then that Startup class is used instead. Thus, you could configure Startup for development, but have a separate StartupProduction that would be used when the app is run in production. Or vice versa.
I also wrote an article about injecting dependencies from a JSON file so you don't have to recompile the entire application every time you want to switch between implementations. Basically, you keep a JSON array with services like this:
"services": [
{
"serviceType": "ITest",
"implementationType": "Test",
"lifetime": "Transient"
}
]
Then you can modify the desired implementation in this file and not have to recompile or change environment variables.
Hope this helps!

First up, this is probably still a bad idea. What you're trying to achieve is a separation between how the dependencies are used and how they are defined. But you want to work with the dependency injection framework, instead of against it. Avoiding the poor discover-ability of the service locator anti-pattern. Why not use generics in a similar way to ILogger<T> / IOptions<T>?
public BaselineManager(RepositoryMapping<BaselineManager> repository){
_repository = repository.Repository;
}
public class RepositoryMapping<T>{
private IServiceProvider _provider;
private Type _implementationType;
public RepositoryMapping(IServiceProvider provider, Type implementationType){
_provider = provider;
_implementationType = implementationType;
}
public IRepository Repository => (IRepository)_provider.GetService(_implementationType);
}
public static IServiceCollection MapRepository<T,R>(this IServiceCollection services) where R : IRepository =>
services.AddTransient(p => new RepositoryMapping<T>(p, typeof(R)));
services.AddScoped<BaselineManager>();
services.MapRepository<BaselineManager, BaseRepository>();
Since .net core 3, a validation error should be raised if you have failed to define a mapping.