A Model-First Code Generator
CodeFluent Entities is a model-first code generator integrated with Visual Studio 2008/2010, for continuous generation of all layers and their plumbing code: database, business, service and user interface.
Define your business model, choose your target platforms, generate, extend the code with your custom business rules if needed and compile. Do it as much as needed until it looks good!
CodeFluent Entities provides a recipe that will help you quickly build and raise rock-solid foundations, and successfully craft the rest of your .NET applications, letting you focus on what truly matters (i.e.: have fun & code cool stuff!).
Key points are:
- A centralized model: don't ever repeat yourself (DRY). A single model, inside Visual Studio drives all your developments and this is possible thanks to the second key point which is that you can generate continuously.
- Continuous generation: generate continuously throughout developments without losing test or development data nor custom code.The combination of those two first points is of a great value as in the end, you’ll have an actual snapshot of what the application handles and how it does it. Come back to it years later, open this model again and you'll get a clear picture of what’s in production.
- Flexibility: support multiple databases (SQL Server 2005/2008/R2, Oracle 9/10/11), services (WCF) or client architectures (WPF, Winforms, Web, SmartClient, Silverlight, Sharepoint). Once you invested in creating your model, add a new producer to support a new technology.
- Extensibility & consistency: create your own “CodeFluent Producers”, extend the product using its API. Develop “CodeFluent Aspects” to implement application-wide behaviors and reusable features.
- Migration & interoperability: Import existing databases or models and create new .NET applications on top of your existing database or migrate to a new one.
Components
CodeFluent Entities provides several components to allow you to create enterprise-class applications.
- The Modeler: integrated to Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 and 2010, let's you design your model in a graphic interface and generate code without leaving Visual Studio's familiar user interface.
- The Portable Modeler: provides non-Visual Studio users a way to view CodeFluent Entities model graphically.
- The Meta-Compiler (a.k.a. the builder) is a command line tool "compiling" your models, that's what parses your model, builds a meta-model out of it and calls each producer one by one which will translate this platform independent model into actual code. That's what the Modeler uses behind the scene when you hit "Build" but you don't necessarily need Visual Studio to use it!
Persistence Code Generators
Thanks to its persistence "producers" CodeFluent Entities can translate your models into fully functional persistence layers (Tables, Schemas, Columns, Stored Procedures, Data, Keys, Constraints, Views, User Defined Types, etc.). Available persistence producers are:
- SQL Server Producer (SQL Server 2005/2008/2008 R2),
- SQL Template Producer (template-based file generation and deployment)
- Oracle Database Producer (Oracle Database 9g/10g/11g)
- SQL Azure Producer
.NET Business Object Model Generator
Generate a consistent business tier reusable across all .NET applications (e.g. Windows Forms, WPF, ASP.NET MVC, ASP.NET Web Forms, Windows Services, Silverlight, Windows Workflows):
- Business Object Model Producer (C# or VB.NET)
- Cache Producer: adds caching capabilities to the generated .NET object model
- Auto-Trace Producer: adds tracing capabilities to the generated .NET object model
- Linq-To-Sql Producer: decorates .NET classes with Linq-To-Sql attributes
- Add application-wide features using the built-in "CodeFluent Aspects" (e.g. Data Localization, Google like text-search),
- Create your own "CodeFluent Aspects" to externalize features from your models and reuse them in your projects
WCF Code Generator
Expose your generated middle-tier to the web using the WCF Service Object Model Producer.
- Generate fully configurable services and contracts exposing your middle-tier,
- Generate a remote version of your server-side object model taking care of all communication aspects so developers keep the same development experience when developing Smart-Client
- Can generate RESTful JSON services making them easy to consume in mobile applications or from Javascript web pages
- The generated Smart Client Object Model can be used in Silverlight applications.
User Interface Code Generators
- SharePoint Web Part Producer (WSS 3.0, MOSS 2007, SharePoint Foundation, SharePoint 2010)
- WPF Smart Client Producer
- Office Lists Producer: use Microsoft Access 2007+ and Microsoft Excel 2003+ as front-ends of your application with no client-side deployment
- (coming soon) ASP.NET Producer (ASP.NET MVC, ASP.NET Web Forms, JQuery/JQueryUI/jqGrid)
Utility Producers
- Template Producer: generate any text based file (PHP, configuration files, RTF, emails, invoices, etc.)
- Exec Producer: execute any external program in the production pipeline
- Patch Producer: apply patches on generated
Importers
Create models from existing applications by importing from a database or a model:
- SQL Server Importer
- SQL Server CE Importer
- Access Importer
- MySQL Importer
- Oracle Database Importer
- OLEDB Importer
- ADO.NET EntityFramework Importer
- Enterprise Architect Importer
- XMI Importer
Application-Oriented Features
- Data Binding
- Paging
- Sorting
- Search
- Internationalization / Localization
- ASP.NET Membership Providers
- Caching
- Middle-Of-Word Text Search
- Binary Large Object (BLOB)
- Enumerations
- etc.
Run-time Controls & Utilities
The product is shipped with royalty free run-times (provided you have a commercial CodeFluent Entities license) which includes plenty of handy controls and utilities. For instance:
- EditableUri,
- TraceRanges,
- ConvertUtilities,
- XmlUtilities,
- JsonUtilities,
- WizardForm,
- ASP.NET Server Controls (e.g. BooleanControl, CompareControl, ExistsControl)
- etc.