Accessing Database with ADO.

NET
Objectives
◆ Overview ADO.NET
◆ Explain ADO.NET data access history
◆ Describe data access architecture in .NET
◆ Explain the benefits of ADO.NET
◆ Describe the connected and disconnected data access approach
◆ Demo using ADO.NET Data Provider Factory Model
◆ Demo accessing database in WinForm Application using ADO.NET
◆ Demo using Store procedures in ADO.NET
◆ Overview about 3-Layers and 3-Tiers Architecture
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 What is Database?
◆ Database is a collection of related records
◆ The information in DB is stored in such a way that it is easier to access,
manage, and update the data
◆ Data from the DB can be accessed using any one of the following architectures:
▪ Single-tier architecture

▪ Two-tier architecture

▪ Three-tier architecture

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▪Create a sample database named MyStore for demonstrations

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ADO.NET Data Access History
 Universal Data Access (Native API)
◆ Database management systems provide APIs that allow application
programmers to create and access databases
◆ The set of APIs that each manufacturer's system supplies is unique to that
manufacturer. Microsoft has long recognized that it is inefficient and error prone
for an applications programmer to attempt to master and use all the APIs for the
various available database management systems
◆ What's more, if a new database management system is released, an existing
application can't make use of it without being rewritten to understand the new
APIs

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 Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)
◆ Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) helped address the problem of needing
to know the details of each DBMS used. ODBC provides a single interface for
accessing a number of database systems
◆ ODBC provides a driver model for accessing data. Any database provider can
write a driver for ODBC to access data from their database system. This
enables developers to access that database through the ODBC drivers instead
of talking directly to the database system

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 OLEDB and ADO (ActiveX Data Objects)
◆ OLE-DB is also much less dependent upon the physical structure of the
database. It supports both relational and hierarchical data sources, and does
not require the query against these data sources to follow a SQL structure
◆ Microsoft introduced ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) primarily to provide a
higher-level API for working with OLE-DB. With this release, Microsoft took
many of the lessons from the past to build a lighter, more efficient, and more
universal data access API

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OLEDB and ADO (ActiveX Data Objects)

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 ADO.NET Overview
◆ Is the data access technology, which
allows to access data from various data
sources
◆ Is a part of .NET: The technology can be
used for all .NET-base applications
◆ Supports disconnected data architecture:
Connection to the data source is
established only required
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ADO.NET Overview

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 ADO.NET Overview
◆ ADO.NET provides consistent access to data sources such as SQL Server and
XML, and to data sources exposed through OLE DB and ODBC

◆ Use XML to interact with the database: All the data in the database is converted
into XML format for database related operations

◆ Data-sharing consumer applications can use ADO.NET to connect to these

data sources and retrieve, handle, and update the data that they contain

◆ ADO.NET separates data access from data manipulation into discrete

components that can be used separately or in tandem

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 ADO.NET Overview
◆ ADO.NET provides functionality to developers who write managed code similar
to the functionality provided to native component object model (COM)
developers by ActiveX Data Objects (ADO)
◆ ADO.NET includes .NET data providers for connecting to a database, executing
commands, and retrieving results. Those results are either processed directly,
placed in an ADO.NET DataSet object in order to be exposed to the user in an
ad hoc manner, combined with data from multiple sources, or passed between
tiers
◆ The DataSet object can also be used independently of a .NET data provider to
manage data local to the application or sourced from XML
◆ ADO.NET separates data access from data manipulation into discrete
components that can be used separately or in tandem
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 ADO.NET Features
◆ Asynchronous processing: Enable time-consuming application running in the
background
◆ Multiple Active Result Sets (MARS): Allow to execute multiple batches in a
connection
◆ Bulk copy operations: Allow to copy large files into tables or views
◆ Batch processing
◆ Tracing: Monitor the excution of code, identify problems when executing code
and fix them
◆ Connection pooling control: Collects all the opened Database connections in a
connection pool and get a connection from the pool for client rather than create
new one
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 Benefits of ADO.NET
◆ Asynchronous processing: Enable time-
consuming application running in the background
◆ Simplified Programming Model
◆ Interoperability: XML is the default format used for
transmitting datasets across network, any
component can read XML format is able to
process data
◆ Maintainability and Programmability
◆ Performance: Does not require data-type
conversion while transmitting data through the tier
◆ Scalability
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 ADO.NET Architecture
◆ The two important components of ADO.NET used for processing the data in
Database are:
▪ Data providers: Provide and maintain connection to the database
▪ Dataset: Is the required portion in database that is extracted and maintained in the form
of a table as a local copy in the client system

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 Data Access Models of ADO.NET
◆ Connected data access:
▪ Connection to the DB is established
when requested by an application
▪ This connection is kept open till the
application is closed

◆ Disconnected data access:

▪ Connection to the DB is established when the
application forwards a request
▪ Once the request is processed, connection is
automatically closed
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 .NET Data Providers
◆ A .NET data provider is used for connecting to a database, executing
commands, and retrieving results. Those results are either processed directly,
placed in a DataSet in order to be exposed to the user as needed, combined
with data from multiple sources, or remoted between tiers
◆ NET data providers are lightweight, creating a minimal layer between the data
source and code, increasing performance without sacrificing functionality

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 .NET Data Providers
◆ As with all of .NET (.NET Core), data providers ship as NuGet packages.
There are several supported by Microsoft as well as a multitude of third-party
providers available
◆ The followings table documents some of the data providers supported by
Microsoft:
.NET Data Provider Namespace/NuGet Package Name
Microsoft SQL Server Microsoft.Data.SqlClient
ODBC System.Data.Odbc
OLE DB (Windows only) System.Data.OleDb

◆ Oracle Data Provider for .NET (ODP.NET) supported by Oracle in Nuget

Package
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 Core Objects of .NET Data Providers
Base Class Interface Description
Provides the ability to connect to and disconnect from the data
DbConnection IDbConnection store. Connection objects also provide access to a related
transaction object
Represents a SQL query or a stored procedure. Command objects
DbCommand IDbCommand
also provide access to the provider’s data reader object
Provides forward-only, read-only access to data using a server-
DbDataReader IDataReader, IDataRecord
side cursor
Transfers DataSets between the caller and the data store. Data
adapters contain a connection and a set of four internal command
DbDataAdapter IDataAdapter, IDbDataAdapter
objects used to select, insert, update, and delete information from
the data store
IDataParameter,
DbParameter Represents a named parameter within a parameterized query
IDbDataParameter
DbTransaction IDbTransaction Encapsulates a database transaction
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 Core Objects of .NET Data Providers
◆ The following table outlines the four core objects that make up a .NET data
provider:
Object Description
Establishes a connection to a specific data source. The base class for all Connection objects is
Connection
the DbConnection class

Executes a command against a data source. Exposes Parameters and can execute in the
Command scope of a Transaction from a Connection. The base class for all Command objects is
the DbCommand class

Reads a forward-only, read-only stream of data from a data source. The base class for
DataReader
all DataReader objects is the DbDataReader class

Populates a DataSet and resolves updates with the data source. The base class for
DataAdapter
all DataAdapter objects is the DbDataAdapter class

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Core Objects of .NET Data Providers

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 System.Data Namespace
◆ This namespace contains types that are shared among all ADO.NET data
providers, regardless of the underlying data store
◆ System.Data contains types that represent various database primitives (e.g.,
tables, rows, columns, and constraints), as well as the common interfaces
implemented by data provider objects
Type Description
Constraint Represents a constraint for a given DataColumn object

DataColumn Represents a single column within a DataTable object

DataRelation Represents a parent-child relationship between two DataTable objects

DataRow Represents a single row within a DataTable object

DataSet Represents an in-memory cache of data consisting of any number of interrelated DataTable objects

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 System.Data Namespace
Type Description
DataTable Represents a tabular block of in-memory data

DataTableReader Allows us to treat a DataTable as a fire-hose cursor (forward-only, read-only data access)
Represents a customized view of a DataTable for sorting, filtering, searching, editing, and
DataView
navigation
IDataAdapter Defines the core behavior of a data adapter object

IDataParameter Defines the core behavior of a parameter object

IDataReader Defines the core behavior of a data reader object
IDbCommand Defines the core behavior of a command object
IDbDataAdapter Extends IDataAdapter to provide additional functionality of a data adapter object
IDbTransaction Defines the core behavior of a transaction object

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 ADO.NET Data Provider Factory Model
◆ The .NET data provider factory pattern allows us to build a single codebase
using generalized data access types
◆ The classes within a data provider all derive from the same base classes
defined within the System.Data.Common namespace:
▪ DbCommand: The abstract base class for all command classes
▪ DbConnection: The abstract base class for all connection classes
▪ DbDataAdapter: The abstract base class for all data adapter classes
▪ DbDataReader: The abstract base class for all data reader classes
▪ DbParameter: The abstract base class for all parameter classes
▪ DbTransaction: The abstract base class for all transaction classes

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ADO.NET Data Provider Factory Model
Demonstration
1.Create a Console app named DemoDataProviderFactory
2.Install 02 packages from Nuget: Right-click on the Project, seclect Manage Nuget
Package… , search package name then click install as follows:
1

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3. Right-click on the project | Add | New Item, select JavaScript JSON Configuration
File then rename to appsettings.json , click Add and write contents as follows:
{
"ConnectionString": {
"MyStoreDB":
"Server=(local);uid=sa;pwd=123;database=MyStore"
}
}

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4.Right-click on the project, select Edit Project File and write config information as follows
then press Crtl+S to save:
<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">
<PropertyGroup>
<OutputType>Exe</OutputType>
<TargetFramework>net5.0</TargetFramework>
</PropertyGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Data.SqlClient" Version="2.1.2" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration.Json"
Version="5.0.0" />
</ItemGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<None Update="appsettings.json">
<CopyToOutputDirectory>Always</CopyToOutputDirectory>
</None>
</ItemGroup>
</Project>
5. Write codes for the Program.cs as follows then press Crtl+F5 to run project:
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 Connection Objects
◆ Establish a session with the data source
◆ ConnectionString property: identify the name of the machine we wish to connect
to, required security settings, the name of the database on that machine, and
other data provider–specific information
Properties ConnectionString, State

Methods CreateCommand, Open, Close

Event StateChange

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 ConnectionStringBuilder Objects
◆ The .NET compliant data providers support connection string builder objects,
which allow us to establish the name-value pairs using strongly typed

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 Command Objects
◆ The SqlCommand,which derives from DbCommand, is an OO (object-oriented)
representation of a SQL query, table name, or stored procedure
◆ Parameterized queries execute much faster than a literal SQL string, in that
they are parsed exactly once. To associate a parameter within a SQL query to
a member in the command object’s parameters collection, prefix the SQL text
parameter with an at @ symbol
◆ The type of command is specified using the CommandType property, which
includes:
▪ StoredProcedure: The name of a stored procedure
▪ TableDirect: The name of a table
▪ Text: An SQL text command (Default)
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Command Objects
Member Description
Gets or sets the time to wait while executing the command before terminating the attempt
CommandTimeout
and generating an error. The default is 30 seconds
Connection Gets or sets the DbConnection used by this instance of the DbCommand

Parameters Gets the collection of DbParameter objects used for a parameterized query

Cancel() Cancels the execution of a command

Executes a SQL query and returns the data provider’s DbDataReader object, which
ExecuteReader()
provides forward-only, read-only access for the result of the query
ExecuteNonQuery() Executes a SQL nonquery (e.g., an insert, update, delete, or create table)
A lightweight version of the ExecuteReader() method that was designed specifically for
ExecuteScalar()
singleton queries (e.g., obtaining a record count)
Creates a prepared (or compiled) version of the command on the data source. As we
Prepare() might know, a prepared query executes slightly faster and is useful when we need to
execute the same query multiple times (typically with different parameters each time)

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 The DataSet
◆ The ADO.NET DataSet is explicitly designed for data access independent of
any data source. As a result, it can be used with multiple and differing data
sources, used with XML data, or used to manage data local to the application

◆ The DataSet object is central to supporting disconnected, distributed data

scenarios with ADO.NET

◆ The DataSet is a memory-resident representation of data that provides a

consistent relational programming model regardless of the data source
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 The DataSet
◆ The DataSet contains a collection of one or
more DataTable objects consisting of rows
and columns of data, and also primary key,
foreign key, constraint, and relation
information about the data in the DataTable
objects

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The DataSet

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 DataAdapter Objects
◆ DataAdapter (which extends the abstract DbDataAdapter) is used to fetch and
update data
◆ DataAdapter objects make use of DataSet objects to move data between the
caller and data source
◆ DataAdapter objects move DataSets to and from the client tier
◆ The DataAdapter handles the database connection automatically and keeps
the connection open for the shortest possible amount of time
◆ Once the caller receives the DataSet object, the connection is completely
disconnected from the DBMS and left with a local copy of the remote data
◆ The caller is free to insert, delete, or update rows from a given DataTable, but
the physical database is not updated until the caller explicitly passes the
DataSet to the data adapter for updating
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Disconnected Data Access Demonstration
 1.Create a Winform app named DemoDisconnectedLayer includes a form named
frmMyStore and has controls as follows :

2.Trigger Click event of the buttons: btnClose, btnViewProducts, and

btnViewCategories

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3.Trigger Load event of the frmMyStore form

4. Install Microsoft.Data.SqlClient package from Nuget package

5. Write codes in frmMyStore.cs as follows then press Ctrl+F5 to run project:

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 DataTable Objects
◆ The DataTable class in ADO.NET is a database table representation and
provides a collection of columns and rows to store data in a grid form
Properties Description Method Description
Columns Represents all table columns Commits all the changes made since
AcceptChanges
last AcceptChanges was called
Constraints Represents all table constraints
Clear Deletes all data table data
DataSet Returns the dataset for the table
Creates a clone of a DataTable
DefaultView Customized view of the data table Clone
including its schema
ChildRelation Return child relations for the data table Copies a data table including its
Copy
schema
Returns parent relations for the data
ParentRelation table Creates a new row, which is later
NewRow added by calling the Rows.Add
Represents an array of columns that method
PrimaryKey function as primary key for the table
Reject all changed made after last
RejectChanges
Rows All rows of the data table AcceptChanges was called
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 DataView Objects
◆ Represents a databindable, customized view of a DataTable for sorting,
filtering, searching, editing, and navigation
◆ The DataView does not store data, but instead represents a connected view of
its corresponding DataTable
Properties Description
RowFilter Gets or sets the expression used to filter which rows are viewed in the DataView
Sort Gets or sets the sort column or columns, and sort order for the DataView
Table Gets or sets the source DataTable
Methods Description
Find(Object) Finds a row in the DataView by the specified sort key value
FindRows(Object) Returns an array of DataRowView objects whose columns match the specified sort key value

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 DataReaders Objects
◆ The DbDataReader type (which implements IDataReader) is the simplest and
fastest way to obtain information from a data store. Recall that Data readers
represent a read-only, forward-only stream of data returned one record at a
time

◆ Increases the application performance. However, the DataReader object

requires an exclusive use of an open connection object fot its whole life span

◆ Data readers are useful when we need to iterate over large amounts of data
quickly and we do not need to maintain an in-memory representation
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Connected Data Access Demonstration
 1.Create a Winform app named DemoConnectedLayer includes a form named
frmViewProducts and has controls as follows :

2.Trigger Click event of the btnClose button and Load event of frmViewProducts form
3. Install Microsoft.Data.SqlClient package from Nuget
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4. Write codes in frmViewProducts.cs as follows then press Ctrl+F5 to run project:

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Create, Update, Delete and Queries
Demonstration
1.Create a Winform app named ManageCategoriesApp includes a form named
frmManageCategories and has controls as follows :
Object Type Object name Properties / Events
Label lbCategoryID Text: CategoryID
Label lbCategoryName Text: CategoryName
TextBox txtCategoryID ReadOnly: True
TextBox txtCategoryName
Button btnInsert Text: Insert
Event Handler: Click
Button btnUpdate Text: Update
Event Handler: Click
Button btnDelete Text: Delete
Event Handler: Click
DataGridView dgvCategories ReadOnly: True
SelectionMode:FullRowSelect
Form frmManageCategories StartPosition: CenterScreen
Text: Manage Categories
Event Handler: Load
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2.Right-click on the project | Add | Class, named ManageCategories.cs then write
codes as follows:

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3.Write codes in frmManageCategories.cs as follows then press Ctrl+F5 to run project:
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 Working with Store Procedures
◆ Stored procedures stored in the database which are a key ingredient in any
successful large-scale database applications

◆ One advantage of stored procedures is improved performance. Stored

procedures typically execute faster than ordinary SQL statements because the
database can create, optimize, and cache a data access plan in advance

◆ Stored procedures also have a number of other potential benefits as follows:

▪Improve security. A client can be granted permissions to execute a stored

procedure to add or modify a record in a specify way, without having full
permissions on the underlying tables

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 Benefits of Store Procedures
▪Improve security. A client can be granted permissions to execute a stored
procedure to add or modify a record in a specify way, without having full
permissions on the underlying tables
▪Are easy to maintain, because they are stored separately from the application
code. Thus, we can modify a stored procedure without recompiling and
redistributing the .NET application that uses it
▪Add an extra layer of indirection, potentially allowing some database details to
change without breaking your code. For example, a stored procedure can
remap field names to match the expectations of the client program
▪Reduce network traffic, because SQL statements can be executed in batches

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Store Procedures Demonstration
◆ Create store procedures to count Products by CategoryID
Use MyStore
GO
Create Proc spCountProductsUsingOutputValue(@CategoryID int,@NumberOfProducts int Output) As
Select @NumberOfProducts = Count(ProductID)
From Products
where CategoryID = @CategoryID
Group by CategoryID
GO
Create Proc spCountProductsUsingReturnValue(@CategoryID int) As
Declare @NumberOfProducts int
Select @NumberOfProducts = Count(ProductID)
From Products
where CategoryID = @CategoryID
Group by CategoryID
Return @NumberOfProducts

◆ Create Console App then write codes as follows:

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 What is .NET 3-Layers Architecture?
◆ Three-layer architecture is dividing the project into three layers that are User
interface layer, Business layer and Data (database) layer where we
separate UI, Logic, and Data in three divisions

◆ Suppose we want to change the UI from windows to the phone than he has to
only make change in UI layer, other layers are not affected by this change
Similarly, if the we want to change the database then we have to only make a
change in the data layer, rest everything remains the same

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 The .NET 3-Layers Architecture

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 What is .NET 3-Layers Architecture?
◆ Presentation Layer
▪ This is the top layer of architecture. The topmost level of
application is the user interface

▪ It is related to the user interface that is what the user sees. The
main function of this layer is to translate tasks and results in
something which the user can understand

▪ It contains pages like web forms, windows form where data is

presented to the user and use to take input from the user. The
presentation layer is the most important layer because it is the
one that the user sees and good UI attracts the user and this
layer should be designed properly

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 What is .NET 3-Layers Architecture?
◆ Business Layer
▪ This is the middle layer of architecture. This layer involves C#
classes and logical calculations and operations are performed
under this layer
▪ It processes the command, makes logical decisions and
perform calculations. It also acts as a middleware between two
surrounded layers that is presentation and data layer
▪ It processes data between these two layers. This layer
implements business logic and calculations and validates the
input conditions before calling a method from the data layer.
This ensures the data input is correct before proceeding, and
can often ensure that the outputs are correct as well. This
validation of input is called business rules
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 What is .NET 3-Layers Architecture?
◆ Data Layer

▪ This layer is used to connect the business layer to the

database or data source

▪ It contains methods which are used to perform operations on

database like insert, delete, update, etc

▪ This layer contains stored procedures which are used to query

database. Hence this layer establishes a connection with the
database and performs functions on the database
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 What is 3-Tiers Architecture?
◆ A 3-tier application architecture is a modular client-server architecture that
consists of a Presentation tier, an Application tier and a Data tier
◆ The data tier stores information, the application tier handles logic and the
presentation tier is a graphical user interface (GUI) that communicates with the
other two tiers. The three tiers are logical, not physical, and may or may not run
on the same physical server

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 What is 3-Tiers Architecture?
◆ Presentation Tier
▪ The presentation tier is the front end layer in the 3-tier
system and consists of the user interface
▪ This user interface is often a graphical one accessible
through a web browser or web-based application and
which displays content and information useful to an
end user
▪ This tier is often built on web technologies such as
HTML5, JavaScript, CSS, or through other popular
web development frameworks, and communicates
with others layers through API calls

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 What is 3-Tiers Architecture?
◆ Application Tier: The application tier contains the
functional business logic which drives an application’s core
capabilities. It’s often written in Java, .NET, C#, Python, C+
+, etc

◆ Data Tier: The data tier comprises of the database/data

storage system and data access layer. Examples of such
systems are MySQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL
Server, MongoDB, etc. Data is accessed by the application
layer via API calls
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Summary
◆ Concepts were introduced:
▪ ADO.NET is a data access technology – supports disconnected data architecture
▪ A data provider establishes and maintains connection to the database. The .NET Framework
provides various data providers which are used for SQL Server, OLE DB, ODBC
▪ .NET Data Providers and Dataset are used for accessing data source and then storing the retrieved
records into tables : Connection, Command, DataAdapter, DataReader, DataTable, DataView
▪ Overview about 3-Layers and 3-Tiers Architecture
▪ List the benefits of ADO.NET
▪ Demo using ADO.NET Data Provider Factory Model
▪ Demo accessing database in WinForm Application using ADO.NET
▪ Demo using Store procedures in ADO.NET
▪ Overview about 3-Layers and 3-Tiers Architecture
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