Sql – Best way to update in Linq To SQL

linqlinq-to-sqlnetvisual-studio-2008

I have several entity classes that I use for parsing fixed width text files as well as utilizing Linq to SQL. I use these classes to parse data from said text files, and compare to data in the database.

One of these entities has a lot of properties, and I don't want to waste time setting each individual property on the Linq result object.

Is there a way to tell Linq "Here's my object, use this to update the record"? Here's code I'm working on:

if (partialContent.MonthlyAddChange == "A")
   {
       bookContentTable.InsertOnSubmit(partialContent);
   }
   else if (partialContent.MonthlyAddChange == "C")
   {
       var query = from bookContent in bookContentTable
                   where bookContent.EAN == partialContent.EAN
                   select bookContent;

       if (query != null)
       {
           // Do something with query.First()
       }
   }
}

Is it better to delete the record and do an InsertOnSubmit() in this case?

Best Answer

I think the concept of editing a record is different from deleting and inserting a new one. Basically, I think an ORM should abstract away primary key generation and other related stuff. By deleting and inserting, you might be removing the integrity of the record (probably issuing a new primary key, making referenced entities invalid and so forth...). I suggest updating the record whenever the action you are taking is conceptually an update.

Related Solutions

.net – Entity Framework vs LINQ to SQL

LINQ to SQL only supports 1 to 1 mapping of database tables, views, sprocs and functions available in Microsoft SQL Server. It's a great API to use for quick data access construction to relatively well designed SQL Server databases. LINQ2SQL was first released with C# 3.0 and .Net Framework 3.5.

LINQ to Entities (ADO.Net Entity Framework) is an ORM (Object Relational Mapper) API which allows for a broad definition of object domain models and their relationships to many different ADO.Net data providers. As such, you can mix and match a number of different database vendors, application servers or protocols to design an aggregated mash-up of objects which are constructed from a variety of tables, sources, services, etc. ADO.Net Framework was released with the .Net Framework 3.5 SP1.

This is a good introductory article on MSDN: Introducing LINQ to Relational Data

C# – LINQ query on a DataTable

You can't query against the DataTable's Rows collection, since DataRowCollection doesn't implement IEnumerable<T>. You need to use the AsEnumerable() extension for DataTable. Like so:

var results = from myRow in myDataTable.AsEnumerable()
where myRow.Field<int>("RowNo") == 1
select myRow;

And as @Keith says, you'll need to add a reference to System.Data.DataSetExtensions

AsEnumerable() returns IEnumerable<DataRow>. If you need to convert IEnumerable<DataRow> to a DataTable, use the CopyToDataTable() extension.

Below is query with Lambda Expression,

var result = myDataTable
    .AsEnumerable()
    .Where(myRow => myRow.Field<int>("RowNo") == 1);

Best Answer

Related Solutions

.net – Entity Framework vs LINQ to SQL

C# – LINQ query on a DataTable

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