mv.NET: Solution Objects 

Accessing your database information is one of the most important aspects of creating line-of-business applications.  For .NET developers wishing to access MultiValue databases, mv.NET has provided strong connectivity capabilities for a number of years with its Core Objects and Adapter Objects component sets.

Solution Objects adds to this connectivity capability by introducing the ability to easily create a strongly-typed, class-based access layer to your MultiValue database bringing a number of significant benefits for the application developer.

Solution Objects adds extra design-time functionality to the existing mv.NET Data Manager utility, including an entity designer, a data mapping tool and a code generator.  The generated code then utilizes new run-time support libraries to provide full data persistence support for .NET applications.

The design-time tools allow the developer to define how their MultiValue data structures map to a class-based representation of the application's data domain.  The code generator takes these entity definitions and generates both Data Access Layer (DAL) and (multiple) Business Access Layer (BAL) code modules in either C# or VB.NET.

The DAL holds a complete definition of the entity-to-database mapping scheme.  The developer is able to define the existence and content of application "entities" using existing dictionary definitions as a starting point if required.  The entity modelling tool allows the developer to define many advanced pieces of data shape and relationship information and is fully nested-data (multi/subvalue) aware.

Each Business Access Layer (BAL) - sometimes referred to in the industry as the Business Logic Layer (BLL) - exposes a sub-set of the data access supported by the underlying DAL.  The purpose of the BAL is to provide customized "views" of the same underlying entities in order to impose a simplified or tighter level of security layer for different groups of developers, allowing greater control over data exposure and manipulation.

The Data Manager's code generator automatically adds all required interface implementation and class decoration code into the generated BAL in order to support standard .NET databinding for both Web and Rich-client applications.  This also means that all classes within a BAL can be used as a standard Visual Studio object datasource providing any third party .NET tool or component with full read/write access to the underlying MultiValue database.  Code generated by the Data Manager also includes XML-based on-line IntelliSense help.

Within Solution Objects, support for multiple datasources within a single BAL will be added.  This will allow access to a variety of different back-end data stores (including SQL databases) to be consolidated into a single access layer.

Solution Objects will revolutionize the way in which you access and manipulate your MultiValue data from within Visual Studio. It provides easy to use database access for developers who don’t have detailed knowledge of MultiValue database technology or even databases in general.  Also, it encourages developers to produce more intuitive, readable code resulting in much faster, more effective application development.  With .NET set to dominate the application development space, mv.NET with Solution Objects sets a new benchmark for mainstream developer usage of MultiValue databases. 

Solution Objects' Main Feature Set 

Simplified, intuitive access to the underlying database, without the need for specific MultiValue database knowledge
The data access layer created using Solution Objects exposes data in a standard .NET class-based manner, allowing .NET developers to access application data in a familiar, intuitive and database independent way. 

Compile-time data-type checking of  application code
By exposing data as a series of strongly-typed classes, the Visual Studio intellisense and background on-demand compiler features ensure that as many data-type related errors are detected and corrected at design-time as opposed to at run-time - thus reducing your application development timescales and improving the overall quality of code. 

Support for standard Visual Studio Datasources
The access layer generated by Solution Objects can be used as a standard Visual Studio datasource, opening up your MultiValue data to any Visual Studio based tool that understands how to use a standard datasource. 

Support for native .NET databinding for both Web and WinForm applications
All classes within the code generated by Solution Objects are automatically decorated with the features required to support native .NET databinding for both web and rich-client (webform and winform) applications.

Entity modeling tool to allow database-to-entity mapping definitions to be created
The mv.NET Data Manager's new entity modelling features allow you to easily define the mapping between your class-based layer and your MultiValue database. 

Schema import wizard to allow quick creation of entity models
Your entity definition process can be kick-started by using the Data Manager's powerful Entity Generator utility.  This tool analyzes your existing dictionary information and from this automatically creates initial entity definitions. 

Code generation utility to automatically create .NET code modules in either C# or VB.NET
The Data Manager contains a template driven code generator which is able to take your entity definitions and automatically generate the .NET code (VB or C#) to manifest these as .NET classes. 

Run-time support assemblies for generated code
The generated code modules make use of powerful run-time assemblies providing rapid data retrieval, state persistence and many other invaluable features to support your application development activities. 

Full support for nested data down to sub-value level
The entity definition process within the Data Manager is fully nested data aware, allowing the most complex of data structures in your MultiValue database to be presented as nested classes within your data access layer.

Customizable Database Access
The data access layer of Solution Objects allows you to take control (when necessary) over some or all of the low-level database operations (read, write, select etc).  Thus allowing you complete flexibility in the control of how class property data is persisted/represented in your MultiValue database.   

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