Understanding the Architecture of Entity Framework Core

Entity Framework Core (EF Core) is a powerful ORM that simplifies data access in .NET applications. It bridges the gap between your application's conceptual model and the database's storage model. Let's explore these concepts in simple terms.

Key Components of EF Core Architecture

Conceptual Model:

• This is how you represent your data in your application.
• It consists of entity classes and their relationships.
• Example: A Customer class with properties like CustomerId, Name, and Email.

Storage Model:

• This represents how data is stored in the database.
• It includes tables, columns, constraints, and relationships.
• Example: A Customers table with columns for CustomerId, Name, and Email.

Mapping:

• EF Core uses mappings to link the conceptual model to the storage model.
• Mappings define how properties of entity classes correspond to columns in database tables.
• This can be done using data annotations or the Fluent API.