Introduction

Automatically handle and define state of complex hierarchical graph of entities for EntityFramework Code-First.

Prerequisite

This API should be used with EntityFramewok Code-First
You should be familiar with Fluent API (quick introduction).
Add explicit foreign key properties to your models. If we do not add explicit property and configure it as foreign key, then entity framework will create it for us. But, we have to create it ourselves.

public class Post
{
    // Foreign key to Blog must exist
    public int BlogID { get; set; }
    public Blog Blog { get; set; }
}

Additionally, if you have many-to-many relationships, you should create model for third table. For example, if you have Student and Course models, and if there is many-to-many relation between them, you should also create model for relating third table, which porbably will be StudentCourse. Then Student and StudentCourse, Course and StudentCourse models will have one-to-many relationships. This will help a lot when we want to change which Students attend which Courses (add, update or delete.).

Automatically define state of entity graph with ease.
Use not only primary keys, but also configured unique keys to define state.
Simple and complex unique keys.
Send update query for only changed properties.
Handle entity duplications according to primary and unique keys.
Familiar Fluent API style mappings.
Additional customization options to not update certain properties which shouldnot change.
Manual operations after automatic state define.

Install from nuget:

Install-Package Ma.EntityFramework.GraphManager

Your mapping classes should intherit ExtendedEntityTypeConfiguration<TEntity>, where TEntity is type of entity which you are configuring mappings for. To be able to do so, you have to add Ma.EntityFramework.GraphManager.CustomMappings namespace to unsings section. Remember that, you do not have to inherit this configuration class if you do not need any custom mappings (i.e. unique keys, not updated properties and etc.). Automatic state defining should still work without this.
Add Ma.EntityFramework.GraphManager to your usings section where to you want to add or update entities.
Define state of whole graph using just one line: context.AddOrUpdate(entity);