LINQ to Entity is a great ORM for querying and managing databases. There are some points that we should consider while designing and querying databases using the Entity Framework ORM.

Disable change tracking for entity if not needed

In the Entity Framework, the context is responsible for tracking changes in entity objects. Whenever we are only reading data, there is no need to track the entity object. We can disable entity tracking using the MergeOption, as in:

AdventureWorksEntities e = new AdventureWorksEntities();
e.EmployeeMasters.MergeOption = System.Data.Objects.MergeOption.NoTracking;

Use Pre-Generating Views to reduce response time for the first request

While working with Entity Framework, view generation may take longer for a large and complicated model. We can use a pre-generated view to save run time cost to generate a view for the first request of a page. A Model Generated view helps us to improve start-up performance at run time.

Avoid fetching all the fields if not required

Avoid fetching all fields from the database that are not really required. For example we have an EmployeeMaster table and for some operation I require only the EmployeeCode field so the query must be:

AdventureWorksEntities e = new AdventureWorksEntities();
string code = e.EmployeeMasters.Where(g => g.EmployeeId == 1000)
                                                             .Select(s => s.EmployeeCode).FirstOrDefault();

Retrieve only required number of records (rows)

Do not collect all data while binding data to a data grid. For example if we have a data grid on a page and we only show 10 records on the screen, so do not fetch all records from the database, as in:

AdventureWorksEntities e = new AdventureWorksEntities();
int pageSize = 30, startingPageIndex = 3;
List<EmployeeMaster> lstemp = e.EmployeeMasters
                                                           .Take(pageSize)
                                                           .Skip(startingPageIndex * pageSize).ToList();

Avoid using Contains

Avoid use of the contain keyword with a LINQ - Entity Query. While Entity Framework generates equivalent SQL, the contain is converted in the "WHERE IN" clause. The "IN" clause has performance issues.

Avoid using Views

Views degrade the LINQ query performance. So avoid using views in LINQ to Entities.

Use Compiled Query

If you are using Entity Framework 4.1 and below, you must use a compiled query. The Compiled Query class provides compilation and caching of queries for reuse. The Entity Framework 5.0 supports a new feature called Auto-Compiled LINQ Queries. With EF 5.0, LINQ to Entity queries are compiled automatically and placed in EF's query cache, when executed.

static Func<AdventureWorksEntities, IQueryable<EmployeeDetail>> getEmpList = (
            CompiledQuery.Compile((AdventureWorksEntities db) =>
                db.EmployeeDetails
            ));

AdventureWorksEntities e = new AdventureWorksEntities1();
List<EmployeeDetail> empList = getEmpList(e).ToList();

Must examine Queries before being sent to the Database

When we are investigating performance issues, sometimes it's helpful to know the exact SQL command text that the Entity Framework is sending to the database. I would suggest that we must examine each and every LINQ to Entity queries to avoiding performance issues.

Efficiently Loading Related Data

Entity Framework supports the loading of related data. The Include method helps us load relevant data. Use of the Include method ensures it is really required for the page i.e. do not include a navigation property whenever it is not really required.

Select appropriate Loading type while defining model

Entity Framework supports three ways to load related data: eager loading, lazy loading and explicit loading. Eager loading is the process in which a query of one type of entity also loads related entities as part of the query. Eager loading is done by use of the Include method. Lazy loading is the process in which an entity or collection of entities is automatically loaded from the database the first time that a property referring to the entity/entities is accessed. When lazy loading disabled, it is possible to lazily load related entities with use of the Load method on the related entity's entry. It is called explicit loading. So depending upon on the type of application and requirement we can select appropriate Loading type for the entity model.

Conclusion

Using the above definition tips, we can definitely improve the performance of LINQ to Entity Queries.

Most of the newbies and few administrators handling the deployment of their company’s ASP.Net applications on the Windows Server must be knowing about the basics of how ASP.Net is associated with the IIS web server. Here’s a quick tip for you to quickly check  whether the exact version of .NET framework has been installed on the Server and also to check whether it has been registered with the IIS or not.

In this scenario, I'm going to consider a fresh installation of the Windows Server (2008 R2/ 2012 R2). SO make sure you have the below mentioned configuration done accordingly.

How to Find The Existence of the .NET Framework and Its Files

Navigate to this location, to make sure the .Net Framework that you are wanting/looking for is installed.

File location: (32-bit): C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\ (By default)
For 64-bit: C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\ (By default)

There are several .NET Framework versions available. Some are included in some Windows OS by default and all are available to download at Microsoft website as well.

Following is a list of all released versions of .NET Framework:

- .NET Framework 1.0 (Obsolete)
- .NET Framework 1.1 (Obsolete, comes installed in Windows Server 2003)
- .NET Framework 2.0* (Obsolete, comes as a standalone installer)
- .NET Framework 3.0* (comes pre-installed in Windows Vista and Server 2008)
- .NET Framework 3.5* (comes pre-installed in Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2)
- .NET Framework 4.0*
- .NET Framework 4.5* (comes pre-installed in Windows 8/8.1 and Server 2012/2012 R2)

Note: The framework marked with (*) have their later versions which is available as service packs, that can be downloaded from Microsoft’s Download website.

To check the ASP.Net application version compatibility, refer this MSDN article. Which is also shown below

If you find the respective folder, say v4.0.xxx, then it means that the Framework 4.0 or above has been installed. X:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319  (The X:\ is replaced by the OS drive)

Also you will find a similar folder for the x64 bit .Net Framework and its files associated in this location X:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319 (The X:\ is replaced by the OS drive)

This can also be confirmed using another method by navigating into the Windows Registry to find a key and its existence confirms the same.

How to Find the .NET Framework Versions by Viewing the Registry

1. On the Start menu, choose Run.

2. In the Open box, enter regedit.exe.

You must have administrative credentials to run regedit.exe.

In the Registry Editor, open the following subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full

This confirms the existence of .Net framework 4 and above(4.5 / 4.5.1 / 4.5.2 Only).

In most of the cases people might ignore this, assuming they have already configured ASP.Net by choosing from the server roles or any other version of .Net application that was working earlier.

This step will guide you to check whether your new application (with respect to the .Net Framework compatibility) has its asp.net component registered or not.

Simply Check ASP.NET 4.5 has been Installed via IIS

To check that .net 4.5 has been installed on the server, please just simply create a website in IIS and hit the “Select” button to check the .Net framework versions available to create Application Pool.

If you find v4.5 instead of v4.0, then it clearly justifies that .Net framework version 4.5 or above (4.5 / 4.5.1 / 4.5.2 only) has been installed and made available to run any website that requires this framework’s version.

If you don't find it, then navigate to the framework’s root folder (refer pic 2) and run “aspnet_regiis.exe” which will in turn register the asp.net component to the IIS.

Once you have registered the ASP.Net component, restart the IIS from the command prompt by typing “iisreset”, then launch your IIS Manager and follow the Step 3, to check the version listed in the available frameworks in the “Add Website” windows as shown above.

Now you are all set to go and start deploying your web application through Web Deploy / FTP or any other.

One of the common issues with events and event handlers is memory leaks. In applications, it is possible that handlers attached to event sources will not be destroyed if we forget to unregister the handlers from the event. This situation can lead to memory leaks. .Net 4.5 introduces a weak event pattern that can be used to address this issue.

Problem: Without using weak event pattern.

Let's understand the problem with an example. If we understand the problem then the solution is very easy.

public class EventSource  
{  
        public event EventHandler<EventArgs> Event = delegate { };    

        public void Raise()  
        {  
            Event(this, EventArgs.Empty);  
        }          
}    
  

public class EventListener   
{  
        public int Counter { get; set; }  
        EventSource eventSourceObject;    

        public EventListener(EventSource source)  
        {  
            eventSourceObject= source;  
            eventSourceObject.Event += MyHandler;  
        }           

        private void MyHandler(object source, EventArgs args)  
        {  
            Counter++;  
            Console.WriteLine("MyHandler received event "+ Counter);  
        }    

        public void UnRegisterEvent()  
        {  
            eventSourceObject.Event -= MyHandler;  
        }  
}  
static void Main(string[] args)  
{              
         EventSource source = new EventSource();  
         EventListener listener = new EventListener(source);  
         Console.WriteLine("Raise event first time");  
         Console.Read();  
         source.Raise();    

         //Set listener to null and call GC to release the  
        //listener object from memory.    

         Console.WriteLine("\nSet listener to null and call GC");  
         Console.Read();  
        //developer forget to unregister the event                 

        //listener.UnRegisterEvent();  
         listener = null;  
         GC.Collect();  
         Console.WriteLine("\nRaise event 2nd time");  
         Console.Read();  
         source.Raise();  
         Console.ReadKey();                  
}  

Output

The developer is expecting that set listener = null is sufficient to release the object but this is not the case. The event listener object is still in memory.

the EventListener's handler should be called a second time. But it's calling.

In this example the developer forget to unregister the event. With this mistake, the listener object is not released from memory and it's still active. If we call the unregister method then the EventListener would be released from memory. But the developer does not remember when to unregister the event.

This is the problem!

Solution: Weak event pattern.

The weak event pattern is designed to solve this memory leak problem. The weak event pattern can be used whenever a listener needs to register for an event, but the listener does not explicitly know when to unregister. 

In the old way of attaching the event with a source it is tightly coupled.

eventSourceObject.Event += MyHandler;  

Using Weak event pattern

Replace the preceding registration with the following code and run the program.

WeakEventManager<EventSource, EventArgs>.AddHandler(source, "Event", MyHandler);

After raising the event a second time, the listener is doing nothing. It means the listener is no longer in memory. 

Now the developer need not be concerned about calling the unregister event.

For any specific scenario if we want to unregister the event then we can use the RemoveHandler method as in the following:

WeakEventManager<EventSource, EventArgs>. RemoveHandler(source, "Event", MyHandler);