Skip to main content

Dynamic Systems - Usage Guide

Querying Extensible Data​

Since EntityAttribute, EntityTag, and EntityMetadata use polymorphic relationships, you need to query them by EntityType and EntityId:

Querying EntityAttributes​

// Get all attributes for a rod
var rodAttributes = context.EntityAttributes
    .Where(ea => ea.EntityType == "Rod" && ea.EntityGuidId == rodId)
    .ToList();

// Get specific attribute
var customAction = context.EntityAttributes
    .FirstOrDefault(ea => ea.EntityType == "Rod" 
        && ea.EntityGuidId == rodId 
        && ea.AttributeKey == "CustomActionRating");

// Get numeric attributes
var numericAttrs = context.EntityAttributes
    .Where(ea => ea.EntityType == "Rod" 
        && ea.EntityGuidId == rodId 
        && ea.AttributeType == AttributeType.Number)
    .ToList();

Querying EntityMetadata​

// Get metadata for a rod build
var buildMetadata = context.EntityMetadata
    .Where(em => em.EntityType == "RodBuild" 
        && em.EntityIntId == rodBuildId
        && em.MetadataKey == "BuildProcess")
    .FirstOrDefault();

if (buildMetadata != null)
{
    var buildData = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<BuildProcessData>(buildMetadata.JsonData);
}

Querying EntityTags​

// Get all tags for a rod
var rodTags = context.EntityTags
    .Where(et => et.EntityType == "Rod" && et.EntityGuidId == rodId)
    .Include(et => et.Tag)
    .ToList();

// Get tags by context
var useCaseTags = context.EntityTags
    .Where(et => et.EntityType == "Rod" 
        && et.EntityGuidId == rodId
        && et.Context == "UseCase")
    .Include(et => et.Tag)
    .ToList();

Querying LookupTables​

// Get all rod power values
var rodPowers = context.LookupTables
    .Where(lt => lt.Category == "RodPower" && lt.IsActive)
    .OrderBy(lt => lt.DisplayOrder)
    .ToList();

// Get custom (user-defined) values
var customPowers = context.LookupTables
    .Where(lt => lt.Category == "RodPower" 
        && !lt.IsSystemDefined 
        && lt.IsActive)
    .ToList();

Adding Custom Data​

Adding Custom Attribute​

var customAttr = new EntityAttribute
{
    EntityType = "Rod",
    EntityGuidId = rod.Id,
    AttributeKey = "CustomActionRating",
    NumericValue = 8.5m,
    Unit = "out of 10",
    AttributeType = AttributeType.Number,
    IsUserDefined = true
};
context.EntityAttributes.Add(customAttr);

Adding Custom Metadata​

var metadata = new EntityMetadata
{
    EntityType = "RodBuild",
    EntityIntId = rodBuild.Id,
    MetadataKey = "BuildProcess",
    SchemaVersion = "1.0",
    SchemaType = "BuildProcess",
    JsonData = JsonSerializer.Serialize(new {
        Steps = new[] { /* ... */ },
        ToolsUsed = new[] { /* ... */ }
    })
};
context.EntityMetadata.Add(metadata);

Adding Custom Lookup Value​

var customPower = new LookupTable
{
    Category = "RodPower",
    Name = "Super Heavy",
    Code = "SuperHeavy",
    IsSystemDefined = false,
    DisplayOrder = 8,
    IsActive = true
};
context.LookupTables.Add(customPower);

// Use in rod blank
rodBlank.Power = RodPower.UltraHeavy; // Closest enum
rodBlank.PowerLookupId = customPower.Id; // Custom value

Best Practices​

  1. Use Enums for Standard Values: Keep enums for well-defined, stable categories
  2. Use Lookup Tables for Extensible Categories: Use lookup tables for categories that may grow
  3. Use EntityAttribute for Custom Properties: Use attributes for entity-specific custom fields
  4. Use EntityMetadata for Complex Data: Use metadata for nested/complex data structures
  5. Use EntityTag for Flexible Categorization: Use tags for multi-dimensional categorization
  6. Query by EntityType + EntityId: Always filter by both EntityType and EntityId when querying
  7. Index Performance: The indexes ensure fast queries on EntityType + EntityId combinations