Question

I am creating a code first MVC app with a separate class libraries for my Service layer, POCOs and Repository layer. In the Repository layer I have EF implementaions of my IRepository classes, a DbContext and the required references to Entity Framework. My MVC project does not reference EF.

Is there a way to setup my solution so that the database is recreated and seeded after a model change? All of the examples I have seen so far initialise this in the Global.asax file of an MVC project but my MVC project is independant of EF and has no access to the DbContext.

Answer 1

You could register the initializer in a static constructor of your context:

public class MyContext : DbContext
{
    static MyContext()
    {
        Database.SetInitializer(new MyInitializer());
    }

    //...
}

Using a derived initializer which is in your Repository implementation library as well:

public class MyInitializer : DropCreateDatabaseIfModelChanges<MyContext>
{
    protected override void Seed(MyContext context)
    {
        // ...
    }
}

The static constructor would be executed when you create the first context instance and Seed will be called when you run a query, add or attach an entity to the context for the first time, etc.