Syllabus

ASP.NET Core Complete Tutorial (ShopNest)

Module 1: Foundations
What is ASP.NET Core? Complete Guide Setting Up ASP.NET Core Development Environment ASP.NET Core Project Structure Explained MVC Architecture in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Controllers and Actions in ASP.NET Core Routing in ASP.NET Core — Conventional and Attribute Routing Views and Razor Syntax in ASP.NET Core Layouts, Partial Views and View Components Models and ViewModels in ASP.NET Core Forms, Model Binding and Validation in ASP.NET Core Tag Helpers in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Static Files, Bundling and Minification in ASP.NET Core
Module 2: Entity Framework Core
Entity Framework Core — Introduction and Setup EF Core Code First — Models, Migrations, Database EF Core CRUD Operations — Create, Read, Update, Delete EF Core LINQ Queries — Beginner to Advanced EF Core Relationships — One-to-One, One-to-Many, Many-to-Many EF Core Fluent API — Advanced Configuration EF Core Repository Pattern and Unit of Work EF Core Performance Optimization Database First Approach with EF Core (Scaffold) EF Core with SQL Server — Advanced Features
Module 3: Dependency Injection & Middleware
Dependency Injection in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Middleware in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Configuration in ASP.NET Core — appsettings, Environment Variables, Secrets Filters in ASP.NET Core — Action, Authorization, Exception, Resource, Result Logging in ASP.NET Core — ILogger, Serilog, NLog Error Handling and Exception Management in ASP.NET Core
Module 4: Authentication & Security
ASP.NET Core Identity — Complete Setup Guide Authentication in ASP.NET Core — Cookie and JWT Authorization in ASP.NET Core — Roles, Policies, Claims JWT Authentication with Refresh Tokens — Complete Implementation OAuth2 and External Login (Google, Facebook, Microsoft) Data Protection and Encryption in ASP.NET Core HTTPS, SSL Certificates and Security Best Practices
Module 5: Web API
Building REST APIs with ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide API Versioning in ASP.NET Core Swagger / OpenAPI Documentation in ASP.NET Core Input Validation in Web APIs — FluentValidation and Data Annotations Pagination, Filtering and Sorting in ASP.NET Core APIs HTTP Client and Consuming External APIs in ASP.NET Core Minimal APIs in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 SignalR — Real-Time Web Applications
Module 6: Advanced Architecture
Clean Architecture in ASP.NET Core CQRS Pattern with MediatR in ASP.NET Core Repository Pattern — Deep Dive with Generic Repository Background Services and Hosted Services in ASP.NET Core Caching in ASP.NET Core — In-Memory, Distributed, Redis Health Checks in ASP.NET Core AutoMapper in ASP.NET Core Microservices with ASP.NET Core — Introduction Message Queues with RabbitMQ / Azure Service Bus in ASP.NET Core gRPC with ASP.NET Core
Module 7: Testing
Unit Testing ASP.NET Core with xUnit and Moq Integration Testing in ASP.NET Core Testing EF Core — In-Memory vs SQLite Performance Testing and Load Testing ASP.NET Core APIs Test-Driven Development (TDD) in ASP.NET Core
Module 8: Deployment & DevOps
Deploying ASP.NET Core to IIS on Windows Server Docker and Containerization for ASP.NET Core Deploying ASP.NET Core to Azure App Service CI/CD with GitHub Actions for ASP.NET Core Azure SQL Database with ASP.NET Core Environment Configuration and Secrets Management
Module 9: Real-World Projects
Build a Complete Blog Website with ASP.NET Core MVC Build an E-Commerce Product Catalog API (ASP.NET Core Web API) Build a Student Management System (Complete CRUD App) Build a Job Portal (Full Stack ASP.NET Core) Build a REST API with Clean Architecture — Complete Guide Build a Real-Time Chat App with SignalR and ASP.NET Core
Module 10: Advanced Topics
Blazor WebAssembly and Blazor Server — Complete Guide gRPC, GraphQL and Alternative API Styles in ASP.NET Core Rate Limiting and API Throttling in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 Output Caching in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 ASP.NET Core .NET 9 New Features — Complete Guide
ASP.NET Core Complete Tutorial (ShopNest)
Lesson 20 of 75 27% of course

EF Core Performance Optimization

1 · 5 min · 5/24/2026

Learn EF Core Performance Optimization in our free ASP.NET Core Complete Tutorial (ShopNest) series. Step-by-step explanations, examples, and interview tips on Toolliyo Academy.

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EF Core Performance Optimization — ShopNest
Article 20 of 75 · Module 2: Entity Framework Core · ShopNest High-Traffic News Portal
Target keyword: ef core performance · Read time: ~33 min · .NET: 8 / 9 · Project: ShopNest High-Traffic News Portal

Introduction

When ShopNest News serves millions of article views, EF Core defaults aren't enough. This advanced lesson covers tracking, compiled queries, keyset pagination, split queries, indexing, and bulk operations.

After this article you will

  • Apply AsNoTracking and compiled queries
  • Implement keyset vs offset pagination
  • Use AsSplitQuery to tame cartesian explosion
  • Log and fix slow queries
  • Understand bulk extension options

Prerequisites

Concept deep-dive

// Compiled query — parse once
private static readonly Func<ShopNestDbContext, int, Task<Article?>> _getArticle
    = EF.CompileAsyncQuery((ShopNestDbContext db, int id) =>
        db.Articles.AsNoTracking().FirstOrDefault(a => a.Id == id));

// Keyset pagination (fast at scale)
var articles = await _db.Articles.AsNoTracking()
    .Where(a => a.Id > lastId)
    .OrderBy(a => a.Id)
    .Take(20)
    .ToListAsync();

// Split query — avoid huge JOIN
var posts = await _db.Posts
    .Include(p => p.Comments)
    .Include(p => p.Tags)
    .AsSplitQuery()
    .AsNoTracking()
    .ToListAsync();

Index strategy: filter columns in WHERE/ORDER BY. Connection pooling: default in SqlClient — don't disable. EFCore.BulkExtensions for mass inserts in migrations/imports.

Hands-on — ShopNest High-Traffic News Portal

  1. Article list API: keyset pagination with cursor query param.
  2. Enable LogTo(Console.WriteLine, LogLevel.Information) in Development.
  3. Add composite index on (PublishedAt, CategoryId) via migration.
  4. Compare SQL row count: Include all vs AsSplitQuery.

Common errors & best practices

  • Tracking 10k rows for a report — always AsNoTracking.
  • Offset pagination page 5000 — SQL scans skipped rows; use keyset.
  • Missing index on foreign keys — join performance dies.

Interview questions

Q: AsNoTracking when?
A: Any read-only query — lists, exports, API GET.

Q: Keyset vs offset pagination?
A: Keyset uses WHERE id > lastId — constant time; offset Skip(N) scans N rows.

Q: AsSplitQuery?
A: Multiple SQL queries instead of one giant JOIN — fixes cartesian explosion with many Includes.

Summary

  • Read paths: AsNoTracking + DTO projection
  • Keyset pagination for high-traffic news feeds
  • Indexes and split queries fix real production bottlenecks
  • Compiled queries for hot paths hit millions of times

Previous: EF Core Repository Pattern and Unit of Work
Next: Database First Approach with EF Core

FAQ

Is lazy loading ever OK?

Almost never in ASP.NET request — explicit Include or projection.

Bulk extensions in production?

Use for batch imports; normal AddRange + SaveChanges for typical CRUD.

Interview Q&A for this course

Test your knowledge

Quizzes linked to this course—pass to earn certificates.

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Test your understanding of Entity Framework Core Tutorial. Modern ORM: Code First, migrati…
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ASP.NET Core Complete Tutorial (ShopNest)

On this page

Introduction After this article you will Prerequisites Concept deep-dive Hands-on — ShopNest High-Traffic News Portal Common errors &amp; best practices Interview questions Summary FAQ Is lazy loading ever OK? Bulk extensions in production?
Module 1: Foundations
What is ASP.NET Core? Complete Guide Setting Up ASP.NET Core Development Environment ASP.NET Core Project Structure Explained MVC Architecture in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Controllers and Actions in ASP.NET Core Routing in ASP.NET Core — Conventional and Attribute Routing Views and Razor Syntax in ASP.NET Core Layouts, Partial Views and View Components Models and ViewModels in ASP.NET Core Forms, Model Binding and Validation in ASP.NET Core Tag Helpers in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Static Files, Bundling and Minification in ASP.NET Core
Module 2: Entity Framework Core
Entity Framework Core — Introduction and Setup EF Core Code First — Models, Migrations, Database EF Core CRUD Operations — Create, Read, Update, Delete EF Core LINQ Queries — Beginner to Advanced EF Core Relationships — One-to-One, One-to-Many, Many-to-Many EF Core Fluent API — Advanced Configuration EF Core Repository Pattern and Unit of Work EF Core Performance Optimization Database First Approach with EF Core (Scaffold) EF Core with SQL Server — Advanced Features
Module 3: Dependency Injection & Middleware
Dependency Injection in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Middleware in ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide Configuration in ASP.NET Core — appsettings, Environment Variables, Secrets Filters in ASP.NET Core — Action, Authorization, Exception, Resource, Result Logging in ASP.NET Core — ILogger, Serilog, NLog Error Handling and Exception Management in ASP.NET Core
Module 4: Authentication & Security
ASP.NET Core Identity — Complete Setup Guide Authentication in ASP.NET Core — Cookie and JWT Authorization in ASP.NET Core — Roles, Policies, Claims JWT Authentication with Refresh Tokens — Complete Implementation OAuth2 and External Login (Google, Facebook, Microsoft) Data Protection and Encryption in ASP.NET Core HTTPS, SSL Certificates and Security Best Practices
Module 5: Web API
Building REST APIs with ASP.NET Core — Complete Guide API Versioning in ASP.NET Core Swagger / OpenAPI Documentation in ASP.NET Core Input Validation in Web APIs — FluentValidation and Data Annotations Pagination, Filtering and Sorting in ASP.NET Core APIs HTTP Client and Consuming External APIs in ASP.NET Core Minimal APIs in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 SignalR — Real-Time Web Applications
Module 6: Advanced Architecture
Clean Architecture in ASP.NET Core CQRS Pattern with MediatR in ASP.NET Core Repository Pattern — Deep Dive with Generic Repository Background Services and Hosted Services in ASP.NET Core Caching in ASP.NET Core — In-Memory, Distributed, Redis Health Checks in ASP.NET Core AutoMapper in ASP.NET Core Microservices with ASP.NET Core — Introduction Message Queues with RabbitMQ / Azure Service Bus in ASP.NET Core gRPC with ASP.NET Core
Module 7: Testing
Unit Testing ASP.NET Core with xUnit and Moq Integration Testing in ASP.NET Core Testing EF Core — In-Memory vs SQLite Performance Testing and Load Testing ASP.NET Core APIs Test-Driven Development (TDD) in ASP.NET Core
Module 8: Deployment & DevOps
Deploying ASP.NET Core to IIS on Windows Server Docker and Containerization for ASP.NET Core Deploying ASP.NET Core to Azure App Service CI/CD with GitHub Actions for ASP.NET Core Azure SQL Database with ASP.NET Core Environment Configuration and Secrets Management
Module 9: Real-World Projects
Build a Complete Blog Website with ASP.NET Core MVC Build an E-Commerce Product Catalog API (ASP.NET Core Web API) Build a Student Management System (Complete CRUD App) Build a Job Portal (Full Stack ASP.NET Core) Build a REST API with Clean Architecture — Complete Guide Build a Real-Time Chat App with SignalR and ASP.NET Core
Module 10: Advanced Topics
Blazor WebAssembly and Blazor Server — Complete Guide gRPC, GraphQL and Alternative API Styles in ASP.NET Core Rate Limiting and API Throttling in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 Output Caching in ASP.NET Core .NET 8 ASP.NET Core .NET 9 New Features — Complete Guide