When will you use this?

Use EF Core when your app stores data in SQL Server, PostgreSQL, or SQLite.

• Orders, customers, and products live in SQL Server — EF Core reads and writes them with C#.
• Migrations let teams update database schema without manual SQL scripts in production.

Real-world: Naukri-style job portal API

The Recruitment team building Naukri-style job portal API uses Fluent API to configure composite keys and indexes in code for complex schemas. job seekers and recruiters never see the C# code — they just get a fast, reliable job search and application endpoints.

Production-style code

public class ShopDbContext : DbContext
{
    public ShopDbContext(DbContextOptions<ShopDbContext> options) : base(options) { }
    // DbSet properties for Fluent API
}

What happens in production: In Naukri-style job portal API, getting Fluent API right means job seekers and recruiters trust the job search and application endpoints every day.

Lesson example (start here)

Copy this smaller example first. Once it works, compare it with the real-world code above.

public class ShopDbContext : DbContext
{
    public ShopDbContext(DbContextOptions<ShopDbContext> options) : base(options) { }
    // DbSet properties for Fluent API
}

Line-by-line walkthrough

How it works (big picture)

• Study the example line by line.
• Each part connects to Fluent API.
• Edit one line, save, run dotnet run, and see what changes.

Do this on your computer

1. Update ShopDbContext or your entity classes.
2. Create or apply a migration if the schema changed.
3. Query or save data and verify in SSMS or Azure Data Studio.
4. Read the real-world section and name which part of the app uses this topic.
5. Run the example locally with dotnet run and confirm the same behavior.
6. Change one value in the example (route, text, or connection string) and predict what will happen before you save.

Experiments — try changing this

• Change a string or route in the example and save — watch the browser or Swagger response update.
• Break the code on purpose (remove a semicolon), read the error message, then fix it.
• Add one more property to the entity class and create a migration.
• Use dotnet watch run while editing Fluent API — the app restarts on save.

Remember

You learned what Fluent API is and when to use it in ShopNest. Practice by changing the example yourself. Use the Next link when you can explain it in your own words.

Common questions