Developing Applications Using the Data Access Application Block

This section describes how you can use the Data Access Application Block to develop applications. It first explains how to configure the application block and incorporate it into your applications. Next, it explains how to use the application block for specific scenarios, such as retrieving a single item or using a DataSet object to retrieve multiple rows. Lastly, it provides more information about topics such as connection management, parameter handling, and handling exceptions.

This section assumes that you are using the application block in its original state, without extending it. (To learn how to add functionality, see Extending and Modifying the Data Access Application Block.) This section includes the following topics:

• Entering Configuration Information
• Adding Application Code
• Creating a Database Object
• Creating a DbCommand Object
• Managing Connections
• Using the TransactionScope Class
• Using the Asynchronous Data Access Methods
• Returning Data as Objects for Client Side Querying
• Creating Portable Database Applications
• Handling Exceptions
• Handling Parameters

All application blocks ship as binary assemblies and as source code. If you want to use the source code, you must compile it. To learn how to compile the Enterprise Library source code, see Building Enterprise Library from the Source Code.