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📓 Scaffolding API Controllers

In this lesson, we'll learn how to use the aspnet-codegenerator tool to scaffold files within our application. While dotnet new scaffolds entire projects based on templates, the aspnet-codegenerator tool can create files like controllers. This can save us a lot of work!

In this section's code review, you should not be using a scaffolding tool to create the boilerplate code for your routes. We want to see an understanding of this material and an ability to create it on your own, without the use of this tool. However, past this code review and in personal projects, feel free to use aspnet-codegenerator to spin up a project quickly!

Scaffolding our Controller​

You've now added full CRUD to your API! Although we want you to be comfortable writing controller routes, in the future, you might find it easier to use a scaffolding tool to create the boilerplate code for your routes. We'll scaffold files using the aspnet-codegenerator tool.

First note that you should scaffold a controller after you have created your model and database context, but before you have created your controller. So for our Cretaceous Park API, you should not run the following commands, because the AnimalsController already exists. However, if you want to test it out, you could delete your AnimalsController, and run the command to scaffold it again. Otherwise, use the following commands in future projects.

First, we'll need to install some packages to our project, required for scaffolding. Run the following command in your project directory. For the Cretaceous Park API, this is the CretaceousApi/ directory.

$ dotnet add package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer -v 6.0.0
$ dotnet add package Microsoft.VisualStudio.Web.CodeGeneration.Design -v 6.0.0

Then, we'll install the tool aspnet-codegenerator to create a controller based on a given model and database context. Note that we'll only ever need to install this tool once:

$ dotnet tool install -g dotnet-aspnet-codegenerator --version 6

Note that we specify --version 6 so that we install the version compatible with .NET 6.

Finally, we can scaffold! Run the following command in your project directory. For the Cretaceous Park API, this is the CretaceousApi/ directory.

$ dotnet aspnet-codegenerator controller -name AnimalsController -async -api -m Animal -dc CretaceousApiContext -outDir Controllers

This command invokes aspnet-codegenerator to do the following:

  • controller: create a controller
  • -name AnimalsController: use the name AnimalsController
  • -async: use asynchronous actions
  • -api: create the controller for an API
  • -m Animal: use the Animal model for the controller actions
  • -dc CretaceousApiContext: create a database context of type CretaceousApiContext
  • -outDir Controllers: add the new controller file to the Controllers/ directory

To learn more about how to use aspnet-codegenerator, visit the official documentation.