Testing with the Repository Pattern
Explore how to apply the repository pattern for testing in Entity Framework Core projects. Understand how this approach centralizes data access code, enables loose coupling, and allows mocking to isolate application logic during tests. Learn through C# examples including interfaces, repository implementations, and unit tests that verify data operations.
Overview
Another approach to testing EF Core applications is to use the repository pattern. The repository pattern is a strategy for abstracting the data access layer, which is the portion of code responsible for storing and retrieving data.
Functionally, a repository encloses the set of objects persisted in a data store and operations performed over them. It provides a more object-oriented view of the persistence layer. Some of the benefits of this include:
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Less duplication of logic: It ensures all data access code is concentrated in one place rather than scattered across the application.
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Loose coupling to the underlying persistence technology: It makes it easier to switch from one database technology to another if the need arises.
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Tests focus more on application code: We mock the repository abstraction removing EF Core from the testing stack altogether.
We’ll demonstrate testing with the repository pattern using the C# ...