Creating_a_Relational_Project_(ELUG).adoc

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TOC Special:Whatlinkshere_Creating_a_Relational_Project_(ELUG)[Related Topics]

You can create a project using the Workbench or Java code. We recommend using the Workbench to create projects and generate deployment XML or Java source versions of the project for use at run time. For more information, see the following:

• How to Create a Project Using the Workbench

• How to Create a Project Using Java.

You can use EclipseLink to create a relational project, if any of the following conditions are met:

• You have both an object and data model: see Creating a Project from an Existing Object and Data Model.

• You have an object model, but no data model yet: see Creating a Project from an Existing Object Model.

• You have a data model, but no object model yet: Creating a Project from an Existing Data Model.

For more information, see Introduction to Relational Projects.

Creating a Project from an Existing Object and Data Model

If you have both an existing object model (Java classes for your domain objects) and data model (such as an existing database schema), use this procedure to create your EclipseLink project.

How to Create a Project from an Existing Object and Data Model Using Workbench

1. Create the project.

2. Configure the project classpath.

3. Import classes.

4. Import database tables.

5. Automatically create mappings.

6. Configure project options.

Creating a Project from an Existing Object Model

If you have an existing object model (Java classes for your domain objects), but you do not have a corresponding data model, use this procedure to create your EclipseLink project and automatically generate the corresponding data model.

How to Create a Project from an Existing Object Model Using Workbench

1. Create the project.

2. Configure the project classpath.

3. Import classes.

4. Generate database tables. For more information, see the following:

   • Creating New Tables

   • Generating Tables on the Database

   • How to Configure Table Creator Java Source Options Using Workbench

   • How to Export Table Creator Files Using Workbench

5. Configure project options.

Creating a Project from an Existing Data Model

If you have an existing data model (such as a database schema), but you do not have a corresponding data model (Java classes for domain objects), use this procedure to create your EclipseLink project and automatically generate the corresponding object model.

How to Create a Project from an Existing Data Model Using Workbench

1. Create the project.

2. Import database tables.

3. Generate classes.

4. Configure project options.

Exporting Project Information

Workbench generates and exports the following project information:

• Project Java source

• Table creator files

How to Export Project Java Source Using Workbench

For relational projects only, you can convert the project to Java source code. Generally, the generated code executes faster and deploys easier than XML files. See Generating Java Code for Descriptors to export the model source for a specific descriptor in a project. To convert your relational project to Java source, use this procedure:

1. Right-click the project in the Navigator and choose Export > Project Java Source from the context menu. You can also choose Workbench > Export > Export Java Source or Selected > Export > Project Java Source from the menu. If you have not defined deployment and source code generation defaults (see Configuring a Project), Workbench prompts for a project class name and directory.

Note: If your Workbench project uses the UTF-8 character set, you must use a compatible JDK when compiling the exported Java source. If your project contains errors, the project.xml file may not be valid. See Troubleshooting an EclipseLink Application for information on each reported error.

How to Export Table Creator Files Using Workbench

For relational projects only, you can create Java source code to generate database tables defined in the project using this procedure:

1. Right-click the project in the Navigator and choose Export > Table Creator Java Source from the context menu.You can also choose Workbench > Export > Table Creator Java Source or Selected > Export > Table Creator Java Source from the menu.

If you have not defined deployment and source code generation defaults (see Configuring a Project) Workbench prompts for a class name and root directory.

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