Modelling and code generation in .NET at Icinetic

Modelling and Code Generation
on the .NET Platform
@
Rubén Jiménez rjimenez@icinetic.com
@rubenjmarrufo

Pedro J. Molina, PhD pjmolina@icinetic.com
@pmolinam

Contents
 Introduction
 History of Microsoft Modeling
 MDSD: Approaches
 MDSD: Reference Framework
 MDSD: Tour of features
 Demos

© Icinetic 2012 2

Introduction

 We do MDSD Tools for developers
 Focused on .NET technologies &
Architecture Services
 HQ in Seville, Spain

© Icinetic 2012 3

History of Microsoft Modeling
2005: First release of MS DSL Tools

2007: First details about its plans for the “Oslo” project

2008: First Microsoft “Oslo” CTP

2009: Visual Studio 2010 V&M SDK Beta

2010: Microsoft “Oslo” is obliterated

2010: Visual Studio LightSwitch

2011: Visual Studio 11 V&M SDK Beta

© Icinetic 2012 4

.NET & MDSD
Ready to dive?

© Icinetic 2012 5

MDSD: Choose your path
MDA/UML:
 Metamodel is highly closed
MDSD  Symbol and concept overloading
 Not clear Semantics
 Action Language
MDA DSLs  Domains not cover by UML
 Abuse of profiles
 Tools: many dialects of XMI

DSLs:
 Cost of DSLs and tools required
to develop with it.

© Icinetic 2012 6

MDSD Reference FWK
Metamodel(s)

Textual Model Editor
Reverse
Engineering
Visual Model Editor
Model(s)
Model Checker
Model
repository
IDE

Model Transformation

M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 7

Metamodeling
 The analysis, construction and development of the frames, rules,
constraints, models and theories applicable and useful for
modeling a predefined class of problems (Wikipedia)
Source
 Based in CARs
Class Relation
 Classes / Entities / Objects
Properties Cardinality
 Attributes / Properties
 Relationships
Target

 At Icinetic:
Customer Credit Card
 MS DSL Tools
1 *
 Essential Meta

© Icinetic 2012 8
8

Metamodeling: MS DSL Tools
 Visual Studio Visualization & Modeling SDK.
 Features:
 Graphical meta-modeling.
 Build graphical designers.
 M2T: T4.
 Model validations.
 IDE: Visual Studio.

 Benefits:
 Agile
 Visual

 Drawbacks:
 Generated designers performance:
 “Magnify diagrams and multiply it”: Pascal Recchia.

© Icinetic 2012 9

Metamodeling: Essential
namespace Meta
{
class MailMessage
{
Person From;
List<Person> To;

string Subject;
string Message;
}

class Person
{
string FullName;
string Email;
}
}

© Icinetic 2012 10

Metamodeling: Essential META
Essential META 2009 XCore 2012
namespace org.example.library package org.example.library
{
class Book class Book
{ {
string title;
String title
int pages;
int pages
List<Writer> authors opposite
books; refers Writer[] authors opposite
} books
}
enum BookCategory
{ enum BookCategory
Mistery, {
ScienceFiction, Mistery
Biography ScienceFiction
} Biography
}
}

© Icinetic 2012 11

MDSD: Models
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Visual Model Editor Engineering
Model(s)
Model Checker
Model
IDE repository


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 12

Models: some Cases of Use
1. Validation 2. Interpretation 3. Code Generation

Model Model Model

Model Code
Interpreter
Checker Generation

Runtime Code
interpretation
Metadata

Generated Doc
Report
Code Config.
Tests
...
© Icinetic 2012 13

Models: Code generation techniques
1. Parse model Input Model

2. In-memory representation
Template
 AST / Object Model AST

3. Output building
 Free text concatenation
 XSL-T (No thanks!)
 Text Template based
Output code

© Icinetic 2012 14

Models: Parsers
Parsers License Url Grammar Parsing IDE Strengths
notation algorithm

ANTLR BSD www.antlr EBNF LL Yes Mature & widely
.org/
used
Irony.Net MIT irony.code BNF LALR Yes Interpreted
plex.com/

Gold parser FW goldparse BNF LALR No Supported
r.org/
languages: more
than any other
parsing system
Grammatica GNU grammati EBNF LL No Readable generated
ca.percede
rberg.net/ parse code

© Icinetic 2012 15

MDSD: Editors
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 16

Textual Model Editors
 DDD Textual DSL  Essential Text Editor

© Icinetic 2012 17

Graphical Model Editors
 MS DSL Tools
 WinForms
 WPF

 Custom:
 WinForms
 WPF

 Third party
tools: Visio,
EA, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 18

 MS DSL Tools
 WinForms
 WPF

 Custom:
 WinForms
 WPF

 Third party
tools: Visio,
EA, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 19

 MS DSL Tools
 WinForms
 WPF

 Custom:
 WinForms
 WPF

 Third party
tools: Visio,
EA, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 20

 MS DSL Tools
 WinForms
 WPF

 Custom:
 WinForms
 WPF

 Third party
tools: Visio,
EA, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 21

Other Model Editors
 Tables

 Trees

© Icinetic 2012 22

MDSD: Reverse engineering
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 23

Reverse Engineering
 External assets to model
 Sources:
 Databases
 EDMX Database importer
 Services
 Custom parsers
 Legacy code
 Custom parsers

© Icinetic 2012 24

MDSD: Model Checkers
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker
Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 25

Model Checkers: Validation Engine

 MS DSL Tools
 AOP
 IDE integration
 Hollywood
Principle

© Icinetic 2012 26

Models Checkers: Validation Engine
 Essential
 AST + Visitor
 Two phase checking
 Syntax check
 Model Merge
 Reference resolver
 Semantic check
 Validation FWK
 Extensible

© Icinetic 2012 27

MDSD: Model Repositories
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker
Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 28

Model Repositories
 XML serialization to file

 Text serialization to file

 Relational DBMS

 Documental DB / NoSQL

© Icinetic 2012 29

Model Repositories


 Relational DBMS


© Icinetic 2012 30

Model Repositories


 Relational DBMS


© Icinetic 2012 31

Model Repositories


 Relational DBMS


© Icinetic 2012 32

MDSD: Transformations
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 33

Transformations
 M2T
 Free text concatenation
 XSL-T (No thanks!)
 Text Template based
 T4
 StringTemplate
 M2M
 Imperative
 Declarative

© Icinetic 2012 34

MDSD: M2T
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 35

M2T: T4 Templates
 Text Template Transformation Toolkit
 Released in 2005 by Microsoft
 Syntax:
 Directives
 Text blocks
 Control blocks
 Usages:
 Standard
 Precompiled: webResponseText=template.TransformText();

© Icinetic 2012. 36

M2T: StringTemplate
 Terrence Parr’s templates group Templates;

 Dynamic templates genMail(msg) ::= <<
From: $msg.From:genRecipient()$
 Strong separation of To: $msg.To:genRecipient();
separator=", "$
concerns: Model, View
and Control Subject: $msg.Subject$
MESSAGE:
------------------------------
$msg.Message$
 Good maintanability ------------------------------
>>

genRecipient()::= <<
$it.FullName$ <$it.Email$>
>>

© Icinetic 2012. 37

M2T: Template Engines
Time to generate 5000 files of 5 Kb of average
40

35
 T4 30

 StringTemplate
25
Write File
20
Generation
 Precompiled T4 15
Load/compile
10

5

0
T4 StringTemplate T4 Precompiled

T4 StringTemplate Precompiled T4
Total time (ms) 392.935 56.483 48.894
Time(ms)/file 78,587 11,297 9,779
Time(ms)/MB 4.066,142 876,654 505,961
Improvement/T4 base x7 x8

© Icinetic 2012 38

MDSD: M2M
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 39

MDSD: IDE Integration
Metamodel(s)

Reverse
Model(s)
Model Checker Model
repository
IDE


M2M M2T

Code
Model
Doc, etc.

© Icinetic 2012 43

IDE Integration

1. Model Editors
VS packages
Folders & Projects

2. Model checkers
Generated & custom Errors validation
code coexistence

3. Model to Text
Generated assets
tracking

© Icinetic 2012 44

Making sense of it all
 Radarc
 Plug-in on the top of Visual Studio
 Modelling environment and code generation
packetized by architectures

© Icinetic 2012 45

Radarc Formulas
 A Formula is a code  Formulas available
generator including:
 ASP.NET WebForms
 Models / DSLs  ASP.NET MVC
 Editors  MVC + Azure
 Traceability rules  Windows Phone 7
 Best practices  DDD N-Layered
 Templates

 … and growing

© Icinetic 2012 46

Conclusions
 Modelling and code generation
technologies have matured a lot
in the latest years
 The .NET platform has a strong
base of tools to make MDSD
approaches feasible.
 MDSD is not more a luxury, is a
precision tool. Take profit!

© Icinetic 2012 48

www.radarc.net
@RadarcNet

pjmolina.com/essential
50

Modelling and code generation in .NET at Icinetic

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