DB First Code Generation

1. Generate Models from the DB at the Package Manager Console:

Scaffold-DbContext "YourConnectionStringHere" Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer -OutputDir Models

Scaffold-DbContext "Server=(localdb)\mssqllocaldb;Database=MyDatabase;Trusted_Connection=True;" Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer -OutputDir Models

or this at command line: 

dotnet ef dbcontext scaffold XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Parameters:

-Tables  // Allows explicit list of specific tables to scaffold

2. Generate the Full CRUD Controller & Views:

dotnet scaffold controller -name ProductsController -m ProductModel -dc MyDbContext --relativeFolderPath Controllers --useDefaultLayout

// a) API Controller with Actions, using EF

dotnet scaffold controller -name ProductsController -api -async -m Product -dc MyDbContext -outDir Controllers

// Key Flags: Requires -api (to skip HTML views), -m [ModelName], and -dc [DbContextName]. Adding -async creates asynchronous task-based methods

// b) API Controller with Read/Write Actions with no data access code or DB 

//    dependencies

dotnet scaffold controller -name InventoryController -api -actions -outDir Controllers

// Key Flags: (or --readWriteActions) switch

// c) Empty API Controller

dotnet scaffold controller -name CustomController -api -outDir Controllers

Generated Output Type   -api        -m         -dc    -actions 

1) EF CRUD Controller   Required    Required  Required  Omits

2. Read/Write Mock C    Required    Omits     Omits     Required

3. Empty API Controller Required    Omits     Omits     Omits

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//(Note: If you entirely omit the -api flag, the engine defaults to creating MVC 

// Controllers with Razor HTML views instead of web API endpoints).

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// Alternative: Minimal API Scaffolding

// In newer versions of .NET, if you prefer low-ceremony Minimal APIs over 

//  controllers, you can bypass the controller command entirely:

dotnet scaffold minimalapi -name ProductEndpoints -m Product -dc MyDbContext

// This generates an Endpoints extension class that registers map routes directly 

//  to app.MapGet and app.MapPost inside your application pipeline

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1. Minimal API Scaffolding (minimalapi)

  Instead of full controller classes, this bypasses the standard routing 

architecture to generate light, high-performance endpoints directly mapped inside 

your application pipeline.

  Operation: dotnet aspnet-codegenerator minimalapi

  What it builds: An endpoint extension class containing direct app.MapGet, 

app.MapPost, app.MapPut, and app.MapDelete route handlers mapped to your EF models.

2. Security & Authentication Scaffolding (identity & blazor-identity)

  These commands generate all the necessary backend code, database schemas, and 

frontend interfaces required to manage user logins, registrations, and account 

settings.

   Operations:

     dotnet aspnet-codegenerator identity (For MVC, Razor Pages, or Web API backend 

authentication)

     dotnet aspnet-codegenerator blazor-identity (Tailored specifically to Blazor 

Web Apps using interactive render modes).

  What it builds: Registers identity service dependencies, maps security DBs, and 

exports dozens of customizable account pages (Login, Register, Two-Factor Auth, 

Reset Password).

3. Blazor UI Scaffolding (blazor)

   This operation builds full-stack frontend interfaces for interactive web 

applications.

   Operation: dotnet aspnet-codegenerator blazor

   What it builds: A set of active .razor component pages including Create.razor, 

Delete.razor, Details.razor, Edit.razor, and an Index.razor page equipped with 

responsive data grids and HTML form validation.

4. Razor Pages Scaffolding (razorpage)

   This option targets page-focused web application architectures using standard 

server-side rendering.

     Operation: dotnet aspnet-codegenerator razorpage

     What it builds: Pairs of .cshtml views alongside corresponding .cshtml.cs 

PageModel files. It automatically handles bind properties and maps user web actions 

directly to EF CRUD DB functions.

5. Standard MVC Views (view)

   If you already have an MVC controller but lack the presentation layer, you can 

scaffold individual views independently.

   Operation: dotnet aspnet-codegenerator view

   What it builds: A standard .cshtml razor view template using preset layout 

styles like List, Create, Edit, Delete, Details, or a completely Empty slate.

6. Multi-Tenant Organization (area)

   Used for managing massive codebases by partitioning your app into separate, 

miniature logical modules.

   Operation: dotnet aspnet-codegenerator area

   What it builds: A structured directory folder pattern containing distinct 

localized Controllers, Models, and Views subdirectories to segregate features 

(e.g., separating an /Admin workspace from a /Customer dashboard).