What is the best tool/framework to convert classes into database schema automatically without XML mapping files?
My problem is this, I have around 20 classes with different relationships (association, inner classes, etc) to each others and I want to convert all that into a database tables to save all these data along with its relationships.
I tried to see some tutorials to Hibernate and found out that it requires building a mapping XML which is going to be very painful to my case.
Any framework to automate this?
Alternatively, you can annotate your classes instead of using XML and then generate the schema from your entities. Anyway, I strongly recommend writing the classes in a way that is easy to use with an OR mapper. It would have been best to design your model for the use of Hibernate beforehand.
I'd like to save persistent objects to the file system using Hibernate without the need for a SQL database.
Is this possible?
Hibernate works on top of JDBC, so all you need is a JDBC driver and a matching Hibernate dialect.
However, JDBC is basically an abstraction of SQL, so whatever you use is going to look, walk and quack like an SQL database - you might as well use one and spare yourself a lot of headaches. Besides, any such solution is going to be comparable in size and complexity to lighweight Java DBs like Derby.
Of course if you don't insist absolutely on using Hibernate, there are many other options.
It appears that it might technically be possible if you use a JDBC plaintext driver; however I haven't seen any opensource ones which provide write access; the one I found on sourceforge is read-only.
You already have an entity model, I suppose you do not want to lose this nor the relationships contained within it. An entity model is directed to be translated to a relational database.
Hibernate and any other JPA provider (EclipseLink) translate this entity model to SQL. They use a JDBC driver to provide a connection to an SQL database. This, you need to keep as well.
The correct question to ask is: does anybody know an embedded Java SQL database, one that you can start from within Java? There are plenty of those, mentioned in this topic:
HyperSQL: stores the result in an SQL clear-text file, readily imported into any other database
H2: uses binary files, low JAR file size
Derby: uses binary files
Ashpool: stores data in an XML-structured file
I have used HyperSQL on one project for small data, and Apache Derby for a project with huge databases (2Gb and more). Apache Derby performs better on these huge databases.
I don't know exactaly your need, but maybe it's one of below:
1 - If your need is just run away from SQL, you can use a NoSQL database.
Hibernate suports it through Hibernate OGM ( http://www.hibernate.org/subprojects/ogm ).
There are some DBs like Cassandra, MongoDB, CouchDB, Hadoop... You have some suggestions Here
.
2 - Now, if you want not to use a database server (with a service process running always), you can use Apache Derby. It's a DB just like any other SQL, but no need of a server. It uses a singular file to keep data. You can easily transport all database with your program.
Take a look: http://db.apache.org/derby/
3 - If you really want some text plain file, you can do like Michael Borgwardt said. But I don't know if Hibernate would be a good idea in this case.
Both H2 and HyperSQL support embedded mode (running inside your JVM instead of in a separate server) and saving to local file(s); these are still SQL databases, but with Hibernate there's not many other options.
Well, since the question is still opened and the OP said he's opened to new approaches/suggestions, here's mine (a little late but ok).
Do you know Prevayler? It's a Java Prevalence implementation which keep all of your business objects in RAM and mantain Snapshots/Changelogs in the File System, this way it's extremely fast and reliable, since if there's any crash, it'll restore it's last state and reapply every change to it.
Also, it's really easy to setup and run in your app.
Ofcourse this is possible, You can simply use file io features of Java, following steps are required:-
Create a File Object
2.Create an object of FileInputStream (though there are ways which use other Classes)
Wrap this object in a Buffer object or simply inside a java.util.Scanner.
use specific write functions of the object created in previous step.
Note that your object must implement Serializable interface. See following link,
I have an existing sql schema file for db. Is it possible to generate and re-generate when needed DAO's entities and all other required helper/client classes to access it? I don't mind what will it be -- hibernate, other jpa or something else.
Asuming you/others are still looking for a solution:
I just got the same problem and got it working in Eclipse (slightly different) as follows:
created JPA Project and downloaded & added user library in the wizard
Also wanted to give a schema-sql-file as input but instead found a way to take an actual db as input. (That was surely much easier for the developers of the tool to process than parsing proprietary sql-script-files)
To do that "rightclick" you jpa project an there "new/other/jpa/entities from tables"
In the following Wizard you have to create a db-connection to the db whose schema you want to get as jpa-annotated POJOs (IMHO It's very intuitive..but you may ask if there is a problem)
After finishing all jpa-classes are generated from the db...saved me from a lot of dummy work :)
I have been assigned to create a XSD schema for a proposed XML. i know what tables will be involved and what will be required fields which we always going to expect in the XML as well as optional.
I am very new to XSD and don't know where to and how to start.Can any one suggest me how to proceed so that i can start exploring something as currently i am on ground zero with the requirement.
Thanks in advance
Umesh
Best place to start off when you are at ground zero is w3schools -
http://www.w3schools.com/schema/schema_example.asp
Check this tutorial for beginners, looks good to me -
http://www.codeguru.com/java/article.php/c13529
The simplest way to start would be download a good XML editor, like XMLSpy and create schema visually. Altova has a free 30-day evaluation for their product, that should be enough for you to crank a first draft of your schema.
Depending on what you application is going to do, you might be able to generate one. For example you mention that your data is coming from (database) tables. If you intend to interact with the database using JPA entities, then you could use JAXB to generate an XML schema from the entity classes:
http://wiki.eclipse.org/EclipseLink/Examples/MOXy/JAXB/GenerateSchema
If you are using other tools to interact with the database, they may also have schema generation utilities.
I'm doing a Java software-project at my university that mainly is about storing data-sets (management of software tests).
The first thing I thought of was a simple SQL DB, however the necessary DB scheme is not available for now (let's say the project is stupid but there's no choice).
Is a persistency framework like Hibernate able to store data internally (for example in XML) and to convert this XML into decent SQL later?
My intention is to use the additional abstraction layer of a framework like Hibernate to save work, because it might have conversion functions. I know that Hibernate can generate class files from SQL, but I'm not too sure whether it needs a DB at every point during development. Using a XML Scheme for now and converting it into SQL later maybe an idea :)
You can persist XML with hibernate into a relational DB, but you cannot use XML directly as a storage engine. Why not simply store you're data into a relational db from the start - you'll create some schema yourself and you'll adapt it to the actual one when you receive it.
I would recommand using a lightweight DB such as HSQLDB instead.