Build MVC Applications with Connectivity to SFTP Data

In this article, we will guide you through the process of utilizing wizards within Visual Studio to seamlessly integrate the CData ADO.NET Provider for SFTP into a basic MVC (Model, View, Controller) project.

Create the Entity Framework Model

Follow the steps below to save connection properties and map tables to entities in the data model.

1. Create a new MVC project in Visual Studio. In this example, the project name is MvcSFTPApp.

2. If you are using Entity Framework 6, you will need to take the preliminary step of registering the SFTP Entity Framework provider for your project. See the "LINQ and Entity Framework" chapter in the help documentation for a guide.

   Note that MVC 3 scaffolding and MVC 4 scaffolding do not support Entity Framework 6. You can use your scaffolding with Entity Framework 6 by upgrading to the latest version of MVC.

3. To add the .edmx file from the designer, right-click your Models folder and click Add New Item. Select ADO.NET Entity Data Model, name the model, and click Add. In this example, the name of the model is SFTPModel.
4. In the Entity Data Model wizard, select the option 'EF Designer from database'. The Entity Data Model wizard is displayed.
5. Click New Connection. Select CData SFTP Data Source in the dialog that is displayed.

6. Specify the required connection string properties.

   SFTP can be used to transfer files to and from SFTP servers using the SFTP Protocol. To connect, specify the RemoteHost;. service uses the User and Password and public key authentication (SSHClientCert). Choose an SSHAuthMode and specify connection values based on your selection.

   Set the following connection properties to control the relational view of the file system:

   • RemotePath: Set this to the current working directory.
   • TableDepth: Set this to control the depth of subfolders to report as views.
   • FileRetrievalDepth: Set this to retrieve files recursively and list them in the Root table.
   Stored Procedures are available to download files, upload files, and send protocol commands. See gdatamodel for more on using SQL to interact with the server.

   A typical connection string is below:

   RemoteHost=MyFTPServer;

7. Name the connection and select whether to include sensitive information, such as connection credentials, in the connection string. For simplicity, this example saves sensitive information in Web.config. The connection settings are saved as SFTPEntities.

8. Select the tables and views you need. In this example, MyDirectory is imported. Also, the option to pluralize object names is deselected in this example. Click Finish to create the .edmx file.
9. Build your project to complete this step.

Scaffold the Controller and Views

Once you've established the model and completed the project build, you can employ ASP.NET Scaffolding wizards to generate both the controller and the views.

1. In Solution Explorer, right-click the controllers folder and click Add -> Controller. Select MVC 5 Controller with views, using Entity Framework.
2. In the Add Controller dialog that is then displayed, select the following options:
   • Model class: Select a table you imported; for example, MyDirectory.
   • Data context class: Select your context class.
3. Leave the default values for the other fields.