Overview

Language(s):	English
Audience(s):	Developers
Technology:	Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
Type:	Proctored Exam

Exam Topcis Covered

This exam is designed to test the candidate's knowledge and skills on accessing data sources using ADO.NET and the .NET Framework.

Questions that contain code will be presented in either VB or C#. Candidates can select one of these languages when they start the exam.

Audience Profile

Candidates for this exam use Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 and ADO.NET 4 to develop the data access layer of an application. Candidates should have a minimum of two to three years of experience developing application components that interact with a variety of data sources. In addition, candidates should have a thorough understanding of relational database concepts and should have a minimum of one of two years of experience using a relational database management system.
Candidates should also have a good grasp of the following:

ADO.NET 4 coding techniques and framework components
ADO.NET Data Services LINQ
LINQ to SQL
Entity Framework technologies
Structured Query Language (SQL)
stored procedures
Database Structures/Schemas (Objects) XML

Credit Toward Certification

When you pass Exam 70-516: TS: Accessing Data with Microsoft .NET Framework 4, you complete the requirements for the following certification(s):

MCTS: .NET Framework 4, Data Access

Exam 70-516: TS: Accessing Data with Microsoft .NET Framwork 4 counts as credit toward the following certification(s):

Note This preparation guide is subject to change at any time without prior notice and at the sole discretion of Microsoft. Microsoft exams might include adaptive testing technology and simulation items. Microsoft does not identify the format in which exams are presented. Please use this preparation guide to prepare for the exam, regardless of its format.

Skills Measured

Modeling Data (20%)

Map entities and relationships by using the Entity Data Model.

This objective may include but is not limited to: using the Visual Designer, building an entity data model from an existing database, managing complex entity mappings in EDMX, editing EDM XML, mapping to stored procedures, creating user-defined associations between entities, generating classes with inheritance and mapping them to tables
This objective does not include: using MetadataWorkspace
Map entities and relationships by using LINQ to SQL.

This objective may include but is not limited to: using the Visual Designer, building a LINQ to SQL model from an existing database, mapping to stored procedures
Create and customize entity objects.

This objective may include but is not limited to: configuring changes to an Entity Framework entity, using the ADO.NET EntityObject Generator (T4), extending, self-tracking entities, snapshot change tracking, ObjectStateManager, partial classes, partial methods in the Entity Framework
Connect a POCO model to the Entity Framework.

This objective may include but is not limited to: implementing the Entity Framework with persistence ignorance, user-created POCO entities
This objective does not include: using the POCO templates
Create the database from the Entity Framework model.

This objective may include but is not limited to: customizing the Data Definition Language (DDL) (templates) generation process, generating scripts for a database, Entity Data Model tools
Create model-defined functions.

This objective may include but is not limited to: editing the Conceptual Schema Definition Language CSDL, enabling model-defined functions by using the EdmFunction attribute, complex types

Managing Connections and Context (18%)

Configure conenction strings and providers.

This objective may include but is not limited to: managing connection string including Entity Framework connection strings, using the ConfigurationManager, correctly addressing the Microsoft SQL Server instance, implementing connection pooling, managing User Instance and AttachDB file name, switching providers, implementing multiple active result sets (MARS)
This objective does not include: using the ConnectionStringBuilder; Oracle data provider; creating and using a custom provider; using third-party providers
Create and manage a data connection.

This objective may include but is not limited to: connecting to a data source, closing connections, maintaining the life cycle of a connection
Secure a connection.

This objective may include but is not limited to: encrypting and decrypting connection strings, using Security Support Provider Interface (SSPI) or SQL Server authentication, read only vs. read/write connections
This objective does not include: Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
Manage the DataContext and ObjectContext.

This objective may include but is not limited to: managing the life cycle of DataContext and ObjectContext, extending the DataContext and ObjectContext, supporting POCO
Implement eager loading.

This objective may include but is not limited to: configuring loading strategy by using LazyLoadingEnabled, supporting lazy loading with POCO, explicitly loading entities
Cache data.

This objective may include but is not limited to: DataContext and ObjectContext cache including identity map, local data cache
This objective does not include: Velocity, SqlCacheDependency
Configure ADO.NET Data Services.

This objective may include but is not limited to: creating access rules for entities, configuring authorization and authentication, configuring HTTP verbs

Querying Data (22%)

Execute a SQL query.

This objective may include but is not limited to: DBCommand, DataReader, DataAdapters, DataSets, managing data retrieval by using stored procedures, using parameters, System.Data.common namespace lasses
Create a LINQ query.

This objective may include but is not limited to: syntax-based and method-based queries, joining, filtering, sorting, grouping, aggregation, lambda expressions, paging, projection
This objective does not include: compiling queries
Create an Entity SQL (ESQL) query.

This objective may include but is not limited to: joining, filtering, sorting, grouping, aggregation, paging, using functions, query plan caching, returning a reference to an entity instance, using parameters with ESQL, functionality related to EntityClient classes
Handle special data types.

This objective may include but is not limited to: querying BLOBs, filestream, spatial and table-valued parameters
This objective does not include: implementing data types for unstructured data, user-defined types, Common Language Runtime (CLR) types
Query XML.

This objective may include but is not limited to: LINQ to XML, XmlReader, XmlDocuments, XPath
This objective does not include: XSLT, XmlWriter
Query data by using WCF .NET Data Services.

This objective may include but is not limited to: implementing filtering and entitlement in WCF .NET Data Services, addressing resources, creating a query expression, accessing payload formats, Data Services interceptors

Manipulating Data (22%)

Create, update, or delete data by using SQL statements.

This objective may include but is not limited to: Create/Update/Delete (CUD), using DataSets, calling stored procedures, using parameters
Create, update, or delete data by using DataContext.

This objective may include but is not limited to: CUD, calling stored procedures, using parameters
This objective does not include: ObjectTrackingEnabled
Create, update, or delete data by using ObjectContext.

This objective may include but is not limited to: CUD, calling stored procedures, using parameters, setting SaveOptions
Manage transactions.

This objective may include but is not limited to: System.Transactions, DBTransaction, rolling back a transaction, Lightweight Transaction Manager (LTM)
This objective does not include: distributed transactions, multiple updates within a transaction, multiple synchronization of data within an acidic transaction
Create disconnected objects.

This objective may include but is not limited to: creating self-tracking entities in the Entity Framework, attaching objects, DataSets, table adapters

Developing and Deploying Reliable Applications (18%)

Monitor and collect performance data.

This objective may include but is not limited to: logging generated SQL (ToTraceString), collecting response times, implementing performance counters, implementing logging, implementing instrumentation
Handle exceptions.

This objective may include but is not limited to: resolving data concurrency issues (handling OptimisticConcurrency exception, Refresh method), handling errors, transaction exceptions, connection exceptions, timeout exceptions, handling an exception from the Entity Framework disconnected object, security exceptions
Protect data.

This objective may include but is not limited to: encryption, digital signature, hashing, salting, least privilege
Synchronize data.

This objective may include but is not limited to: online/offline Entity Framework, synchronization services, saving locally
Deploy ADO.NET components.

This objective may include but is not limited to: packaging and publishing from Visual Studio, deploying an ADO.NET Services application; packaging and deploying Entity Framework metadata
This objective does not include: configuring IIS, MSDeploy, MSBuild