What is Entity Framework Core Code First development?

Entity Framework Core (EF Core) Code First is a development approach where developers create C# classes first, and EF Core automatically generates the corresponding database schema. Instead of designing the database manually, the application model becomes the primary source of truth. This approach is widely used in modern ASP.NET Core applications because it aligns database design with object-oriented programming. How Code First Works Step 1: Create C# entity classes. public class Student { public int Id { get; set; } public string Name { get; set; } public string Email { get; set; } } Step 2: Create DbContext. public class SchoolDbContext : DbContext { public DbSet Students { get; set; } } Step 3: Generate Migration Add-Migration InitialCreate Step 4: Update Database Update-Database EF Core automatically creates the SQL tables. Migrations One of EF Core's biggest strengths is Migrations. Whenever the model changes: public string PhoneNumber { get; set; } Simply create another migration. Add-Migration AddPhoneNumber Then Update-Database Only the required changes are applied. Advantages Faster development Strong type safety Version-controlled database schema Automatic database updates Easier collaboration using Git Supports SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite and more Common EF Core Features LINQ Queries Change Tracking Lazy Loading Eager Loading Transactions Relationships Fluent API Data Annotations Dependency Injection Asynchronous operations When to Use Code First Ideal when: Building new applications Following Domain-Driven Design (DDD) Using Agile development Database structure changes frequently