A Custom View is the equivalent of a database view, implemented on the application-side with code generated by GenWise, based on a definition in the Database Repository. It is a predefined projection of tables and views that have been imported into the Database Repository.
Custom Views have the following benefits:
 | They are database independent constructs. |
| Efficiency by pre-defining which columns you are interested in. |
| Support for keys allows you to define specific sort orders that the application must use for an entity. |
| Query By Example (QBE) allows you to define filters to be applied to the projection. |
Custom Views and entity relations
When building a custom view you do not need to define joins since that information is already present in the Database Repository.
It is not necessary to create a custom view just to use data from related entities. Business object models generated by GenWise are aware of entity relations and allow to navigate these in an intuitive way.
Excluded columns invalidate Custom Views
Columns that are excluded from generation are not allowed in Custom Views. If columns included in a Custom View are excluded from generation, the Custom View becomes invalid. This results in the following validation error message:
Column [<NameOfColumn>] has been excluded from original table. Can't be used in this CustomView. Please remove column or turn OFF the Excluded property