LMS Modernization Project

This project is a modernization of a legacy Library Management System (LMS). It transitions from a legacy infrastructure to a modern web application built on .NET 9.

Security and Data Privacy (Important)

PLEASE NOTE: This project is designed to integrate with a private legacy database containing sensitive company and borrower information. For security and privacy reasons, the live database and its specific data records are not included in this repository.

Because the application relies on these private SQL Server databases, it will not run "out of the box" without a properly configured environment and access to the legacy data schema. If you require a live demonstration or assistance in setting up a local environment with mock data to verify functionality, please contact the project team.

Project Structure

The solution consists of three main projects:

• LmsModernApp: The primary ASP.NET Core MVC web application. It handles user interface, authentication (Staff/Operator), and high-level business logic.
• Lms.Data: The Data Access Layer (DAL). It contains Entity Framework Core DbContexts and repositories for interacting with multiple legacy databases (Decat, Delib, Delocal, Deweb, Destats, Dereport).
• Lms.Tests: A suite of unit and integration tests to ensure system stability and correctness of data operations.

Prerequisites

• .NET 9 SDK: Ensure you have the latest .NET 9 SDK installed.
• SQL Server: The project is configured to work with multiple SQL Server databases.
• Visual Studio 2022 (recommended) or VS Code.

Setup and Configuration

1. Database Connection Strings

The application connects to several databases. You must configure these connection strings in LmsModernApp/appsettings.json. Replace the placeholders with your actual SQL Server details:

"ConnectionStrings": {
  "DefaultConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=LmsModernApp;User Id=sa;Password=YOUR_PASSWORD;...",
  "DelibConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DELIB;...",
  "CatConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DECAT;...",
  "LocalConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DELOCAL;...",
  "WebConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DEWEB;...",
  "StatsConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DESTATS;...",
  "ReportConnection": "Server=YOUR_SERVER;Database=DEREPORT;..."
}

2. Apply Migrations

Apply the Identity migrations to initialize the application's local database (DefaultConnection):

dotnet ef database update --project LmsModernApp

3. Legacy Databases

The project assumes the existence of several legacy databases (e.g., DECAT, DELIB, DELOCAL). These databases should be available and populated according to the schema defined in Lms.Data.

Key Features

• Catalogue Management: Search, view, edit, and delete catalogue entries.
• Borrower Management: Manage library members, including borrower import services.
• Dashboard: At-a-glance view of system metrics and status.
• Circulation & Stock: Tools for managing stock items and library circulation.
• Legacy Integration: Seamlessly interacts with multiple existing legacy database schemas.

How to Run

Using Visual Studio

1. Open LmsModernization.sln.
2. Set LmsModernApp as the Startup Project.
3. Press F5 to run the application.

Using Command Line

Navigate to the root directory and run:

dotnet run --project LmsModernApp

The application will default to the login page (/Account/Login).

Authentication

The project uses a custom authentication system for Staff/Operators.

• Validation: Operators are validated against the Operators table in the DELOCAL database.
• Note: Currently, the system uses plain-text password comparison for legacy compatibility.

Testing

To run the test suite, use the following command from the root directory:

dotnet test

Technologies Used

• ASP.NET Core 9.0 (MVC)
• Entity Framework Core 9.0
• SQL Server
• Identity Framework (for internal application state)
• xUnit (for testing)