ASP.NET MVC: ViewModels versus Domain Entities

Question

I\'m building a concept application with MVC 3 in an attempt to learn its ways. I\'ve previously done some very heavy-duty applications in WebForms, using an n-tier approach

Answer 1

I think the best approach is to use view models ALWAYS. These are about presentation concerns and should be where basic input validation is handled. Domain objects are not appropriate for this.

I use specific view models per view and only include the information that is needed in the view - keeping view models totally view-centric makes for nice clean views.

You can use Automapper to help remove the drudgery of moving between view and domain models.

Can I recommend ASP.NET MVC 2 in Action as a great book for strong ASP.NET MVC patterns. This covers using Automapper in detail.