Can code-first Entity Framework do cross database queries with SQL Server DBs on the same box?

Question

I know there have been a lot of questions about Entity Framework doing cross database queries on the same server posted to stackoverflow. Mostly the answer seems to be \'no\

Answer 1

Warning! using DefiningQuerys can be VERY SLOW!

Here's an example:

If this is the defining query that you create an Entity against:

Select
    C.CustomerID,
    C.FirstName,
    C.LastName,
    G.SalesCatetory
From
    CustomerDatabase.dbo.Customers C
    Inner Join MarketingDatabase.dbo.CustomerCategories G on G.CustomerID = C.CustomerID

Then when you do a select against the Entity by CustomerID, the SQL trace looks something like this:

Select
[Extent1].[CustomerID] as [CustomerID],
[Extent1].[FirstName] as [FirstName],
[Extent1].[LastName] as [LastName],
[Extent1].[SalesCatetory] as [SalesCatetory]
From (
        Select
            C.CustomerID,
            C.FirstName,
            C.LastName,
            G.SalesCatetory
        From
            CustomerDatabase.dbo.Customers C
            Inner Join MarketingDatabase.dbo.CustomerCategories G on G.CustomerID = C.CustomerID
        ) as [Extent1]
Where '123456' = [Extent1].[CustomerID]

SQL Server may run this query very slowly. I had one case, a little more complicated than the above example, where I tried the DefiningQuery text directly in a SQl Server Management Console query window by adding a where clause for the value I wanted to select for. It run in less than a second. Then I captured the SQL Trace from selecting for the same value from the Entity created for this DefiningQuery and ran the SQL Trace query in a SQL Server query window - it took 13 seconds!

So I guess that only real way to do cross database queries is to create a veiw on the server.