TinyORM: Getting Started

Introduction
Generating Model Classes
TinyORM Model Conventions
Retrieving Models
Retrieving Single Models / Aggregates
- Retrieving Or Creating Models
- Retrieving Aggregates
Inserting & Updating Models
Deleting Models
Replicating Models
Comparing Models

Introduction

TinyORM is an object-relational mapper (ORM) that makes it enjoyable to interact with your database. When using TinyORM, each database table has a corresponding "Model" that is used to interact with that table. In addition to retrieving records from the database table, TinyORM models allow you to insert, update, and delete records from the table as well.

note

Before getting started, be sure to configure a database connection in your application. For more information on configuring your database, check out the database configuration documentation.

tip

If you want to see a model in which are used all possible TinyORM features you can look at the torrent.hpp in the TinyORM's tests, this Models::Torrent class serves also as a showcase, so all possible features are defined in it.

Generating Model Classes

To get started, let's create the simplest TinyORM model. Models typically live in the database\models directory and extend the Orm::Tiny::Model class. You may use the make:model command to generate a new model:

tom make:model User

If you would like to generate a database migration or seeder when you generate the model, you may use the --migration/-m or --seeder/-s options:

tom make:model User --migration --seeder

The --force option forces overwriting of existing files:

tom make:model User --migration --seeder --force

The make:model is king 👑 among scaffolding commands that you can use to generate complete TinyORM model classes, it supports all features that TinyORM models offer. All advanced features are described in the make:model help command:

tom make:model --help

Few examples:

# Setting some model attributes
tom make:model User --table=users --fillable=name,email,banned_at `
                    --guarded=password --dates=banned_at

# Generate relationship methods
tom make:model User --one-to-one=Passport `
                    --one-to-many=Post --foreign-key=post_id `
                    --one-to-many=Car

# Generate a basic many-to-many relationship
tom make:model User --belongs-to-many=Tag --with-timestamps

# Generate a many-to-many relationship
tom make:model User --belongs-to-many=Tag --foreign-key=tag_id `
                    --pivot-table=user_tag --as=tagged `
                    --with-pivot=active,soft --with-timestamps `
                    --pivot=Tagged

# Generate a pivot model
tom make:model Tagged --pivot-model
tom make:model Tagged --pivot-model --incrementing

tip

Writing a make:model commands is superb with the tab completion.

note

The --path and --realpath options work the same as for the make:migration command.

TinyORM Model Conventions

Let's examine a basic model class and discuss some of TinyORM's key conventions:

#pragma once
#ifndef FLIGHT_HPP
#define FLIGHT_HPP

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;

    using Model::Model;
};

#endif // FLIGHT_HPP

tip

The TinyORM source tree contains the Torrent example model that also acts as the full-fledged example model. It has defined and also nicely commented all possible features that model classes can use or define.

Table Names

After glancing at the example above, you may have noticed that we did not tell TinyORM which database table corresponds to our Flight model. By convention, the "snake_case", plural name of the class will be used as the table name unless another name is explicitly specified. So, in this case, TinyORM will assume the Flight model stores records in the flights table, while an AirTrafficController model would store records in an air_traffic_controllers table.

If your model's corresponding database table does not fit this convention, you may manually specify the model's table name by defining the private u_table data member on the model:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The table associated with the model. */
    QString u_table {"flights"};
};

Primary Keys

TinyORM will also assume that each model's corresponding database table has a primary key column named id. If necessary, you may define a private u_primaryKey data member on your model to specify a different column that serves as your model's primary key:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The primary key associated with the table. */
    QString u_primaryKey {"id"};
};

In addition, TinyORM assumes that the primary key is an incrementing integer value. If you wish to use a non-incrementing or a non-numeric primary key you must define a private u_incrementing data member on your model that is set to false:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! Indicates if the model's ID is auto-incrementing. */
    bool u_incrementing = false;
};

caution

Non-numeric primary keys are not currently implemented, u_incrementing code logic is fully implemented, but it is only one part to make it fully work.

"Composite" Primary Keys

TinyORM requires each model to have at least one uniquely identifying "ID" that can serve as its primary key. "Composite" primary keys are not supported by TinyORM models. However, you are free to add additional multi-column unique indexes to your database tables, in addition to the table's uniquely identifying primary key.

Timestamps

By default, TinyORM expects created_at and updated_at columns to exist on your model's corresponding database table. TinyORM will automatically set these column's values when models are created or updated. If you do not want these columns to be automatically managed by TinyORM, you should define a private u_timestamps data member on your model with a value of false:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! Indicates if the model should be timestamped. */
    bool u_timestamps = false;
};

The u_dates static data member controls the casting of timestamp attributes. The created_at and updated_at columns are automatically added to the u_dates string list when the u_timestamps is true. Also, the Soft Deleting feature adds the deleted_at column to the u_dates.

You may add additional columns to the u_dates list. After that, these columns will be automatically formatted using the format in the u_dateFormat data member during the setAttribute method call:

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The attributes that should be mutated to dates. */
    inline static const QStringList u_dates {"departure_at"};
};

If you need to customize the format of your model's timestamps, set the private u_dateFormat data member on your model. This data member determines how date attributes are stored in the database, supported formats are described in the QDateTime documentation:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The storage format of the model's date columns. */
    QString u_dateFormat {"yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss"};
};

Unix timestamps

You can set the u_dateFormat to U if you want to store dates in the database as unix timestamps:

QString u_dateFormat {QLatin1Char('U')};

In this case all date attributes set in the u_dates will be handled as unix timestamps, so also the created_at and updated_at timestamp attributes.

To create unix timestamp columns using the tom migrations you should use integer types:

Schema::table("flights", [](Blueprint &table)
{
    table.bigInteger("created_at").nullable();
    table.bigInteger("updated_at").nullable();
});

Custom timestamp column names

If you need to customize the names of the columns used to store the timestamps, you may define CREATED_AT and UPDATED_AT private static getter methods on your model:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The name of the "created at" column. */
    inline static QString CREATED_AT() { return QStringLiteral("creation_date"); }
    /*! The name of the "updated at" column. */
    inline static QString UPDATED_AT() { return QStringLiteral("updated_date"); }
};

Touching timestamps

You can explicitly touch timestamps using the touch method defined on the Model:

auto flight = Flight::find(1);

flight->touch();
flight->touch("added_on"); // Custom column name

You can also touch multiple rows at once using the touch method defined on the TinyBuilder:

auto [affected, query] = Flight::whereEq("status", "new")->touch();

The touch method may also be called when building a relationship query:

flight->history()->touch();
flight->history()->whereEq("status", "new").touch();

Database Connections

By default, all TinyORM models will use the default database connection that is configured for your application. If you would like to specify a different connection that should be used when interacting with a particular model, you should define a u_connection private data member on the model:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The database connection that should be used by the model. */
    QString u_connection {"sqlite"};
};

In special cases, when you want to query the database through a different connection, you can use Model::on method, which takes the connection name as the first argument:

auto user = User::on("sqlite")->find(1);

Default Attribute Values

By default, a newly instantiated model instance will not contain any attribute values. If you would like to define the default values for some of your model's attributes, you may define an u_attributes data member on your model, it has to be static and can be const:

#include <QDateTime>

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The model's default values for attributes. */
    inline static const QVector<AttributeItem> u_attributes {
        {"delayed",  false},
        {"progress", 0},
        {"added_on", QDateTime::currentDateTimeUtc()},
    };
};

caution

Use the Model::instance or Model::instanceHeap related methods to instantiate a model that contains a QDateTime in Default Attribute Values, or if attributes you want to pass to the model's constructor contain a QDateTime instance (problem is described below).

QDateTime and connection name problem

If your Default Attribute Values or attributes that you can pass to the Model constructor contain the QDateTime instance, then TinyORM throws an exception. You have to use the Model::instance related methods to create such a Model.

Virtually everything important is covered in the thrown exception, but let me summarize it. The problem is that the QDateTime instance is converted to a string based on the Model::u_dateFormat, or if not defined, the date format from Orm::Query::Grammars::Grammar will be used. This QueryGrammar is obtained from Orm::DatabaseConnection and because of that TinyORM needs to know the connection name and that's the crux of this problem. You can define your connection name using the Model::u_connection in your derived model class, but this derived model is not yet initialized, so the Model::u_connection is also not initialized.

So if the Model::u_connection is not yet initialized, TinyORM can't obtain the Orm::DatabaseConnection -> QueryGrammar -> dateFormat.

Retrieving Models

Once you have created a model and its associated database table, you are ready to start retrieving data from your database. You can think of each TinyORM model as a powerful query builder allowing you to fluently query the database table associated with the model. The model's all method will retrieve all of the records from the model's associated database table:

#include <QDebug>

#include "models/flight.hpp"

for (const auto &flight : Flight::all())
    qDebug() << flight["name"].toString();

Building Queries

The TinyORM all method will return all of the results in the model's table. However, since each TinyORM model serves as a query builder, you may add additional constraints to queries and then invoke the get method to retrieve the results:

auto flights = Flight::whereEq("active", 1)
           ->orderBy("name")
           .take(10)
           .get();

tip

Since TinyORM models are query builders, you should review all of the methods provided by TinyORM's query builder. You may use any of these methods when writing your TinyORM queries.

note

All the static methods defined on the Orm::Tiny::Model<Derived, AllRelations...> class, which start building queries like where, latest, oldest, with, ... return std::unique_ptr<TinyBuilder<Model>>, TinyBuilder = Orm::Tiny::Builder and Model template argument is queried model class.

Refreshing Models

If you already have an instance of the TinyORM model that was retrieved from the database, you can "refresh" the model using the fresh and refresh methods. The fresh method will re-retrieve the model from the database. The existing model instance will not be affected:

auto flight = Flight::whereEq("number", "FR 900")->first();

auto freshFlight = flight->fresh();

The refresh method will re-hydrate the existing model using fresh data from the database. In addition, all of its loaded relationships will be refreshed as well:

auto flight = Flight::whereEq("number", "FR 900")->first();

flight->setAttribute("number", "FR 456");

flight->refresh();

flight->getAttribute("number"); // "FR 900"

Containers

As we have seen, TinyORM methods like all and get retrieve multiple records from the database. Since these methods return a QVector<Model>, you can iterate it like any other container with the Range-based for loop, STL-Style Iterators, Java-Style Iterators or Ranges.

#include <QDebug>

#include "models/flight.hpp"

for (const auto &flight : Flight::all())
    qDebug() << flight["name"].toString();

note

An all method is defined on the Orm::Tiny::Model<Derived, AllRelations...> class and get method is defined on the Orm::Tiny::Builder, may be also referred as TinyBuilder, and on the Orm::Query::Builder alias QueryBuilder.

Chunking Results

Your application may run out of memory if you attempt to load tens of thousands of TinyORM records via the all or get methods. Instead of using these methods, the chunk method may be used to process large numbers of models more efficiently.

The chunk method will retrieve a subset of TinyORM models, passing them to a lambda expression for processing. Since only the current chunk of TinyORM models is retrieved at a time, the chunk method will provide significantly reduced memory usage when working with a large number of models:

Flight::chunk(200, [](QVector<Flight> &&flights, const int /*unused*/)
{
    for (auto &&flight : flights) {
        //
    }

    return true;
});

The first argument passed to the chunk method is the number of records you wish to receive per "chunk". The lambda expression passed as the second argument will be invoked for each chunk that is retrieved from the database. A database query will be executed to retrieve each chunk of records passed to the lambda expression.

If you are filtering the results of the chunk method based on a column that you will also be updating while iterating over the results, you should use the chunkById method. Using the chunk method in these scenarios could lead to unexpected and inconsistent results. Internally, the chunkById method will always retrieve models with an id column greater than the last model in the previous chunk:

Flight::whereEq("departed", true)
    ->chunkById(200, [](QVector<Flight> &&flights, const int /*unused*/)
    {
        for (auto &&flight : flights)
            flight.update({{"departed", false}});

        return true;
    });

Advanced Subqueries

Subquery Selects

TinyORM also offers advanced subquery support, which allows you to pull information from related tables in a single query. For example, let's imagine that we have a table of flight destinations and a table of flights to destinations. The flights table contains an arrived_at column which indicates when the flight arrived at the destination.

Using the subquery functionality available to the query builder's select and addSelect methods, we can select all of the destinations and the name of the flight that most recently arrived at that destination using a single query:

#include "models/destination.hpp"
#include "models/flight.hpp"

return Destination::addSelect(
        Flight::select("name")
            ->whereColumnEq("destination_id", "destinations.id")
            .orderByDesc("arrived_at")
            .limit(1)
            .toBase(),
        "last_flight")
    ->get();

Subquery Ordering

In addition, the query builder's orderBy function supports subqueries. Continuing to use our flight example, we may use this functionality to sort all destinations based on when the last flight arrived at that destination. Again, this may be done while executing a single database query:

return Destination::orderByDesc(
        Flight::select("arrived_at")
            ->whereColumnEq("destination_id", "destinations.id")
            .orderByDesc("arrived_at")
            .limit(1)
            .toBase())
    ->get();

Retrieving Single Models / Aggregates

In addition to retrieving all of the records matching a given query, you may also retrieve single records using the find, first, firstWhere, or firstWhereEq methods. Instead of returning a vector of models, these methods return a single model instance:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

// Retrieve a model by its primary key...
auto flight = Flight::find(1);

// Retrieve the first model matching the query constraints...
auto flight = Flight::whereEq("active", 1)->first();

// Alternative to retrieving the first model matching the query constraints...
auto flight = Flight::firstWhere("active", "=", 1);

// Alternative firstWhere method syntax
auto flight = Flight::firstWhereEq("active", 1);

Sometimes you may wish to perform some other action if no results are found. The findOr methods will return a single model instance or, if no results are found, execute the given lambda expression. The value returned by the lambda will be considered the result of the method:

auto flight = Flight::findOr(1, [] {
    // ...
});

auto flight = Flight::findOr<int>(1, [] {
    // ...
    return 10;
});

auto flight = Flight::findOr<std::optional<Flight>>(1, [] {
    // ...
    return Flight::find(10);
});

To obtain only a subset of the model's attributes you may use the Model::only method, it returns the QVector<AttributeItem>:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

using Orm::Constants::ID;
using Orm::Constants::NAME;

auto flight = Flight::find(1);

auto attributes = flight->only({ID, NAME});

Not Found Exceptions

Sometimes you may wish to throw an exception if a model is not found. The findOrFail and firstOrFail methods will retrieve the first result of the query; however, if no result is found, an Orm::Tiny::ModelNotFoundError will be thrown:

auto flight = Flight::findOrFail(1);

auto flight = Flight::where("legs", ">", 3)->firstOrFail();

Retrieving Or Creating Models

The firstOrCreate method will attempt to locate a database record using the given column / value pairs. If the model can not be found in the database, a record will be inserted with the attributes resulting from merging the first QVector<Orm::WhereItem> argument with the optional second QVector<Orm::AttributeItem> argument:

The firstOrNew method, like firstOrCreate, will attempt to locate a record in the database matching the given attributes. However, if a model is not found, a new model instance will be returned. Note that the model returned by firstOrNew has not yet been persisted to the database. You will need to manually call the save method to persist it:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

// Retrieve flight by name or create it if it doesn't exist...
auto flight = Flight::firstOrCreate({
    {"name", "London to Paris"}
});

// Retrieve flight by name or create it with the name, delayed, and arrival_time attributes...
auto flight = Flight::firstOrCreate(
    {{"name", "London to Paris"}},
    {{"delayed", 1}, {"arrival_time", "11:30"}}
);

// Retrieve flight by name or instantiate a new Flight instance...
auto flight = Flight::firstOrNew({
    {"name", "London to Paris"}
});

// Retrieve flight by name or instantiate with the name, delayed, and arrival_time attributes...
auto flight = Flight::firstOrNew(
    {{"name", "Tokyo to Sydney"}},
    {{"delayed", 1}, {"arrival_time", "11:30"}}
);

Retrieving Aggregates

When interacting with TinyORM models, you may also use the count, sum, max, and other aggregate methods provided by the query builder. As you might expect, these methods return a scalar value instead of a TinyORM model instance:

auto count = Flight::whereEq("active", 1)->count();

auto max = Flight::whereEq("active", 1)->max("price");

Inserting & Updating Models

Inserts

Of course, when using TinyORM, we don't only need to retrieve models from the database. We also need to insert new records. Thankfully, TinyORM makes it simple. To insert a new record into the database, you should instantiate a new model instance and set attributes on the model. Then, call the save method on the model instance:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

// Store a new flight in the database
Flight flight;
flight.setAttribute("name", "Slovakia to Czech");
flight.save();

In this example, we assign the name attribute of the Flight model instance. When we call the save method, a record will be inserted into the database. The model's created_at and updated_at timestamps will automatically be set when the save method is called, so there is no need to set them manually.

Alternatively, you may use the create method to "save" a new model using a single C++ statement. The inserted model instance will be returned to you by the create method:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

auto flight = Flight::create({
    {"name", "London to Paris"},
});

However, before using the create method, you will need to specify either a u_fillable or u_guarded static data member on your model class. These static data members are required because all TinyORM models are protected against mass assignment vulnerabilities by default. To learn more about mass assignment, please consult the mass assignment documentation.

Updates

The save method may also be used to update models that already exist in the database. To update a model, you should retrieve it and set any attributes you wish to update. Then, you should call the model's save method. Again, the updated_at timestamp will automatically be updated, so there is no need to manually set its value:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

auto flight = Flight::find(1);

flight->setAttribute("name", "Paris to London");

flight->save();

Mass Updates

Updates can also be performed against models that match a given query. In this example, all flights that are active and have a destination of San Diego will be marked as delayed:

Flight::whereEq("active", 1)
      ->whereEq("destination", "San Diego")
      .update({{"delayed", 1}});

The update method expects the QVector<Orm::UpdateItem> of column and value pairs representing the columns that should be updated.

Examining Attribute Changes

TinyORM provides the isDirty, isClean, and wasChanged methods to examine the internal state of your model and determine how its attributes have changed from when the model was originally retrieved.

The isDirty method determines if any of the model's attributes have been changed since the model was retrieved. You may pass a specific attribute name to the isDirty method to determine if a particular attribute is dirty. The isClean will determine if an attribute has remained unchanged since the model was retrieved. This method also accepts an optional attribute argument:

#include "models/user.hpp"

auto user = User::create({
    {"first_name", "Silver"},
    {"last_name", "Zachara"},
    {"title", "Developer"},
});

user.setAttribute("title", "Painter");

user.isDirty(); // true
user.isDirty("title"); // true
user.isDirty("first_name"); // false

user.isClean(); // false
user.isClean("title"); // false
user.isClean("first_name"); // true

user.save();

user.isDirty(); // false
user.isClean(); // true

The wasChanged method determines if any attributes were changed after the model was last saved into the database. If needed, you may pass an attribute name to see if a particular attribute was changed:

auto user = User::create({
    {"first_name", "Silver"},
    {"last_name", "Zachara"},
    {"title", "Developer"},
});

user.setAttribute("title", "Painter");

user.wasChanged(); // false

user.save();

user.wasChanged(); // true
user.wasChanged("title"); // true
user.wasChanged("first_name"); // false

Mass Assignment

You may use the create method to "save" a new model using a single C++ statement. The inserted model instance will be returned to you by the method:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

auto flight = Flight::create({
    {"name", "London to Paris"},
});

However, before using the create method, you will need to specify either a u_fillable or u_guarded static data member on your model class. These data members are required because all TinyORM models are protected against mass assignment vulnerabilities by default.

A mass assignment vulnerability occurs when a user passes an unexpected HTTP request field and that field changes a column in your database that you did not expect. For example, a malicious user might send an is_admin parameter through an HTTP request, which is then passed to your model's create method, allowing the user to escalate themselves to an administrator.

So, to get started, you should define which model attributes you want to make mass assignable. You may do this using the u_fillable static data member on the model. For example, let's make the name attribute of our Flight model mass assignable:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;

    using Model::Model;

    /*! The attributes that are mass assignable. */
    inline static QStringList u_fillable {
        "name",
    };
};

Once you have specified which attributes are mass assignable, you may use the create method to insert a new record in the database. The create method returns the newly created model instance:

auto flight = Flight::create({{"name", "London to Paris"}});

If you already have a model instance, you may use the fill method to populate it with the vector of attributes:

flight.fill({{"name", "Amsterdam to Frankfurt"}});

Allowing Mass Assignment

If you would like to make all of your attributes mass assignable, you may define your model's u_guarded static data member as an empty vector. If you choose to unguard your model, you should take special care to always hand-craft the vectors passed to TinyORM's fill, create, and update methods:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>
{
    friend Model;

    using Model::Model;

    /*! The attributes that aren't mass assignable. */
    inline static QStringList u_guarded {};
};

Upserts

Occasionally, you may need to update an existing model or create a new model if no matching model exists.

In the example below, if a flight exists with a departure location of Oakland and a destination location of San Diego, its price and discounted columns will be updated. If no such flight exists, a new flight will be created which has the attributes resulting from merging the first argument vector with the second argument vector:

auto flight = Flight::updateOrCreate(
    {{"departure", "Oakland"}, {"destination", "San Diego"}},
    {{"price", 99}, {"discounted", 1}}
);

note

The firstOrCreate and updateOrCreate methods persist the model, so there's no need to manually call the save method.

If you would like to perform multiple "upserts" in a single query, then you should use the upsert method instead. The method's first argument consists of the values to insert or update, while the second argument lists the column(s) that uniquely identify records within the associated table. The method's third and final argument is the vector of the columns that should be updated if a matching record already exists in the database. The upsert method will automatically set the created_at and updated_at timestamps if timestamps are enabled on the model:

Flight::upsert(
    {{{"departure", "Oakland"}, {"destination", "San Diego"}, {"price", 99}},
     {{"departure", "Chicago"}, {"destination", "New York"},  {"price", 150}}},
    {"departure", "destination"},
    {"price"}
);

caution

All databases except SQL Server require the columns in the second argument of the upsert method to have a "primary" or "unique" index. In addition, the MySQL database driver ignores the second argument of the upsert method and always uses the "primary" and "unique" indexes of the table to detect existing records.

info

Row and column aliases will be used with the MySQL server >=8.0.19 instead of the VALUES() function as is described in the MySQL documentation. The MySQL server version is auto-detected and can be overridden in the configuration.

Deleting Models

To delete a model, you may call the remove, or an alias deleteRow method on the model instance:

#include "models/flight.hpp"

auto flight = Flight::find(1);

flight->remove();

Deleting An Existing Model By Its Primary Key

In the example above, we are retrieving the model from the database before calling the remove method. However, if you know the primary key of the model, you may delete the model without explicitly retrieving it by calling the destroy method. In addition to accepting the single primary key, the destroy method can accept multiple primary keys:

Flight::destroy(1);

Flight::destroy({1, 2, 3});

note

The destroy method loads models from the database and calls the remove method on each model individually, the reason for this is future compatibility with events.

Deleting Models Using Queries

Of course, you may build the query to delete all models matching your query's criteria. In this example, we will delete all flights that are marked as inactive:

auto deletedRows = Flight::whereEq("active", 0)->remove();

Soft Deleting

In addition to actually removing records from your database, TinyORM can also "soft delete" models. When models are soft deleted, they are not actually removed from your database. Instead, a deleted_at attribute is set on the model indicating the date and time at which the model was "deleted". To enable soft deletes for a model, add the Orm::Tiny::SoftDeletes base class to the model:

#include <orm/tiny/model.hpp>
#include <orm/tiny/softdeletes.hpp>

using Orm::Tiny::Model;
using Orm::Tiny::SoftDeletes;

class Flight final : public Model<Flight>,
                     public SoftDeletes<Flight>
{
    friend Model;
    using Model::Model;

private:
    /*! The table associated with the model. */
    QString u_table {"flights"};
};

info

The SoftDeletes base class will automatically cast the deleted_at attribute to the QDateTime instance for you (it adds the deleted_at column to the model's u_dates list).

You should also add the deleted_at column to your database table. The TinyORM schema builder contains a helper method to create this column:

Schema::table("flights", [](Blueprint &table)
{
    table.softDeletes();
});

Schema::table("flights", [](Blueprint &table)
{
    table.dropSoftDeletes();
});

Now, when you call the remove or deleteModel method on the model, the deleted_at column will be set to the current date and time. However, the model's database record will be left in the table. When querying a model that uses soft deletes, the soft deleted models will automatically be excluded from all query results.

To determine if a given model instance has been soft deleted, you may use the trashed method:

if (flight->trashed()) {
    //
}

Restoring Soft Deleted Models

Sometimes you may wish to "un-delete" a soft deleted model. To restore a soft deleted model, you may call the restore method on a model instance. The restore method will set the model's deleted_at column to null:

flight->restore();

You may also use the restore method in a query to restore multiple models:

Flight::withTrashed()
        ->whereEq("airline_id", 1)
        .restore();

The restore method may also be used when building relationship queries:

flight->history()->restore();

Permanently Deleting Models

Sometimes you may need to truly remove a model from your database. You may use the forceDelete method (or it's alias forceRemove) to permanently remove a soft deleted model from the database table:

flight->forceDelete();

You may also use the forceDelete method when building TinyORM relationship queries:

flight->history()->forceDelete();

Querying Soft Deleted Models

Including Soft Deleted Models

As noted above, soft deleted models will automatically be excluded from query results. However, you may force soft deleted models to be included in a query's results by calling the withTrashed method on the query:

auto flights = Flight::withTrashed()
                       ->whereEq("account_id", 1)
                       .get();

The withTrashed method may also be called when building a relationship query:

flight->history()->withTrashed().get();

Retrieving Only Soft Deleted Models

The onlyTrashed method will retrieve only soft deleted models:

auto flights = Flight::onlyTrashed()
                       ->whereEq("airline_id", 1)
                       .get();

The onlyTrashed method may also be called when building a relationship query:

flight->history()->onlyTrashed().get();

Excluding Soft Deleted Models

As noted above, soft deleted models will automatically be excluded from query results. However, you may force soft deleted models to be excluded in a query's results by calling the withoutTrashed method on the query:

auto flights = Flight::withoutTrashed()
                       ->whereEq("account_id", 1)
                       .get();

The withoutTrashed method may also be called when building a relationship query:

flight->history()->withoutTrashed().get();

Truncate Table

You may call the truncate method to delete all of the model's associated database records. The truncate operation will also reset any auto-incrementing IDs on the model's associated table:

Flight::truncate();

Replicating Models

You may create an unsaved copy of an existing model instance using the replicate method. This method is particularly useful when you have model instances that share many of the same attributes:

auto shipping = Address::create({
    {"type", "shipping"},
    {"line_1", "123 Example Street"},
    {"city", "Victorville"},
    {"state", "CA"},
    {"postcode", "90001"},
});

auto billing = shipping.replicate();

billing.fill({
    {"type", "billing"},
});

billing.save();

To exclude one or more attributes from being replicated to the new model, you may pass an unordered_set to the replicate method:

auto flight = Flight::create({
    {"destination", "LAX"},
    {"origin", "LHR"},
    {"last_flown", "2020-03-04 11:00:00"},
    {"last_pilot_id", 747},
});

flight = flight.replicate({
    "last_flown",
    "last_pilot_id",
});

Comparing Models

Sometimes you may need to determine if two models are the "same" or not. The is and isNot methods may be used to quickly verify two models have the same primary key, table, and database connection or not:

if (post->is(anotherPost)) {
    //
}

if (post->isNot(anotherPost)) {
    //
}

The is and isNot methods are also available when using the belongsTo and hasOne relationships. This method is particularly helpful when you would like to compare a related model without issuing a query to retrieve that model:

if (post->author()->is(user)) {
    //
}

Equality comparison

The base Model class also defines the operator== that allows precisely comparing two models. It compares the content of all the model's data members, from all base classes to the most derived model class. The model1 == model2 expression guarantees that these two models are exactly the same.

It would be appropriate to mention that this comparison also includes relations, which means it will also compare all models (including their data members) these relations contain.

TinyORM: Getting Started

Introduction​

Generating Model Classes​

TinyORM Model Conventions​

Table Names​

Primary Keys​

"Composite" Primary Keys​

Timestamps​

Unix timestamps​

Custom timestamp column names​

Touching timestamps​

Database Connections​

Default Attribute Values​

QDateTime and connection name problem​

Retrieving Models​

Building Queries​

Refreshing Models​

Containers​

Chunking Results​

Advanced Subqueries​

Subquery Selects​

Subquery Ordering​

Retrieving Single Models / Aggregates​

Not Found Exceptions​

Retrieving Or Creating Models​

Retrieving Aggregates​

Inserting & Updating Models​

Inserts​

Updates​

Mass Updates​

Examining Attribute Changes​

Mass Assignment​

Allowing Mass Assignment​

Upserts​

Deleting Models​

Deleting An Existing Model By Its Primary Key​

Deleting Models Using Queries​

Soft Deleting​

Restoring Soft Deleted Models​

Permanently Deleting Models​

Querying Soft Deleted Models​

Including Soft Deleted Models​

Retrieving Only Soft Deleted Models​

Excluding Soft Deleted Models​

Truncate Table​

Replicating Models​

Comparing Models​

Equality comparison​

Introduction

Generating Model Classes

TinyORM Model Conventions

Table Names

Primary Keys

"Composite" Primary Keys

Timestamps

Unix timestamps

Custom timestamp column names

Touching timestamps

Database Connections

Default Attribute Values

QDateTime and connection name problem

Retrieving Models

Building Queries

Refreshing Models

Containers

Chunking Results

Advanced Subqueries

Subquery Selects

Subquery Ordering

Retrieving Single Models / Aggregates

Not Found Exceptions

Retrieving Or Creating Models

Retrieving Aggregates

Inserting & Updating Models

Inserts

Updates

Mass Updates

Examining Attribute Changes

Mass Assignment

Allowing Mass Assignment

Upserts

Deleting Models

Deleting An Existing Model By Its Primary Key

Deleting Models Using Queries

Soft Deleting

Restoring Soft Deleted Models

Permanently Deleting Models

Querying Soft Deleted Models

Including Soft Deleted Models

Retrieving Only Soft Deleted Models

Excluding Soft Deleted Models

Truncate Table

Replicating Models

Comparing Models

Equality comparison