Complete SMS Project Setup

Level: Intermediate

ℹ️ What You'll Learn

• Create multi-project solution
• Project organization
• Add references between projects
• Configuration setup
• Complete SMS structure

Create Solution

File → New → Project → Blank Solution:

Solution name: SchoolManagementSystem
Location: C:\NexCoding\SMS\

Creates: SchoolManagementSystem.sln

Add Projects

Right-click solution → Add → New Project:

1. Core Models & Services

Name: SMS.Core
Type: Class Library
Location: SchoolManagementSystem/SMS.Core
Framework: .NET 8

2. Data Access

Name: SMS.Data
Type: Class Library
Framework: .NET 8

3. API Backend

Name: SMS.Api
Type: ASP.NET Core Web API
Framework: .NET 8

4. Unit Tests

Name: SMS.Tests
Type: xUnit Test Project
Framework: .NET 8

Solution Structure

SchoolManagementSystem/
├── SchoolManagementSystem.sln
├── SMS.Core/
│   ├── Models/
│   │   ├── Student.cs
│   │   ├── Teacher.cs
│   │   ├── Exam.cs
│   │   ├── FeeAccount.cs
│   │   └── Enums.cs
│   ├── Services/
│   │   ├── StudentService.cs
│   │   ├── ExamService.cs
│   │   └── FeeService.cs
│   ├── Interfaces/
│   │   ├── IStudentService.cs
│   │   ├── IExamService.cs
│   │   └── IFeeService.cs
│   └── SMS.Core.csproj
├── SMS.Data/
│   ├── Context/
│   │   └── SmsDbContext.cs
│   ├── Repositories/
│   │   ├── StudentRepository.cs
│   │   └── ExamRepository.cs
│   ├── Migrations/
│   └── SMS.Data.csproj
├── SMS.Api/
│   ├── Controllers/
│   │   ├── StudentsController.cs
│   │   ├── ExamsController.cs
│   │   └── FeesController.cs
│   ├── Middleware/
│   ├── Program.cs
│   ├── appsettings.json
│   └── SMS.Api.csproj
├── SMS.Tests/
│   ├── StudentServiceTests.cs
│   ├── ExamServiceTests.cs
│   └── SMS.Tests.csproj
└── docs/

Add Project References

Right-click project → Add Reference:

SMS.Data references:

• ✓ SMS.Core

SMS.Api references:

• ✓ SMS.Core
• ✓ SMS.Data

SMS.Tests references:

• ✓ SMS.Core
• ✓ SMS.Data
• ✓ SMS.Api

Install Common Packages

Package Manager Console:

# For SMS.Core
Install-Package FluentValidation
Install-Package System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations

# For SMS.Data
Install-Package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore
Install-Package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
Install-Package Dapper

# For SMS.Api
Install-Package Serilog
Install-Package Serilog.AspNetCore
Install-Package Newtonsoft.Json

# For SMS.Tests
Install-Package Moq
Install-Package xunit
Install-Package xunit.runner.visualstudio

SMS.Core Models

File: SMS.Core/Models/Student.cs

using System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations;

namespace SMS.Core.Models
{
    public class Student
    {
        [Key]
        public int Id { get; set; }

        [Required]
        [StringLength(50)]
        public string Name { get; set; }

        [Required]
        [StringLength(20)]
        public string RollNumber { get; set; }

        [StringLength(10)]
        public string ClassName { get; set; }

        [StringLength(10)]
        public string Section { get; set; }

        [Required]
        public StudentStatus Status { get; set; }

        public DateTime DateOfBirth { get; set; }
    }

    public enum StudentStatus
    {
        Active = 1,
        Inactive = 2,
        Graduated = 3,
        Transferred = 4
    }
}

SMS.Core Services

File: SMS.Core/Services/StudentService.cs

using SMS.Core.Models;

namespace SMS.Core.Services
{
    public interface IStudentService
    {
        Task<Student> GetStudentAsync(int id);
        Task<List<Student>> GetStudentsAsync();
        Task CreateStudentAsync(Student student);
        Task UpdateStudentAsync(Student student);
        Task DeleteStudentAsync(int id);
    }

    public class StudentService : IStudentService
    {
        private readonly IStudentRepository _repository;

        public StudentService(IStudentRepository repository)
        {
            _repository = repository;
        }

        public async Task<Student> GetStudentAsync(int id)
        {
            return await _repository.GetByIdAsync(id);
        }

        public async Task<List<Student>> GetStudentsAsync()
        {
            return await _repository.GetAllAsync();
        }

        public async Task CreateStudentAsync(Student student)
        {
            await _repository.AddAsync(student);
        }

        public async Task UpdateStudentAsync(Student student)
        {
            await _repository.UpdateAsync(student);
        }

        public async Task DeleteStudentAsync(int id)
        {
            await _repository.DeleteAsync(id);
        }
    }
}

SMS.Api Controller

File: SMS.Api/Controllers/StudentsController.cs

using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;
using SMS.Core.Models;
using SMS.Core.Services;

namespace SMS.Api.Controllers
{
    [ApiController]
    [Route("api/[controller]")]
    public class StudentsController : ControllerBase
    {
        private readonly IStudentService _service;

        public StudentsController(IStudentService service)
        {
            _service = service;
        }

        [HttpGet("{id}")]
        public async Task<ActionResult<Student>> GetStudent(int id)
        {
            var student = await _service.GetStudentAsync(id);
            if (student == null)
                return NotFound();

            return Ok(student);
        }

        [HttpGet]
        public async Task<ActionResult<List<Student>>> GetStudents()
        {
            var students = await _service.GetStudentsAsync();
            return Ok(students);
        }

        [HttpPost]
        public async Task<ActionResult> CreateStudent([FromBody] Student student)
        {
            await _service.CreateStudentAsync(student);
            return Created();
        }

        [HttpPut("{id}")]
        public async Task<ActionResult> UpdateStudent(int id, [FromBody] Student student)
        {
            student.Id = id;
            await _service.UpdateStudentAsync(student);
            return NoContent();
        }

        [HttpDelete("{id}")]
        public async Task<ActionResult> DeleteStudent(int id)
        {
            await _service.DeleteStudentAsync(id);
            return NoContent();
        }
    }
}

Configure Dependencies

File: SMS.Api/Program.cs

using SMS.Core.Services;
using SMS.Data;

var builder = WebApplicationBuilder.CreateBuilder(args);

// Add services
builder.Services.AddScoped<IStudentService, StudentService>();
builder.Services.AddScoped<SmsDbContext>();
builder.Services.AddControllers();

var app = builder.Build();

app.MapControllers();
app.Run();

Build Solution

Build → Build Solution (Ctrl + Shift + B):

Build succeeded
SMS.Core:     ✓ 0 warnings
SMS.Data:     ✓ 0 warnings
SMS.Api:      ✓ 0 warnings
SMS.Tests:    ✓ 0 warnings

Key Takeaways

• Multi-project = separation of concerns
• Core = models and interfaces
• Data = database access
• Api = controllers and endpoints
• Tests = quality assurance
• DI Container = wire everything together

💡 SMS Setup Pro Tip

Use this structure for all projects. Consistent organization = easier onboarding.

⚠️ Common Setup Mistakes

1. Circular references — Project A → B → A (bad)
2. Everything in one project — No separation
3. Missing interfaces — Hard to test
4. Hardcoded dependencies — Not flexible

🤖Use AI to Learn Faster

Use ChatGPT, Claude, or Copilot to go deeper on Project Setup. Try these prompts:

• "What's the benefit of multi-project structure?"
• "Why use interfaces for services?"
• "How do I add project references?"
• "Quiz me on project setup"

💡 Tip: After reading this article, paste your own code into AI and ask "What could go wrong here and why?" — fastest way to find edge cases and deepen understanding.

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Final Project Section Links

Use these links to complete the full Final Project topic from the top menu:

• Final Project Overview
• School Management System API
• Visual Studio Project Setup
• Git Workflow for SMS Project
• Angular SMS Frontend
• SQL Server Tutorial
• EF Core Tutorial
• Resume Writing

Target search terms for this lesson: school management system project setup visual studio, asp.net core project setup, .net multi project solution, c# project structure for beginners, dotnet project for resume.

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Developer Tools Section Links

Use these links to continue the full Dev Tools topic from the top menu:

• Visual Studio Setup
• VS Code Setup
• Git Tutorial
• GitHub Repositories
• Swagger / OpenAPI
• Postman API Testing
• SSMS Tutorial
• ASP.NET Core Web API
• SQL Server Tutorial

Target search terms for this lesson: complete sms project setup in visual studio, developer tools for .net, .net developer tools, backend developer tools, school management system tools.

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