Module is.codion.framework.domain
Package is.codion.framework.domain.entity.attribute

Interface AttributeDefinition<T>

Type Parameters:
T - the underlying type
All Known Subinterfaces:
AuditColumnDefinition<T>, ColumnDefinition<T>, DerivedAttributeDefinition<T>, ForeignKeyDefinition, TransientAttributeDefinition<T>
public interface AttributeDefinition<T>
Defines an Attribute configuration including validation, formatting, and behavior settings.

AttributeDefinition instances specify how attributes behave within entities, including:

  • Display properties (caption, description, format patterns)
  • Validation rules (nullable, min/max values, length constraints)
  • Default values and value generation
  • UI behavior (items for combo boxes, comparators for sorting)
  • Data conversion and formatting

AttributeDefinitions are created using the builder pattern through attribute definers: 

public class Store extends DefaultDomain {

    interface Product {
        EntityType TYPE = DOMAIN.entityType("store.product");

        Column<Integer> ID = TYPE.integerColumn("id");
        Column<String> NAME = TYPE.stringColumn("name");
        Column<String> DESCRIPTION = TYPE.stringColumn("description");
        Column<BigDecimal> PRICE = TYPE.bigDecimalColumn("price");
        Column<String> CATEGORY = TYPE.stringColumn("category");
        Column<Boolean> ACTIVE = TYPE.booleanColumn("active");
        Column<LocalDateTime> CREATED_DATE = TYPE.localDateTimeColumn("created_date");
    }

    void defineProduct() {
        Product.TYPE.define(
                Product.ID.define()
                    .primaryKey()
                    .keyGenerator(KeyGenerator.identity())
                    .caption("Product ID"),

                Product.NAME.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Product Name")
                    .nullable(false)
                    .maximumLength(100)
                    .description("The name of the product"),

                Product.DESCRIPTION.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Description")
                    .maximumLength(500)
                    .nullable(true),

                Product.PRICE.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Price")
                    .nullable(false)
                    .minimumValue(BigDecimal.ZERO)
                    .maximumValue(new BigDecimal("99999.99"))
                    .maximumFractionDigits(2)
                    .defaultValue(BigDecimal.ZERO),

                Product.CATEGORY.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Category")
                    .nullable(false)
                    .items(List.of(
                        Item.item("ELECTRONICS", "Electronics"),
                        Item.item("CLOTHING", "Clothing"),
                        Item.item("BOOKS", "Books"),
                        Item.item("HOME", "Home & Garden"))),

                Product.ACTIVE.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Active")
                    .nullable(false)
                    .defaultValue(true),

                Product.CREATED_DATE.define()
                    .column()
                    .caption("Created")
                    .nullable(false)
                    .columnHasDefaultValue(true) // Database sets this
                    .updatable(false))
            .build();
    }
}
See Also:

  • Field Details

    • MNEMONIC_RESOURCE_SUFFIX

      static final String MNEMONIC_RESOURCE_SUFFIX
      The suffix used for the mnemonic resource key.
      • name=Name
      • name.mnemonic=N
      See Also:

    • DEFAULT_MAXIMUM_FRACTION_DIGITS

      static final int DEFAULT_MAXIMUM_FRACTION_DIGITS
      The default maximum fraction digits for floating point numbers
      See Also:

    • MAXIMUM_FRACTION_DIGITS

      static final PropertyValue<Integer> MAXIMUM_FRACTION_DIGITS
      Specifies the default maximum number of fraction digits for double property values
      Note that values are rounded when set.
      • Value type: Integer
      • Default value: 10

    • DECIMAL_ROUNDING_MODE

      static final PropertyValue<RoundingMode> DECIMAL_ROUNDING_MODE
      Specifies the default rounding mode used for decimal property values
      See Also:

    • TIME_FORMAT

      static final PropertyValue<String> TIME_FORMAT
      The default date format pattern to use when showing time values in tables and when creating default time input fields
      • Value type: String
      • Default value: HH:mm

    • DATE_TIME_FORMAT

      static final PropertyValue<String> DATE_TIME_FORMAT
      The default date/time format pattern to use when showing date/time values in tables and when creating default date/time input fields
      • Value type: String
      • Default value: dd-MM-yyyy HH:mm [month/day order is locale specific]

    • DATE_FORMAT

      static final PropertyValue<String> DATE_FORMAT
      The default date format pattern to use when showing date values in tables and when creating default date input fields
      • Value type: String
      • Default value: dd-MM-yyyy [month/day order is locale specific]

    • NUMBER_FORMAT_GROUPING

      static final PropertyValue<Boolean> NUMBER_FORMAT_GROUPING
      Specifies whether number format grouping is used by default
      • Value type: Boolean
      • Default value: false

    • GROUPING_SEPARATOR

      static final PropertyValue<Character> GROUPING_SEPARATOR
      Specifies the default number grouping separator
      • Value type: Character
      • Default value: The grouping separator for the default locale

    • DECIMAL_SEPARATOR

      static final PropertyValue<Character> DECIMAL_SEPARATOR
      Specifies the default number decimal separator.
      • Value type: Character
      • Default value: The decimal separator for the default locale

    • USE_LEXICAL_STRING_COMPARATOR

      static final PropertyValue<Boolean> USE_LEXICAL_STRING_COMPARATOR
      Specifies whether String values should use a lexical comparator by default
      • Value type: Boolean
      • Default value: true

    • TRIM_STRINGS

      static final PropertyValue<Boolean> TRIM_STRINGS
      Specifies whether String values should be trimmed by default
      • Value type: Boolean
      • Default value: true
      See Also:

  • Method Details

    • attribute

      Attribute<T> attribute()
      The Attribute this definition is based on, should be unique within an Entity. By default, the Attribute.name() serves as column name for database columns.
      Returns:
      the attribute this definition is based on

    • entityType

      EntityType entityType()
      Returns:
      the type of the entity this attribute is associated with

    • caption

      String caption()
      Returns:
      the caption or the attribute name if no caption has been specified
      See Also:

    • description

      Optional<String> description()
      Returns:
      a String describing this attribute or an empty Optional if none is available

    • string

      String string(@Nullable T value)
      Returns a string representation of the given value formatted with this attributes format. If no format is available Object.toString() is used. By default, null values result in an empty string.
      Parameters:
      value - the value to format.
      Returns:
      the value formatted as a string
      See Also:

    • hasDefaultValue

      boolean hasDefaultValue()
      Returns:
      true if a default value has been set for this attribute

    • defaultValue

      @Nullable T defaultValue()
      Returns:
      the default value for this attribute, if no default value has been set null is returned
      See Also:

    • hidden

      boolean hidden()
      Returns:
      true if this attribute should be hidden in table views

    • maximumValue

      Optional<Number> maximumValue()
      Returns:
      the maximum allowed value for this attribute, an empty Optional if none is defined, only applicable to numerical attributes

    • minimumValue

      Optional<Number> minimumValue()
      Returns:
      the minimum allowed value for this attribute, an empty Optional if none is defined, only applicable to numerical attributes

    • maximumFractionDigits

      int maximumFractionDigits()
      Returns:
      the maximum number of fraction digits to use for this attribute value, -1 if this attribute is not based on Types.DOUBLE or Types.DECIMAL
      See Also:

    • decimalRoundingMode

      RoundingMode decimalRoundingMode()
      Returns:
      the rounding mode to use when working with decimal values
      See Also:

    • nullable

      boolean nullable()
      Returns:
      true if null is a valid value for this attribute

    • derived

      boolean derived()
      The value of a derived attribute can not be set, as it's value is derived from other values
      Returns:
      true if the value of this attribute is derived from one or more values

    • maximumLength

      int maximumLength()
      Returns:
      the maximum length of this attribute value, -1 is returned if the maximum length is undefined, this only applies to String (varchar) based attributes

    • trim

      boolean trim()
      Returns:
      if string values should be trimmed, this applies to String (varchar) based attributes

    • mnemonic

      char mnemonic()
      Returns the mnemonic associated with this attribute.
      Returns:
      the mnemonic to use when creating a label for this attribute, 0 meaning no mnemonic

    • format

      Optional<Format> format()
      Returns the Format used when presenting values for this attribute, an empty Optional if none has been specified.
      Returns:
      the Format object used to format the value of attributes when being presented

    • dateTimePattern

      Optional<String> dateTimePattern()
      Returns the date time format pattern used when presenting and inputting values for this attribute.
      Returns:
      the date/time format pattern

    • dateTimeFormatter

      Optional<DateTimeFormatter> dateTimeFormatter()
      Returns the date time formatter used when presenting and inputting values for this attribute.
      Returns:
      the DateTimeFormatter for this attribute or an empty Optional if this is not a date/time based attribute

    • comparator

      Comparator<T> comparator()
      Returns:
      the Comparator to use when comparing values associated with this attribute

    • validItem

      boolean validItem(@Nullable T value)
      Validates the given value against the valid items for this attribute. Always returns true if this is not an item based attribute.
      Parameters:
      value - the value to validate
      Returns:
      true if the given value is a valid item for this attribute
      See Also:

    • items

      List<Item<T>> items()
      Returns the valid items for this attribute or an empty list in case this is not an item based attribute
      Returns:
      an unmodifiable view of the valid items for this attribute