Dao & Norm

• Dao - A ColdFusion library for easy and db agnostic CRUD interaction and Linq style query building.
• Norm (Not ORM) - A dynamic Object Mapping layer built on top of DAO that provides oData support and ORM style object interactions (load, save, relate entities, etc...).

Elevator Pitch

Dao/Norm is a duo of libraries that provide a simple yet full featured interface to perform script based queries as well as adds extended functionality such as ORM (with easy and dynamic relationships), oData (Consume/Produce), LINQ style queries and more. Basically it is the data interaction ColdFusion/Railo/Lucee should have come with out of the box.

In short, the goal of this library is to allow one to interact with the database in a DB platform agnostic way, while making it super easy.

Supported databases

Dao supports MySQL, MSSQL, and SQLite via connector components (database/mysql.cfc, database/mssql.cfc, database/sqlite.cfc) that implement IDAOConnector. Use the dbtype argument when creating the DAO (e.g. new database.dao( dsn = "mydsn", dbtype = "sqlite" )) or rely on auto-detection when the datasource is configured. Tests and connector logic must remain compatible with all three; avoid changes that assume a single database.

Requirements

• Runtime: Lucee 4.x, 5.x, 6.x, or Adobe CF 11+
• Lucee 6: Requires Java 11 or later. CommandBox uses your system java; if you see org.lucee.commonmark / osgi.ee; (version=11) when running box start, install a newer JVM and point the project at it (see below).

Using Java 11+ with this project (Lucee 6)

1. Install OpenJDK 17 (Ubuntu/Debian):

   sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y openjdk-17-jdk
   

2. Make it the system default so CommandBox (and everything else) uses Java 17 globally:

   sudo update-alternatives --set java /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64/bin/java
   

   Confirm with java -version (should show 17.x). No per-project or per-shell setup needed.

Installation

Manual

Clone this repo and copy the "database" folder (/database) into your project (or into the folder you place your components)

CommandBox

box install dao

Publishing a new version to ForgeBox: See docs/forgebox-publish.md.

Examples

DAO

dao = new database.dao();
dao.update("sometable",form);

function getUsers(){
	// normally injected or in applicaiton scope
	dao = new database.dao();
	return dao.read(
		sql = "
			SELECT fname as firstName, lname as lastName
			FROM Users
		",
		returnType = "array"
	);
}
writeOutput( getUsers() );

Output:

[
	{"firstName":"Jill","lastName":"Smith"},
	{"firstName":"Joe","lastName":"Blow"},
	{"firstName":"John","lastName":"Cash"}
]

LINQ

dao.from( "eventLog" )
		.where( "eventDate", "<", now() )
		.andWhere( "eventDate", ">=", dateAdd( 'd', -1, now() ) )
	.run();

Norm

User = new database.Norm("user");
User.loadByFirstName("joe");
User.setStatus("online");
User.save();

Resources

Documentation and Examples: https://github.com/abramadams/dao/wiki

Chat: The CFML team Slack - Ask questions in the #cfml-general channel and mention @abram.

Testing

Which database are tests using? The first line of test output is Database: sqlite (or mysql / mssql). To change it, set this.datasource in tests/Application.cfc to dao_sqlite , dao_mysql , or dao_mssql (all three are defined in the same this.datasources block). See docs/test-database.md.

Testing with MySQL or MSSQL (Docker)

A Docker Compose file is included to run MySQL and/or MSSQL for tests. Start with docker compose up -d (or docker compose up -d mysql / docker compose up -d mssql). See docs/docker-mysql.md and docs/docker-mssql.md for connection details and how to point the test app at each database.

Contributing

Pull requests welcome! See installation instructions for setup and testing.

Copyright and License

Copyright (c) 2007-2026 Abram Adams. All rights reserved.

The use and distribution terms for this software are covered by the Apache Software License 2.0 (http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0) which can also be found in the file LICENSE at the root of this distribution and in individual licensed files. By using this software in any fashion, you are agreeing to be bound by the terms of this license. You must not remove this notice, or any other, from this software.