Rails with Active Record and Action Pack

About this course: You already know how to build a basic web application with the Ruby on Rails framework. Perhaps, you have even taken Course 1, "Ruby on Rails: An Introduction" (we highly recommend it) where you relied on external web services to be your “data layer”. But in the back of your mind, you always knew that there would come a time when you would need to roll up your sleeves and learn SQL to be able to interact with your own relational database (RDBMS). But there is an easier way to get started with SQL using the Active Record Object/Relational (ORM) framework. In this course, we will be able to use the Ruby language and the Active Record ORM framework to automate interactions with the database to quickly build the application we want. In Rails with Active Record and Action Pack, we will explore how to interact with relational databases by using Active Record, a Ruby gem, which Rails uses by default for database access. We will then take a look at what role Active Record plays in the overall request-response cycle, when a client (the browser) requests data from the server, as well as how to submit the data to the server. Of course, when accessing data, security is of paramount importance! We will talk about vulnerabilities such as SQL injection, as well as how to secure access to data by authenticating and authorizing users accessing the data. Take this course to build a Ruby on Rails application with Active Record to automate the detailed SQL interactions with our database.

Created by:  Johns Hopkins University

• Taught by:  Kalman Hazins, Adjunct Professor, Graduate Computer Science

  Whiting School of Engineering

Basic Info Course 2 of 6 in the Ruby on Rails Web Development Specialization Language English How To Pass Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. User Ratings 4.7 stars Average User Rating 4.7See what learners said Coursework

Each course is like an interactive textbook, featuring pre-recorded videos, quizzes and projects.

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Syllabus


WEEK 1


Introduction to Active Record



In this module, we will begin exploring the database-interaction portion of Rails. We will start off with migrations that enable you to create and modify the schema of the database. We will then move on to discussing the Active Record gem Rails uses, which enables you to create, retrieve, update, and delete the data from the database. Before looking at Active Record, we will talk about some advanced Ruby features of meta-programming that will help facilitate our Active Record journey.


12 videos, 3 readings, 2 practice quizzes expand

1. Video: Course Introduction
2. Reading: Grading
3. Video: Welcome to Module 1: Introduction to Active Record
4. Reading: Github Repository for Module 1
5. Reading: Recommended Books
6. Video: Scaffolding
7. Video: Database Setup and SQLite
8. Video: Introduction to Migrations
9. Video: Creating and Modifying Tables and Columns
10. Practice Quiz: Scaffold and Migrations
11. Video: Dynamic Dispatch
12. Video: Dynamic Methods
13. Video: Ghost Methods
14. Video: Introduction to Active Record
15. Video: Active Record CRUD: Part 1
16. Video: Active Record CRUD: Part 2
17. Practice Quiz: Active Record Queries

Graded: Basic Active Record CRUD

WEEK 2


Deep Dive into Active Record



In this module, we will continue exploring Active Record and look at ways to code advanced queries without exposing ourselves to risk from SQL injection (as well as what SQL injection actually is). We will then look at expressing relationships between entities in Active Record and validating the data being saved to the database.


11 videos, 2 readings, 2 practice quizzes expand

1. Video: Welcome to Module 2: Deep Dive into Active Record
2. Reading: GitHub Repository for Module 2
3. Reading: Recommended Books
4. Video: Seeding the Database
5. Video: SQL Fragments and Dangers of SQL Injection
6. Video: Array and Hash Condition Syntax
7. Practice Quiz: Advanced Querying
8. Video: One-to-One Association
9. Video: One-to-Many Association
10. Video: Many-to-Many Association
11. Video: Rich Many-to-Many Association
12. Practice Quiz: Relationships
13. Video: Active Record Scopes
14. Video: Validations
15. Video: N+1 Queries Issue and DB Transactions

Graded: Active Record Relationships

WEEK 3


Introduction to Action Pack
In this module, we will introduce Rails' Action Pack, which is a combination of Action Controller and Action View. We will see how REST has influenced routing in a Rails application and also talk about partials, form helpers, and layouts.


10 videos, 2 readings, 2 practice quizzes expand

1. Video: Welcome to Module 3: Introduction to Action Pack
2. Reading: GitHub Repository for Module 3
3. Reading: Recommended Books
4. Video: Introduction to Action Pack
5. Video: REST and Rails
6. Practice Quiz: Action Pack
7. Video: Restful Actions: Index
8. Video: Restful Actions: Show and Destroy
9. Video: Restful Actions: New and Create
10. Video: Strong Parameters and Flash
11. Video: Restful Actions: Edit and Update
12. Practice Quiz: Restful Actions
13. Video: Partials
14. Video: Form Helpers and Layouts

Graded: ActionPack

WEEK 4


Security and Nested Resources in Action Pack



In this module, we will talk about how to deal with nested resources in Rails. We will then talk about securing your app with a username and password combination for authentication purposes and making sure that users are only authorized to make changes to and view their own resources. We will finish off the module by discussing pagination and deploying to Heroku Paas (Platform as a Service).


10 videos, 2 readings, 2 practice quizzes expand

1. Video: Welcome to Module 4: Security and Nested Resources in Action Pack
2. Reading: GitHub Repository for Module 4
3. Reading: Recommended Books
4. Video: Building an App with Multiple Resources
5. Video: Nested Resources: Part 1
6. Video: Nested Resources: Part 2
7. Practice Quiz: Nested Resources
8. Video: Authentication
9. Video: HTTP Sessions and Cookies
10. Video: Sessions Controller and View
11. Video: Authorization
12. Practice Quiz: Authentication
13. Video: Pagination
14. Video: Deploying to Heroku and Enabling SSL

Graded: Nested Resources, Security, and Pagination