Zend Framework: right way to retrieve data from database

hello guys,

am working on a project with zend framework and i need your advise on the right way to fetch data from the database.

Am making use of Zend_Layout to load my template. The appropriate view is then loaded into the template.

On the template, there is supposed to be a section that displays data from the database (e.g Categories). Since i am using one template, the data will be displayed on every page requested irrespective of the controller or action called.

I know its not a good practise to fetch the data from the template and it wouldn't be a good idea to fetch the data from each action executed. I dont know if the right thing to do is to use helpers to fetch the data from the database, but wouldn't that go against the whole idea of MVC.

I need advise from you guys.

From stackoverflow

• You haven't mentioned the option of using a Model class to fetch the data. That's the "M" in MVC. :-)

  A Model class is one that has an interface the View can use to request specific fragments of data. Inside the Model class, it may use a mix of using Zend_Db_Table methods, and also custom SQL queries (executed directly through Zend_Db_Adapter's query() method). Whatever works to get the data.

  The point is that a Model encapsulates all the logic needed to supply data in a format the View can use.

  See also

  • "An Introduction to Domain-Driven Design" at Microsoft.
  • "Domain-Driven Design" by Eric Evans.
  War Coder : thanks very much for the response. actually when i said fetch data from the database, i meant through the Model class. So u are saying it is okay for me to call the appropriate Model class directly from the template.

  Bill Karwin : Yeah. My rule of thumb is that the View can call methods on the Model class, as long as the View treats the Model as effectively 'read-only'. Whether the Model has the data fetched from the database already, or has to run an SQL query at the time the View requests the information, is an implementation detail -- the View shouldn't avoid requesting data it needs based on that.