MetadataException: Unable to load the specified metadata resource

c# .net entity-framework ado.net
J. Steen picture J. Steen · Mar 27, 2009 · Viewed 481.8k times · Source

All of a sudden I keep getting a MetadataException on instantiating my generated ObjectContext class. The connection string in App.Config looks correct - hasn't changed since last it worked - and I've tried regenerating a new model (edmx-file) from the underlying database with no change.

Anyone have any ideas?

Further details: I haven't changed any properties, I haven't changed the name of any output assemblies, I haven't tried to embed the EDMX in the assembly. I've merely waited 10 hours from leaving work until I got back. And then it wasn't working anymore.

I've tried recreating the EDMX. I've tried recreating the project. I've even tried recreating the database, from scratch. No luck, whatsoever.

Answer

Craig Stuntz picture Craig Stuntz · Mar 27, 2009

This means that the application is unable to load the EDMX. There are several things which can cause this.

  • You might have changed the MetadataArtifactProcessing property of the model to Copy to Output Directory.
  • The connection string could be wrong. I know you say you haven't changed it, but if you have changed other things (say, the name of an assembly), it could still be wrong.
  • You might be using a post-compile task to embed the EDMX in the assembly, which is no longer working for some reason.

In short, there is not really enough detail in your question to give an accurate answer, but hopefully these ideas should get you on the right track.

Update: I've written a blog post with more complete steps for troubleshooting.

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