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a9f3c50863
The previous LLM-generated knowledge files contained factual
hallucinations. The most visible was the claim that `FindFirst` /
`FindLast` "forces a full-table scan" on an unfiltered record - it does
not; those APIs return a single row via the current key.
Other inaccuracies the audit found and fixed:
* `FindSet(true)` was described as "taking a LockTable". The correct
upstream phrasing is that `FindSet(true)` sets
`ReadIsolation::UpdLock` on the read. UpdLock and LockTable are
related but distinct mechanisms.
* The list of production-scale tables had been invented beyond the
upstream source (e.g. "Detailed Cust. Ledg. Entry") without a
citation. The regenerated list matches the ten tables upstream lists
with their P95 row counts.
* `SetLoadFields` guidance had been augmented with an extra mechanism
claim ("the database resolves the filter using the index without
hydrating the value") not present in upstream.
Approach: full regeneration of `microsoft/knowledge/` from the six
upstream BCApps Code Review instruction files, with Microsoft Learn /
the AL language reference as a secondary source. Every claim in every
regenerated file is anchored to a verbatim upstream quote (or a Learn
URL); the audit trail lives in artifacts/trace-<domain>.json on the
session workspace.
The PR #11 transaction/error-handling cluster is preserved verbatim:
* performance/understand-implicit-transaction-boundary.md
* performance/codeunit-run-as-atomic-sub-operation.{md,good.al,bad.al}
* performance/codeunit-run-requires-prior-commit-inside-transaction.{md,good.al,bad.al}
* performance/use-tryfunction-for-error-catching-not-rollback.{md,good.al,bad.al}
* performance/avoid-commit-inside-loops.{md,good.al,bad.al}
* security/commitbehavior-attribute-scopes-explicit-commits.{md,good.al,bad.al}
* testing/transactionmodel-attribute-governs-test-transactions.{md,good.al,bad.al}
These articles already cite Microsoft Learn and were carefully
cross-referenced; the regeneration skips their topics rather than
duplicating them.
File counts after regeneration:
performance 35 .md (5 preserved + 30 new)
privacy 17 .md
security 18 .md (1 preserved + 17 new)
style 33 .md
testing 1 .md (preserved)
ui 19 .md
upgrade 18 .md
Total 141 atomic knowledge files, each strictly one rule. All pass
.github/scripts/validate_frontmatter.py with 0 errors and 0 warnings.
Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
22 lines
1.5 KiB
Markdown
22 lines
1.5 KiB
Markdown
---
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bc-version: [all]
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domain: performance
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keywords: [dictionary, temporary-table, lookup, o-of-1, key-lookup]
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technologies: [al]
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countries: [w1]
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application-area: [all]
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---
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# Prefer a Dictionary over a temporary table for pure lookups
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## Description
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A temporary table supports a full record API — filters, iteration, multi-field keys — but a pure key→value lookup pays for plumbing it does not use. Per the upstream guidance, "if a temporary table record is ONLY used as a lookup table, it is faster to use a dictionary which supports O(1) lookups instead of O(lg n) for temporary tables." The Dictionary type has no record machinery to traverse; the key hash answers the lookup directly.
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## Best Practice
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When the use of a temp record is "set a key, see if the row exists, read a single value", switch to `Dictionary of [Key, Value]`. Use the temp-table form when the use genuinely needs filtering, iteration in a specific order, or a multi-field key. Compatibility with code that expects a `Record` parameter is a real reason to keep the temp table; performance alone, on a pure lookup, is not.
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## Anti Pattern
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A temp `Record` declared, populated row by row, then queried with `SetRange(KeyField, X); if Find('=') then Value := Rec.ValueField;`. The lookup hashes the key behind the scenes and does the same work a `Dictionary` would, plus the per-row record overhead. The pattern often appears because the author originally needed iteration and the iteration was later removed without revisiting the data structure.
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