Bold for Delphi - Quick Start Guide 🚀

Get your first Bold application running in 15 minutes! ⏱️

What is Bold? 💡

Bold for Delphi is a Model-Driven Architecture (MDA) framework that:

Lets you define your domain model in UML
Auto-generates strongly-typed Delphi classes from your model
Handles object-relational mapping (ORM) to any database
Provides OCL (Object Constraint Language) for queries
Includes data-aware VCL components with automatic UI updates

The core idea: You work with objects, Bold handles the database.

UML Model → Code Generator → Business Classes → Bold Runtime → Database

Prerequisites ✅

Delphi 11.3, 12.1 CE, 12.3, or 13
Database: The following FireDAC-supported databases should work. SQLite, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Firebird, MariaDB/MySQL and Oracle. SQLite requires no installation.
Bold packages installed (see Installation below)

Installation 📦

Step 1: Get the Source

git clone https://github.com/bero/BoldForDelphi.git

Or download and extract to a folder like C:\BoldForDelphi.

Step 2: Get the Packages

Option A: Download Pre-built Binaries (Recommended)

Download the binary package for your Delphi version from: https://github.com/bero/BoldForDelphi/releases/

Extract to packages\Bin\. Add the new package from menu Component/Install packages...

Then press Add and select your bpl-file

Option B: Build from Source 🔧

Compiling from source gives you the latest version, or lets you use Bold with unsupported Delphi versions.

Open the package project for your Delphi version in the IDE:

Delphi Version	Open this file
Delphi 11.3 Alexandria	`packages\Delphi11.3\dclBold.dproj`
Delphi 12.1 CE Athens	`packages\Delphi12.1_CE\dclBold.dproj`
Delphi 12.3 Athens	`packages\Delphi12.3\dclBold.dproj`
Delphi 13 Athens	`packages\Delphi13\dclBold.dproj`

Then:

File → Open Project and select the .dproj from the table above
Project → Build (or Shift+F9) to compile the package
In the Project Manager panel, right-click the .bpl and choose Install
Verify via menu Component → Install Packages... — you should see "Bold for Delphi" in the list

The compiled BPL is output to packages\Bin\.

You should now see Bold components in the Tool Palette. 🎉

Using an unsupported Delphi version:

If your Delphi version is not listed above:

Copy the folder of the closest supported version (e.g., copy Delphi13 for Delphi 14)
Rename the folder to match your Delphi version (e.g., Delphi14)
Open dclBold.dproj in the IDE
Go to Project → Options → Description and update the Lib Suffix to match your compiler version
Build and install as described above
If it works, consider submitting a pull request to include the new package folder

Your First Bold Application 🏗️

First option is to look at a ready-made small app: examples\Simple\ObjectSpace\MasterDetail\MasterDetail.dproj

Important: This example uses design-time Bold components, so you must install the Bold package first (Step 2 above). Then open and compile MasterDetail. It defaults to SQLite — no database server needed, just press F9.

Second option is to build app from scratch. More fun and more learning 😊 We'll build a simple app with Person and Building objects, where persons can own buildings.

Step 1: Create a New VCL Application

File → New → VCL Forms Application
Save the project (e.g. Building.dproj)

Step 2: Add a Data Module

File → New → Other → Delphi Files → Data Module
Save as DataModule1.pas

Step 3: Add Core Bold Components

Drop these components on your DataModule from the Bold palette:

Component	Purpose
`TBoldModel`	Holds your UML model
`TBoldSystemHandle`	Main runtime system
`TBoldSystemTypeInfoHandle`	Type information for design-time
`TBoldPersistenceHandleDB`	Database persistence

Connect them:

BoldSystemHandle1.BoldModel → BoldModel1
BoldSystemHandle1.PersistenceHandle → BoldPersistenceHandleDB1
BoldSystemTypeInfoHandle1.BoldModel → BoldModel1

Step 4: Add Database Connection

Drop a TFDConnection (FireDAC) on the DataModule

Configure it for your database. SQLite is the easiest to start with — no server needed:

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=SQLite

[SQLite]
Database=BoldDemo.db

The database file is created automatically on first run.

Other database configurations (SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Firebird, MariaDB, Oracle)

For SQL Server:

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=MSSQL

[MSSQL]
Server=localhost
Database=BoldDemo
OSAuthent=True
User=sa
Password=

For PostgreSQL:

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=PostgreSQL

[PostgreSQL]
Server=localhost
Database=bolddemo
VendorLib=C:\Program Files\PostgreSQL\18\bin\libpq.dll
User=postgres
Password=<your_password>

For Firebird:

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=Firebird

[Firebird]
Server=localhost
Database=C:\Data\BoldDemo.fdb
VendorLib=C:\Program Files\Firebird\Firebird_5_0\fbclient.dll
User=SYSDBA
Password=<your_password>

For MariaDB (or MySQL):

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=MariaDB

[MariaDB]
Server=localhost
Port=3306
Database=bolddemo
User=root
Password=<your_password>
VendorLib=C:\Program Files\MariaDB\MariaDB Connector C 64-bit\lib\libmariadb.dll

Note: MariaDB requires the MariaDB Connector/C client library. Download from https://mariadb.com/downloads/connectors/ (Connector/C, Windows 64-bit). For MySQL, point VendorLib to libmysql.dll instead.

For Oracle:

[Database]
Persistence=FireDAC
Type=Oracle

[Oracle]
Database=//localhost:1521/XEPDB1
User=bolduser
Password=<your_password>
VendorLib=C:\oracle\instantclient_23_7\oci.dll

Note: Oracle requires the Oracle Instant Client. The Database parameter uses Easy Connect format: //host:port/service_name.

Drop a TBoldDatabaseAdapterFireDAC component
Set BoldDatabaseAdapterFireDAC1.Connection → FDConnection1
Set BoldPersistenceHandleDB1.DatabaseAdapter → BoldDatabaseAdapterFireDAC1

Step 5: Create Your Model

Double-click BoldModel1 to open the Model Editor
Create your classes:

Person class:

Right-click → Add Class → Name: Person
Add attributes:
- FirstName: String
- LastName: String
- Assets: Currency

Building class:

Add Class → Name: Building
Add attributes:
- Address: String
- ZipCode: Integer

Create an association (Ownership):

Select both classes
Right-click → Add Association
Name: Ownership
Person side: OwnedBuildings (0..*)
Building side: Owners (0..*)

File → Save & Generate all files

This creates BusinessClasses.pas with strongly-typed classes.

Step 6: Add Business Classes to Project

Add the generated BusinessClasses.pas to your project
Add to DataModule uses clause:
```
uses
  BusinessClasses;
```

Step 7: Design the Main Form

On your main form, add:

List Handles (from Bold Handles palette):

TBoldListHandle named blhAllPersons
- RootHandle → DataModule1.BoldSystemHandle1
- Expression → Person.allInstances
TBoldListHandle named blhAllBuildings
- RootHandle → DataModule1.BoldSystemHandle1
- Expression → Building.allInstances

GUI Components (from Bold Controls palette):

TBoldGrid for persons → BoldHandle = blhAllPersons
TBoldGrid for buildings → BoldHandle = blhAllBuildings
TBoldNavigator → BoldHandle = blhAllPersons

Actions (from Bold Actions palette):

TBoldActivateSystemAction → Opens the database
TBoldUpdateDBAction → Saves changes to database
Add buttons linked to these actions

Step 8: Initialize the System

In your main form's OnCreate:

procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);
begin
  // Activate opens/creates the database and loads the model
  BoldActivateSystemAction1.Execute;
end;

Step 9: Run It! ▶️

Press F9 to run
Click "Open System" to activate
Use the navigator to add Person records
The grid automatically displays them
Click "Update DB" to save

That's it! You have a working Bold application. ✅

Working with Objects in Code 💻

Bold generates clean, strongly-typed classes. Here's how to use them:

Creating Objects

var
  Person: TPerson;
  Building: TBuilding;
begin
  // Create objects - Bold tracks them automatically
  Person := TPerson.Create(BoldSystemHandle1.System);
  Person.FirstName := 'John';
  Person.LastName := 'Doe';
  Person.Assets := 50000;

  Building := TBuilding.Create(BoldSystemHandle1.System);
  Building.Address := '123 Main Street';
  Building.ZipCode := 12345;

  // Create relationship
  Person.OwnedBuildings.Add(Building);
end;

Querying with OCL

var
  RichPeople: TBoldObjectList;
begin
  // Find all persons with assets > 100000
  RichPeople := BoldSystemHandle1.System.EvaluateExpressionAsNewElement(
    'Person.allInstances->select(assets > 100000)'
  ) as TBoldObjectList;

  // Use type-safe access
  for var i := 0 to RichPeople.Count - 1 do
    ShowMessage(TPerson(RichPeople[i]).FirstName);
end;

Saving to Database

// Save all changes
BoldSystemHandle1.UpdateDatabase;

// Or discard changes
BoldSystemHandle1.System.Discard;

Key Concepts 📚

Concept	Description
BoldSystem	The runtime container for all your objects
Handles	Connect UI components to objects (`TBoldListHandle`, `TBoldExpressionHandle`)
OCL Expressions	Query language: `Person.allInstances->select(age > 30)`
Subscription	UI auto-updates when objects change
M_ properties	Direct access to Bold members: `Person.M_FirstName.AsString`

Common OCL Expressions 🔍

Person.allInstances                      -- All persons
Person.allInstances->size                -- Count of persons
Person.allInstances->select(assets > 0)  -- Filter
Person.allInstances->collect(lastName)   -- Extract attribute
Person.allInstances->sortedBy(lastName)  -- Sort
self.ownedBuildings->size                -- Count related objects
self.firstName + ' ' + self.lastName     -- Concatenation

Next Steps 🚶

Explore the Examples: See examples/Compound/Building/ for a more complex sample (note: this is a legacy Delphi 7 project — use it as a code reference, not as a compilable project)
Read the Tutorials: Check Doc/Starting Bfd - Part 1, 2, 3.pdf
Learn OCL: See Doc/ad970808_UML11_OCL.pdf for the OCL specification
Try Derived Attributes: Computed values that auto-update
Add Constraints: Validate your model with OCL constraints

Troubleshooting 🔧

"Bold.inc not found"

Add Source\Common\Include to your project's search path

Components not showing in palette

Verify the BPL is installed (Component → Install Packages)
Check that all dependent packages are loaded in menu Component/Install packages...

Database errors on first run

Use TBoldCreateDatabaseAction to create the schema first
Or call BoldPersistenceHandleDB1.CreateDataBaseSchema

PostgreSQL: "libpq.dll not found" or connection fails

Copy libpq.dll and its dependencies to your executable folder (see Step 4)
The DLLs are in your PostgreSQL installation's bin folder

Firebird: "fbclient.dll not found" or connection fails

Copy fbclient.dll to your executable folder (see Step 4)
The DLL is in your Firebird installation folder

MariaDB/MySQL: "libmysql.dll not found" or connection fails

MariaDB Server does not include the client library - you need MariaDB Connector/C
Download from https://mariadb.com/downloads/connectors/ (Connector/C, Windows 64-bit)
Set VendorLib in your INI to point to libmariadb.dll
For MySQL, point VendorLib to libmysql.dll in your MySQL installation

Oracle: "oci.dll not found" or connection fails

Download Oracle Instant Client from https://www.oracle.com/database/technologies/instant-client/downloads.html
Extract to a folder (e.g., C:\oracle\instantclient_23_7)
Set VendorLib in your INI to point to oci.dll in that folder
The Database parameter uses Easy Connect format: //host:port/service_name

Oracle: ORA-01400 "cannot insert NULL" errors

This can occur if your database schema was created with an older Bold version
Use the "Reset Oracle Schema" option in the demo app to recreate tables
Or manually drop all tables and let Bold recreate them

SQLite: Database file not created

SQLite creates the database file automatically on first connection
Check that the path in the INI file is writable
The file will be created in the same folder as the executable if no path is specified

Resources 🔗

Git Embarcadero original repo: https://github.com/Embarcadero/BoldForDelphi
Git active development: https://github.com/bero/BoldForDelphi/tree/develop
Wiki: https://delphi.fandom.com/wiki/Bold_for_Delphi
Discord: https://discord.gg/C6frzsn
Blog: http://boldfordelphi.blogspot.com/

Bold for Delphi - Model-Driven Development for Delphi since 2004

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Bold for Delphi - Quick Start Guide 🚀

What is Bold? 💡

Prerequisites ✅

Installation 📦

Step 1: Get the Source

Step 2: Get the Packages

Your First Bold Application 🏗️

Step 1: Create a New VCL Application

Step 2: Add a Data Module

Step 3: Add Core Bold Components

Step 4: Add Database Connection

Step 5: Create Your Model

Step 6: Add Business Classes to Project

Step 7: Design the Main Form

Step 8: Initialize the System

Step 9: Run It! ▶️

Working with Objects in Code 💻

Creating Objects

Querying with OCL

Saving to Database

Key Concepts 📚

Common OCL Expressions 🔍

Next Steps 🚶

Troubleshooting 🔧

Resources 🔗

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Bold for Delphi - Quick Start Guide 🚀

What is Bold? 💡

Prerequisites ✅

Installation 📦

Step 1: Get the Source

Step 2: Get the Packages

Your First Bold Application 🏗️

Step 1: Create a New VCL Application

Step 2: Add a Data Module

Step 3: Add Core Bold Components

Step 4: Add Database Connection

Step 5: Create Your Model

Step 6: Add Business Classes to Project

Step 7: Design the Main Form

Step 8: Initialize the System

Step 9: Run It! ▶️

Working with Objects in Code 💻

Creating Objects

Querying with OCL

Saving to Database

Key Concepts 📚

Common OCL Expressions 🔍

Next Steps 🚶

Troubleshooting 🔧

Resources 🔗