A question that many novice developers ask is the difference between MVC and MVT. In this post, let’s discuss the difference between these two patterns.
What is MVC?
Model View Controller, known as MVC separates the code as three components. MVC separates the business logic and presentation layer from each other. It was traditionally used for desktop graphical user interfaces (GUIs). Nowadays, MVC architecture has become popular for designing web applications as well as mobile apps.
- Model – This layer deals with data-related logic. For example, it can retrieve, change and save data to the database.
- View – We can call it the presentation layer. It is responsible for collecting data from the model or user and presenting it. In a web application, everything that is displayed in the browser falls under View.
- Controller – It controls the data flow and interaction between view and model. For example, a controller, based on a request or action, will collect data from a database with the help of Model and send it to the user through Views.
- Makes it easy to develop large applications.
- Easy for multiple developers to collaborate and work together.
- View is controlled by Model and Controller.
- Not suitable for small applications.
What is MVT?
Model View Template, widely known as MVT is another design pattern similar to MVC. Like MVC, the MVT design pattern also separates the code into three parts.
- Model – Same as the model in MVC. It contains the code responsible for dealing with data and databases.
- View – In MVT design pattern, the View is decides what data should be displayed
- Template – Templates are used to specify a structure for an output. Data can be populated in a template using placeholders. It defines how the data is presented. An example is a Generic list view that we can use to display a set of records from the database.
- Less coupled.
- Suitable for small to large-scale applications.
- Easy to Modify.
- Sometimes, understanding the flow can be confusing.
- Modification of Models / Views should be done carefully without affecting Templates.
Difference between MVC and MVT
The main difference between MVC and MVT is that in a Model View Controller pattern, we have to write all the control specific code. But in an MVT, the controller part is taken care of by the framework itself.
Let me explain this with an example. Imagine you have to display a list of books you have in a library, stored is a table named books. In MVC architecture, you have to write the code to fetch the list of books from the database, write the presentation layer (I am talking about HTML, CSS), map it with a URL and send it to the user.
But in frameworks like Django (It uses MVT architecture), you don't have to write any code related to fetching data from the database and mapping it with the URL. All these activities are handled by the framework itself. The only thing that you have to do is to tell the framework what data should be presented to the user (Books table). The framework will then create a view based on the data and send it to the user.
The classic MVC pattern works by managing the state of an application. When a user performs an action or makes a request, an action in the Controller is called. The Controller then either tells Model to make changes and update the View or returns a View based on a Model. Hence we can say that the View is controlled by the Controller and Model.
However, MVT takes a slightly different approach. When a user makes an HTTP request, the corresponding view performs a query on the Model and collects the result set from the Model. The View then fills the result in a template and sends it to the user.
Unlike in MVC, view is not coupled with a Model. This makes MVT loosely coupled and easy-to-modify.
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