This document discusses several issues with using Hibernate as an object-relational mapping framework. It notes problems with implementing equals and hashCode for entities, handling mutable objects and relationships between parent and child entities. It also criticizes the criteria and HQL query languages, lazy loading behavior, updating single fields, flushing changes, and lack of documentation and support for more complex use cases. The document argues that Hibernate makes developers rely on its abstraction without fully understanding the underlying database concepts and generated SQL.

1. Why Do I Hate Hibernate? Mikalai Alimenkou http://xpinjection.com 13.09.2011

3. It is hard decision when there is no “unique business key” for the entity

5. Fields can’t be final

6. State of object may become inconsistent

8. Hard to maintain if many entities exists

9. No simple and common pattern implementation

10. Silent DTO mapping errors

12. Mixing HQL and Criteria API looks strange

14. Few people understand in details how lazy loading works

15. At least 2 SQL queries to update single field

17. Entity state can be managed only from one side in parent-child relationship

19. Child collections must be copied before modification

20. Constraint exception handling code may be missed at all

22. For all complex things you need to consult with books (“Java Persistence with Hibernate” is the best)

24. Few people go deeper than simple mapping

25. Almost nobody count number of SQL queries performed and their structure