Based on this question here and using code found here I'm trying to load views that are embedded resources in a separate DLL project, and the original question's author says he has had success doing this - but I can't get it to work as it seems the MVC view engine is intercepting the request and still looking at the file system for the view. Exception:
Server Error in '/' Application.
The view 'Index' or its master could not be found. The following locations were searched:
~/Views/admin/Index.aspx
~/Views/admin/Index.ascx
~/Views/Shared/Index.aspx
~/Views/Shared/Index.ascx
~/App/Views/admin/Index.aspx
~/App/Views/admin/Index.ascx
~/App/Views/Shared/Index.aspx
~/App/Views/Shared/Index.ascx
I am using a CustomViewEngine
, like Rob Connery's /App structure one as follows:
public class CustomViewEngine : WebFormViewEngine
{
public CustomViewEngine()
{
MasterLocationFormats = new[] {
"~/App/Views/{1}/{0}.master",
"~/App/Views/Shared/{0}.master"
};
ViewLocationFormats = new[] {
"~/App/Views/{1}/{0}.aspx",
"~/App/Views/{1}/{0}.ascx",
"~/App/Views/Shared/{0}.aspx",
"~/App/Views/Shared/{0}.ascx"
};
PartialViewLocationFormats = ViewLocationFormats;
}
}
Here are my routes:
routes.IgnoreRoute("{resource}.axd/{*pathInfo}");
routes.MapRoute("Home", "", new {controller = "Page", action = "Index", id = "Default"});
routes.MapRoute("Default", "Page/{id}", new { controller = "Page", action = "Index", id = "" });
routes.MapRoute("Plugins", "plugin/{controller}/{action}", new { controller = "", action = "Index", id = "" });
routes.MapRoute("Error", "{*url}", new { controller = "Error", action = "ResourceNotFound404" });
In my AssemblyResourceProvider
I'm checking to see if the path starts ~/plugin/
and then using the dll filename convention plugin.{controller}.dll
Any suggestions?
UPDATE: By the time the routed request for say http://localhost/plugin/admin
is getting to the VirtualFileProvider it doesn't have any View attached at the end. So in the VirtualFileProvider
's Open method the virtual path of ~/plugin/admin
is being passed in when it should be ~/plugin/admin/Index.aspx
as defined in my route above. Have I messed up my routes or am I right to be expecting this to happen?
VirtualPathProvider
within the Global.asax
Application_Start
handler.return View("~/Plugin/YOURDLL.dll/FULLNAME_YOUR_VIEW.aspx");
Here's an article with downloadable code sample that demonstrates this: