Views

Learning objectives#

• Explain the view lookup order
• Render a view with a different name or path
• Share views through Views/Shared
• Pass a model to a view

Explanation#

return View() renders the view named after the action. MVC searches ~/Views/{Controller}/{Action}.cshtml, then ~/Views/Shared/{Action}.cshtml (plus .vbhtml versions).

return View("Summary") renders a view with another name, searched in the same folders. return View("~/Views/Reports/Monthly.cshtml") uses an exact path.

Views in Views/Shared can be used by every controller — useful for Error.cshtml, layouts, partials and common pages.

return View(model) passes data to the view; inside it, the Model property holds it. View("Name", model) does both.

If no file is found, MVC throws InvalidOperationException listing every location it searched — read that list to find the typo.

Syntax#

1return View();                                   // Views/Products/Index.cshtml
2return View("Summary", model);                   // Views/Products/Summary.cshtml
3return View("~/Views/Reports/Monthly.cshtml");    // exact path
4return View("Maintenance");                      // falls back to Views/Shared

Code example: Same controller, different views#

1// Controllers/ReportsController.cs
2using System.Web.Mvc;
3

4namespace ShopSite.Controllers
5{
6    public class ReportsController : Controller
7    {
8        // Views/Reports/Index.cshtml
9        public ActionResult Index()
10        {
11            return View();
12        }
13

14        // Views/Reports/Summary.cshtml, with a model
15        public ActionResult Today()
16        {
17            return View("Summary", 12450.75m);
18        }
19

20        // Not in Views/Reports, so MVC uses Views/Shared/Maintenance.cshtml
21        public ActionResult Yearly()
22        {
23            return View("Maintenance");
24        }
25

26        // A view that does not exist anywhere
27        public ActionResult Broken()
28        {
29            return View("Nope");
30        }
31    }
32}
33

34@* Views/Reports/Index.cshtml *@
35<h1>Reports</h1>
36

37@* Views/Reports/Summary.cshtml *@
38@model decimal
39<h1>Today’s sales</h1>
40<p>@Model.ToString("N2") rupees</p>
41

42@* Views/Shared/Maintenance.cshtml *@
43<h1>This report is being updated</h1>
44<p>Please try again later.</p>

GET /Reports
200 OK
<h1>Reports</h1>

GET /Reports/Today
200 OK
<h1>Today’s sales</h1>
<p>12,450.75 rupees</p>

GET /Reports/Yearly
200 OK
<h1>This report is being updated</h1>
<p>Please try again later.</p>

GET /Reports/Broken
500 Internal Server Error

This example is illustrative. Copy or download it and run it in your own environment; the expected output is shown above.

Step-by-step explanation#

1. Index returns View(), so MVC renders Views/Reports/Index.cshtml.
2. Today renders the Summary view with a decimal model; @model decimal makes Model a decimal, formatted with N2.
3. Yearly asks for Maintenance, which only exists in Views/Shared, so MVC uses it after checking Views/Reports.
4. Broken asks for a view that does not exist: the exception becomes a 500, and with custom errors on the user sees the Error page.

Real-world use case#

Common mistakes#

Best practices#

• Keep one folder per controller
• Use Views/Shared for anything reused across controllers
• Name views after actions so View() just works
• Use full paths only for unusual cases

Remember this#

Practice exercise#

1// Controllers/GiftCardsController.cs
2using System.Web.Mvc;
3

4namespace ShopSite.Controllers
5{
6    public class GiftCardsController : Controller
7    {
8        public ActionResult Index() => View("NotReady", (object)"Gift cards");
9    }
10

11    public class WishlistController : Controller
12    {
13        public ActionResult Index() => View("NotReady", (object)"Wishlist");
14    }
15}
16

17@* Views/Shared/NotReady.cshtml *@
18@model string
19<h1>@Model is coming soon</h1>

GET /GiftCards
200 OK
<h1>Gift cards is coming soon</h1>

GET /Wishlist
200 OK
<h1>Wishlist is coming soon</h1>

Mini quiz#

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Related topics#

My notes#

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