Web Api with Web-Hosting and Self-Hosting - asp.net-web-api

Is there a best practice for supporting self- and web-hosting (at the same time)?
There are many problems I had to solve. Under self-hosting autofac does not work properly, because HttpContext.Current is not set and The GlobalConfiguration is not accessible in self-hosting.
Are there other problems to be aware of?

Have a look at this answer: https://stackoverflow.com/a/13285693/463785 This shows you how you can structure your solution in a hosting layer agnostic way.
Basically, put your ASP.NET Web API logic into a separate project and, as #DarrelMiller suggested, don't use any hosting specific context in that project. Don't even reference unnecessary assemblies (e.g: System.Web) inside this project. However, you will have some hosting layer specific needs, such as getting the consumer's IP address (this cannot be done through what ASP.NET Web API gives you). In such cases, employ some sort of contract between your core API and hosting layers.
For example, below one is the message handler which will set the IP Address of the consumer for each request and I registered this message handler through my WebHost project:
public class UserHostAddressSetterHandler : DelegatingHandler {
protected override Task<HttpResponseMessage> SendAsync(HttpRequestMessage request, CancellationToken cancellationToken) {
request.Properties[ApiCommonRequestKeys.UserHostAddressKey] = request.GetUserHostAddress();
return base.SendAsync(request, cancellationToken);
}
}
internal static class HttpRequestMessageExtensions {
internal static HttpContextBase GetHttpContext(this HttpRequestMessage request) {
return (HttpContextBase)request.Properties[Constants.MS_HttpContextKey];
}
internal static string GetUserHostAddress(this HttpRequestMessage request) {
return request.GetHttpContext().Request.UserHostAddress;
}
}
Then, at the API core layer, I know that hosting layer has set the IP address and I can reach it through Properties[ApiCommonRequestKeys.UserHostAddressKey] of HttpRequestMessage instance anytime.
Have a look at this project: https://github.com/tugberkugurlu/PingYourPackage this is a nice ASP.NET Web API project which has been structured in a hosting later agnostic way. May give you a hint.

You should not use HttpContext.Current in any Web API project. Everything you need should be in HttpRequestMessage.Properties. I'm not aware of any DI issues with Self-host, I know you can use Unity in Self-host without any problems.

WebAPI is having a different pipeline, and they use HTTPHandler. which is in a lower level. Hence, using HTTPContext.Current is not a good idea.

Related

How can I create a WCF Service Application in Visual Studio that does NOT use a Web Server

I have a simple task: A program (executable) is supposed to call a function of another program (also executable) with some parameters. Program A is supposed to be started, call the function and then terminate. Program B is legacy program that has a GUI and runs continuously. Both programs run on the same Windows PC and use the .NET Framework. I have no experience in web development and Program B is not supposed to run as a web service! Named pipes seem like a good option.
I researched what the best method would be and wanted to try WCF. The documentation claims that "A service endpoint can be part of a continuously available service hosted by IIS, or it can be a service hosted in an application". From that I understand that I can run Program B as a service without hosting a web server.
However everything I see in Visual Studio seems to presume I want to run a server. Wenn I want to create a new WCF project in Visual Studio the only options are a library or "A project for creating WCF service application that is hosted in IIS/WAS". Once I've created said project the debugger wants me to choose a browser for hosting the service.
In another StackOverflow topic a popular suggestion was using this website as a guide and simply removing the http references since the guide is for both named pipes and http. Another indication that it should be possible.
So can someone point me in the right direction? What am I missing? How can I use WCF with nothing related to Web Development involved?
You have already been on the way, it is enough to host the web service in Program B, without specifying a web server. this is called a self-hosted WCF. As the link you provided mentioned, the Service host class is used to host the WCF service, which means that we can host the service in the Console/Winform, and so on.
Here is an example of hosting the service in a Winform application.
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
ServiceHost serviceHost = null;
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
Uri uri = new Uri("http://localhost:9009");
BasicHttpBinding binding = new BasicHttpBinding();
serviceHost = new ServiceHost(typeof(MyService), uri);
serviceHost.AddServiceEndpoint(typeof(IService), binding, "");
ServiceMetadataBehavior smb = new ServiceMetadataBehavior()
{
HttpGetEnabled = true
};
serviceHost.Description.Behaviors.Add(smb);
System.ServiceModel.Channels.Binding mexbinding = MetadataExchangeBindings.CreateMexHttpBinding();
serviceHost.AddServiceEndpoint(typeof(IMetadataExchange), mexbinding, "mex");
serviceHost.Open();
}
private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
if (serviceHost.State==CommunicationState.Opened)
{
this.label1.Text = "Service is running";
}
}
private void Form1_FormClosing(object sender, FormClosingEventArgs e)
{
if (serviceHost.State==CommunicationState.Opened&&serviceHost.State!=CommunicationState.Closed)
{
serviceHost.Close();
}
}
}
[ServiceContract]
public interface IService
{
[OperationContract]
string Test();
}
public class MyService:IService
{
public string Test()
{
return DateTime.Now.ToLongTimeString();
}
}
After that, we could consume it by using a client proxy.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/framework/wcf/accessing-services-using-a-wcf-client
Feel free to let me know if there is anything I can help with.

NET Core Server Side multiple session Blazor

I'm trying to host my Blazor application on my server.
I spent all the summer on it and I just realized every time I open my website on new device it doesn't create a new session restarting from zero, but continues where I left it. The worst part is there is a login system behind it, so I feel super dumb at the moment.
I really need a big hint on how to fix this "not little" issue.
Is there a way to make server create new session every time someone open the website (without making it loose to other users)?
The solution should be use a Client Template instead, but the performance are really to slow.
UPDATE:
Accounts "user password" are:
- user user
- test test
Download project sample (requires Net Core 3.0)
[SOLUTION] itminus found the solution to my issue.
You have also to add in ConfigureServices in Startup.cs this services.AddScoped<Storage>();
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
services.AddRazorPages();
services.AddServerSideBlazor();
services.AddScoped<Storage>();
}
every time I open my website on new device it doesn't create a new session restarting from zero, but continues where I left it.
I checkout your code and find that you're using Singleton Pattern to initialize the Storage. If I understand it correctly, this Storage singleton instance will be shared across different users (also across different devices). As this instance will be used to render the Main.razor page, there will be concurrency problems that you're experiencing now .
To fix that issue, the Storage instance should be limited within some specific connection. As you're using Blazor Server Side, you could register the Storage as a Scoped Service:
In Blazor Server apps, a scoped service registration is scoped to the connection. For this reason, using scoped services is preferred for services that should be scoped to the current user, even if the current intent is to run client-side in the browser.
Firstly, remove the static singleton instance :
public class Storage
{
private static Storage instance;
private Storage()
{
}
public static Storage GetInstance()
{
if (Storage.instance == null)
Storage.instance = new Storage();
return Storage.instance;
}
public List<Items>list {get;set;} = new List<Items>();
public string password {get;set;}
}
Register this Class as a scoped service:
services.AddScoped<Storage>();
And then inject this service in your Login.razor and Main.razor :
#inject project.Storage Storage
Finally, you need change all the Storage.GetInstance(). to Storage.:
Storage.list = Order;
...
Storage.password = password;
I notice that you're also creating the Importer/Additional instance using the Singleton Pattern. I would suggest you should refactor them to use Service Injection in a similar way.

Calling internal (Endpoint) function in WebAPI

I am using Hangfire to execute recurring jobs in my web API and I use System.Web.HttpContext.Current.Server.MapPath in the "RoutineMethod" function.
But the problem is it throws object null exception.
I searched the problem and found that recurring jobs don't use http threads, they use background threads.
Now to resolve this problem I need to call my internal (endpoint) using httpclient.
But to do that I need to give URL of the Web API (to generate URI). So is there any other way to call internal function using httpclient.
My current code:
public static async Task<IHttpActionResult> RoutineTask()
{
//It was like this before.
//await new DemoController().RoutineMethod();
//await new DemoController().RoutineMethod2();
//I am planning to do this.
using (var client = new HttpClient())
{
//But I need to give URI which I don't think is a good idea.
var uri = new Uri("http://localhost/DemoApp/api/DemoController/RoutineMethod");
await client.GetAsync(uri);
}
return new DemoController().Ok();
}
The short answer is no. The HttpClient, as its name implies, requires an http connection.
There are no smell issues with storing service connection information in a configuration file.
However, to expand on Nkosi's comment, it appears that since your code can create an instance of DemoController, that it must have a reference to that controller's project or even be in the same project. I would extract the interesting code into a library or service that all areas needing the information can reference.

MiniProfiler with Web.API 2; is there a global magic request context object?

I'm trying to setup MiniProfiler on my web api site, and having a hard time getting MiniProfiler.Current to work.
I followed the directions at miniprofiler.com, and have the following in global.asax:
protected void Application_Start()
{
MiniProfilerEF6.Initialize();
// other setup
}
protected void Application_BeginRequest() {
// need to start one here in order to render out the UI
MiniProfiler.Start();
}
protected void Application_EndRequest() {
MiniProfiler.Stop();
}
This uses the default WebRequestProfilerProvider, which stores the actual profile object in HttpContext.Current.Items.
When I ask for MiniProfiler.Current, it looks to HttpContext.Current.
When I make a request for one of my web api URLs:
Application_BeginRequest creates the profiler, store it in HttpContext.Current
in a web api MessageHandler, I can see HttpContext.Current
in a web apu IActionFilter, HttpContext.Current is now null, and my attempt to MiniProfiler.Current.Step("controller:action") fails
my EF queries run from various services do not get recorded, as that miniprofiler hook relies MiniProfiler.Current, which relies on HttpContext.Current, which is null right now
Application_EndRequest fires, and HttpContext.Current is magically back, and so it wraps up the profiler and tells me how long it's been since the request began
I dug through the code, and I can create my own IProfileProvider, to store the profiler object somewhere more reliable than HttpContext.Current, but I don't know where that could be.
I spent a few hours trying things out, but couldn't find a workable solution. The problems:
the IProfileProvider is a global variable; all worker threads in either the MVC or Web API pipeline all have to use the same IProfileProvider
I can dig around in web api RequestContext.Properties to pull out the HttpContext for that request, but that doesn't really help because my IProfileProvider is global across the entire app; If I tell it to store the profile in HttpContext A, then any simultaneous requests for other HttpContexts are going to pollute the profile
I can't rely on any kind of threadstorage because of async/await re-using threads dynamically
I can't stick the profiler object in an Ninject binding with InRequestScope because InRequestScope doesn't seem to work with web api 2.1, but even if I could
everyone says HttpRequestMessage.Properties is the new HttpContext.Current.Items, but again, IProfileProvider is a global variable and I don't know of a way to ensure each request is looking at their version HttpRequestMessage. MiniProfiler.Current can be called from anywhere, so I guess a global IProfileProvider would have to somehow inspect the call stack to and find an HttpRequestMessage there? That sounds like madness.
I'm at a loss. What I really want is a special variable.
The process of putting the question together I figured it out. HttpContext.Current can get lost when you async/await things: Why is HttpContext.Current null after await?
I had to make the web.config change listed there, and adjusted my filters to use Miniprofiler.Current before any awaiting.
Also discussed at https://www.trycatchfail.com/2014/04/25/using-httpcontext-safely-after-async-in-asp-net-mvc-applications/

IIS 7 Custom Error Page without Web.config

Is there any way to set a custom error page in IIS 7 without creating a web.config?
Unfortunately researching this particular topic has been very difficult because there are SO many articles on how to do it with a web.config. What I'm looking for is either buried beneath the 8 million results I don't want or it's not possible.
Yes, there is. It involves either subscribing to the Application_Error event in Global.asax or by writing a custom ErrorHandlerAttribute.
Darin already gave the correct answer, but I want to go into a little more depth.
In any ASP.NET application, given it is Web Forms, MVC, or raw ASP.NET, you can always use Application_Error Global.asax. If your ASP.NET application does not have a Global.asax, all you need to do is right-click your project in Solution Explorer, Add New Item, and choose Global Application Class. You should only have this option available if you don't already have one.
In your Global.asax, if you don't already see it, you can add Application_Error as shown below:
protected void Application_Error(object sender, EventArgs e) {
}
This will be called automatically by ASP.NET whenever there is an error. But as stated here, this is not perfect. Specifically:
An error handler that is defined in the Global.asax file will only
catch errors that occur during processing of requests by the ASP.NET
runtime. For example, it will catch the error if a user requests an
.aspx file that does not occur in your application. However, it does
not catch the error if a user requests a nonexistent .htm file. For
non-ASP.NET errors, you can create a custom handler in Internet
Information Services (IIS). The custom handler will also not be called
for server-level errors.
In Application_Error you can process the uncaught exception with Server.GetLastError(). This will provide you the Exception that was thrown, or null. I am not sure why this handler would be called if an exception didn't occur, but I believe that it is possible.
To redirect the user, use Response.Redirect(). Whatever you pass for the url is going to be sent directly to the browser without any further processing, so you can't use application-relative paths. To do that I would use this method in combination with VirtualPathUtility.ToAbsolute(). For example:
Response.Redirect( VirtualPathUtility.ToAbsolute( "~/Error.aspx" ) );
This redirect will be a 302 (temporary redirect) rather than a 301 (permanent), which is what you want in the case of handling errors. It's worth noting that this overload of Response.Redirect is the same as calling the overload Response.Redirect(url, endResponse: true). This method works by throwing an exception, which is not ideal in terms of performance. Instead, call Response.Redirect(url, false) immediately followed by Response.Complete​Request().
If you're using ASP.NET MVC, [HandleError] is also an option. Place this attribute on your Controller or on an Action within a controller. When this attribute is present, MVC will display the Error view, found in the ~/Views/Shared folder.
But you can make this even easier for yourself. You can automatically add this attribute to call Controllers in your project by creating a FilterConfig class in your project. Example:
public class FilterConfig {
public static void RegisterGlobalFilters(GlobalFilterCollection filters) {
filters.Add(new HandleErrorAttribute());
}
}
And then add FilterConfig.RegisterGlobalFilters( GlobalFilters.Filters ); to your Application_Start() in Global.asax.
You can read more about the HandleErrorAttribute at https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.web.mvc.handleerrorattribute(v=vs.118).aspx.
But as stated above, both of these methods will never cover absolutely all errors that can occur during the processing of your application. It's not possible to provide the best user experience for all possible errors without using Web.config or configuring IIS manually.

Resources