I'm using a library for converting HTML to PDF. After converting to PDF how can I save this converted PDF file in application folder in a controller?
Here is the code:
public ActionResult ABC(ResearchProposal model)
{
ViewDataDictionary viewData = new ViewDataDictionary(model);
// transmit the posted data to view
viewData["MyModel"] = model;
StringWriter stringWriter = new StringWriter();
// Render the Index view in a HTML string
ViewEngineResult viewResult = ViewEngines.Engines.FindView(ControllerContext, "ABC", null);
ViewContext viewContext = new ViewContext(
ControllerContext,
viewResult.View,
viewData,
new TempDataDictionary(),
stringWriter
);
viewResult.View.Render(viewContext, stringWriter);
// Get the view HTML string
string htmlToConvert = stringWriter.ToString();
// Get the base URL
String currentPageUrl = this.ControllerContext.HttpContext.Request.Url.AbsoluteUri;
String baseUrl = currentPageUrl.Substring(0, currentPageUrl.Length - "Reports/ABC".Length);
// Create a HTML to PDF converter object with default settings
HtmlToPdfConverter htmlToPdfConverter = new HtmlToPdfConverter();
// Set license key received after purchase to use the converter in licensed mode
// Leave it not set to use the converter in demo mode
htmlToPdfConverter.LicenseKey = "fvDh8eDx4fHg4P/h8eLg/+Dj/+jo6Og=";
// Set an adddional delay in seconds to wait for JavaScript or AJAX calls after page load completed
// Set this property to 0 if you don't need to wait for such asynchcronous operations to finish
htmlToPdfConverter.ConversionDelay = 2;
// Convert the HTML string to a PDF document in a memory buffer
byte[] outPdfBuffer = htmlToPdfConverter.ConvertHtml(htmlToConvert, baseUrl);
// Send the PDF file to browser
FileResult fileResult = new FileContentResult(outPdfBuffer, "application/pdf");
fileResult.FileDownloadName = "Convert_Current_Page.pdf";
return fileresult;
}
You can use File.WriteAllBytes to save the bytes of the FileContentResult that you got.
You will need to map the relative path of the server for this to work, as relative path only works in the context of ASP.NET.
string filename = "Convert_Current_Page.pdf";
string path = Server.MapPath("~G/Initial try/Content/data/");
path = Path.Combine(path, filename);
File.WriteAllBytes(path, fileResult.FilecContents);
Related
Although #Html.RenderPartial calls write and returns void, it is still writing to a StringWriter/StringBuilder. Is there a way to render directly to the ResponseStream?
Can this be done with a custom IViewEngine that implements render like PdfView to directly output to the ResponseStream?
ADDITION
ViewResultBase.ExecuteResult shows the ViewContext being built with Response.Output, but debugger shows ViewContext.Writer as a StringWriter
Both of these approaches results in a StringWriter
return PartialView("view", Model)
// or
PartialView("view", Model).ExecuteResult(ControllerContext)
EDIT
It appears that System.Web.WebPages.WebPageBase ExecutePageHeirarchy pushes a temp StringWriter onto the context stack, so I'm not sure if this can be bypassed
IN SUMMARY
RenderPartial, RenderAction do not directly output to the Response.Stream, none of Razor Views will
SOLUTION
It was the new WebPages/Razor rendering engine that wraps everything with a StringWriter to a StringBuilder. The solution was to change my page to use the WebFormViewEngine which does not apply this wrapping.
This below method illustrates one way achieving the outcome you are looking for:
// <summary>
// An extension methods for rendering a model/view into a stream
// </summary>
// <param name="myModel">The model you are trying render to a stream</param>
// <param name="controllerBase">This will come from your executing action</param>
// <returns></returns>
public static Stream GetStream(CustomModel myModel, ControllerBase controllerBase)
{
//we will return this stream
MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream();
//you can add variables to the view data
controllerBase.ViewData["ViewDataVariable1"] = true;
//set your model
controllerBase.ViewData.Model = myModel;
//The example uses the UTF-8 encoding, you should change that if you are using some other encoding.
//write to a stream
using (StreamWriter writer = new StreamWriter(stream, Encoding.UTF8))
{
using (var sw = new StringWriter())
{
//render the view ~/Views/Shared/_FeedbackMessage.cshtml (can be passed in as a parameter if you want to make it super generic)
var viewResult = ViewEngines.Engines.FindPartialView(controllerBase.ControllerContext, "_FeedbackMessage");
//create a new view context
var viewContext = new ViewContext(controllerBase.ControllerContext, viewResult.View, controllerBase.ViewData, controllerBase.TempData, sw);
//Render the viewengine and let razor do its magic
viewResult.View.Render(viewContext, sw);
viewResult.ViewEngine.ReleaseView(controllerBase.ControllerContext, viewResult.View);
//get StringBuilder from StringWriter sw and write into the stream writer
//you could simply return the StringWriter here if that is what you were interested in doing
writer.Write(sw.GetStringBuilder().ToString());
writer.Flush();
stream.Position = 0;
}
}
//return the stream from the above process
return stream;
}
I know this looks like a duplicate question, but please read the whole question before marking it as duplicate.
First of all, I'm simulating the windows service in my ASP web application to send weekly emails, so in Global.asax I'm running my function that will send the emails.
Now the emails content is in HTML and I want to render the views to get the content. The problem is that in my function, I don't have any of the following :
Controller
ControllerContext
HttpContext
RoutData
... & much more. Which makes sense, because the function was invoked as a callback not as a HTTP request action.
I tried to use the RazorEngine to use the partial as a template by reading the file then using Razor.Parse() method. But I faced a lot of problems from this approach, because nothing is included in the template. What I mean is: it keeps telling me that The name "Html" does not exist in the current context OR 'CompiledRazorTemplates.Dynamic.becdccabecff' does not contain a definition for 'Html' even if I include the System.Web.Mvc.Html.
how can I solve this issue?.
I think the best approach is assuming you developed a real NT service and use HttpClient to send a http request to your partial view and receive the response as string and use it to make up your email. However, you can have HttpContext in RunScheduledTasks method by making some changes in Scheduler class.
public delegate void Callback();
to
public delegate void Callback(HttpContext httpContext);
add cache.Current_HttpContext = HttpContext.Current; to the Run method
public static void Run(string name, int minutes, Callback callbackMethod)
{
_numberOfMinutes = minutes;
CacheItem cache = new CacheItem();
cache.Name = name;
cache.Callback = callbackMethod;
cache.Cache = HttpRuntime.Cache;
cache.LastRun = DateTime.Now;
cache.Current_HttpContext = HttpContext.Current;
AddCacheObject(cache);
}
change CacheCallback to
private static void CacheCallback(string key, object value, CacheItemRemovedReason reason)
{
CacheItem obj_cache = (CacheItem)value;
if (obj_cache.LastRun < DateTime.Now)
{
if (obj_cache.Callback != null)
{
obj_cache.Callback.Invoke(obj_cache.Current_HttpContext);
}
obj_cache.LastRun = DateTime.Now;
}
AddCacheObject(obj_cache);
}
Edited:
How to use HttpClient
HttpClient client = new HttpClient();
HttpResponseMessage response = await client.GetAsync("http://localhost/controller/action/");
response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
string responseBody = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();
Without using 3rd party library, one can use this method to generate string of view in Global.asax.cs file
public class EmptyController : Controller { }
public string GetView(string viewName)
{
//Create an instance of empty controller
Controller controller = new EmptyController();
//Create an instance of Controller Context
var ControllerContext = new ControllerContext(Request.RequestContext, controller);
//Create a string writer
using (var sw = new StringWriter())
{
//get the master layout
var master = Request.IsAuthenticated ? "_InternalLayout" : "_ExternalLayout";
//Get the view result using context controller, partial view and the master layout
var viewResult = ViewEngines.Engines.FindView(ControllerContext, viewName, master);
//Crete the view context using the controller context, viewResult's view, string writer and ViewData and TempData
var viewContext = new ViewContext(ControllerContext, viewResult.View, controller.ViewData, controller.TempData, sw);
//Render the view in the string writer
viewResult.View.Render(viewContext, sw);
//release the view
viewResult.ViewEngine.ReleaseView(ControllerContext, viewResult.View);
//return the view stored in string writer as string
return sw.GetStringBuilder().ToString();
}
}
The following returns a PDF which the browser tries to directly display inline. This works correctly. However, if I try to download the file, the download name is not "myPDF.pdf", but instead the ID in the route (myapp/controller/PDFGenerator/ID). Is it possible to set the file download name to be "myPDF.pdf"?
public FileStreamResult PDFGenerator(int id)
{
MemoryStream ms = GeneratePDF(id);
byte[] file = ms.ToArray();
MemoryStream output = new MemoryStream();
output.Write(file, 0, file.Length);
output.Position = 0;
HttpContext.Response.AddHeader("content-disposition",
"inline; filename=myPDF.pdf");
return File(output, "application/pdf", fileDownloadName="myPDF.pdf");
}
No, this is not possible with a PDF displayed inline. You could achieve this if you send the Content-Disposition header with as an attachment:
public ActionResult PDFGenerator(int id)
{
Stream stream = GeneratePDF(id);
return File(stream, "application/pdf", "myPDF.pdf");
}
Also notice how I removed the unnecessary MemoryStream you were using and loading the PDF in memory where you could have directly streamed it to the client which would have been far more efficient.
If you are using FileStreamResult to download the file, try using this in controller
Response.ContentType = "application/pdf";
Response.AddHeader("Content-Disposition", "attachment; filename=FileName.pdf");
It is possible by making the id a string which represents the file name without the extension.
public ActionResult PDFGenerator(string id, int? docid)
{
Stream stream = GeneratePDF(docid);
return new FileStreamResult(stream , "application/pdf");
}
The url then then end like this
..PDFGenerator/Document2?docid=15
My project is very similar to NerdDinner and I'm generating a pdf-document using PdfSharp.
In my view I'm using this:
<%: Html.ActionLink("Pdf", "GeneratePdf1", "Persons")%>
Calling this ActionResult:
public ActionResult GeneratePdf1()
{
// Create a new PDF document
PdfDocument document = new PdfDocument();
document.Info.Title = "Created with PDFsharp";
// Create an empty page
PdfPage page = document.AddPage();
// Get an XGraphics object for drawing
XGraphics gfx = XGraphics.FromPdfPage(page);
// Create a font
XFont font = new XFont("Verdana", 20, XFontStyle.BoldItalic);
// Draw the text
gfx.DrawString("Hello, World!", font, XBrushes.Black,
new XRect(0, 0, page.Width, page.Height),
XStringFormats.Center);
// Save the document...
const string filename = "HelloWorld.pdf";
document.Save(filename);
Process.Start(filename);
return View();
}
A few questions/problems on this:
I don't want the link to post. When you click the link it should just open the file, but I don't know what to return to prevent it from posting.
I'd also like the "save/open" dialog to appear. Right now the pdf file is displayed directly.
You want to return a FileResult not an ActionResult. Also, I would save it to a MemoryStream and return the byte array, not use a file. Full solution below.
public FileResult GeneratePdf1()
{
// Create a new PDF document
PdfDocument document = new PdfDocument();
document.Info.Title = "Created with PDFsharp";
// Create an empty page
PdfPage page = document.AddPage();
// Get an XGraphics object for drawing
XGraphics gfx = XGraphics.FromPdfPage(page);
// Create a font
XFont font = new XFont("Verdana", 20, XFontStyle.BoldItalic);
// Draw the text
gfx.DrawString("Hello, World!", font, XBrushes.Black,
new XRect(0, 0, page.Width, page.Height),
XStringFormats.Center);
MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream();
document.Save(stream, false);
return File(stream.ToArray(), "application/pdf");
}
you should replace these lines:
Process.Start(filename);
return View();
with
return File(filename, "application/pdf");
You may also have a third param with the downloaded filename, if it should be different to the action name.
return File(filename, "application/pdf", "myGeneratedPdf.pdf");
Also be sure the filename is unique per request or use a MemoryStream like it is suggested by Chris Kooken.
Btw: Process.Start(filename) will run the file on the server machine. that may work on your development machine, but on a live server the pdf will open on the server!!!
In WebForms, I would normally have code like this to let the browser present a "Download File" popup with an arbitrary file type, like a PDF, and a filename:
Response.Clear()
Response.ClearHeaders()
''# Send the file to the output stream
Response.Buffer = True
Response.AddHeader("Content-Length", pdfData.Length.ToString())
Response.AddHeader("Content-Disposition", "attachment; filename= " & Server.HtmlEncode(filename))
''# Set the output stream to the correct content type (PDF).
Response.ContentType = "application/pdf"
''# Output the file
Response.BinaryWrite(pdfData)
''# Flushing the Response to display the serialized data
''# to the client browser.
Response.Flush()
Response.End()
How do I accomplish the same task in ASP.NET MVC?
Return a FileResult or FileStreamResult from your action, depending on whether the file exists or you create it on the fly.
public ActionResult GetPdf(string filename)
{
return File(filename, "application/pdf", Server.UrlEncode(filename));
}
To force the download of a PDF file, instead of being handled by the browser's PDF plugin:
public ActionResult DownloadPDF()
{
return File("~/Content/MyFile.pdf", "application/pdf", "MyRenamedFile.pdf");
}
If you want to let the browser handle by its default behavior (plugin or download), just send two parameters.
public ActionResult DownloadPDF()
{
return File("~/Content/MyFile.pdf", "application/pdf");
}
You'll need to use the third parameter to specify a name for the file on the browser dialog.
UPDATE: Charlino is right, when passing the third parameter (download filename) Content-Disposition: attachment; gets added to the Http Response Header. My solution was to send application\force-download as the mime-type, but this generates a problem with the filename of the download so the third parameter is required to send a good filename, therefore eliminating the need to force a download.
You can do the same in Razor or in the Controller, like so..
#{
//do this on the top most of your View, immediately after `using` statement
Response.ContentType = "application/pdf";
Response.AddHeader("Content-Disposition", "attachment; filename=receipt.pdf");
}
Or in the Controller..
public ActionResult Receipt() {
Response.ContentType = "application/pdf";
Response.AddHeader("Content-Disposition", "attachment; filename=receipt.pdf");
return View();
}
I tried this in Chrome and IE9, both is downloading the pdf file.
I probably should add I am using RazorPDF to generate my PDFs. Here is a blog about it: http://nyveldt.com/blog/post/Introducing-RazorPDF
You should look at the File method of the Controller. This is exactly what it's for. It returns a FilePathResult instead of an ActionResult.
mgnoonan,
You can do this to return a FileStream:
/// <summary>
/// Creates a new Excel spreadsheet based on a template using the NPOI library.
/// The template is changed in memory and a copy of it is sent to
/// the user computer through a file stream.
/// </summary>
/// <returns>Excel report</returns>
[AcceptVerbs(HttpVerbs.Post)]
public ActionResult NPOICreate()
{
try
{
// Opening the Excel template...
FileStream fs =
new FileStream(Server.MapPath(#"\Content\NPOITemplate.xls"), FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read);
// Getting the complete workbook...
HSSFWorkbook templateWorkbook = new HSSFWorkbook(fs, true);
// Getting the worksheet by its name...
HSSFSheet sheet = templateWorkbook.GetSheet("Sheet1");
// Getting the row... 0 is the first row.
HSSFRow dataRow = sheet.GetRow(4);
// Setting the value 77 at row 5 column 1
dataRow.GetCell(0).SetCellValue(77);
// Forcing formula recalculation...
sheet.ForceFormulaRecalculation = true;
MemoryStream ms = new MemoryStream();
// Writing the workbook content to the FileStream...
templateWorkbook.Write(ms);
TempData["Message"] = "Excel report created successfully!";
// Sending the server processed data back to the user computer...
return File(ms.ToArray(), "application/vnd.ms-excel", "NPOINewFile.xls");
}
catch(Exception ex)
{
TempData["Message"] = "Oops! Something went wrong.";
return RedirectToAction("NPOI");
}
}
Although standard action results FileContentResult or FileStreamResult may be used for downloading files, for reusability, creating a custom action result might be the best solution.
As an example let's create a custom action result for exporting data to Excel files on the fly for download.
ExcelResult class inherits abstract ActionResult class and overrides the ExecuteResult method.
We are using FastMember package for creating DataTable from IEnumerable object and ClosedXML package for creating Excel file from the DataTable.
public class ExcelResult<T> : ActionResult
{
private DataTable dataTable;
private string fileName;
public ExcelResult(IEnumerable<T> data, string filename, string[] columns)
{
this.dataTable = new DataTable();
using (var reader = ObjectReader.Create(data, columns))
{
dataTable.Load(reader);
}
this.fileName = filename;
}
public override void ExecuteResult(ControllerContext context)
{
if (context != null)
{
var response = context.HttpContext.Response;
response.Clear();
response.ContentType = "application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet";
response.AddHeader("content-disposition", string.Format(#"attachment;filename=""{0}""", fileName));
using (XLWorkbook wb = new XLWorkbook())
{
wb.Worksheets.Add(dataTable, "Sheet1");
using (MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream())
{
wb.SaveAs(stream);
response.BinaryWrite(stream.ToArray());
}
}
}
}
}
In the Controller use the custom ExcelResult action result as follows
[HttpGet]
public async Task<ExcelResult<MyViewModel>> ExportToExcel()
{
var model = new Models.MyDataModel();
var items = await model.GetItems();
string[] columns = new string[] { "Column1", "Column2", "Column3" };
string filename = "mydata.xlsx";
return new ExcelResult<MyViewModel>(items, filename, columns);
}
Since we are downloading the file using HttpGet, create an empty View without model and empty layout.
Blog post about custom action result for downloading files that are created on the fly:
https://acanozturk.blogspot.com/2019/03/custom-actionresult-for-files-in-aspnet.html
Use .ashx file type and use the same code