Why Asp.NET MVC over Asp.NET Web Forms - asp.net-mvc

Question

I am asp.net Web Forms developer and i know the basics of Asp.net MVC. Developers talk about advantages of MVC but I haven't come across a clear or compelling description for using MVC over Asp.NET.
This is not duplicate question and i have gone through almost all
similar question but did not get clear description more in relation
with real life example. I do appreciate and expect the explanation of
each and every question mentioned below with real life example please
don't mark it as duplicate.
I know that you can not replace Asp.NET Web Forms with Asp.NET MVC still we have following advantages in MVC:
Separation of concerns (SoC): We can achieve it in asp.net also by adding BAL component in fact in MVC we do have to isolate business logic from controller action methods.Is SoC only applicable for Model-View-Controller separation in MVC? then what about business logic. Please provide real life example which will consider both Web Forms and MVC.
Enable full control over the rendered HTML: Web Forms also provide control over Html isn't it? Its considered that html rendering in Web Forms is more abstracted then what does html helper methods do in MVC. Anybody please explain it with example considering both Web Forms and MVC as i am getting more confused over this point.
Enable Test Driven Development (TDD): If you have separated your Business logic into BAL then you have achieved TDD? Is there any scenario where MVC would be accurate choice over webforms? Please provide example for same
No ViewState and PostBack events: We can manage viewstate in Web Forms which comes with cost of efforts, since in MVC we can maintain state by using Viewbag,Tempdata as web is stateless there is some mechanism that MVC maintains its state as hidden fields for Web Forms then how MVC Improves performance and page size in terms of statefullness? Example by considering Web Forms and MVC appreciated
Easy integration with jQuery: "Asp.NET Web Forms generate its custom id for controls" this is the only consideration for ease of integration of JavaScript frameworks? if yes then we can use ClientIDMode in asp.net control in Web Forms

Answer 1

1. Separation of concerns
SoC in MVC is not about separation business logic from UI. More importantly, it gives Controller main functions:
to fill View Model from Domain Model;
to handle View activity;
to show views depending on Domain logic.
View is responsible only for data representation in MVC.
It makes testing very simple as Controller operates pure View Model classes, opposed to WebForms which operates events and Form.
In WebForms View handles all UI activity and it basically makes decisions about scenario flow.
Here I'd like to mention that terms of View Model and Domain Model are different. Domain Model is a term describing all the services, Business logic and DAL hidden from Controller with some facade. And View Model is a class that encapsulates data required by View. It may be shared by Domain Model in simple cases. Why two classes?
Here are similar code snippets of ASP.NET MVC and WebForms doing the same things: 1) get data 2) handle data submission. In both cases I assume that IDomainModel is injected.
MVC:
public class SomeController : Controller
{
// injected
public IDomainModel Domain { get; set; }
public ViewResult Edit()
{
var record = Domain.GetRecord(1);
var dictionary = Domain.GetSomeDictionary();
var model = new SomeViewModel(record, dictionary);
return View(model);
}
[HttpPost]
public ActionResult Edit(SomeViewModel model)
{
if (ModelState.IsValid)
// save
return RedirectToAction("Result");
else
return View(model);
}
}
WebForms:
public partial class SomePage : System.Web.UI.Page
{
// injected
public IDomainModel Domain { get; set; }
protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
var record = Domain.GetRecord(1);
var dictionary = Domain.GetSomeDictionary();
RecordId.Text = record.Id.ToString();
RecordName.Text = record.Name;
RecordDescription.Text = record.Description;
DicValue.DataSource = dictionary;
DicValue.DataValueField = "Id";
DicValue.DataTextField = "Value";
DicValue.SelectedValue = record.DictionaryEntryId.ToString();
DicValue.DataBind();
}
protected void btnSave_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
var record = new RecordModel
{
Id = Int32.Parse(this.RecordId.Text),
Name = this.RecordName.Text,
Description = this.RecordDescription.Text,
DictionaryEntryId = Int32.Parse(this.DicValue.Text)
};
// save
}
}
Testing MVC controller Edit GET is incredibly simple:
[TestMethod]
public void EditGetTest()
{
SomeController target = new SomeController();
var record = new RecordModel { Id = 1, Name = "name1", Description = "desc1", DictionaryEntryId = 1 };
var dictionary = new List<SomeDictionaryEntry>
{
new SomeDictionaryEntry { Id = 1, Value = "test" }
};
target.Domain = new SimpleMVCApp.Models.Fakes.StubIDomainModel()
{
GetRecordInt32 = (id) => { return record; },
GetSomeDictionary = () => { return dictionary; }
};
var result = target.Edit();
var actualModel = (SomeViewModel)result.Model;
Assert.AreEqual(1, actualModel.Id);
Assert.AreEqual("name1", actualModel.Name);
Assert.AreEqual("desc1", actualModel.Description);
Assert.AreEqual(1, actualModel.DictionaryEntryId);
}
To test WebForms events we need to make a lot of changes and assumptions: we need to make the methods public, we need to initialize Form and its controls. It results in heavy hard-read tests which are impossible for 3) TDD.
2. Enable full control over the rendered HTML
I think this statement is a little bit exaggeration. Only HTML can give full control over rendered HTML. As for HtmlHelpers, DisplayTemplates and EditorTemplates, though the team made major improvements over 6 versions of the framework, it's still sometimes annoying to transform additionalViewData into html attributes.
For example, to pass some html attributes to an input you can't use #Html.EditorFor, you'll have to use #Html.TextBoxFor.
In the same time in ASP.NET you can specify any attributes on any elements and they will just render.
MVC:
Wrong:
#Html.EditorFor(m => m.Name, new { MySuperCustomAttribute = "Hello" })
Correct:
#Html.TextBoxFor(m => m.Name, new { MySuperCustomAttribute = "Hello" })
ASP.NET:
<asp:TextBox runat="server" ID="RecordName" MySuperCustomAttribute="hello"></asp:TextBox>
3. Enable Test Driven Development (TDD)
I think this statement is about testing of Controller vs Code-Behind. I covered this in 1.
4. No ViewState and PostBack events
ViewBag and ViewData are weak-typed facilities to pass data between Controller and Views. They are rendered as elements, nothing similar to ViewState. For example, in my View I initialize ViewBag.Title = "EditView"; which allows me to use this string on the Layout Page: <title>#ViewBag.Title - My ASP.NET MVC Application</title>. On the page it looks just like this <title>EditView - My ASP.NET MVC Application</title>
As to TempData, Session and Application, they are stored on server side. It's not rendered to page at all.
5. Easy integration with JQuery
I don't see how integration with JQuery becomes easier for MVC. Here is how we integrate JQuery into WebForms:
<script src="Scripts/jquery-1.8.2.min.js"></script>
<script>
$(document).ready(function () {
$('#DicValue').change(function () {
$('#ChosenValue').text($('#DicValue option:selected').val());
});
});
</script>
And here is almost the same snippet for ASP.NET MVC:
#section scripts{
<script src="~/Scripts/jquery-1.8.2.min.js"></script>
<script>
$(document).ready(function () {
$('#DictionaryEntryId').change(function () {
$('#ChosenValue').text($('#DictionaryEntryId option:selected').val());
});
});
</script>
}
There is another point to mention about JQuery here: as ASP.NET MVC is pretty Opinionated framework, it becomes somewhat restrictive for extensive JS usage. It was originally designed for Scaffold Templates based development, and it is best with it. JQuery is good for ajax requests and for some minor logic in ASP.NET MVC, but when you start using it extensively, you end up with two controllers for every view: a C# one and a JS one. Hello, Unit Testing! Also JQuery(UI) is very good with its rich set of UI controls.
ASP.NET is designed with Postbacks in mind and they dictate you the basic application model. However, there are also different UI Toolkits for ASP.NET to make an application more dynamic and there is still some place for JQuery.
Wow, that was a long answer. Hope it'll help.

Answer 2

Ok.
I am developing applications in both frameworks i.e. Webforms and MVC, will be explaining things based on my experience.
Discipline is the most important thing that needs to be followed with any Architecture you are working on.
If you follow MVC correct and as per standards life would be super simple.
Lets go point by point.
Separation of concerns (SoC):
MVC provide Clean, organized and granular solution at various levels e.g.
There are multiple helper classes which hooks and does help in late bindings, you can mock controller using various plugins.
Easy to develop Helper classes.
Enable full control over the rendered HTML
Basically in MVC we have HTML in its native format, so you have more control over it and how it matters is it speeds up Page Load when you have lot of controls and data that are coming on the page.
And it matters when we are going with Web form architecture.
Enable Test Driven Development (TDD):
With discipline you can do it in both Architecture
No ViewState and PostBack events:
Viewstate puts extra load on page and in web forms when you see source of a page having lots of controls, grid etc, you will see huge viewstate.
If there is no viewstate life is just simple.
ViewData is at client side whereas others are at server side.
Easy integration with Jquery:
Indeed, MVC3, 4 have super better support for JQuery. There are lot of Predefined JQueries that are already introduced in templates.
Other than above points some additional points
Bundling
Refreshed and modernized default project templates
Better support of Mobile applications
Fast development
Code reusability
Least coupling within Layers
Good support to Ajax
Have a look at few links
http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/683730/New-Features-in-ASP-NET-MVC
http://www.asp.net/mvc/tutorials/hands-on-labs/whats-new-in-aspnet-mvc-4
Difference between ASP.NET MVC 3 and 4?

Answer 3

Here is the official answer from Microsoft for this question: http://www.asp.net/get-started/websites
I'd add to the top answers (which are generally correct) than MVC (and Web Pages) are both open source, so you have an easy access to the source code, bug database and can even PR bug fixes or features back (which we have taken in abundance).
At the end of the day it's a personal choice, and also depends on the experience you and your team has and if you have legacy code you want to reuse.

Answer 4

The MVC framework does not replace the Web Forms model; you can use either framework for Web applications. (If you have existing Web Forms-based applications, these continue to work exactly as they always have.)
Before you decide to use the MVC framework or the Web Forms model for a specific Web site, weigh the advantages of each approach.
Advantages of an MVC-Based Web Application
The ASP.NET MVC framework offers the following advantages:
It makes it easier to manage complexity by dividing an application into the model, the view, and the controller.
It does not use view state or server-based forms. This makes the MVC framework ideal for developers who want full control over the behavior of an application.
It uses a Front Controller pattern that processes Web application requests through a single controller. This enables you to design an application that supports a rich routing infrastructure.
It provides better support for test-driven development (TDD).
It works well for Web applications that are supported by large teams of developers and for Web designers who need a high degree of control over the application behavior.
Advantages of a Web Forms-Based Web Application
The Web Forms-based framework offers the following advantages:
It supports an event model that preserves state over HTTP, which benefits line-of-business Web application development. The Web Forms-based application provides dozens of events that are supported in hundreds of server controls.
It uses a Page Controller pattern that adds functionality to individual pages.
It uses view state on server-based forms, which can make managing state information easier.
It works well for small teams of Web developers and designers who want to take advantage of the large number of components available for rapid application development.
In general, it is less complex for application development, because the components (the Page class, controls, and so on) are tightly integrated and usually require less code than the MVC model.
Source http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd381412(v=vs.108).aspx