Define JSON field names when using JsonResult - asp.net-mvc

Question

I have an action that returns a JsonResult in my ASP.Net MVC4 application. I'm setting the Data property to an array of pre-defined classes. My issue is that I want to serialize with different property names. No matter what attributes I use, the object is serialized with the pre-defined property names. I've tried the following with no results:
[DataMember(Name = "iTotalRecords")]
[JsonProperty(PropertyName = "iTotalRecords")]
public int TotalRecords { get; set; }
I know "iTotalRecords" seems silly, but this action is for supporting a jQuery plugin that expects "iTotalRecords" and not "TotalRecords". Of course, I want to use names that make sense in my code-behind.
What serializer is used to parse JsonResult? Is there anything I can do or do I have to re-think returning JsonResult as an action result?

Answer 1

What serializer is used to parse JsonResult?
JavaScriptSerializer.
Is there anything I can do or do I have to re-think returning JsonResult as an action result?
Two possibilities come to mind:
define a view model and then map your domain model to the view model
write a custom action result that uses Json.NET or DataContractJsonSerializer and which allow you to control the names of the serialized properties. The following question illustrates this.

Answer 2

Thanks for the suggestions. I went ahead and created an ActionResult that uses Json.Net:
public class JsonNetActionResult : ActionResult
{
public Object Data { get; private set; }
public JsonNetActionResult(Object data)
{
this.Data = data;
}
public override void ExecuteResult(ControllerContext context)
{
context.HttpContext.Response.ContentType = "application/json";
context.HttpContext.Response.Write(JsonConvert.SerializeObject(Data));
}
}
FYI, it looks like Json.Net respects both [DataMember] and [JsonProperty], but [JsonProperty] will trump [DataMember] if they differ.

Answer 3

I've found part of the solution here and on SO
public class JsonNetResult : ActionResult
{
public Encoding ContentEncoding { get; set; }
public string ContentType { get; set; }
public object Data { get; set; }
public JsonSerializerSettings SerializerSettings { get; set; }
public Formatting Formatting { get; set; }
public JsonNetResult(object data, Formatting formatting)
: this(data)
{
Formatting = formatting;
}
public JsonNetResult(object data):this()
{
Data = data;
}
public JsonNetResult()
{
Formatting = Formatting.None;
SerializerSettings = new JsonSerializerSettings();
}
public override void ExecuteResult(ControllerContext context)
{
if (context == null)
throw new ArgumentNullException("context");
var response = context.HttpContext.Response;
response.ContentType = !string.IsNullOrEmpty(ContentType)
? ContentType
: "application/json";
if (ContentEncoding != null)
response.ContentEncoding = ContentEncoding;
if (Data == null) return;
var writer = new JsonTextWriter(response.Output) { Formatting = Formatting };
var serializer = JsonSerializer.Create(SerializerSettings);
serializer.Serialize(writer, Data);
writer.Flush();
}
}
So that in my controller, I can do that
return new JsonNetResult(result);
In my model, I can now have:
[JsonProperty(PropertyName = "n")]
public string Name { get; set; }
Note that now, you have to set the JsonPropertyAttribute to every property you want to serialize.