How to Pass Arrays of Complex Objects to ASP.NET MVC Controllers Using JSON?

Passing Arrays of Complex Objects to ASP.NET MVC Controllers

In this scenario, you seek to pass an array of complex objects to a controller action. To achieve this, several steps are necessary.

Preparing the View

The provided code in the question already prepares an array of objects. The key here is to transform this array into a JSON format that can be parsed by the controller. To do this, use the $.toJSON() function from the jQuery library, as seen in the solution's improved view code:

function getplaceholders() {
    // ...
    var postData = { widgets: results };
    $.ajax({
        // ...
        data: $.toJSON(widgets),
        // ...
    });
}

Decorating the Controller Action

For the controller action to accept and process the JSON data, it needs to be decorated with a custom attribute. In this case, we use the JsonFilter attribute:

[JsonFilter(Param = "widgets", JsonDataType = typeof(List<PageDesignWidget>))]
public JsonResult SaveOrUpdate(List<PageDesignWidget> widgets)

The Param property specifies the parameter name that will receive the JSON data, and JsonDataType defines the expected data type for deserialization.

Custom Attribute Functionality

The JsonFilterAttribute implementation intercepts the HTTP request and checks if it contains JSON content. If so, it deserializes the JSON into the specified data type using JsonConvert.DeserializeObject from Json.NET and assigns it to the corresponding action parameter.

public class JsonFilter : ActionFilterAttribute
{
    // ...
    public override void OnActionExecuting(ActionExecutingContext filterContext)
    {
        // ...
        var result = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject(inputContent, JsonDataType);
        filterContext.ActionParameters[Param] = result;
    }
}

By following these steps, you can successfully pass arrays of complex objects from your view to your ASP.NET MVC controller.

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