Parameter Class (System.Web.UI.WebControls)

Switch on low bandwidth view

Collapse All

Language Filter

This page is specific to

Microsoft Visual Studio 2008/.NET Framework 3.5

Other versions are also available for the following:

.NET Framework Class Library

Parameter Class

Updated: July 2009

Provides a mechanism that data source controls use to bind to application variables, user identities and choices, and other data. Serves as the base class for all ASP.NET parameter types.

Namespace: System.Web.UI.WebControls
Assembly: System.Web (in System.Web.dll)

Syntax

Visual Basic (Declaration)

<AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.InheritanceDemand, Level := AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)> _
<AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.LinkDemand, Level := AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)> _
Public Class Parameter _
    Implements ICloneable, IStateManager

Visual Basic (Usage)

Dim instance As Parameter

[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.InheritanceDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)]
[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.LinkDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)]
public class Parameter : ICloneable, IStateManager

Visual C++

[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction::InheritanceDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel::Minimal)]
[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction::LinkDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel::Minimal)]
public ref class Parameter : ICloneable, 
    IStateManager

JScript

public class Parameter implements ICloneable, IStateManager

Remarks

The Parameter class represents a parameter in a parameterized SQL query, a filtering expression, or a business object method call that an ASP.NET data source control uses to select, filter, or modify data. Parameter objects are contained in a ParameterCollection object. Parameter objects are evaluated at run time, to bind the values of the variables they represent to whatever method is used by a data source control to interact with data.

Use classes that derive from Parameter with data source and data-bound controls to build Web-based data applications. These parameter classes are used by data source controls to bind specific kinds of values found in Web applications to placeholders in SQL query strings, business object method parameters, and more. The following table lists parameter types that are included in ASP.NET.

ControlParameter	Binds any public property of a Web server control.
FormParameter	Binds a form field.
SessionParameter	Binds a session-state field.
CookieParameter	Binds a cookie field.
QueryStringParameter	Binds a query-string parameter.
ProfileParameter	Binds a profile field.

Extend the base Parameter class when you want to implement your own custom parameter types.

Parameter objects are very simple: they have a Name and a Type property, can be represented declaratively, and can track state across multiple HTTP requests. All parameters support a DefaultValue property, for cases when a parameter is bound to a value, but the value evaluates to nullNothingnullptra null reference (Nothing in Visual Basic) at run time.

When using a collection of Parameter objects with a data source control, their order in the collection might matter. For more information on how parameters are used, see Using Parameters with the SqlDataSource Control and Using Parameters with the ObjectDataSource Control.

Examples

The following example shows how to use the selected value of a DropDownList control in the Where clause of a SQL query. The example uses the ControlParameter class, which derives from the ControlParameter class.

The SelectCommand element defines the query with a parameter named "@Title" where the value from DropDownList1 should go. The ControlParameter element specifies that the "@Title" placeholder will be replaced by the value of the SelectedValue property of the DropDownList1 control. The ControlParameter element is added to the SelectParameters collection of the SqlDataSource control.

Visual Basic

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html  >
  <head runat="server">
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">

      <p><asp:dropdownlist
          id="DropDownList1"
          runat="server"
          autopostback="True">
          <asp:listitem selected="True">Sales Representative</asp:listitem>
          <asp:listitem>Sales Manager</asp:listitem>
          <asp:listitem>Vice President, Sales</asp:listitem>
      </asp:dropdownlist></p>

      <asp:sqldatasource
          id="SqlDataSource1"
          runat="server"
          connectionstring="<%$ ConnectionStrings:MyNorthwind%>"
          selectcommand="SELECT LastName FROM Employees WHERE Title = @Title">
          <selectparameters>
              <asp:controlparameter name="Title" controlid="DropDownList1" propertyname="SelectedValue"/>
          </selectparameters>
      </asp:sqldatasource>

      <p><asp:listbox
          id="ListBox1"
          runat="server"
          datasourceid="SqlDataSource1"
          datatextfield="LastName">
      </asp:listbox></p>

    </form>
  </body>
</html>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html  >
  <head runat="server">
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">

      <p><asp:dropdownlist
          id="DropDownList1"
          runat="server"
          autopostback="True">
          <asp:listitem selected="True">Sales Representative</asp:listitem>
          <asp:listitem>Sales Manager</asp:listitem>
          <asp:listitem>Vice President, Sales</asp:listitem>
      </asp:dropdownlist></p>

      <asp:sqldatasource
          id="SqlDataSource1"
          runat="server"
          connectionstring="<%$ ConnectionStrings:MyNorthwind%>"
          selectcommand="SELECT LastName FROM Employees WHERE Title = @Title">
          <selectparameters>
              <asp:controlparameter name="Title" controlid="DropDownList1" propertyname="SelectedValue"/>
          </selectparameters>
      </asp:sqldatasource>

      <p><asp:listbox
          id="ListBox1"
          runat="server"
          datasourceid="SqlDataSource1"
          datatextfield="LastName">
      </asp:listbox></p>

    </form>
  </body>
</html>

The following example is like the previous one, but uses code instead of markup. When the page loads the first time, the DropDownList control has no selected value, and the DefaultValue property of the Parameter object is used.

Visual Basic

<%@ Page Language="VB" AutoEventWireup="false" CodeFile="param1avb.aspx.vb" Inherits="param1avb_aspx" %>
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html  >
<head runat="server">
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">
    <div>
        <asp:DropDownList
          runat="server"
          AutoPostBack="True"
          id="DropDownList1">
            <asp:ListItem Value="USA">USA</asp:ListItem>
            <asp:ListItem Value="UK">UK</asp:ListItem>
         </asp:DropDownList>

        <asp:DataGrid
          runat="server"
          id="DataGrid1" />    
    </div>
    </form>
</body>
</html>

<%@ Page Language="C#" CodeFile="param1acs.aspx.cs" Inherits="param1acs_aspx" %>
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html  >
<head runat="server">
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">
    <div>
        <asp:DropDownList
          runat="server"
          AutoPostBack="True"
          id="DropDownList1">
            <asp:ListItem Value="USA">USA</asp:ListItem>
            <asp:ListItem Value="UK">UK</asp:ListItem>
         </asp:DropDownList>

        <asp:DataGrid
          runat="server"
          id="DataGrid1" />    
    </div>
    </form>
</body>
</html>

The following code shows the code-behind class for the page in the previous example.

Visual Basic

Partial Class param1avb_aspx
   Inherits System.Web.UI.Page
    Private Sub Page_Load(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs)

        Dim sqlSource As SqlDataSource

        sqlSource = New SqlDataSource(ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings("MyNorthwind").ConnectionString, "SELECT FirstName, LastName FROM Employees WHERE Country = @country;")
        Dim country As New ControlParameter()
        country.Name = "country"
        country.Type = TypeCode.String
        country.ControlID = "DropDownList1"
        country.PropertyName = "SelectedValue"
        ' If the DefaultValue is not set, the DataGrid does not
        ' display anything on the first page load. This is because
        ' on the first page load, the DropDownList has no
        ' selected item, and the ControlParameter evaluates to
        ' String.Empty.
        country.DefaultValue = "USA"
        sqlSource.SelectParameters.Add(country)

        ' Add the SqlDataSource to the page controls collection.
        Page.Controls.Add(sqlSource)


        DataGrid1.DataSource = sqlSource
        DataGrid1.DataBind()

    End Sub 'Page_Load
End Class

public partial class param1acs_aspx : System.Web.UI.Page 
{
    private void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
    {
        SqlDataSource sqlSource = new SqlDataSource(
          ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings["MyNorthwind"].ConnectionString,
          "SELECT FirstName, LastName FROM Employees WHERE Country = @country;");

        ControlParameter country = new ControlParameter();
        country.Name = "country";
        country.Type = TypeCode.String;
        country.ControlID = "DropDownList1";
        country.PropertyName = "SelectedValue";

        // If the DefaultValue is not set, the DataGrid does not
        // display anything on the first page load. This is because
        // on the first page load, the DropDownList has no
        // selected item, and the ControlParameter evaluates to
        // String.Empty.
        country.DefaultValue = "USA";

        sqlSource.SelectParameters.Add(country);

        // Add the SqlDataSource to the page controls collection.
        Page.Controls.Add(sqlSource);

        DataGrid1.DataSource = sqlSource;
        DataGrid1.DataBind();
    }
}

The following code example demonstrates how to extend the Parameter class to create a new parameter type that can be used by data source controls and other controls in data-binding scenarios. A data source control can use a StaticParameter parameter to bind to the value of any object, typically a string, declared on a Web Forms page.

Visual Basic

Imports System
Imports System.ComponentModel
Imports System.Security.Permissions
Imports System.Web
Imports System.Web.UI
Imports System.Web.UI.WebControls

Namespace Samples.AspNet

<AspNetHostingPermission(SecurityAction.Demand, Level:=AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)> _
Public Class StaticParameter
   Inherits Parameter


   Public Sub New()
   End Sub

  ' The StaticParameter(string, object) constructor
  ' initializes the DataValue property and calls the
  ' Parameter(string) constructor to initialize the Name property.
   Public Sub New(name As String, value As Object)
      MyBase.New(name)
      DataValue = value
   End Sub

   ' The StaticParameter(string, TypeCode, object) constructor
   ' initializes the DataValue property and calls the
   ' Parameter(string, TypeCode) constructor to initialize the Name and
   ' Type properties.
   Public Sub New(name As String, type As TypeCode, value As Object)
      MyBase.New(name, type)
      DataValue = value
   End Sub
   ' The StaticParameter copy constructor is provided to ensure that
   ' the state contained in the DataValue property is copied to new
   ' instances of the class.
   Protected Sub New(original As StaticParameter)
      MyBase.New(original)
      DataValue = original.DataValue
   End Sub

   ' The Clone method is overridden to call the
   ' StaticParameter copy constructor, so that the data in
   ' the DataValue property is correctly transferred to the
   ' new instance of the StaticParameter.
   Protected Overrides Function Clone() As Parameter
      Return New StaticParameter(Me)
   End Function

   ' The DataValue can be any arbitrary object and is stored in ViewState.
   Public Property DataValue() As Object
      Get
         Return ViewState("Value")
      End Get
      Set
         ViewState("Value") = value
      End Set
   End Property
   ' The Value property is a type safe convenience property
   ' used when the StaticParameter represents string data.
   ' It gets the string value of the DataValue property, and
   ' sets the DataValue property directly.
   Public Property Value() As String
      Get
         Dim o As Object = DataValue
         If o Is Nothing OrElse Not TypeOf o Is String Then
            Return String.Empty
         End If
         Return CStr(o)
      End Get
      Set
         DataValue = value
         OnParameterChanged()
      End Set
   End Property
   ' The Evaluate method is overridden to return the
   ' DataValue property instead of the DefaultValue.
   Protected Overrides Function Evaluate(context As HttpContext, control As Control) As Object
      If context Is Nothing Then
          Return Nothing
      Else
          Return DataValue
      End If
   End Function
End Class ' StaticParameter

End Namespace ' Samples.AspNet

namespace Samples.AspNet {

  using System;
  using System.ComponentModel;
  using System.Security.Permissions;
  using System.Web;
  using System.Web.UI;
  using System.Web.UI.WebControls;

  [AspNetHostingPermission(SecurityAction.Demand, Level=AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)]
  public class StaticParameter : Parameter {

    public StaticParameter() {
    }
    // The StaticParameter(string, object) constructor
    // initializes the DataValue property and calls the
    // Parameter(string) constructor to initialize the Name property.
    public StaticParameter(string name, object value) : base(name) {
      DataValue = value;
    }
    // The StaticParameter(string, TypeCode, object) constructor
    // initializes the DataValue property and calls the
    // Parameter(string, TypeCode) constructor to initialize the Name and
    // Type properties.
    public StaticParameter(string name, TypeCode type, object value) : base(name, type) {
      DataValue = value;
    }
    // The StaticParameter copy constructor is provided to ensure that
    // the state contained in the DataValue property is copied to new
    // instances of the class.
    protected StaticParameter(StaticParameter original) : base(original) {
      DataValue = original.DataValue;
    }

    // The Clone method is overridden to call the
    // StaticParameter copy constructor, so that the data in
    // the DataValue property is correctly transferred to the
    // new instance of the StaticParameter.
    protected override Parameter Clone() {
      return new StaticParameter(this);
    }
    // The DataValue can be any arbitrary object and is stored in ViewState.
    public object DataValue {
      get {
        return ViewState["Value"];
      }
      set {
        ViewState["Value"] = value;
      }
    }
    // The Value property is a type safe convenience property
    // used when the StaticParameter represents string data.
    // It gets the string value of the DataValue property, and
    // sets the DataValue property directly.
    public string Value {
      get {
        object o = DataValue;
        if (o == null || !(o is string))
          return String.Empty;
        return (string)o;
      }
      set {
        DataValue = value;
        OnParameterChanged();
      }
    }

    // The Evaluate method is overridden to return the
    // DataValue property instead of the DefaultValue.
    protected override object Evaluate(HttpContext context, Control control) {

      if (context.Request == null)
          return null;

      return DataValue;
    }
  }
}

.NET Framework Security

AspNetHostingPermission
for operating in a hosted environment. Demand value: LinkDemand; Permission value: Minimal.
AspNetHostingPermission
for operating in a hosted environment. Demand value: InheritanceDemand; Permission value: Minimal.

Inheritance Hierarchy

System..::.Object
  System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.Parameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.ControlParameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.CookieParameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.FormParameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.ProfileParameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.QueryStringParameter
    System.Web.UI.WebControls..::.SessionParameter

Thread Safety

Any public static (Shared in Visual Basic) members of this type are thread safe. Any instance members are not guaranteed to be thread safe.

Platforms

Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP SP2, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Starter Edition, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2000 SP4, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows 98

The .NET Framework and .NET Compact Framework do not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.

Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 3.5, 3.0, 2.0

Reference

Parameter Members

System.Web.UI.WebControls Namespace

Other Resources

Using Parameters with Data Source Controls

Change History

Date	History	Reason
July 2009	Enhanced the summary of classes that derive from Parameter.	Customer feedback.
April 2009	Improved the introduction to the code example.	Customer feedback.

Date

History

Reason

July 2009

Enhanced the summary of classes that derive from Parameter.

Customer feedback.

April 2009

Improved the introduction to the code example.

Customer feedback.