ASP.NET MVC - Combine Json result with ViewResult

Question

Can I return a Json result that contains also a rendered view?

I need it to return the new ID of a submitted form along with its HTML and some other properties.

Answer 1

I've been thinking about this problem for a while. My solution is similar to returning the partial view HTML as a JSON string, but the opposite. Return a partial view with JSON embedded in it. I did not like this approach until jQuery 1.4.3 merged their .data() method with the HTML 5 data attribute. This makes it much easier to generate JSON within a ASP.NET MVC view, and read it via jQuery.

See example... It isn't perfect, but I like it much better than creating hidden form inputs or helpers that render the partial view before returning it.

Partial View:

  
Some Title
  
Ipsum Lorem

JavaScript that reads the JSON

$(document).ready(function () {
  var name = $('#dataDiv').data('stuff').name;
  var color = $('#dataDiv').data('stuff').color;
  alert(name + ' ' + color);
});

This may appear to go against the "single responsibility principle" (if you apply it to views). However, if your application requires both pieces of data to be transmitted in a response, then I see nothing wrong with it. And as long as your model is constructed properly, it won't go against any design principles.