"Operation could destabilize the runtime" when trying to upgrade from MVC3 to MVC4

Question

Server Error in '/' Application.

What's a good one to troubleshoot this? I let debug step through everything in global.asax and no errors there.

Operation could destabilize the runtime.

Description: An unhandled exception occurred during the execution of the current web request. Please review the stack trace for more information about the error and where it originated in the code. 

Exception Details: System.Security.VerificationException: Operation could destabilize the runtime.

Source Error: 

An unhandled exception was generated during the execution of the current web request. Information regarding the origin and location of the exception can be identified using the exception stack trace below.

Stack Trace: 


[VerificationException: Operation could destabilize the runtime.]
   System.Web.Mvc.Razor.MvcWebPageRazorHost.GetRidOfNamespace(String ns) +32
   System.Web.Mvc.Razor.MvcWebPageRazorHost..ctor(String virtualPath, String physicalPath) +199
   System.Web.Mvc.MvcWebRazorHostFactory.CreateHost(String virtualPath, String physicalPath) +113
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.WebRazorHostFactory.CreateHostFromConfigCore(RazorWebSectionGroup config, String virtualPath, String physicalPath) +422
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.WebRazorHostFactory.CreateHostFromConfig(String virtualPath, String physicalPath) +228
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.WebRazorHostFactory.CreateHostFromConfig(String virtualPath) +38
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.RazorBuildProvider.CreateHost() +51
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.RazorBuildProvider.get_Host() +56
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.RazorBuildProvider.EnsureGeneratedCode() +92
   System.Web.WebPages.Razor.RazorBuildProvider.get_CodeCompilerType() +54
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildProvider.GetCompilerTypeFromBuildProvider(BuildProvider buildProvider) +59
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildProvidersCompiler.ProcessBuildProviders() +209
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildProvidersCompiler.PerformBuild() +15
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildManager.CompileWebFile(VirtualPath virtualPath) +9929933
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildManager.GetVPathBuildResultInternal(VirtualPath virtualPath, Boolean noBuild, Boolean allowCrossApp, Boolean allowBuildInPrecompile, Boolean throwIfNotFound, Boolean ensureIsUpToDate) +299
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildManager.GetVPathBuildResultWithNoAssert(HttpContext context, VirtualPath virtualPath, Boolean noBuild, Boolean allowCrossApp, Boolean allowBuildInPrecompile, Boolean throwIfNotFound, Boolean ensureIsUpToDate) +103
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildManager.GetVirtualPathObjectFactory(VirtualPath virtualPath, HttpContext context, Boolean allowCrossApp, Boolean throwIfNotFound) +165
   System.Web.Compilation.BuildManager.GetObjectFactory(String virtualPath, Boolean throwIfNotFound) +33
   System.Web.Mvc.BuildManagerWrapper.System.Web.Mvc.IBuildManager.FileExists(String virtualPath) +40

Answer 1

I had exactly the same problem though my project is .Net 4.5. I solved it by following step 7 of Upgrading an ASP.NET MVC 3 Project to ASP.NET MVC 4

It is copied to here as following:

7.If the project references any third-party libraries that are compiled using previous versions of ASP.NET MVC, open the root Web.config file and add the following three bindingRedirect elements under the configuration section:

 <configuration>
  <!--... elements deleted for clarity ...-->

  <runtime>
    <assemblyBinding xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1">
      <dependentAssembly>
        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.Helpers" 
             publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />
        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0" newVersion="2.0.0.0"/>
      </dependentAssembly>
      <dependentAssembly>
        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.Mvc" 
             publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />
        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0-3.0.0.0" newVersion="4.0.0.0"/>
      </dependentAssembly>
      <dependentAssembly>
        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.WebPages" 
             publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />
        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0" newVersion="2.0.0.0"/>
      </dependentAssembly>
    </assemblyBinding>
  </runtime>
</configuration>