Shared MVC Razor functions in several views

Question

I have functions in my view that is shared by several pages:

@functions  {     public HtmlString ModeImage(ModeEnum mode)      {         switch(mode)         {             case AMode: new HtmlString("<img etc..."); break;             // more etc...         }     } } 

Is there a way to have it in a separate file and include it on each page without having to copy and paste it in to each one. I know I can write a .cs file and access it per page, but the function really concerns the view and I'de hate to have to recompile if this function changes.

Answer 1

(Here's a more detailed version of the existing answers.)

Create a folder called App_Code in the root of the MVC project if it doesn't already exist. In here, create an empty razor view and name it whatever you want:

Add @helpers and/or static methods to it as needed:

@helper ShowSomething() {     <span>Something</span> }  @functions {     public static int CalculateSomething()     {         return 1;     } } 

Then use them from your views by first accessing the shared view by name:

@Shared.ShowSomething() @Shared.CalculateSomething() 

Answer 2

This sounds like you want the Razor @helper methods described in the blog post ASP.NET MVC3 and the @helper syntax within Razor by Scott Guthrie.

Here is the overview... "The @helper syntax within Razor enables you to easily create re-usable helper methods that can encapsulate output functionality within your view templates. They enable better code reuse, and can also facilitate more readable code."