When should I use HttpDelete or HttpPut in an asp.net mvc application

Question

I use always HttpGet or HttpPost even when my action is executing a delete method on the database.

For what should I use then HttpDelete/HttpPut ?

Answer 1

If you build an OData service.

HTTP DELETE - Deletes the entity data that the specified resource represents. A payload is not present in the request or response messages.

HTTP PUT - Replaces existing entity data at the requested resource with new data that is supplied in the payload of the request message. (msdn)

There's a presentation with Scott Hanselman that might be interesting. (I haven't seen it yet.)

There's also a couple of lectures on pluralsight on OData if you have a subscription there.

Answer 2

Web browsers only support GET and POST, so if you are building a web site, there is no need for PUT or DELETE. If you are building a RESTful api, though, PUT and DELETE are the way to go if you want your users to be able to put and/or delete stuff.

EDIT: It seems browsers do support DELETE and PUT in their implementations of XMLHttpRequest. Hence you can use them in ajax requests. Html forms, though, do not support them.