Converting MVC 4 Web Application to MVC 5

Most of you guys might have many web applications build on MVC 4 and wanted to take some advantages introduced in the MVC 5. Good news is, you can migrate your MVC 4 application to MVC 5 pretty easily with few configuration changes.  The MVC 5 shipped with many cool features to enhance  web development using MVC.

Following are the main features that got added or enhanced in MVC 5 and above

• ASP.NET Identity
• Bootstrap
• Authentication filters
• Filter overrides
• Attribute routing

I am not going to discuss these new features. You can find these new feature enhancements at official ASP.Net site.

1. Make sure your Target Framework is at least in .Net Framework 4.5 ( or above )  : Go To Project Properties --> Application --> Target Framework :
2. We need to update following NuGet Packages 
1. Microsoft ASP.Net MVC 
2. Entity Framework 
3. .Net Web API 2 
3. Make sure your packages.config update as follow 

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<packages>

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.AspNet" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.Core" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.OAuth.Consumer" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.OAuth.Core" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.OpenId.Core" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="DotNetOpenAuth.OpenId.RelyingParty" version="4.1.4.12333" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="EntityFramework" version="6.1.1" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="jQuery" version="1.8.2" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="jQuery.UI.Combined" version="1.8.24" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="jQuery.Validation" version="1.10.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="knockoutjs" version="2.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.Mvc" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.Mvc.FixedDisplayModes" version="5.0.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.Razor" version="3.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.Web.Optimization" version="1.0.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebApi" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebApi.Client" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebApi.Core" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebApi.OData" version="4.0.30506" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebApi.WebHost" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebPages" version="3.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebPages.Data" version="2.0.20710.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebPages.OAuth" version="2.0.30506.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.AspNet.WebPages.WebData" version="2.0.30506.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.Data.Edm" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.Data.OData" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.jQuery.Unobtrusive.Ajax" version="2.0.30506.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.jQuery.Unobtrusive.Validation" version="2.0.30506.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.Net.Http" version="2.0.20710.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Microsoft.Web.Infrastructure" version="1.0.0.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Modernizr" version="2.6.2" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="Newtonsoft.Json" version="4.5.11" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="System.Spatial" version="5.2.0" targetFramework="net45" />

  <package id="WebGrease" version="1.3.0" targetFramework="net45" />

</packages>

         Main elements to consider are :

• MVC should get update 4 to 5 
• Razor should get update 2 to 3 
• WebPages should get update 2 to 3 

 Next we need to update few references in the root level we.config file as follows 

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<!--

  For more information on how to configure your ASP.NET application, please visit

  http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=169433

  -->

<configuration>

  <configSections>

    <section name="entityFramework" type="System.Data.Entity.Internal.ConfigFile.EntityFrameworkSection, EntityFramework, Version=6.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b77a5c561934e089" requirePermission="false" />

    <!-- For more information on Entity Framework configuration, visit http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=237468 -->

  </configSections>

  <connectionStrings>

    <add name="DefaultConnection" connectionString="Data Source=(LocalDb)\v11.0;Initial Catalog=aspnet-MyTestMVC4WebApp-20140806052351;Integrated Security=SSPI;AttachDBFilename=|DataDirectory|\aspnet-MyTestMVC4WebApp-20140806052351.mdf" providerName="System.Data.SqlClient" />

  </connectionStrings>

  <appSettings>

    <add key="webpages:Version" value="3.0.0.0" />

    <add key="webpages:Enabled" value="false" />

    <add key="PreserveLoginUrl" value="true" />

    <add key="ClientValidationEnabled" value="true" />

    <add key="UnobtrusiveJavaScriptEnabled" value="true" />

  </appSettings>

  <system.web>

    <compilation debug="true" targetFramework="4.5" />

    <httpRuntime targetFramework="4.5" />

    <authentication mode="Forms">

      <forms loginUrl="~/Account/Login" timeout="2880" />

    </authentication>

    <pages>

      <namespaces>

        <add namespace="System.Web.Helpers" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc.Ajax" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc.Html" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Optimization" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Routing" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.WebPages" />

      </namespaces>

    </pages>

  </system.web>

  <system.webServer>

    <validation validateIntegratedModeConfiguration="false" />

    

  <handlers>

      <remove name="ExtensionlessUrlHandler-Integrated-4.0" />

      <remove name="OPTIONSVerbHandler" />

      <remove name="TRACEVerbHandler" />

      <add name="ExtensionlessUrlHandler-Integrated-4.0" path="*." verb="*" type="System.Web.Handlers.TransferRequestHandler" preCondition="integratedMode,runtimeVersionv4.0" />

    </handlers></system.webServer>

  <runtime>

    <assemblyBinding xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1">

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="DotNetOpenAuth.Core" publicKeyToken="2780ccd10d57b246" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="0.0.0.0-4.1.0.0" newVersion="4.1.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="DotNetOpenAuth.AspNet" publicKeyToken="2780ccd10d57b246" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="0.0.0.0-4.1.0.0" newVersion="4.1.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="WebGrease" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="0.0.0.0-1.3.0.0" newVersion="1.3.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.Helpers" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0-3.0.0.0" newVersion="3.0.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.WebPages" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0-3.0.0.0" newVersion="3.0.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

      <dependentAssembly>

        <assemblyIdentity name="System.Web.Mvc" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" />

        <bindingRedirect oldVersion="1.0.0.0-5.2.0.0" newVersion="5.2.0.0" />

      </dependentAssembly>

    </assemblyBinding>

  </runtime>

  <entityFramework>

    <defaultConnectionFactory type="System.Data.Entity.Infrastructure.LocalDbConnectionFactory, EntityFramework">

      <parameters>

        <parameter value="v11.0" />

      </parameters>

    </defaultConnectionFactory>

    <providers>

      <provider invariantName="System.Data.SqlClient" type="System.Data.Entity.SqlServer.SqlProviderServices, EntityFramework.SqlServer" />

    </providers>

  </entityFramework>

</configuration>

 Next We need to take a look at the web.config file in the views folder to update Razor configurations.

  <configuration>

  <configSections>

    <sectionGroup name="system.web.webPages.razor" type="System.Web.WebPages.Razor.Configuration.RazorWebSectionGroup, System.Web.WebPages.Razor, Version=3.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35">

      <section name="host" type="System.Web.WebPages.Razor.Configuration.HostSection, System.Web.WebPages.Razor, Version=3.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35" requirePermission="false" />

      <section name="pages" type="System.Web.WebPages.Razor.Configuration.RazorPagesSection, System.Web.WebPages.Razor, Version=3.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35" requirePermission="false" />

    </sectionGroup>

  </configSections>

  <system.web.webPages.razor>

    <host factoryType="System.Web.Mvc.MvcWebRazorHostFactory, System.Web.Mvc, Version=5.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35" />

    <pages pageBaseType="System.Web.Mvc.WebViewPage">

      <namespaces>

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc.Ajax" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Mvc.Html" />

        <add namespace="System.Web.Optimization"/>

        <add namespace="System.Web.Routing" />

      </namespaces>

    </pages>

  </system.web.webPages.razor>

  <appSettings>

    <add key="webpages:Enabled" value="false" />

  </appSettings>

  <system.web>

    <httpHandlers>

      <add path="*" verb="*" type="System.Web.HttpNotFoundHandler"/>

    </httpHandlers>

    <!--

        Enabling request validation in view pages would cause validation to occur

        after the input has already been processed by the controller. By default

        MVC performs request validation before a controller processes the input.

        To change this behavior apply the ValidateInputAttribute to a

        controller or action.

    -->

    <pages

        validateRequest="false"

        pageParserFilterType="System.Web.Mvc.ViewTypeParserFilter, System.Web.Mvc, Version=5.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"

        pageBaseType="System.Web.Mvc.ViewPage, System.Web.Mvc, Version=5.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"

        userControlBaseType="System.Web.Mvc.ViewUserControl, System.Web.Mvc, Version=5.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35">

      <controls>

        <add assembly="System.Web.Mvc, Version=5.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35" namespace="System.Web.Mvc" tagPrefix="mvc" />

      </controls>

    </pages>

  </system.web>

  <system.webServer>

    <validation validateIntegratedModeConfiguration="false" />

    <handlers>

      <remove name="BlockViewHandler"/>

      <add name="BlockViewHandler" path="*" verb="*" preCondition="integratedMode" type="System.Web.HttpNotFoundHandler" />

    </handlers>

  </system.webServer>

</configuration>

 Next We need to remove the ASP.Net GUID from the Web Project's .csproj file. The main purpose of this GUID is to identify that particular web project is a MVC web project. But from MVC 5 onwards , this is no longer use. Because there is no specific significance of identifying MVC project as it is. In different words this means, now you can have MVC, Web Forms , Web API ... all combine together in one project. 

Remove the highlighted GUID. You need to unload the Web project from the solution and edit the .csproj file. And then reloads the Web project. 

<Project ToolsVersion="12.0" DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">

  <Import Project="$(MSBuildExtensionsPath)\$(MSBuildToolsVersion)\Microsoft.Common.props" Condition="Exists('$(MSBuildExtensionsPath)\$(MSBuildToolsVersion)\Microsoft.Common.props')" />

  <PropertyGroup>

    <Configuration Condition=" '$(Configuration)' == '' ">Debug</Configuration>

    <Platform Condition=" '$(Platform)' == '' ">AnyCPU</Platform>

    <ProductVersion>

    </ProductVersion>

    <SchemaVersion>2.0</SchemaVersion>

    <ProjectGuid>{116A3134-16A8-46D3-9482-44E4F5457C60}</ProjectGuid>

    <ProjectTypeGuids>{E3E379DF-F4C6-4180-9B81-6769533ABE47};{349c5851-65df-11da-9384-00065b846f21};{fae04ec0-301f-11d3-bf4b-00c04f79efbc}</ProjectTypeGuids>

    <OutputType>Library</OutputType>

    <AppDesignerFolder>Properties</AppDesignerFolder>

    <RootNamespace>MyTestMVC4WebApp</RootNamespace>

    <AssemblyName>MyTestMVC4WebApp</AssemblyName>

    <TargetFrameworkVersion>v4.5</TargetFrameworkVersion>

    <MvcBuildViews>false</MvcBuildViews>

    <UseIISExpress>true</UseIISExpress>

    <IISExpressSSLPort />

    <IISExpressAnonymousAuthentication />

    <IISExpressWindowsAuthentication />

    <IISExpressUseClassicPipelineMode />

  </PropertyGroup>