Question

can i pass my generic list to my generic handler through HttpContext?

protected void BtnExportCSV_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    List<Product> products = BLL.GetProducts();
    HttpContext.Current.Items["products"] = products;

    Response.Redirect("ToCsvHelper.ashx", false);

}

it’s null when it gets to handler. So is the better way to regenerate the products list within the generic handler somehow? what if i want it usable for not just a products list?

Answer 1

HttpContext lifetime is single request, Redirect does client side redirect and as result you have 2 requests.

You can use session state to pass such data, or view state, or query every time.

Static data (not per-user) can be shared via application level cache (or static members, also it is not a good idea).