Question

Is it possible to load a User Control that was registered in the web.config file, rather than in the aspx file?

Here is an example of what I would do. In my aspx:

index.aspx

<%@ Register TagPrefix="module" TagName="ModExample" Src="~/controls/example.ascx" %>

index.cs

protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    controls_example exmp = LoadContent("controls/example.ascx") as controls_example;
    myContentPanel.Controls.Add(exmp);
}

I had to register my user control in the page, or else ASP would not know what “controls_example” was. However, I know you can change your web.config to look like this:

<configuration>
    <system.web>
        <pages>
            <controls>
                <add tagPrefix="module" tagName="ModExample" src="~/controls/contentModule.ascx"/>
                <add assembly="Subtext.Web.Controls" namespace="Subtext.Web.Controls" tagPrefix="module"/>
            </controls>
        </pages>
    </system.web>
</configuration>

So, here is the problem. How do I create a variable of type “controls_example” when it has been registered in the web.config file?

Do I need to:

• add a “using namespace”?
• change/add something in my web.config?
• not define what the datatype of the variable is? (I would love to avoid this)
• something else?

Answer 1

Your web.config looks fine. In the page you need to add a using with the namespace of your control. Then you can use the page’s LoadControl method to get an instance of your control that you can then add as a child control to some container (I usually choose a asp:Placeholder to ensure its position is where I want it)