How to view all session key / value pairs when debugging in Visual Studio?

Question

When debugging in Visual Studio (.Net MVC4), is it possible to immediately see all the Controller.Session key / values? I can view all the keys by entering Session in QuickWatch and expanding the "Results Overview". For instance:

  Results View [0] "IsPlaced" [1] "FromSLC" [2] "PersonalId" [3] "FullName" 

We know that individual values ​​can be checked like this , but could not get a list of all the keys and values at the same time. Of course, should this be possible either in QuickWatch or in the Immediate window?

Answer 1

I don’t see an easy way to do this, it’s best to write a method that takes an HttpSessionState and converts it to a dictionary, and then calls this method from the QuickWatch window. A slightly more complicated solution would be to write your own DebuggerTypeProxy for the HttpSessionState and put this in your autoexp.cs file , the advantage of this approach is that it will work in different applications and will not force you to pollute your solution with code that is used only for debugging.

Answer 2

Idea A You can create an extension method for a session object that prints its contents as you need. Then call this method in the immediate window or add a clock to it.

Idea B You can also create your own visualizer that displays your session object as you plan. There is a basics guide here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms164759.aspx

It also means adding code to your project, but just like extension methods, it will remain in a very specific place.

Answer 3

Try adding a namespace:

 using System.Diagnostics; 

On the page where your session was created, add the following:

 Debug.Write(Session["your session value or text"]);