ASP.NET: Managing Browser History with AJAX and UpdatePanels

Overview

When you are using the (very helpful) UpdatePanel, the browser doesn't keep track of the asynchronous postbacks.  This means that when the user clicks the back button in the browser, they go to the navigation prior to the last full postback.

How can you resolve this?

Solution

You can solve this by programming the browser, but it is even easier with two alternative server control solutions:

• ASP.NET Futures: the History server control and the Sys.Application client object.  See ASP.NET Futures (July 2007): Managing Browser History and Back Button Support in ASP.NET AJAX
• Nikhil Kothari's Weblog : UpdateControls: UpdateHistory and AnimatedUpdatePanel

Versions

• Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0
• ASP.NET AJAX 1.0
• ASP.NET Futures July 2007

Metadata

• Categories: Software development, ASP.NET, .NET, AJAX
• Additional keywords: browser support, back button, history, UpdateHistory, History control, Sys.Application
• Technorati Tags: software development, ASP.NET, AJAX, UpdatePanel, UpdateHistory