Hi All,

I'm a recent convert to ASP.NET MVC after being sucked in to MVC in general a while ago...I can't begin a project now without following the MVC pattern which I guess is a good thing.

This brings me to my current confusion regarding how to go about developing a 'portal' style web application using the MVC framework. Many years ago (well it seems like that) I created a small app using ASP.NET Web Parts and that was certainly adequate for that job. Being able to lay out their own home page was great for the clients and the success of that project has directly led to this requirement. However, this is a much bigger project and will eventually have a group of developers joining it to continue and expand the product as new features are requested. A well unit tested MVC application should leave them in a better position to adopt and expand the software.

I guess I'm asking for general advice and suggestions on what to look at for possible solutions. Has anyone worked with this sort of requirement before?

Thanks...

Check out MvcContrib's SubController.

Or, if it will suffice, use Html.RenderPartial or Html.RenderAction.

All you need to do is send down a list of subcontrollers (or controller/action paris) and render them. Then all you need to do is define the regions of the screen where these components are rendered.

Web Parts heavily relied on javascript to allow users to collapse and expand parts, drag and drop parts between regions and add and edit parts. All of this you will have to implement youself.