One way to do this by using a new SQL Server 2005 function Row_Number() OVER:

If you are using SQL Server 2005, you can do something linke this:

In youe select statement:

 SelectCommand="SELECT Row_Number() OVER(order by id) as rowID, [mycol1], [mycol2], [id] FROM [Table1]"

In you GridView:

  <asp:BoundField DataField="Rowid" HeaderText="Rowid"  ReadOnly="True" SortExpression="Rowid" />

You are ready to go.

Another try:

1. Add this your GridView:

<asp:GridView ID="GridView1" runat="server" AutoGenerateColumns="False" DataKeyNames="id"
            DataSourceID="SqlDataSource1" OnRowCreated="GridView1_RowCreated1" >

  <Columns>
            <asp:TemplateField HeaderText="myRowid">
            <ItemTemplate><asp:Label runat="server" />                     
            </ItemTemplate>           
            </asp:TemplateField>

...

</Columns>

2. Add this to your code page

  Protected Sub GridView1_RowCreated1(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As System.Web.UI.WebControls.GridViewRowEventArgs) Handles GridView1.RowCreated
        If e.Row.RowType = DataControlRowType.DataRow Then

            ' Retrieve the Label from the first column.
            Dim myLabel As Label = CType(e.Row.Cells(0).Controls(0), Label)

            ' Set Label text equal to the rowIndex +1
            myLabel.Text = e.Row.RowIndex.ToString() + 1

        End If
    End Sub

Hi,

another way to do it is this one in the Columns section of your GridView control:

<asp:TemplateField>
    <ItemTemplate>
        <%# Container.DataItemIndex + 1 %>
    </ItemTemplate>
</asp:TemplateField>

Thanks XIII, that was exactly what I needed, nice and clean. 

Hi,

I also wrote an article about it for the 4 different data controls: repeater, datalist, datagrid and gridview: Autonumbering ASP.NET grid controls.

Grz, Kris.