HttpContext

HttpContext Class in ASP.NET

📌 What is HttpContext?

• Represents all HTTP-specific information about an individual HTTP request.

• Created per request and disposed when the request completes.

• Holds:

  • Request and Response objects

  • Session, Server, Application, Items, Cache

  • User authentication & authorization info

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🔍 1. Measure Request Processing Time

Use BeginRequest and EndRequest events in Global.asax:

protected void Application_BeginRequest(object sender, EventArgs e)  
{  
    HttpContext.Current.Items.Add("Begintime", DateTime.Now.ToLongTimeString());  
}  
 
protected void Application_EndRequest(object sender, EventArgs e)  
{  
    TimeSpan diff = Convert.ToDateTime(DateTime.Now.ToLongTimeString()) -  
                    Convert.ToDateTime(HttpContext.Current.Items["Begintime"].ToString());  
}

✅ Useful for tracking performance per request.

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📊 2. Access Runtime Info via HttpContext

Get details about the current request in Page_Load:

protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)      
{      
    Response.Write("Request URL: " + HttpContext.Current.Request.Url);      
    Response.Write("Session Count: " + HttpContext.Current.Session.Count);      
    Response.Write("Timestamp: " + HttpContext.Current.Timestamp);      
    Response.Write("Application Count: " + HttpContext.Current.Application.Count);      
    Response.Write("Is Debug Enabled?: " + HttpContext.Current.IsDebuggingEnabled);      
}

✅ Retrieves URL, session count, current time, app-level data, and debug mode.

---

👤 3. Access User Identity & Authentication Info

protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)  
{  
    Response.Write("Username: " + HttpContext.Current.User.Identity.Name + "<br>");  
    Response.Write("Is Authenticated: " + HttpContext.Current.User.Identity.IsAuthenticated + "<br>");  
    Response.Write("Auth Type: " + HttpContext.Current.User.Identity.AuthenticationType + "<br>");  
}

✅ Use after enabling Windows Authentication to check:

• Current logged-in user

• Authentication status

• Type of authentication used

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🧠 Conclusion

• HttpContext is a powerful class central to request-response handling in ASP.NET.

• Helps track request lifecycle, user identity, session info, and more.

• Useful for performance monitoring, security, and debugging.

✨ Tip: Explore other HttpContext properties/methods for deeper insights.