Getting Started

Start by installing and running Visual Studio Express 2013 for Web or Visual Studio 2013.
If you are using Visual Studio 2010 or Visual Studio 2012, then please refer to our Help Tutorials about integrating jQWidgets with ASP .NET, ASP .NET MVC3 and ASP .NET MVC4

Visual Studio is an IDE, or integrated development environment. Just like you use Microsoft Word to write documents, you'll use an IDE to create applications. In Visual Studio there's a toolbar along the top showing various options available to you. There's also a menu that provides another way to perform tasks in the IDE. (For example, instead of selecting New Project from the Start page, you can use the menu and select File > New Project.)

Your First Application

Click New Project, then select Visual C# on the left, then Web and then select ASP.NET Web Application. Name your project and then click OK.



In the New ASP.NET Project dialog, click MVC and then click OK.



Visual Studio used a default template for the ASP.NET MVC project you just created, so you have a working application right now without doing anything! This is a simple "Hello World!" project, and it's a good place to start your application.



Click F5 to start debugging. F5 causes Visual Studio to start IIS Express and run your web app. Visual Studio then launches a browser and opens the application's home page. Notice that the address bar of the browser says localhost:port# and not something like example.com. That's because localhost always points to your own local computer, which in this case is running the application you just built. When Visual Studio runs a web project, a random port is used for the web server. In the image below, the port number is 4464. When you run the application, you'll see a different port number.



Download jQWidgets and open the jqwidgets folder from the download package. Copy the necessary for your application JavaScript files from the jqwidgets and jqwidgets/globalize folders and paste them to your project's Scripts folder.



After that, open the jqwidgets/styles folder from the download package, copy the necessary CSS files and paste them in your project's Content folder. After that, copy and paste the images folder.



In the Solution Explorer pane, open App_Start/BundleConfig.cs and configure it to include the jQWidgets JavaScript and CSS files.

public class BundleConfig
{
    // For more information on bundling, visit http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=301862
    public static void RegisterBundles(BundleCollection bundles)
    {
        bundles.Add(new ScriptBundle("~/bundles/jquery").Include(
                    "~/Scripts/jquery-{version}.js"));

        bundles.Add(new ScriptBundle("~/bundles/jqueryval").Include(
                    "~/Scripts/jquery.validate*"));

        // Use the development version of Modernizr to develop with and learn from. Then, when you're
        // ready for production, use the build tool at http://modernizr.com to pick only the tests you need.
        bundles.Add(new ScriptBundle("~/bundles/modernizr").Include(
                    "~/Scripts/modernizr-*"));

        bundles.Add(new ScriptBundle("~/bundles/bootstrap").Include(
                    "~/Scripts/bootstrap.js",
                    "~/Scripts/respond.js"));

        bundles.Add(new ScriptBundle("~/bundles/jqwidgets").Include(       
            "~/Scripts/jqxcore.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxdata.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxgrid.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxgrid.selection.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxgrid.pager.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxlistbox.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxbuttons.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxscrollbar.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxdatatable.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxtreegrid.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxmenu.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxcalendar.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxgrid.sort.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxgrid.filter.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxdatetimeinput.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxdropdownlist.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxslider.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxeditor.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxinput.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxdraw.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxchart.core.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxchart.rangeselector.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxtree.js",
            "~/Scripts/globalize.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxbulletchart.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxcheckbox.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxradiobutton.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxvalidator.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxpanel.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxpasswordinput.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxnumberinput.js",
            "~/Scripts/jqxcombobox.js"
            ));

        bundles.Add(new StyleBundle("~/Content/css").Include(
            "~/Content/jqx.base.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.arctic.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.black.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.bootstrap.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.classic.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.darkblue.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.energyblue.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.fresh.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.highcontrast.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.metro.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.metrodark.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.office.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.orange.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.shinyblack.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.summer.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.web.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-darkness.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-lightness.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-le-frog.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-overcast.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-redmond.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-smoothness.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-start.css",
            "~/Content/jqx.ui-sunny.css",
            "~/Content/bootstrap.css",
            "~/Content/site.css"
            ));
    }
}

Open the Views/Shared/_Layout.cshtml file and update it to include the jqwidgets scripts.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
    <meta charset="utf-8" />
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>@ViewBag.Title - ASP.NET MVC Application</title>
    @Styles.Render("~/Content/css")
    @Scripts.Render("~/bundles/modernizr")
	<script type="text/javascript">
	    window.onload = function () {
	        document.getElementById('bodyContainer').style.visibility = 'visible';
	    }
	</script>
</head>
<body>
    <div id='bodyContainer' style='visibility: hidden;' class="container body-content">
         @RenderBody()
    </div>

    @Scripts.Render("~/bundles/jquery")
    @Scripts.Render("~/bundles/bootstrap")
    @Scripts.Render("~/bundles/jqwidgets")
    @RenderSection("scripts", required: false)
</body>
</html>

Set up the database

To mimic the environment of having an existing database, we will first create a database with some pre-filled data, and then we will connect to the database. For our purposes, we will use LocalDB. You can use an existing database server instead of LocalDB, but depending on your version of Visual Studio and your type of database, all of the data tools in Visual Studio might not be supported. If the tools are not available for your database, you may need to perform some of the database-specific steps within the management suite for your database.

Launch Visual Studio and open the Server Explorer pane. To add a new database, right-click Data Connections and select Add Connection.



If this is the first data connection you have added, you will be prompted to choose a Data source. Select Microsoft SQL Server. If you have added a data connection in the past, you might not see this dialog window.



If you have a server that you prefer to use, you can specify the name of that server; otherwise, use the local database that comes with Visual Studio by specifying (localdb)\v11.0 for the server name. Name the database. The sample database which we use in our samples is called ‘EmployeeDB’.



Click OK. When prompted to create a new database, select Yes.



Your new database appears in the Server Explorer pane, under the Data Connections node. The database name may be prefixed with some additional identifiers. Right-click the database, and select New Query.

In the query window, you will add SQL commands to create a Table and add some example data to it.

Open the query editor and execute the following to scripts in order:

- EmployeeTable_Schema.sql
- EmployeeTable_Data.sql

These scripts are located in the jqwidgets/demos/aspnetmvc/DatabaseSetup folder.

Or you can copy the commands from below:

CREATE TABLE [dbo].[Employee] (
    [EmployeeID]      INT           IDENTITY (1, 1) NOT NULL,
    [ManagerID]      INT NULL,
    [FirstName]      NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [LastName]       NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [Title]       NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [Country]       NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [City]       NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [Address]       NVARCHAR (50) NULL,
    [HireDate]       DATETIME NULL,
    [BirthDate]       DATETIME NULL,
    PRIMARY KEY CLUSTERED ([EmployeeID] ASC)
);

SET IDENTITY_INSERT [dbo].[Employee] ON
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (1, 2, N'Nancy', N'Davolio', N'Sales Representative', N'USA', N'Seattle', N'507 - 20th Ave. E.Apt. 2A', N'1992-05-01 00:00:00', N'1948-12-08 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (2, NULL, N'Andrew', N'Fuller', N'Vice President', N'USA', N'Tahoma', N'908 W. Capital Way', N'1992-08-14 00:00:00', N'1952-02-19 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (3, 2, N'Janet', N'Leverling', N'Sales Representative', N'USA', N'Kirkland', N'722 Moss Bay Blvd.', N'1992-04-01 00:00:00', N'1963-08-30 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (4, 2, N'Margaret', N'Peacock', N'Sales Representative', N'USA', N'Redmond', N'4110 Old Redmond Rd.', N'1993-05-03 00:00:00', N'1937-09-19 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (5, 2, N'Steven', N'Buchanan', N'Sales Manager', N'UK', N'London', N'14 Garrett Hill', N'1993-10-17 00:00:00', N'1955-03-04 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (6, 5, N'Michael', N'Suyama', N'Sales Representative', N'UK', N'London', N'Coventry House Miner Rd.', N'1993-10-17 00:00:00', N'1963-07-02 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (7, 5, N'Robert', N'King', N'Sales Representative', N'UK', N'London', N'Edgeham Hollow Winchester Way', N'1994-01-02 00:00:00', N'1960-05-29 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (8, 2, N'Laura', N'Callahan', N'Inside Sales Coordinator', N'USA', N'Seattle', N'4726 - 11th Ave. N.E.', N'1994-03-05 00:00:00', N'1958-01-09 00:00:00')
INSERT INTO [dbo].[Employee] ([EmployeeID], [ManagerID], [FirstName], [LastName], [Title], [Country], [City], [Address], [HireDate], [BirthDate]) VALUES (9, 5, N'Anne', N'Dodsworth', N'Sales Representative', N'UK', N'London', N'7 Houndstooth Rd.', N'1994-11-15 00:00:00', N'1966-01-27 00:00:00')
SET IDENTITY_INSERT [dbo].[Employee] OFF

Execute the query (Ctrl + Shift + E). The table now exist in the database.

Generate the Model

You will now create Entity Framework model from the database table. This model represents a class that you will use to work with the data. The model mirrors a table in the database and contains properties that correspond to the columns in the table.

Right-click the Models folder, and select Add and ADO .NET Entity Data Model.



Set the Model's name to "EmployeeModel" and click OK.



Select Generate from Database and click Next.



Click Next again on the next dialog.



Select the Employee table and click Finish.



Before adding the controller, Rebuild your project.

Generate the Controller

MVC controllers are responsible for responding to requests made against an ASP.NET MVC website. Each browser request is mapped to a particular controller. For example, imagine that you enter the following URL into the address bar of your browser:

localhost/Product/Index/3

In this case, a controller named ProductController is invoked. The ProductController is responsible for generating the response to the browser request. For example, the controller might return a particular view back to the browser or the controller might redirect the user to another controller.

Right-click the Controller folder, and select Add and Controller. Then select MVC5 Controller with views, using Entity Framework



In the Add Controller dialog, set the Controller's name to EmployeeController and set the Model and Data context classes to match to your Model.



If you would like to see the default generated web page, click F5 and navigate to localhost:4464/Employee. The port number on your side would be different.

Now open EmployeeController.cs and add the following method which returns the Employees as JSON:

public JsonResult GetEmployees()
{
    var dbResult = db.Employees.ToList();
    var employees = (from employee in dbResult
                        select new
                        {
                            employee.FirstName,
                            employee.LastName,
                            employee.EmployeeID,
                            employee.BirthDate,
                            employee.HireDate,
                            employee.ManagerID,
                            employee.Title,
                            employee.City,
                            employee.Country,
                            employee.Address
                        });
    return Json(employees, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet);
}

Generate the View

Expand the Views folder in the Solution Explorer pane and then expand the Employee folder. Remove all generated files expect Index.cshtml.

Open Index.cshtml and replace its code with the code below:

@{
    ViewBag.Title = "jQWidgets DataTable";
}
@section scripts {
    <script type="text/javascript">
        $(document).ready(function () {
            // prepare the data
            var source =
            {
                dataType: "json",
                dataFields: [
                    { name: 'EmployeeID', type: 'number' },
                    { name: 'ManagerID', type: 'number' },
                    { name: 'FirstName', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'LastName', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'Country', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'City', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'Address', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'Title', type: 'string' },
                    { name: 'HireDate', type: 'date' },
                    { name: 'BirthDate', type: 'date' }
                ],
                id: 'EmployeeID',
                url: '/Employee/GetEmployees'
            };
            var dataAdapter = new $.jqx.dataAdapter(source);
            // create Tree Grid
            $("#dataTable").jqxDataTable(
            {
                width: 850,
                source: dataAdapter,
                theme: 'arctic',
                pageSize: 5,
                sortable: true,
                filterable: true,
                pageable: true,
                columns: [
                  { text: 'FirstName', dataField: 'FirstName', width: 200 },
                  { text: 'LastName', dataField: 'LastName', width: 200 },
                  { text: 'Title', dataField: 'Title', width: 160 },
                  { text: 'Birth Date', dataField: 'BirthDate', cellsFormat: 'd', width: 120 },
                  { text: 'Hire Date', dataField: 'HireDate', cellsFormat: 'd', width: 120 },
                  { text: 'Address', dataField: 'Address', width: 250 },
                  { text: 'City', dataField: 'City', width: 120 },
                  { text: 'Country', dataField: 'Country' }
                ]
            });
        });
    </script>
}
<div id="dataTable"></div>

                                                               

Result after running the application - localhost:4464/Employee

Please, note that when you run the application, you will see a different port number.