Welcome to this course on Routing in ASP.NET Core. Previously, you have learned how to create a minimal API with multiple endpoints and return different responses with various status codes using the Results helper class. This course will allow you to dive deeper into routing—specifically, how the framework selects a specific endpoint from all the handlers defined. We'll explore the route template syntax in detail along with optional parameters, default parameters, and constraints. This lesson specifically focuses on understanding routing and what powers it—the Endpoint Routing Middleware.

Routing in ASP.NET Core is the process of selecting a specific handler for an incoming HTTP request. In minimal APIs, the handler is the endpoint handler associated with a route. This means when your application receives an incoming HTTP request, routing determines which endpoint should handle that request based on the URL and registered routes.

Routing in ASP.NET Core is powered by the EndpointRoutingMiddleware. This middleware selects an endpoint based on the request URL and the application's route templates. Consider the placement of this middleware in the request pipeline:

1. Logging Middleware: Logs the request but doesn't know which endpoint will handle it.
2. EndpointRoutingMiddleware: Selects the appropriate endpoint based on the request URL.
3. Authorization Middleware: Checks authorization and now knows which endpoint will handle the request because it's positioned after the EndpointRoutingMiddleware.
4. Endpoint Middleware: Invokes the selected endpoint.

This sequence ensures that routing decisions are made before authorization checks and endpoint execution, enabling a well-structured request processing pipeline.

In ASP.NET Core, route templates are composed of literal segments and parameters:

• Literal Segments: Static path segments like /users or /users/me.
• Parameters: Dynamic placeholders in the path like {userId} or {todoId}.

Example routes:

ASP.NET Core's routing system accurately matches routes using templates and constraints, even if more general routes are defined before specific ones. For example, the framework will still correctly resolve /users/me even if /users/{userId} is defined first. However, it is good practice to define more specific routes before more general ones to improve readability and maintainability of the codebase.

Here is an example demonstrating the use of parameters and literal segments in routes:

In this lesson, you covered the purpose of routing and how it selects the appropriate handler for a request, the role of EndpointRoutingMiddleware in the middleware pipeline, the syntax for defining route templates using parameters and literal segments, and stressed the importance of route order. Additionally, you saw a practical code example that demonstrated the use of both parameters and literal segments in minimal APIs, highlighting the proper placement of specific and general routes to ensure correct routing. This foundational knowledge supports understanding more advanced routing concepts in ASP.NET Core.