'&' Character Breaks Query String

Question

I have a page that is doing some actions based on the value of a query string. However I recently noticed that this breaks when the Query String contains the '&' character.

I am aware I could write some code that would translate the '&' character on the parent page but I have to believe there is a better way to do this.

Here is an example: Query string:Exercise Science & Sports Studies This only returns 'Exercise Science'

Here is the code I have to get the string:

string selectedDept = Request.QueryString [ "dept" ];

I would prefer not to encrypt the URL as the pages are sometimes linked to directly.

You need to URL encode the parameters. They should be decoded for you in Request.QueryString automatically. — Lloyd
– Lloyd, Commented Oct 22, 2012 at 12:59

Carlos Martinez T · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-22 13:01:19Z

5

You don't need to encrypt, you need to encode the string before generating the Url.

If you are using MVC you can use:

var url = "dept=" + Url.Encode(strDept);

Otherwise you can also use:

var url = "dept=" + HttpUtility.UrlEncode(strDept);

Update:

unfortunately, this will generate an ugly URL:

dept=Exercise%20Science%20%26%20Sports%20Studies

answered Oct 22, 2012 at 13:01

Carlos Martinez T

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codeling · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-22 12:59:44Z

1

The ampersand (&) character is defined to separate request parameters, so there is no other way to get it inside such a parameter than to encode it.

You don't need to encrypt the parameter, just to encode it. A common encoding for this case is the so called URL encoding. The nice thing about this encoding is that normal letters and numbers stay as they are; only special characters are encoded with percent-sign sequences.

answered Oct 22, 2012 at 12:59

codeling

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Thom Smith · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-22 13:01:50Z

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Yes, the & character breaks query strings. It is used as a metacharacter to separate the parameters. If you need to include a & character in a query parameter, then you have to encode it to %26. On ASP.Net, you do this with the HttpUtility.UrlEncode method, called on the Server object in page scope.

answered Oct 22, 2012 at 13:01

Thom Smith

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Dante · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-22 13:00:04Z

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You should encode your parameters, like: HttpUtility.UrlEncode(myUrl);

answered Oct 22, 2012 at 13:00

Dante

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Lloyd · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-22 13:00:24Z

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The ampersand is used to delimit parameters.

You need to URL encode the parameters. They should be decoded for you in Request.QueryString automatically.

answered Oct 22, 2012 at 13:00

Lloyd

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