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Choose the right exception-handling approach
The right setup depends on who will see the response, whether the error is expected, and whether your application must follow a particular API contract.
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- Development diagnostics: use the Developer Exception Page while developing locally.
- Production fallback: use
UseExceptionHandlerto catch unhandled exceptions and return a safe fallback response. - Known exception types: implement one or more
IExceptionHandlerservices to map specific exceptions to responses. - API error bodies: register
AddProblemDetailswhen Problem Details fits your public response contract.
These approaches can work together: exception-specific handlers can run before a configured fallback, while the fallback handles exceptions that no specific handler claims.
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Use detailed exception output only in development
The Developer Exception Page captures synchronous and asynchronous exceptions thrown by later middleware and displays diagnostic information. Current WebApplication.CreateBuilder templates enable it in the Development environment. Microsoft cautions against exposing it in Production: its output may include stack traces, query values, cookies, headers, and endpoint metadata. The page may not contain complete diagnostic information, so use logging when you need a fuller record. Microsoft’s ASP.NET Core error-handling guidance
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Configure a production fallback with UseExceptionHandler
UseExceptionHandler catches and logs unhandled exceptions. A common page-based fallback is UseExceptionHandler("/Error"). When the response has not started, path-based handling re-executes the request through the alternate pipeline at the configured path. If that alternate pipeline also throws, the middleware rethrows the original exception.
If an error page is not appropriate, configure a fallback handler or Problem Details instead. Calling UseExceptionHandler() with neither a path nor an inline handler requires fallback configuration such as AddProblemDetails; without it, startup configuration fails. Registered IExceptionHandler implementations run before the fallback. Microsoft’s ASP.NET Core error-handling guidance
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Handle known exceptions centrally with IExceptionHandler
Implement IExceptionHandler.TryHandleAsync(HttpContext, Exception, CancellationToken) for centralized, exception-specific handling. Register each implementation with AddExceptionHandler<T>, then add exception-handling middleware with UseExceptionHandler. Registration alone does not activate the handlers. The interface applies to ASP.NET Core 8.0, 9.0, and 10.0. Microsoft’s IExceptionHandler API reference
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Handlers are singleton services and run in registration order. A handler returning false passes the exception to the next handler or the configured fallback. A handler returning true stops the chain and takes responsibility for the complete response, including its status code and body.
Do not treat true as meaning the middleware will finish the response for you. If a handled response has no status or body, it can become a 404 and trigger a middleware log. Set a deliberate status and write the response, or use IProblemDetailsService to create a suitable body. Microsoft’s ASP.NET Core error-handling guidance
Return Problem Details from APIs
AddProblemDetails registers ASP.NET Core’s default IProblemDetailsService. Exception-handling middleware can use it to generate Problem Details when no custom handler handles the exception; status-code pages can also provide a body for otherwise bodyless 4xx and 5xx responses. Problem Details is a commonly used HTTP API error format, not a requirement for every API. Choose it when it matches your API contract, and keep implementation details and sensitive data out of public responses. Microsoft’s API error-handling guidance
Check content negotiation
The default Problem Details writer supports application/json. Generation depends on the request’s Accept header matching a supported writer content type; an Accept header that excludes supported types can prevent a Problem Details body from being generated. If your API contract requires another format, customize the service or add a writer for that format. Microsoft’s API error-handling guidance
Account for .NET 10 exception diagnostics
In .NET 10, an exception reported as handled by an IExceptionHandler no longer produces diagnostics by default. If you rely on the .NET 8 or .NET 9 behavior, set SuppressDiagnosticsCallback = _ => false to restore it. You can also suppress diagnostics conditionally according to the exception or request context. Review this behavior when upgrading if your monitoring depends on middleware diagnostics for handled exceptions. Microsoft’s .NET 10 breaking-change note
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Applying all key ASP.NET Core components, including MVC for HTML generation, .NET Core, EF Core, ASP.NET Identity, dependency injection, and more
- Integrating ASP.NET Core with leading client-side frameworks, including Bootstrap
- ASP.NET Core code for implementing business logic and data transformations
- Handling configuration, routing, controllers, views, and common tasks (including posting forms and presenting data)
- Performing complementary tasks: error handling, logging, application design, authentication, localization, and more
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