Try-Catch not working for controller to class library [Debugger Mode] - exception

Question

I am running dotnet core 2.* and as the title mentions I have trouble getting my try catch to work when calling from API. And before anyone comments I am also running middle-ware to catch any exceptions. It too doesn't perform as expected
Addinional Information:
The Two Classes are in different namespaces/projects
Queries.Authentication is static.
They are both in the same solution
Controller:
[AllowAnonymous]
[HttpPost]
public string Login([FromBody] AuthRequest req)
{
// See if the user exists
if (Authenticate(req.username, req.password))
{
try {
// Should Fail Below
UserDetails ud = Queries.Authentication.GetUser(req.username);
} catch (RetrievalException e){ }
catch (Exception e){ } // Exception Still Comes Through
}
}
Queries.Authentication.GetUser Code:
public static class Authentication {
public static UserDetails GetUser (string username)
{
// Some Code
if (details.success)
{
// Some Code
}
else
{
throw new RetrievalException(details.errorMessage); // This is not caught propperly
}
}
}
Retrieval Exception:
public class RetrievalException : Exception
{
public RetrievalException()
{
}
public RetrievalException(String message)
: base(message)
{
}
public RetrievalException(String message, Exception inner)
: base(message, inner)
{
}
}
EDIT: Adding Middleware Code Here as per request:
public class CustomExceptionFilter : IExceptionFilter
{
public void OnException(ExceptionContext context)
{
HttpStatusCode status = HttpStatusCode.InternalServerError;
String message = String.Empty;
var exceptionType = context.Exception.GetType();
if (exceptionType == typeof(UnauthorizedAccessException))
{
message = "Unauthorized Access";
status = HttpStatusCode.Unauthorized;
}
else if (exceptionType == typeof(NullReferenceException))
{
message = "Null Reference Exception";
status = HttpStatusCode.InternalServerError;
}
else if (exceptionType == typeof(NotImplementedException))
{
message = "A server error occurred.";
status = HttpStatusCode.NotImplemented;
}
else if (exceptionType == typeof(RSClientCore.RetrievalException))
{
message = " The User could not be found.";
status = HttpStatusCode.NotFound;
}
else
{
message = context.Exception.Message;
status = HttpStatusCode.NotFound;
}
context.ExceptionHandled = true;
HttpResponse response = context.HttpContext.Response;
response.StatusCode = (int)status;
response.ContentType = "application/json";
var err = "{\"message\":\"" + message + "\",\"code\" :\""+ (int)status + "\"}";
response.WriteAsync(err);
}
}
App Config:
public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IHostingEnvironment env)
{
if (env.IsDevelopment())
{
app.UseDeveloperExceptionPage();
} else
{
app.UseExceptionHandler();
}
...
}
Service Config:
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
// Add Model View Controller Support
services.AddMvc( config =>
config.Filters.Add(typeof (CustomExceptionFilter))
);
UPDATE: After playing around with it I noticed that even though my program throws the exception, if I press continue the API controller then handles it as if the exception was never thrown (as in it catches it and does what I want). So I turned off the break on Exception setting, this fixed it in debugger mode. However this the break doesn't seem to be an issue when I build/publish the program. This makes me think it is definitely a issue with visual studio itself rather than the code.

Answer 1

When you set ExceptionHandled to true that means you have handled the exception and there is kind of no error anymore. So try to set it to false.
context.ExceptionHandled = false;
I agree it looks a bit confusing, but should do the trick you need.
Relevant notes:
For those who deal with different MVC and API controller make sure you implemented appropriate IExceptionFilter as there are two of them - System.Web.Mvc.IExceptionFilter (for MVC) and System.Web.Http.Filters.IExceptionFilter (for API).
There is a nice article about Error Handling and ExceptionFilter Dependency Injection for ASP.NET Core APIs you could use as a guide for implementing exception filters.
Also have a look at documentation: Filters in ASP.NET Core (note selector above the left page menu to select ASP.NET Core 1.0, ASP.NET Core 1.1,ASP.NET Core 2.0, or ASP.NET Core 2.1 RC1). It has many important notes and explanations why it works as it does.