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Collect User Input

Free

Build and validate forms in Blazor applications.

by dotnet5.1k stars on dotnet/skills
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Updated Aug 10, 2026
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Free · Opens the source repo

What Collect User Input does

The Collect User Input skill provides a systematic approach to handling user input in Blazor applications. It enables developers to create forms, validate data, and respond to user interactions efficiently. This skill is particularly useful for building data-entry interfaces, such as forms for employee information, search boxes, and file uploads, ensuring that user inputs are captured accurately and validated appropriately.

This skill emphasizes the use of the EditForm component, which is essential for managing form submissions and validation. It supports both model-based and EditContext-based setups, allowing developers to choose the method that best fits their application needs. The skill also covers built-in input components like text fields, checkboxes, and dropdowns, making it easier to create interactive forms with minimal effort.

Validation is a key feature of this skill, utilizing data annotations and custom validators to ensure that user inputs meet specified criteria. Developers can leverage the DataAnnotationsValidator for standard validation or implement custom validation logic for more complex scenarios. The skill also provides guidance on handling form submissions, including how to manage valid and invalid states effectively.

Overall, this skill is designed for developers working with Blazor who need to implement user input forms that are both functional and user-friendly, streamlining the process of data collection and validation in their applications.

When to use it

Use this skill when you need to create interactive forms for data entry in Blazor applications, including scenarios requiring validation and submission handling.

When not to use it

Avoid this skill for project scaffolding or when working with prerendering issues, as it is focused solely on form handling and validation.

What you can build with it

Employee Data Entry Form

Use this skill to create a form for entering employee details, ensuring all fields are validated before submission.

Search and Filter Panel

Implement a search box or filter panel that reacts to user input, allowing for dynamic data retrieval.

File Uploads in Blazor

Utilize the file upload component to allow users to submit files as part of their input, with validation for file types.

How to install Collect User Input

View source

1. Install with the skills CLI

npx skills add dotnet/skills/collect-user-input --agent claude-code

2. Or install it manually

Download the skill folder and drop it into ~/.claude/skills/ for all projects, or .claude/skills/ to scope it to one repo. Restart Claude Code so it picks up the new skill.

Anthropic's agentic coding CLI, and the reference implementation of Agent Skills. Drop a skill folder into ~/.claude/skills and Claude Code loads it automatically whenever a task matches the skill's description. Claude Code docs

Inside SKILL.md

Written by dotnet

Collect User Input

Step 1 — Read the Project's AGENTS.md

Check AGENTS.md for Interactivity Mode and Interactivity Scope. This determines which form patterns apply:

ModeForm mechanism
None (Static SSR)EditForm with FormName + [SupplyParameterFromForm]. No @bind, no @onchange.
ServerEditForm with @bind-Value. Full interactivity — real-time validation, dynamic UI.
WebAssemblySame as Server, but validators needing server data must call APIs.
AutoSame as WebAssembly — code must work in both browser and server.
ScopeImpact
GlobalAll forms are interactive. FormName only needed when explicitly opting a page to static SSR.
Per-pageForms in static pages use FormName + [SupplyParameterFromForm]. Forms in @rendermode pages use @bind-Value.

EditForm Setup

EditForm requires either Model or EditContext — never both.

Model-based (default)

<EditForm Model="Employee" OnValidSubmit="HandleSubmit" FormName="employee">
    <DataAnnotationsValidator />
    <ValidationSummary />

    <label>
        Name: <InputText @bind-Value="Employee!.Name" />
        <ValidationMessage For="() => Employee!.Name" />
    </label>

    <button type="submit">Save</button>
</EditForm>

@code {
    [SupplyParameterFromForm]
    private EmployeeModel? Employee { get; set; }

    protected override void OnInitialized() => Employee ??= new();

    private async Task HandleSubmit()
    {
        // Save Employee
    }
}

This single pattern works in both SSR and interactive modes:

  • In SSR: FormName identifies the form, [SupplyParameterFromForm] binds POST data, ??= initializes on GET.
  • In interactive: @bind-Value provides two-way binding, [SupplyParameterFromForm] is ignored, FormName is harmless.

EditContext-based (advanced)

Use when you need programmatic field tracking, dynamic validation rules, or manual EditContext.Validate() calls:

private EditContext? editContext;
private EmployeeModel model = new();

protected override void OnInitialized()
{
    editContext = new EditContext(model);
}
<EditForm EditContext="editContext" OnValidSubmit="HandleSubmit" FormName="employee">

Submit Handlers

HandlerFires whenUse when
OnValidSubmitValidation passesStandard forms with DataAnnotationsValidator
OnInvalidSubmitValidation failsNeed custom handling for invalid state
OnSubmitAlways — validation is manualUsing EditContext.Validate() yourself

OnSubmit cannot combine with OnValidSubmit/OnInvalidSubmit.

Built-in Input Components

ComponentBinds toNotes
InputTextstringRenders <input type="text">
InputTextAreastringRenders <textarea>
InputNumber<T>int, double, decimalRenders <input type="number">
InputDate<T>DateTime, DateOnly, DateTimeOffsetRenders <input type="date">
InputCheckboxboolRenders <input type="checkbox">
InputSelect<T>string, enums, numeric typesRenders <select>
InputRadioGroup<T>string, enums, numeric typesWraps InputRadio<T> children
InputFileIBrowserFileFile upload — interactive modes only

All input components use @bind-Value for binding. Always wrap text in a <label> or use id/for attributes for accessibility.

InputSelect with enum values

<InputSelect @bind-Value="Model!.Status">
    <option value="">-- Select --</option>
    @foreach (var value in Enum.GetValues<OrderStatus>())
    {
        <option value="@value">@value</option>
    }
</InputSelect>

InputRadioGroup

<InputRadioGroup @bind-Value="Model!.Priority">
    @foreach (var p in Enum.GetValues<Priority>())
    {
        <label>
            <InputRadio Value="p" /> @p
        </label>
    }
</InputRadioGroup>

Validation

Data annotations

Define validation rules on the model:

public class EmployeeModel
{
    [Required, StringLength(100)]
    public string? Name { get; set; }

    [Required, EmailAddress]
    public string? Email { get; set; }

    [Range(18, 99)]
    public int Age { get; set; }

    [Required]
    public string? Department { get; set; }
}

Add <DataAnnotationsValidator /> inside EditForm — without it, annotation attributes are silently ignored.

Display errors with:

  • <ValidationSummary /> — all errors in a list
  • <ValidationMessage For="() => Model!.FieldName" /> — per-field inline errors

Custom validator component

For server-round-trip validation (uniqueness checks, business rules):

public class CustomValidator : ComponentBase
{
    [CascadingParameter]
    private EditContext? EditContext { get; set; }

    private ValidationMessageStore? messageStore;

    protected override void OnInitialized()
    {
        messageStore = new ValidationMessageStore(EditContext!);
        EditContext!.OnValidationRequested += (s, e) => messageStore.Clear();
        EditContext!.OnFieldChanged += (s, e) => messageStore.Clear(e.FieldIdentifier);
    }

    public void DisplayErrors(Dictionary<string, List<string>> errors)
    {
        foreach (var (field, messages) in errors)
        {
            foreach (var message in messages)
            {
                messageStore!.Add(EditContext!.Field(field), message);
            }
        }
        EditContext!.NotifyValidationStateChanged();
    }

    public void ClearErrors()
    {
        messageStore?.Clear();
        EditContext?.NotifyValidationStateChanged();
    }
}

Usage in a form:

<EditForm Model="Model" OnValidSubmit="HandleSubmit" FormName="register">
    <DataAnnotationsValidator />
    <CustomValidator @ref="customValidator" />
    <ValidationSummary />
    @* inputs *@
</EditForm>

@code {
    private CustomValidator? customValidator;

    private async Task HandleSubmit()
    {
        var errors = await RegistrationService.ValidateAsync(Model!);
        if (errors.Count > 0)
        {
            customValidator!.DisplayErrors(errors);
            return;
        }
        // proceed
    }
}

React to Input Changes (Interactive Only)

@bind:after

Run logic after a bound value changes:

<InputText @bind-Value="Model!.ZipCode" @bind:after="OnZipCodeChanged" />

@code {
    private async Task OnZipCodeChanged()
    {
        // Fetch city/state based on new zip code
        var location = await LocationService.LookupAsync(Model!.ZipCode);
        Model.City = location?.City;
        Model.State = location?.State;
    }
}

@oninput for real-time filtering

<input type="text" @oninput="OnSearchInput" placeholder="Search..." />

@code {
    private string searchTerm = "";
    private List<Item> filteredItems = new();

    private void OnSearchInput(ChangeEventArgs e)
    {
        searchTerm = e.Value?.ToString() ?? "";
        filteredItems = allItems.Where(i =>
            i.Name.Contains(searchTerm, StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase)).ToList();
    }
}

SSR-Specific Patterns

These apply when the form renders in Static SSR (mode = None, or per-page without @rendermode).

SupplyParameterFromForm

Binds POST data to a property on form submission:

[SupplyParameterFromForm]
private ContactModel? Contact { get; set; }

protected override void OnInitialized() => Contact ??= new();

Critical: The ??= in OnInitialized is required. On GET the property is null — ??= creates the model. On POST the framework populates it — ??= preserves the posted values.

FormName — multiple forms on one page

Each form needs a unique FormName:

<EditForm Model="Search" OnSubmit="DoSearch" FormName="search">...</EditForm>
<EditForm Model="Contact" OnValidSubmit="SaveContact" FormName="contact">...</EditForm>

Match [SupplyParameterFromForm] to its form:

[SupplyParameterFromForm(FormName = "search")]
private SearchModel? Search { get; set; }

[SupplyParameterFromForm(FormName = "contact")]
private ContactModel? Contact { get; set; }

Enhanced navigation for forms

Add Enhance for SPA-like form submissions without full page reload:

<EditForm Model="Model" OnValidSubmit="Save" FormName="quick" Enhance>

Enhanced forms submit via fetch, patch the DOM, and preserve scroll position. The page stays interactive-feeling even in SSR.

Plain HTML forms

When using raw <form> instead of EditForm in SSR, add the antiforgery token manually:

<form method="post" @onsubmit="Submit" @formname="raw-form">
    <AntiforgeryToken />
    <input name="Model.Name" value="@Model?.Name" />
    <button type="submit">Send</button>
</form>

EditForm includes the antiforgery token automatically.

File Upload

InputFile works in interactive modes only — not in Static SSR.

<InputFile OnChange="OnFileSelected" accept=".pdf,.jpg,.png" />

@code {
    private IBrowserFile? selectedFile;

    private async Task OnFileSelected(InputFileChangeEventArgs e)
    {
        selectedFile = e.File;

        // Read stream with size limit
        await using var stream = selectedFile.OpenReadStream(maxAllowedSize: 10 * 1024 * 1024);
        // Process stream — save to disk, upload to storage, etc.
    }
}

Stream size limits:

  • Server: Default ~30 KB SignalR message size. Call OpenReadStream(maxAllowedSize) to increase. Large files stream over the circuit.
  • WebAssembly: File is read in the browser. No SignalR limit, but memory constrained.

For multiple files:

<InputFile OnChange="OnFilesSelected" multiple />

@code {
    private async Task OnFilesSelected(InputFileChangeEventArgs e)
    {
        foreach (var file in e.GetMultipleFiles(maxAllowedFiles: 10))
        {
            await using var stream = file.OpenReadStream(maxAllowedSize: 10 * 1024 * 1024);
            // Process each file
        }
    }
}

Prevent Double Submission

Disable the submit button while processing:

<button type="submit" disabled="@isSubmitting">
    @(isSubmitting ? "Saving..." : "Save")
</button>

@code {
    private bool isSubmitting;

    private async Task HandleSubmit()
    {
        isSubmitting = true;
        try
        {
            await SaveService.SaveAsync(Model!);
        }
        finally
        {
            isSubmitting = false;
        }
    }
}

Custom Validation CSS

Replace the default valid/invalid CSS classes:

public class BootstrapFieldCssClassProvider : FieldCssClassProvider
{
    public override string GetFieldCssClass(EditContext editContext, in FieldIdentifier fieldIdentifier)
    {
        var isValid = !editContext.GetValidationMessages(fieldIdentifier).Any();
        return editContext.IsModified(fieldIdentifier)
            ? (isValid ? "is-valid" : "is-invalid")
            : "";
    }
}

Apply to the form:

protected override void OnInitialized()
{
    editContext = new EditContext(model);
    editContext.SetFieldCssClassProvider(new BootstrapFieldCssClassProvider());
}

Don'ts

  • Don't use @bind or @oninput in Static SSR forms — they require interactivity. Use [SupplyParameterFromForm] and FormName.
  • Don't forget Model ??= new() in OnInitialized — the model is null on GET, populated on POST.
  • Don't use OnSubmit together with OnValidSubmit/OnInvalidSubmit — they're mutually exclusive.
  • Don't omit <DataAnnotationsValidator /> — validation attributes are silently ignored without it.
  • Don't omit FormName in SSR when a page has multiple forms — both forms will fire on any submission.
  • Don't use InputFile in Static SSR — it requires an interactive render mode.
  • Don't use both Model and EditContext on an EditForm — pick one.
  • Don't forget <AntiforgeryToken /> in plain <form> elements — the server rejects the POST without it.

Frequently asked questions about Collect User Input

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