Invalid formatetc structure

Out of the blue, when dragging a control or extender from the ajax toolbox onto my form design serivce, I get following error message:

"The operation could not be completed. Invalid FORMATETC structure"

Have found lots of posts from people who share this error, but no resolution.

Interestingly, it is project specific. Does not happen when I create a new web app in a different solution.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance!

Are you on the most recent (10606) build? I believe this only happens with the AnimationExtender and the Accordion control, and we addressed this issue in the this latest release. Can you make sure that's the version your Toolbox items are referencing?

sburke thanks for the response.

The toolbar now references version 10606 of AJAXExtensionsToolbox.dll.

However, still getting same error mesage when I try to drag ANY control or extender from toolbar onto form.

Here are version for the two primary ajax dlls:

<addassembly="System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"/>

<addassembly="System.Web.Extensions.Design, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"/>

Any suggestions?

Hmmm - what's "AJAXExtensionsToolbox.dll"?

Good Morning Shawn...

Sorry for the mix-up. Actually, the toolbox (for the Ajax Control Toolkit) points to --> AjaxControlToolkit.dll, ver 1.0.10606.0.

(The AJAXExtensionsToolbox.dll lives in the directory --> C:\Program Files\Microsoft ASP.NET\ASP.NET 2.0 AJAX Extensions\v1.0.61025. And, I am not directly referencing him.)

Can I send you a word doc that has pictues of the my references, web.config, directory structure and such?

There has to be some kind of bad reference within the solution itself, as I can create a new web project in a different solution and access the ajax control toolkit just fine.

Really appreciate your help.

rob vettor,robv@.avanade.com, 214-707-0584

Well if it works in another project/solution that means you've got something left over in your web.config file or bin directory. Close VS and go to the bin directory and delete the *.refresh file. Copy in the 10606 AjaxControlToolkit.dll, reopen VS and see if that helps.

(1) Removed following files from the bin directory:

Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Common.dll.refresh
Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Data.Configuration.Design.dll.refresh
Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Data.dll.refresh
Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Data.dll.refresh
RadMenu.Net2.dll.refresh
RadPanelbar.Net2.dll.refresh

(2) Added AjaxControlToolkit.dll to bin

(3) Re-Opened Visual Studio (even 'cleaned' the solution).

Unfort, prob still exists.

Question: Believe that Visual Studio creates a cache of the solution files somewhere. Could finding and clearing that cache help?

Again, appreciate your help.

By the way, here is a copy of my web.config:

<?xmlversion="1.0"?>

<configuration>

<configSections>

<sectionname="dataConfiguration"type="Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Data.Configuration.DatabaseSettings, Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.Data, Version=3.1.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b03f5f7f11d50a3a"/>

</configSections>

<dataConfigurationdefaultDatabase="DesignPatternsStudyGroupConnectionString"/>

<connectionStrings>

</connectionStrings>

<system.web>

<pages>

<controls>

<addtagPrefix="asp"namespace="System.Web.UI"assembly="System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

</controls>

</pages>

<!--

Set compilation debug="true" to insert debugging

symbols into the compiled page. Because this

affects performance, set this value to true only

during development.

-->

<compilationdebug="true">

<assemblies>

<addassembly="System.Windows.Forms, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B77A5C561934E089"/>

<addassembly="System.Design, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B03F5F7F11D50A3A"/>

<addassembly="System.Management, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B03F5F7F11D50A3A"/>

<addassembly="System.Data.OracleClient, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B77A5C561934E089"/>

<addassembly="System.Configuration.Install, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B03F5F7F11D50A3A"/>

<addassembly="System.Transactions, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B77A5C561934E089"/>

<addassembly="System.Drawing.Design, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B03F5F7F11D50A3A"/>

<addassembly="System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"/>

<addassembly="System.Web.Extensions.Design, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31BF3856AD364E35"/>

<addassembly="VsWebSite.Interop, Version=8.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=B03F5F7F11D50A3A"/></assemblies>

</compilation>

<httpHandlers>

<removeverb="*"path="*.asmx"/>

<addverb="*"path="*.asmx"validate="false"type="System.Web.Script.Services.ScriptHandlerFactory, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

<addverb="*"path="*_AppService.axd"validate="false"type="System.Web.Script.Services.ScriptHandlerFactory, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

<addverb="GET,HEAD"path="ScriptResource.axd"type="System.Web.Handlers.ScriptResourceHandler, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"validate="false"/>

</httpHandlers>

<httpModules>

<addname="ScriptModule"type="System.Web.Handlers.ScriptModule, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

</httpModules>

</system.web>

<system.webServer>

<validationvalidateIntegratedModeConfiguration="false"/>

<modules>

<addname="ScriptModule"preCondition="integratedMode"type="System.Web.Handlers.ScriptModule, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

</modules>

<handlers>

<removename="WebServiceHandlerFactory-Integrated"/>

<addname="ScriptHandlerFactory"verb="*"path="*.asmx"preCondition="integratedMode"type="System.Web.Script.Services.ScriptHandlerFactory, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

<addname="ScriptHandlerFactoryAppServices"verb="*"path="*_AppService.axd"preCondition="integratedMode"type="System.Web.Script.Services.ScriptHandlerFactory, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

<addname="ScriptResource"preCondition="integratedMode"verb="GET,HEAD"path="ScriptResource.axd"type="System.Web.Handlers.ScriptResourceHandler, System.Web.Extensions, Version=1.0.61025.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35"/>

</handlers>

</system.webServer>

</configuration>

No idea unfortuntately. Best I can suggest is to create a new project that works and start moving things over until it doesn't (or maybe it always will).

Hmm... I'm having the exact same problem

I have exact problems It seems AJAX has more bugs than useful. I'm using VS under Vista and perhaps the majority of the problems are coming from. Anyway, I couldn't even drag and dropg the Collapsible extender from the toolbar to the .aspx page in Design mode. I'll give me a black circle with a line crossing it. If I drag the control to the .aspx page in source mode then the error listed above popup. For me, it doesn't matter which project or solution I'm in, I always get this problem. Is there any real solution for these kinds of problem? I'm also getting errors when using the According too. So many there is a bigger problem here.

I got the same problem with Beta 2 of Orcas when trying to drag a ScriptManager or any other control on the page. I though ajax extention was included in .Net Framework 3.5 but it is perhapse not the case.

Thanks.

I get the same message and am running VS2005 on Vista. I get the message whenever I try dragging a scriptmanager over to a page. I have reloaded ASP.NET 2.0 and AJAX 1 on the system with no success.

If you have VS2005 on Vista, that's the source of MANY problems. I've never complained anything about Microsoft's product until I installed VS2005 on Vista and then to top it off, I installed Orcas thinking that it will solve many incompatible issues with Vista. Well, it's giving me a ton of grief and headaches so I uninstalled it. However, since VS2005 is still running on my Vista machine, I've still experienced various other problems including the ones you mentioned. However, since I did some many tthings to this machine (couldn't remember which step I did), I no longer see that problem now. My best advice to use VS2005 under Windows XP Pro.

OK, so here is what I have discovered so far. I am now able to use VS2005 and ASP.NET AJAX on Vista, but it took a little figuring and a lot of time. When I orignally set my machine up, I was installing most software as the Administrator, then created the user account. I was having issues due to Vista's new locked down security. With my user account being in the Administrators group there were administrative tasks I could not run. I did a full wipe of the HDD and reinstalled Vista and created a user. I then installed VS2005 (had some install issues first time through), VS SP1, then the Vista Update for VS. Installed AJAX and the tool kit and everything runs just fine. I think the issue is with Vista's security and not VS2005, but I cannot really confirm this, but maybe someone else can. BTW if you install 2008 beta 2, it takes to run throughs of the installer. First time installs ASP.NET 3.5 and that is it. Second time through will install the actual program.

For the install issue, I was getting the error that it could not open vs_setup.ms_ and it could not be opened. I redownloaded the ISO image and unpacked it to a directory on the HDD, but even then had an issue. Found out, even though my user account was in the administrators group and I created the folder, I still did not have permissions on the folder. Burned the ISO to CD and no problems.

Haywire

If you want to find out more problems with the VS2005 and Vista, take a look at this two threads.

http://forums.asp.net/t/1102256.aspx

http://forums.asp.net/p/1101495/1675267.aspx#1675267

http://forums.asp.net/t/1118954.aspx?PageIndex=3 problems with Orcas in this thread.

So far there are no answers to the problems I have in those two threads. And the problems is getting more weird, random, and hard to reproduce with VS2005 and Vista.