Open a PDF from a gridview link? - asp.net

Question

I have a gridview on my webpage with one of the columns as a "Reference Number". The reference number represents the name of a pdf file on the server. Is it possible change this column to a hyperlink column so that when they click on the Reference Number on the row it opens the pdf? For example they click on ReferenceNumber 123456 and it opens up the pdf \server\folder\123456.pdf. Thank you
<asp:GridView ID="GridView1" runat="server" AutoGenerateColumns="False"
CellPadding="4" DataSourceID="SqlDataSource1"
ForeColor="#333333" GridLines="None">
<AlternatingRowStyle BackColor="White" ForeColor="#284775" />
<Columns>
<asp:CommandField ShowSelectButton="True" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="ReferenceNumber" HeaderText="Reference #"
SortExpression="ReferenceNumber" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Teaching_Hospital_Name" HeaderText="Teaching Hospital Name"
SortExpression="Teaching_Hospital_Name" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Date_of_Payment"
HeaderText="Date" SortExpression="Date_of_Payment" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Physician_First_Name"
HeaderText="First Name" SortExpression="Physician_First_Name" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Physician_Last_Name"
HeaderText="Last Name" SortExpression="Physician_Last_Name" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Recipient_Primary_Business_Street_Address_Line_1"
HeaderText="Address 1"
SortExpression="Recipient_Primary_Business_Street_Address_Line_1" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Recipient_City" HeaderText="City"
SortExpression="Recipient_City" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Recipient_State" HeaderText="State"
SortExpression="Recipient_State" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Recipient_Zip_Code" HeaderText="Zip"
SortExpression="Recipient_Zip_Code" />
<asp:BoundField DataField="Total_Amount_of_Payment" HeaderText="Total_Amount"
SortExpression="Total_Amount_of_Payment" />
</Columns>
<EditRowStyle BackColor="#999999" />
<FooterStyle BackColor="#5D7B9D" Font-Bold="True" ForeColor="White" />
<HeaderStyle BackColor="#5D7B9D" Font-Bold="True" ForeColor="White" />
<PagerStyle BackColor="#284775" ForeColor="White" HorizontalAlign="Center" />
<RowStyle BackColor="#F7F6F3" ForeColor="#333333" />
<SelectedRowStyle BackColor="#E2DED6" Font-Bold="True" ForeColor="#333333" />
<SortedAscendingCellStyle BackColor="#E9E7E2" />
<SortedAscendingHeaderStyle BackColor="#506C8C" />
<SortedDescendingCellStyle BackColor="#FFFDF8" />
<SortedDescendingHeaderStyle BackColor="#6F8DAE" />
</asp:GridView>

Answer 1

You need to change the Reference Number field to a TemplateField instead of a BoundField, this will allow you to put a hyperlink into that field.
Read Using TemplateFields in the GridView Control
From there, I would suggest using an HttpHandler to build the PDF file and stream it to the user. This has two benefits:
There is no postback, so the user does not lose their place in your grid display.
It allows the user to easily view and/or save the PDF separate from you application.