How do I get a parameter to not just display in a component, but also be recognized inside of OnInitializedAsync()? - components

Question

I'm working on a blazor server-side project and I have a component that gets passed a model (pickedWeek) as a parameter. I can use the model fine in-line with the html, but OnInitializedAsync always thinks that the model is null.
I have passed native types in as parameters, from the Page into a component, this way without an issue. I use a NullWeek as a default parameter, so the number getting used in OnInitializedAsync only ever appears to be from the NullWeek. In case this is related, there is a sibling component that is returning the Week model to the Page through an .InvokeAsync call, where StateHasChanged() is being called after the update. It appears that the new Week is getting updated on the problem component, but that OnInitializeAsync() either doesn't see it, or just never fires again- which maybe is my problem, but I didn't think it worked that way.
For instance, the below code will always show "FAILURE" but it will show the correct Week.Number. Code below:
<div>#pickedWeek.Number</div>
#if(dataFromService != null)
{
<div>SUCCESS</div>
}
else
{
<div>FAILURE</div>
}
#code{
[Parameter]
public Week pickedWeek { get; set; }
protected IEnumerable<AnotherModel> dataFromService { get; set; }
protected override async Task OnInitializedAsync()
{
if (pickedWeek.Number > 0)
{
dataFromService = await _injectedService.MakeACall(pickedWeek.Id);
}
}
}

Answer 1

#robsta has this correct in the comments, you can use OnParametersSet for this. Then, you will run into another issue, in that each rerender will set your parameters again and generate another call to your service. I've gotten around this by using a flag field along with the the OnParametersSet method. Give this a shot and report back.
private bool firstRender = true;
protected override async Task OnParametersSetAsync()
{
if (pickedWeek.Number > 0 && firstRender)
{
dataFromService = await _injectedService.MakeACall(pickedWeek.Id);
firstRender = false;
// MAYBE call this if it doesn't work without
StateHasChanged();
}
}
Another alternative is to use the OnAfterRender override, which supplies a firstRender bool in the the method signature, and you can do similar logic. I tend to prefer the first way though, as this second way allows it to render, THEN sets the value of your list, THEN causes another rerender, which seems like more chatter than is needed to me. However if your task is long running, use this second version and build up a loading message to display while the list is null, and another to display if the service call fails. "FAILURE" is a bit misleading as you have it as it's being displayed before the call completes.
I've also found that a call to await Task.Delay(1); placed before your service call can be useful in that it breaks the UI thread loose from the service call awaiter and allows your app to render in a loading state until the data comes back.