EntityFrameworkCore exception related to fetching navigational or related properties in a recursive loop Fixes

?? Fix: Prevent Object Cycles in EF Core API Responses

You're getting this "A possible object cycle was detected" error because:

1. EF Core's navigation properties cause recursion (e.g., Organization.Contacts.Organization.Contacts...).
2. The default JSON serializer cannot handle deep relationships beyond 32 levels.
3. Serialization depth is exceeded, leading to a loop.

? Solution 1: Use ReferenceHandler.Preserve in JSON Serialization (Best for APIs)

Modify your Program.cs to break object cycles:

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builder.Services.AddControllers() .AddJsonOptions(options => { options.JsonSerializerOptions.ReferenceHandler = System.Text.Json.Serialization.ReferenceHandler.Preserve; options.JsonSerializerOptions.WriteIndented = true; // Optional: Pretty print JSON });

?? Why?

• Allows EF Core to preserve object references instead of infinitely nesting them.
• Fixes serialization issues when returning data via API.

? Solution 2: Use Projection (Select) Instead of Include()

If you don’t need all properties, use projection to manually select the required data:

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var query = _context.Organizations .Where(o => !o.IsOrganizationDeleted) .Select(o => new { o.OrganizationId, o.OrganizationName, Contacts = o.Contacts.Select(c => new { c.ContactId, c.ContactName }), Departments = o.Departments.Select(d => new { d.DepartmentId, d.DepartmentName }), Documents = o.Documents.Select(doc => new { doc.DocumentId, doc.FileName }), Members = o.Members.Select(m => new { m.MemberId, m.MemberName }) }) .AsNoTracking() // ? Improves performance for read-only queries .AsQueryable();

?? Why?

• This stops EF from loading full object graphs (fixing recursion issues).
• Faster API responses because it only includes the required fields.

? Solution 3: Use .AsNoTracking() to Prevent Tracking (Stops Recursive Loading)

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var query = _context.Organizations .Where(o => !o.IsOrganizationDeleted) .Include(o => o.Contacts) .Include(o => o.Departments) .Include(o => o.Documents) .Include(o => o.Members) .AsNoTracking() // Prevents EF Core from tracking objects, breaking cycles .AsQueryable();

?? Why?

• Breaks object cycles by stopping entity tracking.
• Best when data is read-only (prevents unnecessary memory usage).

?? Best Solution for Your Case?

SolutionBest forFixes Cycle?PerformanceUse ReferenceHandler.PreserveAPI responses? Yes?? Keeps all dataUse Projection (Select())Optimized API queries? Yes?? BestUse .AsNoTracking()Read-only queries? Yes? Faster

?? If you only need specific fields, use projection (Select()). ?? If you need all properties, enable ReferenceHandler.Preserve. ?? If using Include(), add .AsNoTracking() to prevent deep recursion.

Let me know which one works for you! ??