CS0103: The name ‘ViewBag’ does not exist in the current context _viewstart

You might get the above error if you try to access @ViewBag from within _ViewStart.cshtml. One solution is use _Layout.cshtml and point your _ViewStart.cshtml to the layout page. Everything should work fine.

// _ViewStart.cshtml page
@{
    Layout = "~/Views/_BasicLayout.cshtml"; <--- link to Layout Page
}