I need to search a WPF control hierarchy for controls that match a given name or type. How can I do this?
21 Answers
You can use the VisualTreeHelper to find controls. Below is a method that uses the VisualTreeHelper to find a parent control of a specified type. You can use the VisualTreeHelper to find controls in other ways as well.
public static class UIHelper
{
/// <summary>
/// Finds a parent of a given item on the visual tree.
/// </summary>
/// <typeparam name="T">The type of the queried item.</typeparam>
/// <param name="child">A direct or indirect child of the queried item.</param>
/// <returns>The first parent item that matches the submitted type parameter.
/// If not matching item can be found, a null reference is being returned.</returns>
public static T FindVisualParent<T>(DependencyObject child)
where T : DependencyObject
{
// get parent item
DependencyObject parentObject = VisualTreeHelper.GetParent(child);
// we’ve reached the end of the tree
if (parentObject == null) return null;
// check if the parent matches the type we’re looking for
T parent = parentObject as T;
if (parent != null)
{
return parent;
}
else
{
// use recursion to proceed with next level
return FindVisualParent<T>(parentObject);
}
}
}
Call it like this:
Window owner = UIHelper.FindVisualParent<Window>(myControl);
This will dismiss some elements - you should extend it like this in order to support a wider array of controls. For a brief discussion, have a look here
/// <summary>
/// Helper methods for UI-related tasks.
/// </summary>
public static class UIHelper
{
/// <summary>
/// Finds a parent of a given item on the visual tree.
/// </summary>
/// <typeparam name="T">The type of the queried item.</typeparam>
/// <param name="child">A direct or indirect child of the
/// queried item.</param>
/// <returns>The first parent item that matches the submitted
/// type parameter. If not matching item can be found, a null
/// reference is being returned.</returns>
public static T TryFindParent<T>(DependencyObject child)
where T : DependencyObject
{
//get parent item
DependencyObject parentObject = GetParentObject(child);
//we've reached the end of the tree
if (parentObject == null) return null;
//check if the parent matches the type we're looking for
T parent = parentObject as T;
if (parent != null)
{
return parent;
}
else
{
//use recursion to proceed with next level
return TryFindParent<T>(parentObject);
}
}
/// <summary>
/// This method is an alternative to WPF's
/// <see cref="VisualTreeHelper.GetParent"/> method, which also
/// supports content elements. Do note, that for content element,
/// this method falls back to the logical tree of the element!
/// </summary>
/// <param name="child">The item to be processed.</param>
/// <returns>The submitted item's parent, if available. Otherwise
/// null.</returns>
public static DependencyObject GetParentObject(DependencyObject child)
{
if (child == null) return null;
ContentElement contentElement = child as ContentElement;
if (contentElement != null)
{
DependencyObject parent = ContentOperations.GetParent(contentElement);
if (parent != null) return parent;
FrameworkContentElement fce = contentElement as FrameworkContentElement;
return fce != null ? fce.Parent : null;
}
//if it's not a ContentElement, rely on VisualTreeHelper
return VisualTreeHelper.GetParent(child);
}
}
I can't find my control with @CrimsonX or @Drew Noakes methods, because my ControlTemplate is located in a separated XAML file. I have found the control using the following method:
private Image backImage;
private void Diagram_Loaded(object sender, System.Windows.RoutedEventArgs e)
{
// here is the example of the ControlTemplate declaration
//<ControlTemplate x:Key="DiagramControlTemplate1" TargetType="{x:Type Diagram}">
var ctrlTemplate = (ControlTemplate)FindResource("DiagramControlTemplate1");
// diagram is the x:Name of TemplatedControl and, "backImage" is the name of control that I want to find.
var imageControl = ctrlTemplate.FindName("backImage", diagram);
if (imageControl != null)
{
this.backImage = (Image)imageControl;
}
}
This is working for me.
This code just fixes @CrimsonX answer's bug:
public static T FindChild<T>(DependencyObject parent, string childName)
where T : DependencyObject
{
// Confirm parent and childName are valid.
if (parent == null) return null;
T foundChild = null;
int childrenCount = VisualTreeHelper.GetChildrenCount(parent);
for (int i = 0; i < childrenCount; i++)
{
var child = VisualTreeHelper.GetChild(parent, i);
// If the child is not of the request child type child
T childType = child as T;
if (childType == null)
{
// recursively drill down the tree
foundChild = FindChild<T>(child, childName);
// If the child is found, break so we do not overwrite the found child.
if (foundChild != null) break;
}
else if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(childName))
{
var frameworkElement = child as FrameworkElement;
// If the child's name is set for search
if (frameworkElement != null && frameworkElement.Name == childName)
{
// if the child's name is of the request name
foundChild = (T)child;
break;
}
// recursively drill down the tree
foundChild = FindChild<T>(child, childName);
// If the child is found, break so we do not overwrite the found child.
if (foundChild != null) break;
else
{
// child element found.
foundChild = (T)child;
break;
}
}
return foundChild;
}
You just need to continue calling the method recursively if types are matching but names don't (this happens when you pass FrameworkElement as T). otherwise it's gonna return null and that's wrong.
Here are some methods that I use frequently..
Usage:
// Starts the search from thisUiElement (might be a UserContol, Window, etc..)
var combobox = thisUiElement.ChildOfType<ComboBox>();
var employeesListBox = thisUiElement.ChildOfName("EmployeesListBox");
// Starts the search from MainWindow to find the first DataGrid
var dataGrid = WpfUtils.ChildOfType<DataGrid>();
// Starts the search from MainWindow to find the all ListViews
List<ComboBox> allListViews = WpfUtils.ChildOfType<ListView>();
// Starts the search from MainWindow to find the element of name EmployeesComboBox
var combobox = WpfUtils.ChildOfName("EmployeesComboBox");
Implementation:
/*
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Media;
namespace WpfUtilities;
*/
public static class WpfUtils{
public static Window AppMainWindow =>
Application.Current?.MainWindow;
#region Find By Type
// Start the search from MainWindow, example usage: var combobox = WpfUtils.ChildOfType<ComboBox>();
public static T ChildOfType<T>() where T : DependencyObject =>
ChildOfType<T>(AppMainWindow);
/// This will return the first child of type T
public static T ChildOfType<T>(this DependencyObject parent)
where T : DependencyObject
{
if (parent == null) return null;
T child = default;
var numVisuals = VisualTreeHelper.GetChildrenCount(parent);
for (var i = 0; i < numVisuals; i++)
{
var v = VisualTreeHelper.GetChild(parent, i);
child = v as T ?? v.ChildOfType<T>();
if (child != null)
break;
}
return child;
}
// Start the search from MainWindow, example usage: List<ComboBox> comboboxes = WpfUtils.ChildOfType<ComboBox>();
public static IEnumerable<T> ChildrenOfType<T>() where T : DependencyObject =>
ChildrenOfType<T>(AppMainWindow);
/// This will not break the search when finding the first kid of type T, but it will keep searching to return all kids of type T
public static IEnumerable<T> ChildrenOfType<T>(
this DependencyObject parent) where T : DependencyObject
{
if (parent == null) yield break;
var numVisuals = VisualTreeHelper.GetChildrenCount(parent);
for (var i = 0; i < numVisuals; i++)
{
var child = VisualTreeHelper.GetChild(parent, i);
if (child is T dependencyObject)
yield return dependencyObject;
foreach (var childOfChild in child.ChildrenOfType<T>())
yield return childOfChild;
}
}
#endregion
#region Find By Name
/// If parent is null, the search will start from MainWindow, example usage: var combobox = WpfUtils.ChildOfName("EmployeesCombobox");
public static FrameworkElement ChildOfName(string childName,
DependencyObject parent = null)
{
parent ??= AppMainWindow;
object child = null;
var numVisuals = VisualTreeHelper.GetChildrenCount(parent);
for (var i = 0; i < numVisuals; i++)
{
var v = VisualTreeHelper.GetChild(parent, i);
child = v is FrameworkElement f && f.Name == childName
? f
: ChildOfName(childName, v);
if (child != null)
break;
}
return child as FrameworkElement;
}
#endregion
#region
// Yet another useful method, if you are writing code in a .xaml.cs file and you want to get the parent of a type.. example usage: this.ParentOfType<Grid>(); this.ParentOfType<UserControl>(); this.ParentOfType<Window>();
public static T ParentOfType<T>(this DependencyObject child) where T : DependencyObject
{
var parentDepObj = child;
do
{
parentDepObj = VisualTreeHelper.GetParent(parentDepObj);
if (parentDepObj is T parent) return parent;
} while (parentDepObj != null);
return null;
}
#endregion
}
I was able to find objects by name using below code.
stkMultiChildControl = stkMulti.FindChild<StackPanel>("stkMultiControl_" + couter.ToString());
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