WPF WindowsFormsHost Example

WindowsFormsHost. Many controls based on Windows Forms exist. We can use any of them in a WPF program with the WindowsFormsHost control. In it, we specify Windows Forms controls in XAML. Only one control can be nested in it.

To start, please add a "xmlns wf" attribute to the Window element. The "wf" part is just a namespace we specify—other names can instead be used. Next, drag a WindowsFormsHost control to the application.

Tip: Try adding a Windows Forms control. All the classics you know and love are available—I used a Button.

Button

Note: You must prefix the Windows Forms control's name with the "wf" namespace. This is an XML syntax feature.

Info: I specified several attributes of the Windows Forms Button. Windows Forms does not use XAML in most programs, but within WPF it does.

Example markup: XAML <Window x:Class="WpfApplication19.MainWindow" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation" xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml" xmlns:wf="clr-namespace:System.Windows.Forms;assembly=System.Windows.Forms" Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="525"> <Grid> <WindowsFormsHost HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="59" Margin="10,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="163"> <wf:Button Text="Button" Top="0" Left="0" Click="Button_Click" BackColor="AliceBlue" ForeColor="RosyBrown" Font="Consolas" FlatStyle="Flat"/> </WindowsFormsHost> </Grid> </Window> Example code: C# using System; using System.Windows; namespace WpfApplication19 { public partial class MainWindow : Window { public MainWindow() { InitializeComponent(); } private void Button_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { // ... Cast as System.Windows.Forms.Button, not // System.Windows.Controls.Button. System.Windows.Forms.Button b = sender as System.Windows.Forms.Button; b.Text = "Clicked"; } } }

Only one Windows Forms control can be nested within the WindowsFormsHost. But this can be worked around by using a control such as TableLayoutPanel that can have sub-controls. In the example, I added a Click event handler.TableLayoutPanel

So: When the user clicks on the oddly-colored Windows Forms Button, the Button_Click event handler runs.

And: The Text attribute of the Button is changed to the word "Clicked." This is not a WPF Button, which uses Content.

Text Button: WPF

Discussion. This article does not cover all the complexity of WindowsFormsHost. I leave most of that up to Microsoft. It is thoughtful that Microsoft makes WPF programs support (to some extent) Windows Forms controls.

Quote: Use the WindowsFormsHost element to place a Windows Forms control within your WPF element or page.

WindowsFormsHost Class: Microsoft Docs

Summary. Based on my experiment with WindowsFormsHost, it seems that avoiding this element is an ideal choice. Using it introduces a lot of extra complexity. For example, the Button type has to be specified as one from Windows Forms.

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WPF WindowsFormsHost Example

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