How to put a custom windows forms control in a WPF application?

Question

As a short term solution I'm trying to jam a windows form 'usercontrol' into a WPF application. I see in the WPF application view that I can add a 'custom windows form control' to the project and it makes an empty custom control, but I can't figure out how to add it. Ideally I'd like to know how to take the .dll from my compiled windows forms user control and stick it into the WPF app, or import the user control into the WPF application.

Thanks, Sam

Answer 1

You can't really add it as a control to the toolbox like you could for a Windows Forms Application. What you should do instead is "host" the user control inside of the WPF application.

See how to do it on MSDN.

Here's an example of how to use a masked text box (which you can easily modify to use your custom control):

<Window x:Class="Window1"
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="HostingWfInWpf">
<Grid>
    <WindowsFormsHost>
       <wf:MaskedTextBox x:Name="mtbDate" Mask="00/00/0000"/>
    </WindowsFormsHost>
</Grid>
</Window>

Answer 2

Add a reference to System.Windows.Forms and WindowsFormsIntegration to your Project

xmlns:WinForms="clr-namespace:System.Windows.Forms;assembly=System.Windows.Forms"
xmlns:WindowsFormsIntegration="clr-namespace:System.Windows.Forms.Integration;assembly=WindowsFormsIntegration"

And place Windows forms host in the window.

  <WindowsFormsHost Name="wfhDate"  
                    HorizontalAlignment="Center" 
                    VerticalAlignment="Stretch">
                <WinForms:FlowLayoutPanel/>
  </WindowsFormsHost>

Now in C# code

using Forms = System.Windows.Forms;
.........................
Forms.FlowLayoutPanel flpPanel = this.wfhDate.Child as Forms.FlowLayoutPanel;
// Initialize your Forms contol here.
flpPanel.Controls.Add( yourControl );