How to render a control to look like ComboBox with Visual Styles enabled?
Question
I have a control that is modelled on a ComboBox. I want to render the control so that the control border looks like that of a standard Windows ComboBox. Specifically, I have followed the MSDN documentation and all the rendering of the control is correct except for rendering when the control is disabled.
Just to be clear, this is for a system with Visual Styles enabled. Also, all parts of the control render properly except the border around a disabled control, which does not match the disabled ComboBox border colour.
I am using the VisualStyleRenderer class. MSDN suggests using the VisualStyleElement.TextBox
element for the TextBox part of the ComboBox control but a standard disabled TextBox and a standard disabled ComboBox draw slightly differently (one has a light grey border, the other a light blue border).
How can I get correct rendering of the control in a disabled state?
No correct solution
OTHER TIPS
I'm not 100% sure if this is what you are looking for but you should check out the VisualStyleRenderer in the System.Windows.Forms.VisualStyles-namespace.
- VisualStyleRenderer class (MSDN)
- How to: Render a Visual Style Element (MSDN)
- VisualStyleElement.ComboBox.DropDownButton.Disabled (MSDN)
Since VisualStyleRenderer won't work if the user don't have visual styles enabled (he/she might be running 'classic mode' or an operative system prior to Windows XP) you should always have a fallback to the ControlPaint class.
// Create the renderer.
if (VisualStyleInformation.IsSupportedByOS
&& VisualStyleInformation.IsEnabledByUser)
{
renderer = new VisualStyleRenderer(
VisualStyleElement.ComboBox.DropDownButton.Disabled);
}
and then do like this when drawing:
if(renderer != null)
{
// Use visual style renderer.
}
else
{
// Use ControlPaint renderer.
}
Hope it helps!
Are any of the ControlPaint methods useful for this? That's what I usually use for custom-rendered controls.