WPF Advanced Topics

Introduction

This page explores advanced topics for building sophisticated Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) applications. We'll dive into custom controls, dependency properties, performance optimization, and more.

Dependency Properties

Dependency properties provide a powerful way to enable styling, data binding, animation, and default values.

public static readonly DependencyProperty IsSpinningProperty =
    DependencyProperty.Register(
        "IsSpinning",
        typeof(bool),
        typeof(SpinnerControl),
        new PropertyMetadata(false, OnIsSpinningChanged));

Read more: In‑depth guide

Creating Custom Controls

Custom controls are reusable UI components that encapsulate rendering and behavior. Use a ControlTemplate to define the visual tree.

  • Derive from Control or ContentControl.
  • Override OnApplyTemplate to hook up parts.
  • Provide default style in themes/generic.xaml.

Example project: Creating a Timeline Control

Advanced Data Binding

Leverage IValueConverter, MultiBinding, and PriorityBinding for complex scenarios.

<TextBlock Text="{Binding Path=FirstName, StringFormat='Hello, {0}!'}"/>
<TextBlock>
    <TextBlock.Text>
        <MultiBinding StringFormat="{}{0} {1}">
            <Binding Path="FirstName"/>
            <Binding Path="LastName"/>
        </MultiBinding>
    </TextBlock.Text>
</TextBlock>

See the full article for more examples.

Visual State Manager (VSM)

VSM simplifies UI state transitions. Define states in XAML and trigger them from code.

<ControlTemplate TargetType="local:ToggleButton">
    <Grid>
        <VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
            <VisualStateGroup x:Name="CommonStates">
                <VisualState x:Name="Normal"/>
                <VisualState x:Name="MouseOver">
                    <Storyboard>
                        <ColorAnimation Storyboard.TargetName="Border"
                                        Storyboard.TargetProperty="(Border.Background).(SolidColorBrush.Color)"
                                        To="#FFE0E0E0" Duration="0:0:0.2"/>
                    </Storyboard>
                </VisualState>
                <VisualState x:Name="Pressed">
                    <Storyboard>
                        <DoubleAnimation Storyboard.TargetName="Border"
                                         Storyboard.TargetProperty="Opacity"
                                         To="0.6" Duration="0:0:0.1"/>
                    </Storyboard>
                </VisualState>
            </VisualStateGroup>
        </VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
        <Border x:Name="Border" Background="White" CornerRadius="4"/>
    </Grid>
</ControlTemplate>

Learn more in the VSM documentation.

Performance Tips

  • Use VirtualizingStackPanel for large lists.
  • Set CacheMode to BitmapCache on complex visuals.
  • Avoid excessive use of LayoutTransform.
  • Profile with dotTrace or Visual Studio Diagnostic Tools.

Interop with Win32

Host Win32 content using HwndHost or embed WPF in Win32 via ElementHost.

public class WebBrowserHost : HwndHost
{
    protected override HandleRef BuildWindowCore(HandleRef hwndParent)
    {
        // Create native HWND here...
    }
}

Testing & Debugging

Automate UI testing with Microsoft.VisualStudio.TestTools.UITesting or Appium. Use the visual tree debugger in Visual Studio to inspect bindings.

Further Resources