FrameworkElement.AddLogicalChild(Object) Method

Definition

Adds the provided object to the logical tree of this element.

protected internal void AddLogicalChild (object child);

Parameters

child
Object

Child element to be added.

Examples

The following example implements a Child property on a custom FrameworkElement that does its own visual layer implementation. The property setter is designed so that if the value changes, the old value is removed from the logical tree, as well as a class-specific visual collection. The property value is cached, and then the new value is added to both the logical tree and the custom visual collection.

public virtual UIElement Child
{
    get
    {
        return _child;
    }
    set
    {
        if (_child != value)
        {
            //need to remove old element from logical tree
            if (_child != null)
            {
                OnDetachChild(_child);
                RemoveLogicalChild(_child);
            }

            _vc.Clear();

            if (value != null)
            {
                //add to visual
                _vc.Add(value);
                //add to logical
                AddLogicalChild(value);
            }

            //always add the overlay child back into the visual tree if its set
            if (_overlayVisual != null)
                _vc.Add(_overlayVisual);

            //cache the new child
            _child = value;

            //notify derived types of the new child
            if (value != null)
                OnAttachChild(_child);

            InvalidateMeasure();
        }
    }
}

Remarks

Use this method for the implementation of collections on objects that represent logical child elements of an element. Collection maintenance for child element collections might be done in property getters or setters, class handling of Changed events, constructors, or within the collection types themselves.

For control authors, manipulating the logical tree at this level is not the recommended practice, unless none of the content models for available base control classes are appropriate for your control scenario. Consider subclassing at the level of ContentControl, ItemsControl, and HeaderedItemsControl. These classes provide a content model with particular enforcement of logical tree child elements through dedicated APIs, as well as support for other features typically desirable in a WPF control such as styling through templates. For more information on how to use LogicalChildren and AddLogicalChild, see Trees in WPF.

AddLogicalChild may throw an exception if called at a time when the logical tree is being iterated by another process.

Applies to

Product Versions
.NET Framework 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.6, 4.6.1, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8, 4.8.1
Windows Desktop 3.0, 3.1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

See also