How to: Create a Client

Article
10/19/2016

Applies To: Windows Server 2012 Essentials, Windows Home Server 2011, Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials, Windows Small Business Server 2011 Essentials

The client application is not required for a provider; however, it is included to represent how the operations of the provider can be used. This client is a simple graphical interface that communicates with the provider through the ChatObjectModel object.

Before you start the procedures in this section, you should complete the procedures listed in How to: Create a Host Process.

To create the client application

Right-click the MyProvider solution, click Add, and then click New Project.
In the Templates pane, click WPF Application, type ChatWindow in the Name text box, and then click OK.
Add a reference to the ChatSample.ObjectModel project.
Add a reference to the WssgCommon.dll file.

Open the MainWindow.xaml file and make sure that it contains the following code.

<Window x:Class="ChatWindow.MainWindow"  
   xmlns="https://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"  
   xmlns:x="https://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"  
   xmlns:d="https://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"  
   xmlns:mc="https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006" mc:Ignorable="d"  

   Title="Window1" Height="350" Width="525"   
   xmlns:ChatObjectModel="clr-namespace:ChatSample.ObjectModel;assembly=ChatSample.ObjectModel">  
    <Grid>  
        <TextBox HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="81.183,8,0,0" x:Name="UserName"  
         VerticalAlignment="Top" Text="<enter user name>" TextWrapping="Wrap"  
         Width="167"/>  
        <Label HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="8,6,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top"   
         Content="User name:"/>  
        <Button d:LayoutOverrides="Width" HorizontalAlignment="Right" Margin="0,8,8,0"  
         x:Name="ConnectButton" VerticalAlignment="Top" Content="Connect"   
         Click="ConnectButton_Click"/>  
        <ListBox IsSynchronizedWithCurrentItem="True" HorizontalAlignment="Right"   
         Margin="0,47,8,8" x:Name="CurrentUsers" Width="154"/>  
        <TextBox Margin="8,47,166,33.96" Text="" TextWrapping="Wrap" x:Name="ChatText"/>  
        <TextBox d:LayoutOverrides="Height" Margin="8,0,202.507,8"   
         VerticalAlignment="Bottom" Text="<enter chat text>" TextWrapping="Wrap"   
         x:Name="ChatEntry" IsEnabled="False"/>  
        <Button d:LayoutOverrides="Width, Height" HorizontalAlignment="Right"   
         Margin="0,0,166,8" VerticalAlignment="Bottom" Content="Send" x:Name="Send"  
         Click="Send_Click" IsDefault="True" IsEnabled="False"/>  
    </Grid>  
</Window>

Save the file.

Open the MainWindow.xaml.cs file and make sure that it contains the following code.

using System;  
using System.Collections.Generic;  
using System.Linq;  
using System.Text;  
using System.Windows;  
using System.Windows.Controls;  
using System.Windows.Data;  
using System.Windows.Documents;  
using System.Windows.Input;  
using System.Windows.Media;  
using System.Windows.Media.Imaging;  
using System.Windows.Navigation;  
using System.Windows.Shapes;  
using System.Windows.Threading;  
using System.ComponentModel;  
using ChatSample.ObjectModel;  

namespace ChatWindow {  
    public partial class MainWindow : Window  
    {  
      public MainWindow() {  
         InitializeComponent();  
      }  

      private void ConnectButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e) {  
         if (this.DataContext == null)  
                this.DataContext = new ObjectModel();  
         ObjectModel objModel = (ObjectModel)this.DataContext;  
         objModel.Connect(this.UserName.Text);  
         objModel.ResponseReceived += ChatReceived;  
         objModel.PropertyChanged += objModel_PropertyChanged;  
         this.ConnectButton.IsEnabled = false;  
         this.UserName.IsEnabled = false;  
      }  

      void objModel_PropertyChanged(object sender, PropertyChangedEventArgs e) {  
         if (e.PropertyName == "Connected") {  
            this.Dispatcher.Invoke(DispatcherPriority.Normal,  
               new Action(() => this.ConnectedChanged()));  
         }  
      }  

      private void ConnectedChanged() {  
         ObjectModel objModel = this.DataContext as ObjectModel;  
         bool connected = objModel.Connected;  

         if (connected) {  
            this.UserName.IsReadOnly = true;  
            this.ChatEntry.IsEnabled = true;  
            this.Send.IsEnabled = true;  
         } else {  
            this.ChatEntry.IsEnabled = false;  
            this.Send.IsEnabled = false;  
            this.ChatText.Text = this.ChatText.Text + "<Disconnected>"  
               + Environment.NewLine;  
            this.ConnectButton.IsEnabled = true;  
         }  
      }  

      private void ChatReceived(object sender, ChatReceivedEventArgs e) {  
         string formattedLine = String.Format("[{0}] {1}{2}",  
            e.User, e.Text, Environment.NewLine);  
         this.ChatText.Text = this.ChatText.Text + formattedLine;  
      }  

      private void Send_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e) {  
         ObjectModel objModel = this.DataContext as ObjectModel;  
            objModel.SendChat(this.ChatEntry.Text);  
      }  
   }  
}

Save the project and build the solution.

How to: Create a Client

To create the client application

Additional resources