How to: Navigate Data with the Windows Forms BindingNavigator Control
The advent of the BindingNavigator control in Windows Forms enables developers to provide end users with a simple data navigation and manipulation user interface on the forms they create.
The BindingNavigator control is a ToolStrip control with buttons preconfigured for navigation to the first, last, next, and previous record in a data set, as well as buttons to add and delete records. Adding buttons to the BindingNavigator control is easy, because it is a ToolStrip control. Also see How to: Add Load, Save, and Cancel Buttons to the Windows Forms BindingNavigator Control.
For each button on the BindingNavigator control, there is a corresponding member of the BindingSource component that programmatically allows the same functionality. For example, the MoveFirstItem button corresponds to the MoveFirst method of the BindingSource component, the DeleteItem button corresponds to the RemoveCurrent method, and so on. As a result, enabling the BindingNavigator control to navigate data records is a simple as setting its BindingSource property to the appropriate BindingSource component on the form.
To set up the BindingNavigator control
Add a BindingSource component named
bindingSource1and two TextBox controls namedtextBox1andtextBox2.Bind
bindingSource1to data, and the textbox controls tobindingSource1. To do this, paste the following code into your form and callLoadDatafrom the form's constructor or Load event-handling method.private void LoadData() { // The xml to bind to. string xml = @"<US><states>" + @"<state><name>Washington</name><capital>Olympia</capital></state>" + @"<state><name>Oregon</name><capital>Salem</capital></state>" + @"<state><name>California</name><capital>Sacramento</capital></state>" + @"<state><name>Nevada</name><capital>Carson City</capital></state>" + @"</states></US>"; // Convert the xml string to bytes and load into a memory stream. byte[] xmlBytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(xml); MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream(xmlBytes, false); // Create a DataSet and load the xml into it. DataSet set = new DataSet(); set.ReadXml(stream); // Set the DataSource to the DataSet, and the DataMember // to state. bindingSource1.DataSource = set; bindingSource1.DataMember = "state"; textBox1.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "name"); textBox2.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "capital"); }Private Sub LoadData() ' The xml to bind to. Dim xml As String = "<US><states>" + "<state><name>Washington</name><capital>Olympia</capital></state>" + "<state><name>Oregon</name><capital>Salem</capital></state>" + "<state><name>California</name><capital>Sacramento</capital></state>" + "<state><name>Nevada</name><capital>Carson City</capital></state>" + "</states></US>" ' Convert the xml string to bytes and load into a memory stream. Dim xmlBytes As Byte() = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(xml) Dim stream As New MemoryStream(xmlBytes, False) ' Create a DataSet and load the xml into it. Dim [set] As New DataSet() [set].ReadXml(stream) ' Set the DataSource to the DataSet, and the DataMember ' to state. bindingSource1.DataSource = [set] bindingSource1.DataMember = "state" textBox1.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "name") textBox2.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "capital") End Sub 'LoadDataAdd a BindingNavigator control named
bindingNavigator1to your form.Set the BindingSource property for
bindingNavigator1tobindingSource1. You can do this with the designer or in code.bindingNavigator1.BindingSource = bindingSource1;bindingNavigator1.BindingSource = bindingSource1
Example
The following code example is the complete example for the steps listed previously.
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Data;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.Xml;
using System.IO;
using System.Text;
namespace System.Windows.Forms.BindingSourceCurrent
{
class Form1 : Form
{
private IContainer components;
private BindingNavigator bindingNavigator1;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorAddNewItem;
private ToolStripLabel bindingNavigatorCountItem;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorDeleteItem;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem;
private ToolStripSeparator bindingNavigatorSeparator;
private ToolStripTextBox bindingNavigatorPositionItem;
private ToolStripSeparator bindingNavigatorSeparator1;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem;
private ToolStripButton bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem;
private TextBox textBox1;
private TextBox textBox2;
private BindingSource bindingSource1;
private ToolStripSeparator bindingNavigatorSeparator2;
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
LoadData();
bindingNavigator1.BindingSource = bindingSource1;
}
private void LoadData()
{
// The xml to bind to.
string xml = @"<US><states>"
+ @"<state><name>Washington</name><capital>Olympia</capital></state>"
+ @"<state><name>Oregon</name><capital>Salem</capital></state>"
+ @"<state><name>California</name><capital>Sacramento</capital></state>"
+ @"<state><name>Nevada</name><capital>Carson City</capital></state>"
+ @"</states></US>";
// Convert the xml string to bytes and load into a memory stream.
byte[] xmlBytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(xml);
MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream(xmlBytes, false);
// Create a DataSet and load the xml into it.
DataSet set = new DataSet();
set.ReadXml(stream);
// Set the DataSource to the DataSet, and the DataMember
// to state.
bindingSource1.DataSource = set;
bindingSource1.DataMember = "state";
textBox1.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "name");
textBox2.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "capital");
}
[STAThread]
public static void Main()
{
Application.EnableVisualStyles();
Application.Run(new Form1());
}
private void InitializeComponent()
{
this.components = new System.ComponentModel.Container();
System.ComponentModel.ComponentResourceManager resources =
new System.ComponentModel.ComponentResourceManager(typeof(Form1));
this.bindingNavigator1 = new System.Windows.Forms.BindingNavigator(this.components);
this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorCountItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripLabel();
this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator();
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripTextBox();
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator1 = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator();
this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton();
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator2 = new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator();
this.textBox1 = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();
this.textBox2 = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();
this.bindingSource1 = new System.Windows.Forms.BindingSource(this.components);
((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.bindingNavigator1)).BeginInit();
this.bindingNavigator1.SuspendLayout();
((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.bindingSource1)).BeginInit();
this.SuspendLayout();
//
// bindingNavigator1
//
this.bindingNavigator1.AddNewItem = this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.CountItem = this.bindingNavigatorCountItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.CountItemFormat = "of {0}";
this.bindingNavigator1.DeleteItem = this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.Items.AddRange(new System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripItem[] {
this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem,
this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem,
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator,
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem,
this.bindingNavigatorCountItem,
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator1,
this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem,
this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem,
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator2,
this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem,
this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem});
this.bindingNavigator1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(0, 0);
this.bindingNavigator1.MoveFirstItem = this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.MoveLastItem = this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.MoveNextItem = this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.MovePreviousItem = this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.Name = "bindingNavigator1";
this.bindingNavigator1.PositionItem = this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem;
this.bindingNavigator1.TabIndex = 2;
this.bindingNavigator1.Text = "bindingNavigator1";
//
// bindingNavigatorAddNewItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorAddNewItem";
this.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Text = "Add new";
//
// bindingNavigatorCountItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorCountItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorCountItem";
this.bindingNavigatorCountItem.Text = "of {0}";
this.bindingNavigatorCountItem.ToolTipText = "Total number of items";
//
// bindingNavigatorDeleteItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorDeleteItem";
this.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Text = "Delete";
//
// bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem";
this.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Text = "Move first";
//
// bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem";
this.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Text = "Move previous";
//
// bindingNavigatorSeparator
//
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator";
//
// bindingNavigatorPositionItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.DisplayStyle =
System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripItemDisplayStyle.ImageAndText;
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorPositionItem";
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(50, 25);
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Text = "0";
this.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.ToolTipText = "Current position";
//
// bindingNavigatorSeparator1
//
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator1.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator1";
// bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem";
this.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Text = "Move next";
//
// bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem
//
this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Image =
((System.Drawing.Image)(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Image")));
this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem";
this.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Text = "Move last";
//
// bindingNavigatorSeparator2
//
this.bindingNavigatorSeparator2.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator2";
//
// textBox1
//
this.textBox1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(46, 64);
this.textBox1.Name = "textBox1";
this.textBox1.TabIndex = 3;
//
// textBox2
//
this.textBox2.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(46, 104);
this.textBox2.Name = "textBox2";
this.textBox2.TabIndex = 4;
//
// Form1
//
this.ClientSize = new System.Drawing.Size(292, 266);
this.Controls.Add(this.textBox2);
this.Controls.Add(this.textBox1);
this.Controls.Add(this.bindingNavigator1);
this.Name = "Form1";
((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.bindingNavigator1)).EndInit();
this.bindingNavigator1.ResumeLayout(false);
this.bindingNavigator1.PerformLayout();
((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.bindingSource1)).EndInit();
this.ResumeLayout(false);
this.PerformLayout();
}
}
}
Imports System
Imports System.Collections.Generic
Imports System.ComponentModel
Imports System.Data
Imports System.Drawing
Imports System.Windows.Forms
Imports System.Xml
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Text
Class Form1
Inherits Form
Private components As IContainer
Private bindingNavigator1 As BindingNavigator
Private bindingNavigatorAddNewItem As ToolStripButton
Private bindingNavigatorCountItem As ToolStripLabel
Private bindingNavigatorDeleteItem As ToolStripButton
Private bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem As ToolStripButton
Private bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem As ToolStripButton
Private bindingNavigatorSeparator As ToolStripSeparator
Private bindingNavigatorPositionItem As ToolStripTextBox
Private bindingNavigatorSeparator1 As ToolStripSeparator
Private bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem As ToolStripButton
Private bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem As ToolStripButton
Private textBox1 As TextBox
Private textBox2 As TextBox
Private bindingSource1 As BindingSource
Private bindingNavigatorSeparator2 As ToolStripSeparator
Public Sub New()
InitializeComponent()
LoadData()
bindingNavigator1.BindingSource = bindingSource1
End Sub 'New
Private Sub LoadData()
' The xml to bind to.
Dim xml As String = "<US><states>" + "<state><name>Washington</name><capital>Olympia</capital></state>" + "<state><name>Oregon</name><capital>Salem</capital></state>" + "<state><name>California</name><capital>Sacramento</capital></state>" + "<state><name>Nevada</name><capital>Carson City</capital></state>" + "</states></US>"
' Convert the xml string to bytes and load into a memory stream.
Dim xmlBytes As Byte() = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(xml)
Dim stream As New MemoryStream(xmlBytes, False)
' Create a DataSet and load the xml into it.
Dim [set] As New DataSet()
[set].ReadXml(stream)
' Set the DataSource to the DataSet, and the DataMember
' to state.
bindingSource1.DataSource = [set]
bindingSource1.DataMember = "state"
textBox1.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "name")
textBox2.DataBindings.Add("Text", bindingSource1, "capital")
End Sub 'LoadData
<STAThread()> _
Public Shared Sub Main()
Application.EnableVisualStyles()
Application.Run(New Form1())
End Sub 'Main
Private Sub InitializeComponent()
Me.components = New System.ComponentModel.Container()
Dim resources As New System.ComponentModel.ComponentResourceManager(GetType(Form1))
Me.bindingNavigator1 = New System.Windows.Forms.BindingNavigator(Me.components)
Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripLabel()
Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator()
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripTextBox()
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator1 = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator()
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripButton()
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator2 = New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripSeparator()
Me.textBox1 = New System.Windows.Forms.TextBox()
Me.textBox2 = New System.Windows.Forms.TextBox()
Me.bindingSource1 = New System.Windows.Forms.BindingSource(Me.components)
CType(Me.bindingNavigator1, System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize).BeginInit()
Me.bindingNavigator1.SuspendLayout()
CType(Me.bindingSource1, System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize).BeginInit()
Me.SuspendLayout()
'
' bindingNavigator1
'
Me.bindingNavigator1.AddNewItem = Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.CountItem = Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.CountItemFormat = "of {0}"
Me.bindingNavigator1.DeleteItem = Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.Items.AddRange(New System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripItem() {Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem, Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem, Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator, Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem, Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem, Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator1, Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem, Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem, Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator2, Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem, Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem})
Me.bindingNavigator1.Location = New System.Drawing.Point(0, 0)
Me.bindingNavigator1.MoveFirstItem = Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.MoveLastItem = Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.MoveNextItem = Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.MovePreviousItem = Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.Name = "bindingNavigator1"
Me.bindingNavigator1.PositionItem = Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem
Me.bindingNavigator1.TabIndex = 2
Me.bindingNavigator1.Text = "bindingNavigator1"
'
' bindingNavigatorAddNewItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorAddNewItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorAddNewItem.Text = "Add new"
'
' bindingNavigatorCountItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorCountItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem.Text = "of {0}"
Me.bindingNavigatorCountItem.ToolTipText = "Total number of items"
'
' bindingNavigatorDeleteItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorDeleteItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorDeleteItem.Text = "Delete"
'
' bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveFirstItem.Text = "Move first"
'
' bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorMovePreviousItem.Text = "Move previous"
'
' bindingNavigatorSeparator
'
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator"
'
' bindingNavigatorPositionItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.DisplayStyle = System.Windows.Forms.ToolStripItemDisplayStyle.ImageAndText
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorPositionItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Size = New System.Drawing.Size(50, 25)
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.Text = "0"
Me.bindingNavigatorPositionItem.ToolTipText = "Current position"
'
' bindingNavigatorSeparator1
'
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator1.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator1"
'
' bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveNextItem.Text = "Move next"
'
' bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem
'
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Image = CType(resources.GetObject("bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Image"), System.Drawing.Image)
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Name = "bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem"
Me.bindingNavigatorMoveLastItem.Text = "Move last"
'
' bindingNavigatorSeparator2
'
Me.bindingNavigatorSeparator2.Name = "bindingNavigatorSeparator2"
'
' textBox1
'
Me.textBox1.Location = New System.Drawing.Point(46, 64)
Me.textBox1.Name = "textBox1"
Me.textBox1.TabIndex = 3
'
' textBox2
'
Me.textBox2.Location = New System.Drawing.Point(46, 104)
Me.textBox2.Name = "textBox2"
Me.textBox2.TabIndex = 4
'
' Form1
'
Me.ClientSize = New System.Drawing.Size(292, 266)
Me.Controls.Add(textBox2)
Me.Controls.Add(textBox1)
Me.Controls.Add(bindingNavigator1)
Me.Name = "Form1"
CType(Me.bindingNavigator1, System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize).EndInit()
Me.bindingNavigator1.ResumeLayout(False)
Me.bindingNavigator1.PerformLayout()
CType(Me.bindingSource1, System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize).EndInit()
Me.ResumeLayout(False)
Me.PerformLayout()
End Sub 'InitializeComponent
End Class 'Form1
Compiling the Code
This example requires:
- References to the System, System.Data, System.Drawing, System.Windows.Forms and System.Xml assemblies.
For information about building this example from the command line for Visual Basic or Visual C#, see Building from the Command Line or Command-line Building With csc.exe. You can also build this example in Visual Studio by pasting the code into a new project. Also see How to: Compile and Run a Complete Windows Forms Code Example Using Visual Studio.