WPF populating DataGrid with large table blocking my UI thread

Question

I've spent some time researching and observing the best practices to avoid blocking the UI thread when attempting to process data on the UI thread. Specifically, I utilize the async/await where I can. However, when populating a DataGrid via Binding, I noticed my UI freezes up after command processing is completed and processing is passed back to the UI.

XAML

<DataGrid ItemsSource="{Binding EndpointModel.DataView}"
          AutoGenerateColumns="True" IsReadOnly="True">            
</DataGrid>

DataModel command execution:

public async void CommandExecute()
{
    ...

    JsonData = await accessor.GetDataAsync(new Endpoint.Params().Universe(universe)
                                                                .WithStart(start)
                                                                .WithEnd(end));

    // Creates a very large DataTable within my display (30 x 350)
    var grid = EndpointModel.CreateDataGrid(JsonData);      
    EndpointModel.DataView = grid.AsDataView();
}

I've stepped through the code to observe processing times, placed debugger messages and processing seems normal. The await statement takes about 1.5 seconds and the grid processing at the end is a few ms. Yet, when I return from the 'CommandExecute()', it takes about 3-5 seconds before the UI is responsive. The data populates fine - it just takes forever. I don't know if this is expected or whether I have control over this.

thanks.

I am currently facing the same issue, but in my case it takes 6 minutes to populate the data!! How did you manage to fix it? — Raya, Sep 29 '21 at 12:13

score 2 · Answer 1 · answered Mar 28 '19 at 00:28

WPF DataGrid is known for its performance issues. You can try to go through answers from this thread. Basically, most recommended option is: using Grid. Especially if rows counts thousands. Or, if you want to keep datagrid, there are such ways to decrease loading time as

EnableColumnVirtualization = true
EnableRowVirtualization = true

Also set fixed width and/or height, datagrid may try to recalculate required width and height every time there is data updated. Id check other threads to optimize your datagrid to your needs.

WPF populating DataGrid with large table blocking my UI thread

1 Answers1