WPF datagrid - enable selecting, disabling text input

Question

I have a C# WPF Datagrid, with a checkbox column, hyperlink columns and text columns. My DataGrid is bound to a DataTable. The columns are not auto generated, but I do create them in code dynamically, since the number of columns is not known in advance. I would like to enable the text in the cells to be selected (for ctrl+c purpose) but yet disable editing. I don't want the text to be changed. Anyone can help?

HCL · Answer 1 · 2011-04-29T10:30:29.207

One possibility is probably be to use a DataGridTemplateColumn:

<DataGridTemplateColumn>
    <DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
        <DataTemplate>
            <TextBox IsReadOnly="True" Text="{Binding YourProperty,Mode=OneWay}"/>                            
        </DataTemplate>                        
    </DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>                    
</DataGridTemplateColumn>

This works also with Checkboxes, add a CheckBox, Bind its IsChecked and use as the content a TextBox that is set to IsReadOnly.

<DataGridTemplateColumn>
    <DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
        <DataTemplate>
            <CheckBox IsChecked="{Binding YourBooleanValue}">
                <TextBox IsReadOnly="True" Text="YourCopyableTextOrABindingToText"/>
            </CheckBox>
        </DataTemplate>
    </DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
</DataGridTemplateColumn>

If you want to have the checkbox readonly, set its Enabled-property to false. However in this case, you have to declare the TextBox not as a child but as a sibling of the CheckBox (use a grid or a StackPanel) for this.

If you want to make data readonly for the whole DataGrid, use:

<DataGrid IsReadOnly="True">

THis is also possible for columns:

<DataGridTextColumn IsReadOnly="True">

If you want to define it per row, you have to use DataGridTemplateColumns and bind the IsReadOnly-proeprty of the edit-control.

<DataGridTemplateColumn>
    <DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>
        <DataTemplate>
            <TextBox IsReadOnly="{Binind YourReadOnlyProperty}" Text="{Binding YourProperty,Mode=OneWay}"/>
        </DataTemplate>                        
    </DataGridTemplateColumn.CellTemplate>                    
</DataGridTemplateColumn>

My DataGrid is bound to a DataTable, I create the DataTable and the columns in the code, since the number of columns is known only in runtime. Is there a way to define new datagridtemplatecolumns this way, but dynamically? — Yoni, Apr 30 '11 at 01:04
@Yoni: One possibility is to use XamlReader to build your DataGridTemplateColumns on the fly (by string concatenation) and add them then to the columns collection. It looks not very nice but I remember that I have done this also in a similar situation and it worked fine: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc663033.aspx — HCL, Apr 30 '11 at 09:32

score 2 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 29 '11 at 12:42

2

If your users usually copy an entire cell at once you can set the DataGrid's SelectionUnit to Cell

If they copy sections of a cell you're better off overwriting the CellTemplate to display a Label as HCL recommended

answered Apr 29 '11 at 12:42

Rachel

130,264
66
304
490

score -2 · Answer 3 · answered Apr 29 '11 at 10:14

-2

I'm fairly sure that if you set the DataGridTextBoxColumn's IsReadOnly property to true, you'll still be able to select and copy the contents.

answered Apr 29 '11 at 10:14

Daniel Ives

697
5
5

Unfortunately, this is not true. – Kugel Aug 10 '11 at 16:59

WPF datagrid - enable selecting, disabling text input

3 Answers3