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BackgroundWorker Class

Silverlight

Other Versions

Runs an operation on a separate thread.

Inheritance Hierarchy

System.Object
System.ComponentModel.BackgroundWorker

Namespace: System.ComponentModel
Assembly: System (in System.dll)

Syntax

public class BackgroundWorker

The BackgroundWorker type exposes the following members.

Constructors

	Name	Description
	BackgroundWorker	Initializes a new instance of the BackgroundWorker class.

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Properties

	Name	Description
	CancellationPending	Gets a value that indicates whether the application has requested cancellation of a background operation.
	IsBusy	Gets a value that indicates whether the BackgroundWorker is running a background operation.
	WorkerReportsProgress	Gets or sets a value that indicates whether the BackgroundWorker can report progress updates.
	WorkerSupportsCancellation	Gets or sets a value that indicates whether the BackgroundWorker supports asynchronous cancellation.

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Methods

	Name	Description
	CancelAsync	Requests cancellation of a pending background operation.
	Equals(Object)	Determines whether the specified Object is equal to the current Object. (Inherited from Object.)
	Finalize	Allows an object to try to free resources and perform other cleanup operations before the Object is reclaimed by garbage collection. (Inherited from Object.)
	GetHashCode	Serves as a hash function for a particular type. (Inherited from Object.)
	GetType	Gets the Type of the current instance. (Inherited from Object.)
	MemberwiseClone	Creates a shallow copy of the current Object. (Inherited from Object.)
	OnDoWork	Raises the DoWork event.
	OnProgressChanged	Raises the ProgressChanged event.
	OnRunWorkerCompleted	Raises the RunWorkerCompleted event.
	ReportProgress(Int32)	Raises the ProgressChanged event.
	ReportProgress(Int32, Object)	Raises the ProgressChanged event.
	RunWorkerAsync()	Starts running a background operation.
	RunWorkerAsync(Object)	Starts running a background operation and includes a parameter for use by the background operation.
	ToString	Returns a string that represents the current object. (Inherited from Object.)

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Events

	Name	Description
	DoWork	Occurs when RunWorkerAsync is called.
	ProgressChanged	Occurs when ReportProgress is called.
	RunWorkerCompleted	Occurs when the background operation has completed, has been canceled, or has raised an exception.

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Remarks

The BackgroundWorker class allows you to run an operation on a separate, dedicated thread. Time-consuming operations, such as downloads and database transactions, can cause your user interface to stop responding. When you want a responsive user interface and you must perform time-consuming operations, the BackgroundWorker class provides a convenient solution.

To run an operation in the background, create a BackgroundWorker. You can listen for events that report the progress of your operation and signal when your operation is completed.

To set up a background operation, add an event handler for the DoWork event. Call your time-consuming operation in this event handler. To start the background operation, call the RunWorkerAsync method. To receive notifications of progress updates, handle the ProgressChanged event. To receive a notification when the operation is completed, handle the RunWorkerCompleted event.

Note:
You must be careful not to manipulate any user-interface objects in your DoWork event handler. Instead, communicate to the user interface through the ProgressChanged and RunWorkerCompleted events.

If your background operation requires a parameter, call RunWorkerAsync with your parameter. Inside the DoWork event handler, you can extract the parameter from the DoWorkEventArgs.Argument property.

For more information about BackgroundWorker, see How to: Use a Background Worker.

Examples

The following code example demonstrates the use of the BackgroundWorker class for running a time-consuming operation asynchronously. The time-consuming operation is simulated by calling the background thread's Sleep method. The example periodically reports progress and permits the operation to be canceled.


using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Controls;

namespace SL_BackgroundWorker_CS
{
    public partial class Page : UserControl
    {
        private BackgroundWorker bw = new BackgroundWorker();

        public Page()
        {
            InitializeComponent();

            bw.WorkerReportsProgress = true;
            bw.WorkerSupportsCancellation = true;
            bw.DoWork += new DoWorkEventHandler(bw_DoWork);
            bw.ProgressChanged += new ProgressChangedEventHandler(bw_ProgressChanged);
            bw.RunWorkerCompleted += new RunWorkerCompletedEventHandler(bw_RunWorkerCompleted);
        }
        private void buttonStart_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
        {
            if (bw.IsBusy != true)
            {
                bw.RunWorkerAsync();
            }
        }
        private void buttonCancel_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
        {
            if (bw.WorkerSupportsCancellation == true)
            {
                bw.CancelAsync();
            }
        }
        private void bw_DoWork(object sender, DoWorkEventArgs e)
        {
            BackgroundWorker worker = sender as BackgroundWorker;

            for (int i = 1; (i <= 10); i++)
            {
                if ((worker.CancellationPending == true))
                {
                    e.Cancel = true;
                    break;
                }
                else
                {
                    // Perform a time consuming operation and report progress.
                    System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(500);
                    worker.ReportProgress((i * 10));
                }
            }
        }
        private void bw_RunWorkerCompleted(object sender, RunWorkerCompletedEventArgs e)
        {
            if ((e.Cancelled == true))
            {
                this.tbProgress.Text = "Canceled!";
            }

            else if (!(e.Error == null))
            {
                this.tbProgress.Text = ("Error: " + e.Error.Message);
            }

            else
            {
                this.tbProgress.Text = "Done!";
            }
        }
        private void bw_ProgressChanged(object sender, ProgressChangedEventArgs e)
        {
            this.tbProgress.Text = (e.ProgressPercentage.ToString() + "%");
        }
    }
}

XAML


<UserControl x:Class="SL_BackgroundWorker_CS.Page"
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation" 
    xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml" 
    Width="400" Height="300">
    <Grid x:Name="LayoutRoot" Background="White">
        <StackPanel Height="30" Orientation="Horizontal" 
                    HorizontalAlignment="Left" VerticalAlignment="Top" 
                    Margin="10" >
            <Button x:Name="buttonStart" Content="Start" Click="buttonStart_Click"
                    Width="80" Height="30"/>
            <Button x:Name="buttonCancel" Content="Cancel" Click="buttonCancel_Click"
                    Width="80" Height="30"/>
        </StackPanel>
        <StackPanel Margin="10,50,0,0" Orientation="Horizontal">
            <TextBlock Text="Progress: "/>
            <TextBlock x:Name="tbProgress"/>
        </StackPanel>
    </Grid>
</UserControl>

XAML


<UserControl x:Class="SL_BackgroundWorker_VB.Page"
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation" 
    xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml" 
    Width="400" Height="300">
    <Grid x:Name="LayoutRoot" Background="White">
        <StackPanel Height="30" Orientation="Horizontal" 
                    HorizontalAlignment="Left" VerticalAlignment="Top" 
                    Margin="10" >
            <Button x:Name="buttonStart" Content="Start" Click="buttonStart_Click"
                    Width="80" Height="30"/>
            <Button x:Name="buttonCancel" Content="Cancel" Click="buttonCancel_Click"
                    Width="80" Height="30"/>
        </StackPanel>
        <StackPanel Margin="10,50,0,0" Orientation="Horizontal">
            <TextBlock Text="Progress: " />
            <TextBlock x:Name="tbProgress" />
        </StackPanel>
    </Grid>
</UserControl>