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.NET Framework 2.0
System.Threading
 ThreadStart Delegate

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Microsoft Visual Studio 2005/.NET Framework 2.0

Other versions are also available for the following:
.NET Framework Class Library
ThreadStart Delegate

Represents the method that executes on a Thread.

Namespace: System.Threading
Assembly: mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)

Visual Basic (Declaration)
<ComVisibleAttribute(True)> _
Public Delegate Sub ThreadStart ()
Visual Basic (Usage)
Dim instance As New ThreadStart(AddressOf HandlerMethod)
C#
[ComVisibleAttribute(true)] 
public delegate void ThreadStart ()
C++
[ComVisibleAttribute(true)] 
public delegate void ThreadStart ()
J#
/** @delegate */
/** @attribute ComVisibleAttribute(true) */ 
public delegate void ThreadStart ()
JScript
JScript supports the use of delegates, but not the declaration of new ones.

When a managed thread is created, the method that executes on the thread is represented by a ThreadStart delegate or a ParameterizedThreadStart delegate that is passed to the Thread constructor. The thread does not begin executing until the System.Threading.Thread.Start method is called. Execution begins at the first line of the method represented by the ThreadStart or ParameterizedThreadStart delegate.

NoteNote

Visual Basic and C# users can omit the ThreadStart or ParameterizedThreadStart delegate constructor when creating a thread. In Visual Basic, use the AddressOf operator when passing your method to the Thread constructor; for example, Dim t As New Thread(AddressOf ThreadProc). In C#, simply specify the name of the thread procedure. The compiler selects the correct delegate constructor.

NoteNote

In version 2.0 of the .NET Framework, creating a ThreadStart delegate for a static method in C++ requires only one parameter: the address of the callback method, qualified by the class name. In earlier versions two parameters were required when creating a delegate for a static method: zero (null) and the method address. For an instance method, all versions require two parameters: the instance variable and the method address.

The following code example shows the syntax for creating and using a ThreadStart delegate with an instance method and with a static method.

For another simple example that demonstrates how to create a ThreadStart delegate, see the Thread.Start method overload. For more information about thread creation, see Creating Threads and Passing Data at Start Time.

Visual Basic
Imports System
Imports System.Threading

Public Class Test

    <MTAThread> _
    Shared Sub Main()
        ' To start a thread using a static thread procedure, use the
        ' class name and method name when you create the ThreadStart
        ' delegate. Visual Basic expands the AddressOf expression 
        ' to the appropriate delegate creation syntax:
        '    New ThreadStart(AddressOf Work.DoWork)
        '
        Dim newThread As New Thread(AddressOf Work.DoWork)
        newThread.Start()

        ' To start a thread using an instance method for the thread 
        ' procedure, use the instance variable and method name when 
        ' you create the ThreadStart delegate. Visual Basic expands 
        ' the AddressOf expression to the appropriate delegate 
        ' creation syntax:
        '    New ThreadStart(AddressOf w.DoMoreWork)
        '
        Dim w As New Work()
        w.Data = 42
        newThread = new Thread(AddressOf w.DoMoreWork)
        newThread.Start()
    End Sub
End Class

Public Class Work 
    Public Shared Sub DoWork()
        Console.WriteLine("Static thread procedure.")
    End Sub
    Public Data As Integer
    Public Sub DoMoreWork() 
        Console.WriteLine("Instance thread procedure. Data={0}", Data) 
    End Sub
End Class

' This code example produces the following output (the order 
'   of the lines might vary):
'
'Static thread procedure.
'Instance thread procedure. Data=42
C#
using System;
using System.Threading;

class Test
{
    static void Main() 
    {
        // To start a thread using a static thread procedure, use the
        // class name and method name when you create the ThreadStart
        // delegate. Beginning in version 2.0 of the .NET Framework,
        // it is not necessary to create a delegate explicityly. 
        // Specify the name of the method in the Thread constructor, 
        // and the compiler selects the correct delegate. For example:
        //
        // Thread newThread = new Thread(Work.DoWork);
        //
        ThreadStart threadDelegate = new ThreadStart(Work.DoWork);
        Thread newThread = new Thread(threadDelegate);
        newThread.Start();

        // To start a thread using an instance method for the thread 
        // procedure, use the instance variable and method name when 
        // you create the ThreadStart delegate. Beginning in version
        // 2.0 of the .NET Framework, the explicit delegate is not
        // required.
        //
        Work w = new Work();
        w.Data = 42;
        threadDelegate = new ThreadStart(w.DoMoreWork);
        newThread = new Thread(threadDelegate);
        newThread.Start();
    }
}

class Work 
{
    public static void DoWork() 
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Static thread procedure."); 
    }
    public int Data;
    public void DoMoreWork() 
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Instance thread procedure. Data={0}", Data); 
    }
}

/* This code example produces the following output (the order 
   of the lines might vary):
Static thread procedure.
Instance thread procedure. Data=42
 */
C++
using namespace System;
using namespace System::Threading;
ref class Work
{
public:
   static void DoWork()
   {
      Console::WriteLine( "Static thread procedure." );
   }

   int Data;
   void DoMoreWork()
   {
      Console::WriteLine( "Instance thread procedure. Data={0}", Data );
   }

};

int main()
{
   
   // To start a thread using an instance method for the thread 
   // procedure, specify the object as the first argument of the
   // ThreadStart constructor.
   //
   Work^ w = gcnew Work;
   w->Data = 42;
   ThreadStart^ threadDelegate = gcnew ThreadStart( w, &Work::DoMoreWork );
   Thread^ newThread = gcnew Thread( threadDelegate );
   newThread->Start();
   
   // To start a thread using a static thread procedure, specify
   // only the address of the procedure. This is a change from 
   // earlier versions of the .NET Framework, which required 
   // two arguments, the first of which was null (0).
   //
   threadDelegate = gcnew ThreadStart( &Work::DoWork );
   newThread = gcnew Thread( threadDelegate );
   newThread->Start();
}

/* This code example produces the following output (the order 
   of the lines might vary):
Static thread procedure.
Instance thread procedure. Data=42
 */
J#
import System.*;
import System.Threading.*;
import System.Threading.Thread;

class Test
{
    public static void main(String[] args)
    {
        ThreadStart threadDelegate = new ThreadStart(Work.DoWork);
        Thread newThread = new Thread(threadDelegate);
        newThread.Start();
    } //main
} //Test

class Work
{
    public static void DoWork()
    {
    } //DoWork
} //Work

Windows 98, Windows 2000 SP4, Windows CE, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows Mobile for Pocket PC, Windows Mobile for Smartphone, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP SP2, Windows XP Starter Edition

The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see System Requirements.

.NET Framework

Supported in: 2.0, 1.1, 1.0

.NET Compact Framework

Supported in: 2.0, 1.0
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Thread-safe examples      jcorra   |   Edit   |   Show History
I know these examples are purposely simple to be more easily understood, but this is probably going to be one of the first topics that programmers who are new to threading are likely to read when learning about writing threaded applications. Seems like the examples should make more of a point of thread-safety so new programmers don't have to learn about it the hard way. Even mentioning thread-safety in the comments and a link to more information in the "See Also" and/or "Other Resources" would be a step in the right direction.

I'm by no means an expert in multi-threaded applications, but from what I do know, to be thread-safe only the main program thread should ever have any interaction with the UI, you should never interact directly with the UI from inside a spawned Thread. The best way to accomplish this is by using a CallBack, like in the example "Retrieving Data with Callback Methods" in the article Creating Threads and Passing Data at Start Time (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ts553s52(VS.80).aspx)
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