UI Automation Support for the Separator Control Type

This topic provides information about Microsoft UI Automation support for the Separator control type.

Separator controls are used to visually divide a space into two regions. For example, a separator control can be a bar that defines two panes in a window. If the separator can be moved, the control should be exposed as Thumb in control type.

The following sections define the required UI Automation tree structure, properties, control patterns, and events for the Separator control type. The UI Automation requirements apply to all separator controls, whether Microsoft Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Microsoft Win32, or Windows Forms.

This topic contains the following sections.

  • Required UI Automation Tree Structure
  • Required UI Automation Properties
  • Required UI Automation Control Patterns
  • Required UI Automation Events
  • Related Topics

Required UI Automation Tree Structure

The following table depicts the control view and the content view of the UI Automation tree that pertains to separator controls and describes what can be contained in each view. For more information about the UI Automation tree, see UI Automation Tree Overview.

Control View Content View
  • Separator
  • The Separator control never has content.

Required UI Automation Properties

The following table lists the UI Automation properties whose value or definition is especially relevant to separator controls. For more information about UI Automation properties, see UI Automation Properties for Clients.

UI Automation Property Value Notes
UIA_AutomationIdPropertyId See notes. The value of this property needs to be unique across all controls in an application.
UIA_BoundingRectanglePropertyId See notes. The outermost rectangle that contains the whole control.
UIA_ClickablePointPropertyId See notes. Supported if there is a bounding rectangle. If not every point within the bounding rectangle is clickable, and you perform specialized hit testing, override and provide a clickable point.
UIA_ControlTypePropertyId Separator This value is the same for all UI frameworks.
UIA_IsContentElementPropertyId FALSE The separator control is never content.
UIA_IsControlElementPropertyId TRUE The separator control must always be a control.
UIA_IsKeyboardFocusablePropertyId See notes. If the control can receive keyboard focus, it must support this property.
UIA_LabeledByPropertyId NULL The separator control does not have a static label.
UIA_LocalizedControlTypePropertyId See notes. Localized string corresponding to the Separator control type. The default value is "Separator" for en-US or English (United States).
UIA_NamePropertyId "" The separator control does not require a Name property.

Required UI Automation Control Patterns

The separator control is not required to support any control patterns. For more information on control patterns, see UI Automation Control Patterns Overview.

Required UI Automation Events

The following table lists the UI Automation events that separator controls are required to support. For more information on events, see UI Automation Events Overview.

UI Automation Event Notes
UIA_AutomationFocusChangedEventId None
UIA_BoundingRectanglePropertyId property-changed event. None
UIA_IsEnabledPropertyId property-changed event. If the control supports the IsEnabled property, it must support this event.
UIA_IsOffscreenPropertyId property-changed event. If the control supports the IsOffscreen property, it must support this event.
UIA_StructureChangedEventId None