Hello,
I am working an application where I need to open the different application forms in the same main window; in other words, I have created a dashboard where it contains a several buttons, each of them should open a specific form for example, The Employees, Products, Tasks, and etc. when I click on each of the buttons, It should show the other forms but in the same RAD form.
Form.TopLevel = False property isn't working so, How can I do it?
My project is a VB.NET 2019.
Thanks in advance for your continues assistance and cooperation,
Hani Mansour
1 Answer, 1 is accepted
In order to open different forms within the same main window, I can suggest you two approaches:
- MDI parent RadForm - RadForm can be used in Multiple Document Interface (MDI) scenarios. With MDI, a single menu bar is shared between all child windows, reducing clutter and increasing the efficient use of screen space:
https://docs.telerik.com/devtools/winforms/controls/forms-and-dialogs/form/mdi
- RadDock with automatic MDI Form Handling - RadDock has the capability of automatically finding and attaching Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child forms as tabbed documents. Please refer to the following article:
https://docs.telerik.com/devtools/winforms/controls/dock/mdi-mode/automatic-mdi-form-handling
You can also refer to our Demo application >> Dock >> MDI example which is quite useful on this topic. The Demo app can be found in the installation folder of the suite which is usually located at the following path:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Progress\Telerik UI for WinForms R2 2021\Examples\QuickStart\Bin
Feel free to use this approach which suits your requirements best.
I hope this information helps. If you need any further assistance please don't hesitate to contact me.
Regards,
Dess | Tech Support Engineer, Principal
Progress Telerik
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No, I wanted the other forms to open as if it is a part of the same main form in other words, I dont want the user to be able to close, move, minimize the application forms; I just want him to navigate through the application forms by clicking the sidebar buttons which I already made it, The idea is just similar to using the tabbed panels, where you can switch between pages and use each page controls independently, but, from within the same form and without the need to put the controls in separate forms and open them separately. Got it me dear :).
The idea is just similar to the making of the Telerik demo main form, where you can open the different samples and examples within the same main form through the buttons of the RadCollapsiblePanel and have the sample is shown on the opposite "Panel" or maybe "RadPanorama" as I am not sure what container control is used in the demo project to manage the same!
I hope my enquiry is clear so you can give me the help that I need :) ...
Thanking you for your continues assistance and support,
Hani
Thank you for the provided clarification. I would like to note that if you have an installation of the Telerik UI for WinForms suite, you have access to the source code of the Demo application usually located in the installation folder:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Progress\Telerik UI for WinForms R2 2021\Examples\QuickStart
If you have a valid license, you can also download the complete source code as well:
https://docs.telerik.com/devtools/winforms/installation-and-upgrades/download-product-files
The following KB shows a sample approach how to achieve the collapsible menu:
https://www.telerik.com/support/kb/winforms/details/collapsible-menu-from-demo-application
On the right side, instead of using a RadPanorama, you may add a RadDock which was previously suggested as it has the capability of automatically finding and attaching Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child forms as tabbed documents. Please refer to the following article:
https://docs.telerik.com/devtools/winforms/controls/dock/mdi-mode/automatic-mdi-form-handling
Thus, if you select an item from the collapsible menu, you can show the respective form and it will be added as a document window in RadDock. Thus, the form will be loaded within the same window.
An alternative approach is to use a RadPanel on the right side that hosts a UserControl with the controls content for each form. When an item is clicked from the left menu, you can load the respective UserControl with the desired design.
Should you have further questions please let me know.