SearchLookUpEdit Class

The lookup editor with integrated search. You can display lookup records in a tabular format, banded tabular format, or as tiles (which can be arranged in one or multiple columns/rows, rendered as a list or a Kanban board).

Namespace: DevExpress.XtraEditors

Assembly: DevExpress.XtraGrid.v24.2.dll

Declaration

C#

public class SearchLookUpEdit :
    GridLookUpEditBase

VB.NET

Public Class SearchLookUpEdit
    Inherits GridLookUpEditBase

Related API Members

The following members return SearchLookUpEdit objects:

• RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.OwnerEdit

Remarks

SearchLookUpEdit is a grid-based lookup with an embedded Find Panel. Unlike the GridLookUpEdit, the SearchLookUpEdit supports Instant Feedback mode, but does not allow users to enter values in the text box.

Run Demo

Dropdown Views

The SearchLookUpEdit can display search entries in the dropdown list differently. Use the Properties.PopupViewType property to specify a View (the display format) and customize the View’s settings.

Grid View (default)

The Grid View displays data in a tabular format. The Grid View supports the following features:

• Data Sorting, Grouping, Filtering
• Summaries
• Show/Hide Column Headers
• Configurable Row Height, etc.

Read the following topic for additional information: Grid View.

Tile View

Displays records as tiles, using one of the following layout modes: default (standard table layout), list (tiles have no space between them), and Kanban. This View includes the Tile Template feature, which helps you arrange fields relative to other fields, specify absolute or relative field display bounds, etc. In-place editors are supported when you use HTML-based templates.

Read the following topic for additional information: Tile View.

Banded Grid View

Displays data in a tabular format and allows you to arrange columns into bands.

Read the following topic for additional information: Banded Grid Views.

Advanced Banded Grid View

Displays data in a tabular form. You can arrange columns into bands and create multi-level cell layouts.

Read the following topic for additional information: See Advanced Banded Grid Views.

Customize the Dropdown View

Use the Properties.PopupView property to access the dropdown View and customize its settings.

Customize the Dropdown View at Design Time

Use the Data Grid Designer to customize the dropdown View at design time. To open the Data Grid Designer, do one of the following:

• Click the PopupView property’s ellipsis button in the Properties window.
• Click Design View command from the smart tag menu.

Customize the Dropdown View in Code

The following example binds the Search LookUp Editor to data generated at runtime, specifies the GridView as the dropdown View, and groups the dropdown GridView by the “Boolean Prop” column:

C#

using DevExpress.XtraEditors;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using DevExpress.XtraEditors.Repository;

namespace DXApplication {
    public partial class Form1 : XtraForm {
        public Form1() {
            InitializeComponent();
            // Configures binding settings and binds the SearchLookUpEdit to data generated at runtime.
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.DisplayMember = "StringProp";
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.ValueMember = "IntegerProp";
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.DataSource = new List<DataItem>() {
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 1", IntegerProp = 1, BooleanProp = true },
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 2", IntegerProp = 2, BooleanProp = true },
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 3", IntegerProp = 3, BooleanProp = false }
            };
            // Specifies the type of the dropdown View.
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.ViewType = GridLookUpViewType.GridView;
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.View.OptionsView.ShowGroupPanel = true;
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.NullText = string.Empty;
            searchLookUpEdit1.Popup += SearchLookUpEdit1_Popup;
        }
        void SearchLookUpEdit1_Popup(object sender, System.EventArgs e) {
            SearchLookUpEdit lookup = sender as SearchLookUpEdit;
            lookup.Properties.View.Columns["BooleanProp"].GroupIndex = 0;
        }
    }
    public class DataItem {
        public int IntegerProp { get; set; }
        public string StringProp { get; set; }
        public bool BooleanProp { get; set; }
    }
}

VB.NET

Imports DevExpress.XtraEditors
Imports System.Collections.Generic
Imports DevExpress.XtraEditors.Repository

Namespace DXApplication
    Partial Public Class Form1
        Inherits XtraForm

        Public Sub New()
            InitializeComponent()
            ' Configures binding settings and binds the SearchLookUpEdit to data generated at runtime.
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.DisplayMember = "StringProp"
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.ValueMember = "IntegerProp"
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.DataSource = New List(Of DataItem)() From {
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 1",
                    .IntegerProp = 1,
                    .BooleanProp = True
                },
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 2",
                    .IntegerProp = 2,
                    .BooleanProp = True
                },
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 3",
                    .IntegerProp = 3,
                    .BooleanProp = False
                }
            }
            ' Specifies the type of the dropdown View.
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.ViewType = GridLookUpViewType.GridView
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.View.OptionsView.ShowGroupPanel = True
            searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.NullText = String.Empty
            AddHandler searchLookUpEdit1.Popup, AddressOf SearchLookUpEdit1_Popup
        End Sub
        Private Sub SearchLookUpEdit1_Popup(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs)
            Dim lookup As SearchLookUpEdit = TryCast(sender, SearchLookUpEdit)
            lookup.Properties.View.Columns("BooleanProp").GroupIndex = 0
        End Sub
    End Class
    Public Class DataItem
        Public Property IntegerProp() As Integer
        Public Property StringProp() As String
        Public Property BooleanProp() As Boolean
    End Class
End Namespace

You can also use the Properties.PopupView property to access the dropdown View and customize its settings. You can modify appearance settings, manage grid columns, create unbound columns, group and sort data, calculate summaries, etc.

Note

You can use the Grid Control and View’s methods only when the drop-down window is open if you want to access the data source and calculated data. To access the View, handle the QueryPopUp or Popup event.

C#

private void gridLookUpEdit1_Properties_QueryPopUp(object sender, CancelEventArgs e) {
   // Cast to SearchLookUpEdit or GridLookUpEdit depending on which control you use
   GridLookUpEdit gridLookUpEdit = sender as GridLookUpEdit;
   gridLookUpEdit.Properties.PopupView.Columns["ID"].Visible = false;
}

VB.NET

Private Sub gridLookUpEdit1_Properties_QueryPopUp(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As CancelEventArgs)
   ' Cast to SearchLookUpEdit or GridLookUpEdit depending on which control you use
   Dim gridLookUpEdit As GridLookUpEdit = TryCast(sender, GridLookUpEdit)
   gridLookUpEdit.Properties.PopupView.Columns("ID").Visible = False
End Sub

When the drop-down window is closed, use the data source’s methods.

If you customize the View in an event, do not use objects to identify the View, columns, and so on – use field names, captions, etc., instead. The example below shows how to identify a column in a CustomDrawCell event handler.

C#

private void SearchLookUpEdit1View_CustomDrawCell(object sender, >DevExpress.XtraGrid.Views.Base.RowCellCustomDrawEventArgs e) {
   if (e.Column.FieldName == "MyFieldName") {
       //...
   }
}

VB.NET

Private Sub SearchLookUpEdit1View_CustomDrawCell(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal >e As DevExpress.XtraGrid.Views.Base.RowCellCustomDrawEventArgs) _
   Handles searchLookUpEdit1View.CustomDrawCell
   If e.Column.FieldName = "MyFieldName" Then
       '...
   End If
End Sub

Customize Appearance Settings of the Dropdown View

The following example customizes appearance settings of the focused row in the dropdown (popup) view:

C#

using DevExpress.Utils;
using DevExpress.XtraEditors;
using DevExpress.XtraEditors.Repository;
using DevExpress.XtraGrid.Views.Grid;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Drawing;

namespace DXApplication {
    public partial class Form1 : XtraForm {
        AppearanceObject focusedRowAppearance;
        public Form1() {
            InitializeComponent();
            InitSearchLookupEdit(searchLookUpEdit1);

            focusedRowAppearance = new AppearanceObject() {
                FontStyleDelta = FontStyle.Bold,
                BackColor = Color.Green,
                ForeColor = Color.White
            };

            (searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.PopupView as GridView).Appearance.FocusedRow.Assign(focusedRowAppearance);
        }
        void InitSearchLookupEdit(SearchLookUpEdit searchLookup) {
            searchLookup.Properties.DisplayMember = "StringProp";
            searchLookup.Properties.ValueMember = "IntegerProp";
            searchLookup.Properties.DataSource = new List<DataItem>() {
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 1", IntegerProp = 1, BooleanProp = true },
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 2", IntegerProp = 2, BooleanProp = true },
                new DataItem(){ StringProp = "Value 3", IntegerProp = 3, BooleanProp = false }
            };
            searchLookup.Properties.ViewType = GridLookUpViewType.GridView;
        }
    }
    public class DataItem {
        public int IntegerProp { get; set; }
        public string StringProp { get; set; }
        public bool BooleanProp { get; set; }
    }
}

VB.NET

Imports DevExpress.Utils
Imports DevExpress.XtraEditors
Imports DevExpress.XtraEditors.Repository
Imports DevExpress.XtraGrid.Views.Grid
Imports System.Collections.Generic
Imports System.Drawing

Namespace DXApplication
    Partial Public Class Form1
        Inherits XtraForm

        Private focusedRowAppearance As AppearanceObject
        Public Sub New()
            InitializeComponent()
            InitSearchLookupEdit(searchLookUpEdit1)

            focusedRowAppearance = New AppearanceObject() With {
                .FontStyleDelta = FontStyle.Bold,
                .BackColor = Color.Green,
                .ForeColor = Color.White
            }

            TryCast(searchLookUpEdit1.Properties.PopupView, GridView).Appearance.FocusedRow.Assign(focusedRowAppearance)
        End Sub
        Private Sub InitSearchLookupEdit(ByVal searchLookup As SearchLookUpEdit)
            searchLookup.Properties.DisplayMember = "StringProp"
            searchLookup.Properties.ValueMember = "IntegerProp"
            searchLookup.Properties.DataSource = New List(Of DataItem)() From {
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 1",
                    .IntegerProp = 1,
                    .BooleanProp = True
                },
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 2",
                    .IntegerProp = 2,
                    .BooleanProp = True
                },
                New DataItem() With {
                    .StringProp = "Value 3",
                    .IntegerProp = 3,
                    .BooleanProp = False
                }
            }
            searchLookup.Properties.ViewType = GridLookUpViewType.GridView
        End Sub
    End Class
    Public Class DataItem
        Public Property IntegerProp() As Integer
        Public Property StringProp() As String
        Public Property BooleanProp() As Boolean
    End Class
End Namespace

Search Settings

There are two search modes - automatic and manual. In automatic search mode, a search starts following a small delay after an end user has stopped typing text. In manual search mode, a search is started manually by pressing ENTER or clicking the Find button.

Automatic search mode is in effect in the following cases:

• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to Default, the control functions in regular binding mode, and the number of data source records is less than 10,000.
• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to Default and the control functions in Instant Feedback Mode.
• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to Always.

Manual search mode is in effect in the following cases:

• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to Default, the control functions in regular binding mode, and the number of data source records is greater than 10,000.
• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to Default and the control functions in regular (sync) server data binding mode.
• The RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit.PopupFindMode property is set to FindClick.

The RepositoryItemGridLookUpEditBase.PopupFilterMode property specifies how drop-down rows are filtered — using the Contains or StartsWith filter. This property is initially set to PopupFilterMode.Default, which is equivalent to the Contains filter.

The PopupFilterMode property also affects columns against which data is searched. See the PopupFilterMode topic to learn more.

To embed a SearchLookUpEdit in a cell within a container control (XtraGrid, XtraTreeList, etc), use the RepositoryItemSearchLookUpEdit component. See Repository items for more information.

Note

The SearchLookUpEdit clears the active filter after closing the drop-down window.

Additional Customization

• Properties.TextEditStyle property — Enables the text editing feature in the edit box.
• Properties.AddNewValue event — Fires when the “Add New” button is clicked, and allows you to add new records to the dropdown data source..
• Properties.BestFitMode — Gets or sets the “best-fit” mode for columns in the dropdown window.
• Properties.NullText — Gets or sets the text that presents the editor’s null value (null, System.DBNull.Value and RepositoryItemDateEdit.NullDate - for DateEdit).

• Properties.ShowAddNewButton — Gets or sets whether the “Add New” button is displayed within the editor’s dropdown.

  Clicking the “Add New” button fires the Properties.AddNewValue event. You can handle this event to manually add a new record to the dropdown data source when required.

• Properties.ShowClearButton — Gets or sets whether the “Clear” button is displayed within the editor’s dropdown.

  Clicking the Clear button sets the editor’s EditValue to null.

Set Up Lookups in Different Binding Modes

To learn how to set up lookup editors in different binding modes, see the following topics:

• Standard Binding (to Simple Data Types)
• Advanced Binding (to Business Objects)
• Using a Dictionary Lookup Data Source

Note

Instant Feedback Mode is supported by the SearchLookUpEdit when the control is used as a standalone control and when the control is used as an in-place editor within a Grid Control.

Cascading Lookups

You may want to filter the popup data source of one (secondary) lookup editor based on a value of another (primary) lookup editor. This scenario is described in the following topic:

• Cascading Lookups

The SearchLookUpEdit and GridLookUpEdit controls have many features in common. These controls are identically created and customized (except for the additional features that are only specific to the SearchLookUpEdit control). Please refer to the GridLookUpEdit topic for an example.

Implements

IXtraResizableControl

Inheritance

Show 15 items

Object

MarshalByRefObject

Component

Control

DevExpress.XtraEditors.XtraControl

ControlBase

BaseControl

BaseEdit

TextEdit

ButtonEdit

PopupBaseEdit

PopupBaseAutoSearchEdit

LookUpEditBase

GridLookUpEditBase

SearchLookUpEdit