Properties Window

• May 02, 2019
• 3 minutes to read

Use the Properties Window to view, discover and change properties of selected report elements. You can find the Properties Window in the View tab of the Windows group.

Select a Report Element

Do one of the following to select a report element and show its properties in the Properties Window:

• Select a report element from the drop-down list at the top of the Properties Window.
• Click a report element on the design surface.
• Select a report element in the Report Explorer.

Category Tabs

The Properties Window splits properties into category tabs and sorts them alphabetically.

Refer to Customize the Properties Window in the Report Designer for information on how to move a property to another tab, create a new tab and add properties to it.

Favorite Properties

The Favorites tab contains the most used (or “favorite”) properties. Different report elements have varying default entries in the Favorites tab. You can use the Favorite Properties Editor to add your own favorites.

Change Property Values

A square icon near each property indicates whether a property value differs from its default value.

Right-click a property’s editor to reset the value.

Specify Expressions

If expression bindings are enabled, the Properties Window allows you to specify expressions that can include two or more data fields and various functions. Click a square icon to see whether the invoked context menu has the PropertyName Expression item. Properties that have an assigned expression are displayed in bold font.

Click the Expression item to invoke the Expression Editor.

Tip

The Reset command resets the property value and expression.

Search for Properties

The integrated search box allows you to find properties. When you type within the search box, the Properties Window filters the property list and displays properties that match the entered text.

If you type two or more substrings separated by a space character, these substrings are considered individual conditions combined by the logical OR operator.

To search for properties that contain X and Y, enclose the entered string in quotation marks or type “+” before Y (for instance, foreground +color).

Type “-“ to exclude properties that contain a specific substring (for instance, border -color).

Backward Compatibility

Versions 18.2 and 19.1 introduce new features to the Properties Window.

Version	Image	MS Office-Inspired Editors	Tabbed View	Expressions In Context Menu
v19.1+
v18.2
v18.1-

When you migrate to v19.1+, you can revert these changes.

Switch to Properties Window v18.2

• Disable the PropertyGridOptions.UseTabbedView option to show properties in a single list without dividing them into tabs.
• Enable the PropertyGridOptions.ShowExpressionsInSeparateTab option to display the Expressions tab. This tab contains all properties for which users can specify expressions.

XAML

<Window xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:dxrud="http://schemas.devexpress.com/winfx/2008/xaml/reports/userdesigner"
        ...>
    <dxrud:ReportDesigner Name="designer">
        <dxrud:ReportDesigner.PropertyGridOptions>
            <dxrud:PropertyGridOptions UseTabbedView="False" ShowExpressionsInSeparateTab="True"/>
        </dxrud:ReportDesigner.PropertyGridOptions>
    </dxrud:ReportDesigner>
</Window>

Switch to Properties Window v18.1-

• Disable the PropertyGridOptions.UseTabbedView option to show properties in a single list without dividing them into tabs.
• Enable the PropertyGridOptions.ShowExpressionsInSeparateTab option to display the Expressions tab. This tab contains all properties for which users can specify expressions.
• Disable the PropertyGridOptions.UseOfficeInspiredPropertyGrid option to turn off MS Office-Inspired editors.

XAML

<Window xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:dxrud="http://schemas.devexpress.com/winfx/2008/xaml/reports/userdesigner"
        ...>
    <dxrud:ReportDesigner Name="designer">
        <dxrud:ReportDesigner.PropertyGridOptions>
            <dxrud:PropertyGridOptions UseTabbedView="False" ShowExpressionsInSeparateTab="True" UseOfficeInspiredPropertyGrid="False"/>
        </dxrud:ReportDesigner.PropertyGridOptions>
    </dxrud:ReportDesigner>
</Window>