182

What is the C# version of VB.NET's InputBox?

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12 Answers 12

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276

Add a reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic, InputBox is in the Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction namespace:

using Microsoft.VisualBasic;
string input = Interaction.InputBox("Prompt", "Title", "Default", x_coordinate, y_coordinate);

Only the first argument for prompt is mandatory

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8 Comments

@hims056 InputBox does not natively support masked input. You will need to roll your own input form.
Just import using Microsoft.VisualBasic so you just write Interaction.InputBox()
I have searched for this at least 10 times. Always resulting on this answer. Would upvote again if I could. Thanks!
Note: this doesn't work in .NET Core 3.1
@HimanshuJansari For .NET Framework, you can mask input using PasswordChar: learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/desktop/winforms/controls/…
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145

Dynamic creation of a dialog box. You can customize to your taste.

Note there is no external dependency here except winform

private static DialogResult ShowInputDialog(ref string input)
    {
        System.Drawing.Size size = new System.Drawing.Size(200, 70);
        Form inputBox = new Form();

        inputBox.FormBorderStyle = System.Windows.Forms.FormBorderStyle.FixedDialog;
        inputBox.ClientSize = size;
        inputBox.Text = "Name";

        System.Windows.Forms.TextBox textBox = new TextBox();
        textBox.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(size.Width - 10, 23);
        textBox.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(5, 5);
        textBox.Text = input;
        inputBox.Controls.Add(textBox);

        Button okButton = new Button();
        okButton.DialogResult = System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.OK;
        okButton.Name = "okButton";
        okButton.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
        okButton.Text = "&OK";
        okButton.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(size.Width - 80 - 80, 39);
        inputBox.Controls.Add(okButton);

        Button cancelButton = new Button();
        cancelButton.DialogResult = System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.Cancel;
        cancelButton.Name = "cancelButton";
        cancelButton.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
        cancelButton.Text = "&Cancel";
        cancelButton.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(size.Width - 80, 39);
        inputBox.Controls.Add(cancelButton);

        inputBox.AcceptButton = okButton;
        inputBox.CancelButton = cancelButton; 

        DialogResult result = inputBox.ShowDialog();
        input = textBox.Text;
        return result;
    }

usage

string input="hede";
ShowInputDialog(ref input);
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8 Comments

inputBox.StartPosition = FormStartPosition.CenterParent; will center the dialog on the parent window.
The form is not visible when used in unit testing, this post will be helpful. stackoverflow.com/questions/1218517/…
I prefer FormBorderStyle.FixedToolWindow as it prevents maximising and minimising.
Thank You! Added as well the inputBox.MinimizeBox = false; inputBox.MaximizeBox = false; inputBox.ShowInTaskbar = false;
This should be marked as the answer, it's perfect! I've take this and customized the heck out of it to allow for custom inputs, like the title of the form, etc.
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116

To sum it up:

  • There is none in C#.

  • You can use the dialog from Visual Basic by adding a reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic:

    1. In Solution Explorer right-click on the References folder.
    2. Select Add Reference...
    3. In the .NET tab (in newer Visual Studio verions - Assembly tab) - select Microsoft.VisualBasic
    4. Click on OK

Then you can use the previously mentioned code: 

string input = Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction.InputBox("Prompt", "Title", "Default", 0, 0);

That said, I suggest that you consider the need of an input box in the first place. Dialogs are not always the best way to do things and sometimes they do more harm than good - but that depends on the particular situation.

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4 Comments

+1 for the the link Tomas posted. This one is better than the Virtual Basic InputBox.
Still better than using /subsystem:console... Sometimes you just need very little interaction with the user, and then you can use them, instead of having 90% of your code be for UI.
I chose the "Use someone else's" option and am happy with the result, from this one: reflectionit.nl/blog/2003/c-inputbox. Reason I chose that one was the absence of hardcoded size/location values. Also promising, is csharp-examples.net/inputbox-class. Both these first two have validation of the entered text. The accepted answer for stackoverflow.com/questions/5427020/… also looks good, but does not include the input validation feature.
The statement "There is none in C#" is misleading at best... these are not language features, they are framework features which are essentially language independent. The only thing "not C#" about it is the namespace, which is merely a label for human consumption.
9

There isn't one. If you really wanted to use the VB InputBox in C# you can. Just add reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll and you'll find it there.

But I would suggest to not use it. It is ugly and outdated IMO.

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2 Comments

I think you are being too kind. It's far more ugly and outdated than that!
Can't identify the cancel from empty input string actually is a bug IMO.
6

Returns the string the user entered; empty string if they hit Cancel:

    public static String InputBox(String caption, String prompt, String defaultText)
    {
        String localInputText = defaultText;
        if (InputQuery(caption, prompt, ref localInputText))
        {
            return localInputText;
        }
        else
        {
            return "";
        }
    }

Returns the String as a ref parameter, returning true if they hit OK, or false if they hit Cancel:

    public static Boolean InputQuery(String caption, String prompt, ref String value)
    {
        Form form;
        form = new Form();
        form.AutoScaleMode = AutoScaleMode.Font;
        form.Font = SystemFonts.IconTitleFont;

        SizeF dialogUnits;
        dialogUnits = form.AutoScaleDimensions;

        form.FormBorderStyle = FormBorderStyle.FixedDialog;
        form.MinimizeBox = false;
        form.MaximizeBox = false;
        form.Text = caption;

        form.ClientSize = new Size(
                    Toolkit.MulDiv(180, dialogUnits.Width, 4),
                    Toolkit.MulDiv(63, dialogUnits.Height, 8));

        form.StartPosition = FormStartPosition.CenterScreen;

        System.Windows.Forms.Label lblPrompt;
        lblPrompt = new System.Windows.Forms.Label();
        lblPrompt.Parent = form;
        lblPrompt.AutoSize = true;
        lblPrompt.Left = Toolkit.MulDiv(8, dialogUnits.Width, 4);
        lblPrompt.Top = Toolkit.MulDiv(8, dialogUnits.Height, 8);
        lblPrompt.Text = prompt;

        System.Windows.Forms.TextBox edInput;
        edInput = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();
        edInput.Parent = form;
        edInput.Left = lblPrompt.Left;
        edInput.Top = Toolkit.MulDiv(19, dialogUnits.Height, 8);
        edInput.Width = Toolkit.MulDiv(164, dialogUnits.Width, 4);
        edInput.Text = value;
        edInput.SelectAll();


        int buttonTop = Toolkit.MulDiv(41, dialogUnits.Height, 8);
        //Command buttons should be 50x14 dlus
        Size buttonSize = Toolkit.ScaleSize(new Size(50, 14), dialogUnits.Width / 4, dialogUnits.Height / 8);

        System.Windows.Forms.Button bbOk = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
        bbOk.Parent = form;
        bbOk.Text = "OK";
        bbOk.DialogResult = DialogResult.OK;
        form.AcceptButton = bbOk;
        bbOk.Location = new Point(Toolkit.MulDiv(38, dialogUnits.Width, 4), buttonTop);
        bbOk.Size = buttonSize;

        System.Windows.Forms.Button bbCancel = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
        bbCancel.Parent = form;
        bbCancel.Text = "Cancel";
        bbCancel.DialogResult = DialogResult.Cancel;
        form.CancelButton = bbCancel;
        bbCancel.Location = new Point(Toolkit.MulDiv(92, dialogUnits.Width, 4), buttonTop);
        bbCancel.Size = buttonSize;

        if (form.ShowDialog() == DialogResult.OK)
        {
            value = edInput.Text;
            return true;
        }
        else
        {
            return false;
        }
    }

    /// <summary>
    /// Multiplies two 32-bit values and then divides the 64-bit result by a 
    /// third 32-bit value. The final result is rounded to the nearest integer.
    /// </summary>
    public static int MulDiv(int nNumber, int nNumerator, int nDenominator)
    {
        return (int)Math.Round((float)nNumber * nNumerator / nDenominator);
    }

Note: Any code is released into the public domain. No attribution required.

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5 Comments

public static int MulDiv(int number, int numerator, int denominator) { return (int)(((long)number * numerator + (denominator >> 1)) / denominator); }
What is Toolkit?
@markusL Toolkit was my class that holds an implementation of MulDiv. You can see Peter's comment for an example implementation of MulDiv.
what is Toolkit.ScaleSize?
OK. it seems to be: Size buttonSize = new Size(MulDiv(50, (int)dialogUnits.Width, 4), MulDiv(14, (int)dialogUnits.Height, 8));
5

Not only should you add Microsoft.VisualBasic to your reference list for the project, but also you should declare using Microsoft.VisualBasic; so you just have to use Interaction.Inputbox("...") instead of Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction.Inputbox.

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1 Comment

If you're only using it once, this adds clutter if the OP decides they don't want the InputBox anymore. Also, this should be a comment.
4

Add reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic and use this function:

string response =  Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction.InputBox("What's 1+1?", "Title", "2", 0, 0);

The last 2 number is an X/Y position to display the input dialog.

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Comments

3

You mean InputBox? Just look in the Microsoft.VisualBasic namespace.

C# and VB.Net share a common library. If one language can use it, so can the other.

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3

Without adding a reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic: 

// "dynamic" requires reference to Microsoft.CSharp
Type tScriptControl = Type.GetTypeFromProgID("ScriptControl");
dynamic oSC = Activator.CreateInstance(tScriptControl);

oSC.Language = "VBScript";
string sFunc = @"Function InBox(prompt, title, default) 
InBox = InputBox(prompt, title, default)    
End Function
";
oSC.AddCode(sFunc);
dynamic Ret = oSC.Run("InBox", "メッセージ", "タイトル", "初期値");

See these for further information:
ScriptControl
MsgBox in JScript
Input and MsgBox in JScript

.NET 2.0:

string sFunc = @"Function InBox(prompt, title, default) 
InBox = InputBox(prompt, title, default)    
End Function
";

Type tScriptControl = Type.GetTypeFromProgID("ScriptControl");
object oSC = Activator.CreateInstance(tScriptControl);

// https://github.com/mono/mono/blob/master/mcs/class/corlib/System/MonoType.cs
// System.Reflection.PropertyInfo pi = tScriptControl.GetProperty("Language", System.Reflection.BindingFlags.Instance | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.Static | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.CreateInstance| System.Reflection.BindingFlags.Public | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.NonPublic | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.SetProperty | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.IgnoreCase);
// pi.SetValue(oSC, "VBScript", null);

tScriptControl.InvokeMember("Language", System.Reflection.BindingFlags.SetProperty, null, oSC, new object[] { "VBScript" });
tScriptControl.InvokeMember("AddCode", System.Reflection.BindingFlags.InvokeMethod, null, oSC, new object[] { sFunc });
object ret = tScriptControl.InvokeMember("Run", System.Reflection.BindingFlags.InvokeMethod, null, oSC, new object[] { "InBox", "メッセージ", "タイトル", "初期値" });
Console.WriteLine(ret);
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2

I was able to achieve this by coding my own. I don't like extending into and relying on large library's for something rudimental.

Form and Designer:

public partial class InputBox 
    : Form
{

    public String Input
    {
        get { return textInput.Text; }
    }

    public InputBox()
    {
        InitializeComponent();
    }

    private void button2_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        DialogResult = System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.OK;
    }

    private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        DialogResult = System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.Cancel;
    }

    private void InputBox_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        this.ActiveControl = textInput;
    }

    public static DialogResult Show(String title, String message, String inputTitle, out String inputValue)
    {
        InputBox inputBox = null;
        DialogResult results = DialogResult.None;

        using (inputBox = new InputBox() { Text = title })
        {
            inputBox.labelMessage.Text = message;
            inputBox.splitContainer2.SplitterDistance = inputBox.labelMessage.Width;
            inputBox.labelInput.Text = inputTitle;
            inputBox.splitContainer1.SplitterDistance = inputBox.labelInput.Width;
            inputBox.Size = new Size(
                inputBox.Width,
                8 + inputBox.labelMessage.Height + inputBox.splitContainer2.SplitterWidth + inputBox.splitContainer1.Height + 8 + inputBox.button2.Height + 12 + (50));
            results = inputBox.ShowDialog();
            inputValue = inputBox.Input;
        }

        return results;
    }

    void labelInput_TextChanged(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
    {
    }

}

partial class InputBox
{
    /// <summary>
    /// Required designer variable.
    /// </summary>
    private System.ComponentModel.IContainer components = null;

    /// <summary>
    /// Clean up any resources being used.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="disposing">true if managed resources should be disposed; otherwise, false.</param>
    protected override void Dispose(bool disposing)
    {
        if (disposing && (components != null))
        {
            components.Dispose();
        }
        base.Dispose(disposing);
    }

    #region Windows Form Designer generated code

    /// <summary>
    /// Required method for Designer support - do not modify
    /// the contents of this method with the code editor.
    /// </summary>
    private void InitializeComponent()
    {
        this.labelMessage = new System.Windows.Forms.Label();
        this.button1 = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
        this.button2 = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
        this.labelInput = new System.Windows.Forms.Label();
        this.textInput = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();
        this.splitContainer1 = new System.Windows.Forms.SplitContainer();
        this.splitContainer2 = new System.Windows.Forms.SplitContainer();
        ((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.splitContainer1)).BeginInit();
        this.splitContainer1.Panel1.SuspendLayout();
        this.splitContainer1.Panel2.SuspendLayout();
        this.splitContainer1.SuspendLayout();
        ((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.splitContainer2)).BeginInit();
        this.splitContainer2.Panel1.SuspendLayout();
        this.splitContainer2.Panel2.SuspendLayout();
        this.splitContainer2.SuspendLayout();
        this.SuspendLayout();
        // 
        // labelMessage
        // 
        this.labelMessage.AutoSize = true;
        this.labelMessage.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(3, 0);
        this.labelMessage.MaximumSize = new System.Drawing.Size(379, 0);
        this.labelMessage.Name = "labelMessage";
        this.labelMessage.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(50, 13);
        this.labelMessage.TabIndex = 99;
        this.labelMessage.Text = "Message";
        // 
        // button1
        // 
        this.button1.Anchor = ((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles)((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Bottom | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Right)));
        this.button1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(316, 126);
        this.button1.Name = "button1";
        this.button1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
        this.button1.TabIndex = 3;
        this.button1.Text = "Cancel";
        this.button1.UseVisualStyleBackColor = true;
        this.button1.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.button1_Click);
        // 
        // button2
        // 
        this.button2.Anchor = ((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles)((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Bottom | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Right)));
        this.button2.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(235, 126);
        this.button2.Name = "button2";
        this.button2.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
        this.button2.TabIndex = 2;
        this.button2.Text = "OK";
        this.button2.UseVisualStyleBackColor = true;
        this.button2.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.button2_Click);
        // 
        // labelInput
        // 
        this.labelInput.AutoSize = true;
        this.labelInput.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(3, 6);
        this.labelInput.Name = "labelInput";
        this.labelInput.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(31, 13);
        this.labelInput.TabIndex = 99;
        this.labelInput.Text = "Input";
        this.labelInput.TextChanged += new System.EventHandler(this.labelInput_TextChanged);
        // 
        // textInput
        // 
        this.textInput.Anchor = ((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles)(((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Top | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Left) 
        | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Right)));
        this.textInput.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(3, 3);
        this.textInput.Name = "textInput";
        this.textInput.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(243, 20);
        this.textInput.TabIndex = 1;
        // 
        // splitContainer1
        // 
        this.splitContainer1.Dock = System.Windows.Forms.DockStyle.Fill;
        this.splitContainer1.FixedPanel = System.Windows.Forms.FixedPanel.Panel2;
        this.splitContainer1.IsSplitterFixed = true;
        this.splitContainer1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(0, 0);
        this.splitContainer1.Name = "splitContainer1";
        // 
        // splitContainer1.Panel1
        // 
        this.splitContainer1.Panel1.Controls.Add(this.labelInput);
        // 
        // splitContainer1.Panel2
        // 
        this.splitContainer1.Panel2.Controls.Add(this.textInput);
        this.splitContainer1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(379, 50);
        this.splitContainer1.SplitterDistance = 126;
        this.splitContainer1.TabIndex = 99;
        // 
        // splitContainer2
        // 
        this.splitContainer2.Anchor = ((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles)((((System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Top | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Bottom) 
        | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Left) 
        | System.Windows.Forms.AnchorStyles.Right)));
        this.splitContainer2.IsSplitterFixed = true;
        this.splitContainer2.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(12, 12);
        this.splitContainer2.Name = "splitContainer2";
        this.splitContainer2.Orientation = System.Windows.Forms.Orientation.Horizontal;
        // 
        // splitContainer2.Panel1
        // 
        this.splitContainer2.Panel1.Controls.Add(this.labelMessage);
        // 
        // splitContainer2.Panel2
        // 
        this.splitContainer2.Panel2.Controls.Add(this.splitContainer1);
        this.splitContainer2.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(379, 108);
        this.splitContainer2.SplitterDistance = 54;
        this.splitContainer2.TabIndex = 99;
        // 
        // InputBox
        // 
        this.AutoScaleDimensions = new System.Drawing.SizeF(6F, 13F);
        this.AutoScaleMode = System.Windows.Forms.AutoScaleMode.Font;
        this.ClientSize = new System.Drawing.Size(403, 161);
        this.Controls.Add(this.splitContainer2);
        this.Controls.Add(this.button2);
        this.Controls.Add(this.button1);
        this.FormBorderStyle = System.Windows.Forms.FormBorderStyle.FixedDialog;
        this.MaximizeBox = false;
        this.MinimizeBox = false;
        this.Name = "InputBox";
        this.StartPosition = System.Windows.Forms.FormStartPosition.CenterScreen;
        this.Text = "Title";
        this.TopMost = true;
        this.Load += new System.EventHandler(this.InputBox_Load);
        this.splitContainer1.Panel1.ResumeLayout(false);
        this.splitContainer1.Panel1.PerformLayout();
        this.splitContainer1.Panel2.ResumeLayout(false);
        this.splitContainer1.Panel2.PerformLayout();
        ((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.splitContainer1)).EndInit();
        this.splitContainer1.ResumeLayout(false);
        this.splitContainer2.Panel1.ResumeLayout(false);
        this.splitContainer2.Panel1.PerformLayout();
        this.splitContainer2.Panel2.ResumeLayout(false);
        ((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.splitContainer2)).EndInit();
        this.splitContainer2.ResumeLayout(false);
        this.ResumeLayout(false);

    }

    #endregion

    private System.Windows.Forms.Label labelMessage;
    private System.Windows.Forms.Button button1;
    private System.Windows.Forms.Button button2;
    private System.Windows.Forms.Label labelInput;
    private System.Windows.Forms.TextBox textInput;
    private System.Windows.Forms.SplitContainer splitContainer1;
    private System.Windows.Forms.SplitContainer splitContainer2;
}

Usage:

String output = "";

result = System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.None;

result = InputBox.Show(
    "Input Required",
    "Please enter the value (if available) below.",
    "Value",
    out output);

if (result != System.Windows.Forms.DialogResult.OK)
{
    return;
}

Note this exhibits a bit of auto sizing to keep it pretty based on how much text you ask it display. I also know it's lacking the bells and whistles but it's a solid step forward for those facing this same dilemma.

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Comments

-1

Very often you do not need all the features of VB's InputBox and you just need asking the user for a confirmation.

In that case, simply use MessageBox.

Example:

const string caption = "Delete confirmation";
var result = MessageBox.Show("Sure to delete file?", caption,
                             MessageBoxButtons.YesNo,
                             MessageBoxIcon.Question);

// If the Yes button was pressed ...
if (result == DialogResult.Yes)
{
    // Delete the file.
}
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Comments

-4

There is no such thing: I recommend to write it for yourself and use it whenever you need.

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