Develop Reference

websocket-sharp - OnMessage callback is not running in the main thread

I have a WPF (.NET Framework 4.6) application that uses websocket-sharp (version 3.0.0) to create a websocket server.
I have a WebsocketServer and using EventHandler to tranfer event to MainWindow.xaml.cs but it not working. The MainWindow.xaml.cs listened to a RaiseOnScanDevice event but not any event invoked here.
I think this issue is relative to different thread. I try using Dispatcher.Invoke but it still not working.
System.Windows.Application.Current.Dispatcher.Invoke(new System.Action(() =>
{
RaiseOnScanDevice(this, new EventArgs());
}));
I found an issue (https://github.com/sta/websocket-sharp/issues/350) but the answers do not resolve my issue.
Please help me a solution for this issue.
WebsocketServer.cs file
public class WebsocketServer : WebSocketBehavior
{
private static readonly Lazy<WebsocketServer> lazyInstance = new Lazy<WebsocketServer>(() => new WebsocketServer());
public static WebsocketServer Instance
{
get
{
return lazyInstance.Value;
}
}
private const string TAG = "WebsocketServer";
private const string HOST_IP_ADDRESS = "127.0.0.2"; // localhost
private const int PORT = 38001;
public WebSocketServer socket;
private PacketHandler packetHandler = new PacketHandler();
public event EventHandler<EventArgs> RaiseOnScanDevice = new EventHandler<EventArgs>((a, e) => { });
public WebsocketServer()
{
Initialize();
}
public void Initialize()
{
socket = new WebSocketServer(IPAddress.Parse(HOST_IP_ADDRESS), PORT);
socket.AddWebSocketService<WebsocketServer>("/");
StartServer();
}
public void StartServer()
{
socket.Start();
}
public void StopServer()
{
socket.Stop();
}
protected override Task OnOpen()
{
return base.OnOpen();
}
protected override Task OnClose(CloseEventArgs e)
{
return base.OnClose(e);
}
protected override Task OnError(ErrorEventArgs e)
{
return base.OnError(e);
}
protected override Task OnMessage(MessageEventArgs e)
{
System.IO.StreamReader reader = new System.IO.StreamReader(e.Data);
string message = reader.ReadToEnd();
//Converting the event back to 'eventName' and 'JsonPayload'
PacketModel packet = packetHandler.OpenPacket(message);
HandleMessageFromClient(packet);
return base.OnMessage(e);
}
private void HandleMessageFromClient(PacketModel packet) {
var eventName = packet.EventName;
var data = packet.Data;
if (eventName == null || eventName.Equals(""))
{
return;
}
switch (eventName)
{
case SocketEvent.Hello:
Send("OK");
break;
case SocketEvent.ScanDevice:
ScanDevice();
break;
default:
break;
}
}
private void ScanDevice()
{
try
{
RaiseOnScanDevice(this, new EventArgs());
// or dispatch to Main Thread
System.Windows.Application.Current.Dispatcher.Invoke(new System.Action(() =>
{
RaiseOnScanDevice(this, new EventArgs());
}));
}
catch (Exception exception)
{
Console.WriteLine(exception);
}
}
}
MainWindow.xaml.cs file
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
public WebsocketServer WebsocketConnection
{
get { return WebsocketServer.Instance; }
}
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
WebsocketConnection.RaiseOnScanDevice += SocketConnection_RaiseOnScanDevice;
}
private void SocketConnection_RaiseOnScanDevice(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Console.WriteLine("SocketConnection_RaiseOnScanDevice");
}

The queue of messages is a good idea but you may want to use a lock to guard access to it. Most likely it won't be an issue but if you don't, you leave yourself open to the possibility of an error if the coroutine is reading from the queue as the websocket is writing to it. For example you could do something like this:
var queueLock = new object();
var queue = new Queue<MyMessageType>();
// use this to read from the queue
MyMessageType GetNextMessage()
{
lock (queueLock) {
if (queue.Count > 0) return queue.Dequeue();
else return null;
}
}
// use this to write to the queue
void QueueMessage(MyMessageType msg)
{
lock(queueLock) {
queue.Enqueue(msg);
}
}

Timer and Processing Issues in C#

I have a service that processes files. Sometimes they process very quickly and sometimes they take a very long time. I can't control the process that sends the files to me. The are randomly dropped on me throughout the day and night. When I use the timer, it seems like the "ProcessFiles" method is abandoned whereever it is when the time has elapsed and ProcessFiles is called again. Since the files contain sensitive information, they can't sit on the server for a long time so I can't set the timer for any longer than 5 minutes and, still, at 5 minutes, the process sometimes interrupts itself. As a result, I have partially processed files. I would appreciate any thoughts and input on this quandary.
System.Timers.Timer _timer;
// As the files come in, massage them and encrypt them
public const string InPath = #"c:\input";
public const string OutPath = #"\c:\output";
public FileMassaging()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
public EventLog MyEventLog = new EventLog();
public string sSource = "FileMassaging";
public string sLog = "FileMassaging";
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
// Create the source, if it does not already exist.
if (!EventLog.SourceExists(sSource))
EventLog.CreateEventSource(sSource, sLog);
// set up the service
ServiceStatus serviceStatus = new ServiceStatus();
serviceStatus.dwCurrentState = ServiceState.SERVICE_START_PENDING;
serviceStatus.dwWaitHint = 100000;
SetServiceStatus(this.ServiceHandle, ref serviceStatus);
// set up the service
_timer = new System.Timers.Timer();
_timer.Elapsed += new System.Timers.ElapsedEventHandler(this.OnTimer);
_timer.Interval = 5000;
_timer.Start();
// Update the service state to Running.
serviceStatus.dwCurrentState = ServiceState.SERVICE_RUNNING;
SetServiceStatus(this.ServiceHandle, ref serviceStatus);
}
public void OnTimer(object sender, System.Timers.ElapsedEventArgs args)
{
ProcessFiles();
}
public void ProcessFiles()
{
string[] originalFiles = Directory.GetFiles(InPath + #"\", "*.txt");
foreach (string fileName in originalFiles)
{
// Check and process the file
CheckFile(InPath, OutPath, fileName);
}
}
public void CheckFile(string InPath,Outpath, fileName)
{
// for example only -- actual file processing is much longer
//
string infile = InPath+fileName;
string outfile= OutPath+fileName;
File.Move(infile,outfile,true);
}

For testing and extensiblity I would recommend a different overall structure.
First let's seperate out this work into classes where it makes sense. Lets start with a class called FolderWatcher:
public class FolderWatcher
{
private readonly string _inPath;
private readonly string _outPath;
public bool CurrentlyRunning { get; set; }
public FolderWatcher(string inPath, string outPath)
{
_inPath = inPath;
_outPath = outPath;
}
public void TryProcessFiles(object sender, ElapsedEventArgs e)
{
try
{
this.CurrentlyRunning = true;
ProcessFiles(sender, e);
}
catch (Exception)
{
throw;
}
finally
{
this.CurrentlyRunning = false;
}
}
public void ProcessFiles(object sender, ElapsedEventArgs e)
{
string[] originalFiles = GetFilesInDirectory();
foreach (var originalFile in originalFiles)
{
CheckFile(originalFile);
}
}
// Internal/Virtual so that this can mocked in unit testing.
internal virtual string[] GetFilesInDirectory()
{
return Directory.GetFiles(_inPath + #"\", "*.txt");
}
// Internal/Virtual so that this can mocked in unit testing.
internal virtual void CheckFile(string fileName)
{
string infile = $"{_inPath}{fileName}";
string outfile = $"{_outPath}{fileName}";
File.Move(infile, outfile);
}
}
This class has a single responsibility, to move files in response to an event.
Next let's build a class to wrap the FolderWatcher class that handles the timer functionality:
public class TimedFolderWatcher
{
private readonly FolderWatcher _folderWatcher;
private readonly Timer _timer;
public TimedFolderWatcher(FolderWatcher folderWatcher)
{
_folderWatcher = folderWatcher;
InitTimer();
}
private void InitTimer()
{
_timer.Elapsed += new System.Timers.ElapsedEventHandler(this.ProcessFiles);
_timer.Interval = 5000;
_timer.Start();
}
private void ProcessFiles(object sender, ElapsedEventArgs e)
{
_folderWatcher.TryProcessFiles(sender, e);
}
}
This class also has a single responsibility to call the ProcessFiles method every 5000 milliseconds.
Lastly we can init and call these classes this way:
var fileMassageService = new TimedFolderWatcher(new FolderWatcher(#"c:\input", #"c:\output"));
This approach lends itself to testing and follows the best practices of Dependency Injection which will allow you to use an IOC framework in the future if you need to.

From the MSDN Page on Timers try this (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.timers.timer.interval(v=vs.110).aspx)
_timer = new System.Timers.Timer(5);
_timer.Elapsed += OnTimer;
_timer.AutoReset = true;
// _timer.Start();
_timer.Enable = true;
private static void OnTimer(object sender, System.Timers.ElapsedEventArgs args) { ProcessFiles(); }

Enable Client to Talk to Server using the NetMQ "Realiable Pub/Sub" Pattern

I have a v4.0.0.1 implementation of Somdron's "Reliable Pub-Sub" pattern for communication between two parts of a new application. This application will have a "Server" (the engine that does all the heavy calculations) and "Clients" that will send requests and get information on progress back from the server.
The problem I have with my current version of "Reliable Pub-Sub" is that I don't seem to have a proper way for sending requests to the sever from the client. Let me start by showing you the code:
SERVER:
using NetMQ;
using NetMQ.Sockets;
using System;
using System.Linq;
namespace Demo.Messaging.Server
{
public class ZeroMqMessageServer : IDisposable
{
private const string WELCOME_MESSAGE = "WM";
private const string HEARTBEAT_MESSAGE = "HB";
private const string PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC = "PUB";
private readonly TimeSpan HEARTBEAT_INTERVAL = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(2);
private NetMQActor actor;
private NetMQTimer heartbeatTimer;
private XPublisherSocket publisher;
private NetMQPoller poller;
public ZeroMqMessageServer(string address)
{
Address = address;
actor = NetMQActor.Create(Start);
}
private void Start(PairSocket shim)
{
using (publisher = new XPublisherSocket())
{
publisher.SetWelcomeMessage(WELCOME_MESSAGE);
publisher.Bind(Address);
//publisher.ReceiveReady -= DropPublisherSubscriptions;
publisher.ReceiveReady += DropPublisherSubscriptions;
heartbeatTimer = new NetMQTimer(HEARTBEAT_INTERVAL);
heartbeatTimer.Elapsed += OnHeartbeatTimeElapsed;
shim.ReceiveReady += OnShimReceiveReady;
shim.SignalOK(); // Let the actor know we are ready to work.
poller = new NetMQPoller() { publisher, shim, heartbeatTimer };
poller.Run();
}
}
private void DropPublisherSubscriptions(object sender, NetMQSocketEventArgs e)
{
publisher.SkipMultipartMessage();
}
private void OnHeartbeatTimeElapsed(object sender, NetMQTimerEventArgs e)
{
publisher.SendFrame(HEARTBEAT_MESSAGE);
}
private void OnShimReceiveReady(object sender, NetMQSocketEventArgs e)
{
var socket = e.Socket;
string command = socket.ReceiveFrameString();
if (command == PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC)
{
// Forward the message to the publisher.
NetMQMessage message = socket.ReceiveMultipartMessage();
publisher.SendMultipartMessage(message);
}
else if (command == NetMQActor.EndShimMessage)
{
// Dispose command received, stop the poller.
poller.Stop();
}
}
public void PublishMessage(NetMQMessage message)
{
// We can use actor like NetMQSocket and publish messages.
actor.SendMoreFrame(PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC)
.SendMultipartMessage(message);
}
public string Address { get; private set; }
private bool disposedValue = false;
protected virtual void Dispose(bool disposing)
{
if (!disposedValue)
{
if (disposing)
{
actor?.Dispose();
publisher?.Dispose();
poller?.Dispose();
}
disposedValue = true;
}
}
public void Dispose()
{
Dispose(true);
}
}
}
CLIENT:
using NetMQ;
using NetMQ.Sockets;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using Messaging.Helpers;
namespace Demo.Messaging.Client
{
public class ZeroMqMessageClient : IDisposable
{
private string SUBSCRIBE_COMMAND = "S";
private const string WELCOME_MESSAGE = "WM";
private const string HEARTBEAT_MESSAGE = "HB";
private const string PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC = "PUB";
private readonly TimeSpan TIMEOUT = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(5);
private readonly TimeSpan RECONNECTION_PERIOD = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(5);
private readonly string[] addressCollection;
private List<string> subscriptions = new List<string>();
private NetMQTimer timeoutTimer;
private NetMQTimer reconnectionTimer;
private NetMQActor actor;
private SubscriberSocket subscriber;
private PairSocket shim;
private NetMQPoller poller;
public ZeroMqMessageClient(params string[] addresses)
{
addressCollection = addresses;
actor = NetMQActor.Create(Start);
}
private void Start(PairSocket shim)
{
this.shim = shim;
shim.ReceiveReady += OnShimReceiveReady;
timeoutTimer = new NetMQTimer(TIMEOUT);
timeoutTimer.Elapsed += OnTimeoutTimerElapsed;
reconnectionTimer = new NetMQTimer(RECONNECTION_PERIOD);
reconnectionTimer.Elapsed += OnReconnectionTimerElapsed;
poller = new NetMQPoller() { shim, timeoutTimer, reconnectionTimer };
shim.SignalOK();
Connect();
poller.Run();
if (subscriber != null)
subscriber.Dispose();
}
private void Connect()
{
using (NetMQPoller tmpPoller = new NetMQPoller())
{
List<SubscriberSocket> socketCollection = new List<SubscriberSocket>();
SubscriberSocket connectedSocket = null;
EventHandler<NetMQSocketEventArgs> messageHandler = (s, e) =>
{
connectedSocket = (SubscriberSocket)e.Socket;
tmpPoller.Stop();
};
// We cancel the poller without setting the connected socket.
NetMQTimer tmpTimeoutTimer = new NetMQTimer(TIMEOUT);
tmpTimeoutTimer.Elapsed += (s, e) => tmpPoller.Stop();
tmpPoller.Add(tmpTimeoutTimer);
// Attempt to subscribe to the supplied list of addresses.
foreach (var address in addressCollection)
{
SubscriberSocket socket = new SubscriberSocket();
socketCollection.Add(socket);
//socket.ReceiveReady -= messageHandler;
socket.ReceiveReady += messageHandler;
tmpPoller.Add(socket);
// Subscribe to welcome messages.
socket.Subscribe(WELCOME_MESSAGE);
socket.Connect(address);
}
tmpPoller.Run(); // Block and wait for connection.
// We should have an active socket/conection.
if (connectedSocket != null)
{
// Remove the connected socket from the collection.
socketCollection.Remove(connectedSocket);
ZeroMqHelpers.CloseConnectionsImmediately(socketCollection);
// Set the active socket.
subscriber = connectedSocket;
//subscriber.SkipMultipartMessage(); // This skips the welcome message.
// Subscribe to subscriptions.
subscriber.Subscribe(HEARTBEAT_MESSAGE);
foreach (var subscription in subscriptions)
subscriber.Subscribe(subscription);
// Remove start-up handler, now handle messages properly.
subscriber.ReceiveReady -= messageHandler;
subscriber.ReceiveReady += OnSubscriberReceiveReady;
poller.Add(subscriber);
// Reset timers.
timeoutTimer.Enable = true;
reconnectionTimer.Enable = false;
}
else // We need to attempt re-connection.
{
// Close all existing connections.
ZeroMqHelpers.CloseConnectionsImmediately(socketCollection);
timeoutTimer.Enable = false;
reconnectionTimer.Enable = true;
}
}
}
private void OnShimReceiveReady(object sender, NetMQSocketEventArgs e)
{
string command = e.Socket.ReceiveFrameString();
if (command == NetMQActor.EndShimMessage)
{
poller.Stop();
}
else if (command == SUBSCRIBE_COMMAND)
{
string topic = e.Socket.ReceiveFrameString();
subscriptions.Add(topic);
if (subscriber != null)
subscriber.Subscribe(topic);
}
}
private void OnTimeoutTimerElapsed(object sender, NetMQTimerEventArgs e)
{
if (subscriber != null)
{
poller.Remove(subscriber);
subscriber.Dispose();
subscriber = null;
Connect();
}
}
private void OnReconnectionTimerElapsed(object sender, NetMQTimerEventArgs e)
{
// We re-attempt connection.
Connect();
}
private void OnSubscriberReceiveReady(object sender, NetMQSocketEventArgs e)
{
// Here we just forwward the message on to the actor.
var message = subscriber.ReceiveMultipartMessage();
string topic = message[0].ConvertToString();
// Let us see what is in the message.
if (message.Count() > 1)
{
string content = message[1].ConvertToString();
Console.WriteLine($"ZMQ_ALT - {topic}:: {content}");
}
if (topic == WELCOME_MESSAGE)
{
// Disconnection has occurred we might want to restore state from a snapshot.
}
else if (topic == HEARTBEAT_MESSAGE)
{
// We got a heartbeat, lets postponed the timer.
timeoutTimer.Enable = false;
timeoutTimer.Enable = true;
}
else
{
shim.SendMultipartMessage(message);
}
}
public void Subscribe(string topic)
{
actor.SendMoreFrame(SUBSCRIBE_COMMAND).SendFrame(topic);
}
public NetMQMessage ReceiveMessage()
{
return actor.ReceiveMultipartMessage();
}
public void PublishMessage(NetMQMessage message)
{
actor.SendMoreFrame(PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC)
.SendMultipartMessage(message);
}
private bool disposedValue = false;
protected virtual void Dispose(bool disposing)
{
if (!disposedValue)
{
if (disposing)
{
actor?.Dispose();
subscriber?.Dispose();
shim?.Dispose();
poller?.Dispose();
}
disposedValue = true;
}
}
public void Dispose()
{
Dispose(true);
}
}
}
Now, I can send messages from the server to the client which is awesome and the client using the following code from the main method in two separate console applications
Program.cs for SERVER:
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
using (ZeroMqMessageServer server = new ZeroMqMessageServer("tcp://127.0.0.1:6669"))
{
while (true)
{
NetMQMessage message = new NetMQMessage();
message.Append("A");
message.Append(new Random().Next().ToString());
server.PublishMessage(message);
Thread.Sleep(200);
}
}
}
}
Program.cs for CLIENT:
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
Task.Run(() =>
{
using (ZeroMqMessageClient client = new ZeroMqMessageClient("tcp://127.0.0.1:6669"))
{
client.Subscribe(String.Empty);
while (true) { }
}
});
Console.ReadLine();
}
}
The client correctly auto-detects dropped connections and reconnects, fantastic little pattern.
However, this pattern out-of-the-box does not allow the client to send messages to the server. So in the client I have added the following code
public void PublishMessage(NetMQMessage message)
{
actor.SendMoreFrame(PUBLISH_MESSAGE_TOPIC)
.SendMultipartMessage(message);
}
and in the client I have changed the publisher.ReceiveReady += DropPublisherSubscriptions; event handler to
private void DropPublisherSubscriptions(object sender, NetMQSocketEventArgs e)
{
var message = e.Socket.ReceiveMultipartMessage();
string topic = message[0].ConvertToString();
Console.WriteLine($"TOPIC = {topic}");
// Let us see what is in the message.
if (message.Count() > 1)
{
string content = message[1].ConvertToString();
Console.WriteLine($"TEST RECIEVE FROM CLIENT - {topic}:: {content}");
}
publisher.SkipMultipartMessage();
}
but this does not seem to handle my messages. It receives the heartbeats and welcome messages, but I am not doing this right.
How can I enable/facilitate the client to talk to the server without breaking what I have already?
Thanks for your time.

"Delegate to an instance method cannot have null 'this' " while forwarding an event

Im trying to forward an event OnClientMessage from my class Client over the class Server to outside my libary.
Client.cs
public class Client
{
private TcpClient tcpClient;
private StreamWriter writer;
private Boolean alive = true;
private int id;
public delegate void OnClientMessageHandler(Client sender, String message);
public delegate void OnClientDisconnectHandler(Client sender);
public event OnClientMessageHandler OnClientMessage;
public event OnClientDisconnectHandler OnClientDisconnect;
public Client(TcpClient tcpClient, int id)
{
this.tcpClient = tcpClient;
this.id = id;
writer = new StreamWriter(tcpClient.GetStream());
new Thread(() =>
{
Listen(new StreamReader(tcpClient.GetStream()));
}).Start();
}
void Listen(StreamReader reader)
{
while (tcpClient.GetStream().DataAvailable && alive)
{
OnClientMessage(this, reader.ReadLine());
Thread.Sleep(150);
}
}
public void Write(String message)
{
writer.WriteLine(message);
writer.Flush();
}
public int GetID()
{
return id;
}
public void Close()
{
alive = false;
writer.Close();
tcpClient.Close();
OnClientDisconnect(this);
}
}
Server.cs
public class Server
{
private IPAddress serverIP;
private short serverPort;
private TcpListener serverListener;
private int serverClientCount;
public List<Client> serverClients = new List<Client>();
private Boolean running;
public delegate void OnClientMessageHandler(Client sender, String message);
public delegate void OnClientDisconnectHandler(Client sender);
public event OnClientMessageHandler OnClientMessage;
public event OnClientDisconnectHandler OnClientDisconnect;
public Server(IPAddress ip, short port, Boolean autoStart = true)
{
this.serverIP = ip;
this.serverPort = port;
if(autoStart)
OpenServer();
}
public void OpenServer()
{
serverListener = new TcpListener(serverIP, serverPort);
serverListener.Start();
running = true;
while (running)
{
if (serverListener.Pending())
{
TcpClient tcpClient = serverListener.AcceptTcpClient();
new Thread(() =>
{
Client client;
client = new Client(tcpClient, serverClientCount);
client.OnClientMessage += new Client.OnClientMessageHandler(OnClientMessage);
client.OnClientDisconnect += new Client.OnClientDisconnectHandler(OnClientDisconnect);
serverClients.Add(client);
serverClientCount++;
}).Start();
}
else
{
Thread.Sleep(150);
}
}
}
public void WriteToClient(Client client, String message)
{
client.Write(message);
}
public void WriteToAll(String message)
{
serverClients.ForEach(client => client.Write(message));
}
public void Shutdown()
{
running = false;
serverClients.ForEach(client => client.Close());
serverListener.Stop();
}
}
Now when the event is firing the application crashes with Delegate to an instance method cannot have null 'this'.
Are I'm doing something wrong or isn't this the right way to forward an event?

This is pretty unique, never once seen anybody do this. It is a regression in the .NET Framework, 3.5 gives you a much better exception. Basic problem is that you made the event subscribe itself. A simple version to repro that crash:
using System;
class Program {
public static event Action Kaboom;
static void Main(string[] args) {
Kaboom += new Action(Kaboom); // 3.5 raises an exception here
var handler = Kaboom;
if (handler != null) handler(); // kaboom
}
}
You are not actually "forwarding" the event. Untangle your names and code. Add, say, a Fire() method.

How to get back to function from timed event

Okay so I have a function called readSensor which you guessed it.. reads a sensor.
But the sensors usually take about 100ms to respond. So in the readSensor function I am basically just starting a timer.
On the timed event I read the serialport and get my response.
However this means that my response is in the onTimedEvent when I want it to be in the readSensor function..
Basically from the main form I want to be able to do this.
value = readSensor()
when at the minute all I can do is readSensor() and then I can see the response is coming back by displaying it in a messagebox once the timedEvent fires.
here is my code. (I have missed out loads of serialport setup and stuff but hopefully you can see the problem I am in)
I don't want to just wait in the function for 100ms though polling the timer as that will make my program slow..
I want to somehow get the response back to the readSensor function and then back to the form.
using System;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.IO.Ports;
using System.Timers;
namespace readSensor
{
public partial class readSens : UserControl
{
public readSens()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private System.Timers.Timer rTimer;
SerialPort sp = new SerialPort();
private void setupTimer()
{
// Create a timer with a 100ms response.
rTimer = new System.Timers.Timer(100);
rTimer.SynchronizingObject = this;
// Hook up the Elapsed event for the timer.
rTimer.Elapsed += new ElapsedEventHandler(OnTimedEvent);
}
private void OnTimedEvent(object source, ElapsedEventArgs e)
{
string response = getResponse();
}
public string getResponse()
{
string status = "";
byte[] readBuffer = new byte[255];
if (sp.IsOpen)
{
if (sp.BytesToRead > 0) //there is data to read
{
int length = sp.BytesToRead;
for (int i = 0; i < length; i++)
{
readBuffer[i] = (byte)sp.ReadByte();
status = "pass";
return status;
}
}
}
public void readSensor(byte addr)
{
if (!sp.IsOpen)
{
openPort();
readSensor(addr); // calls itself again once port is opened
}
else if (sp.IsOpen)
{
rTimer.Start();
}
else
{
MessageBox.Show("Port not opened yet");
}
}
}
}
In the main form I am basically just saying
setupTimer();
readSensor();
on a button click.

I don't think you can do it without some callback mechanism. You could implement a while loop but that is not eficient as it would introduce spinning.
My advice is to implement a proper async pattern or something simple like:
ReadSensor(addr, DoSomethingWithResult);
public void DoSomethingWithResult(string result)
{
Console.WriteLine (result);
}
public partial class ReadSens : UserControl
{
private Action<string> _responseCallback;
public void ReadSensor(byte addr, Action<string> responseCallback)
{
_responseCallback = responseCallback;
// initiate timer
}
private void OnTimedEvent(object source, ElapsedEventArgs e)
{
string response = getResponse();
_responseCallback(response);
}
}

Start a separate thread, then from that thread write into a queue the results back in your main thread.
class Game1
{
//We declare a queue, which is like an array that we can extract and enter data easily in a FIFO (first in, first out) style list.
Queue<string> q = new Queue<string>();
public void threadStart(object obj)
{
//We get the result of your function, while our main function is still looping and waiting.
string result = readInput()
//We tell C# that the parameter we passed in, is in fact the Game1 class passed from "t.Start"
Game1 game = (Game1)obj;
//This puts our "result" into the queue.
game.q.Enqueue(result);
}
public void start()
{
//Declares a new thread, which will run "threadStart" function.
System.Threading.Thread t = new System.Threading.Thread(threadStart);
//We start the other thread (that will run in parallel) and pass "this" as the parameter.
t.Start(this);
//We loop over and over, sleeping, whilst the other function runs at the same time. This is called "multi- threading"
while (q.Count == 0)
{
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(10);
}
//This gets the last-entered (oldest) value from the queue q.
string result = q.Deque();
}
}
So this sets off a thread to get the result, and then in my version, polls the queue for a while until the results come back, but in yours could do a bunch of stuff, as long as you check the queue every now and again for new data.
Edit: Added commenting to hopefully alleviate some of your questions.

Could be this approach a valid solution for you? I think you only are using Timer to wait the serialPort to be open, but it can be self-controlled with raising event.
public class SensorReader
{
private Sensor sensor;
private string lastResponse;
public SensorReader(SerialPort serialPort)
{
this.serialPort = aSerialPort.
this.sensor = new Sensor(serialPort);
this.sensor.PortOpen += PortOpenEventHandler(OnPortOpen);
}
private void OnPortOpen()
{
this.ReadPort();
}
public string ReadPort(byte address)
{
if (!this.sensor.IsOpen)
{
this.sensor.OpenPort();
this.lastResponse = "The serial port doesn't respond... yet!";
}
else
{
// Read response at this point.
this.lastResponse = this.GetResponse();
}
return this.lastResponse;
}
}
public class Sensor
{
private SerialPort serialPort;
public Sensor(SerialPort aSerialPort)
{
this.serialPort = aSerialPort;
}
public bool IsOpen
{
get { return this.serialPort.IsOpen; }
}
public delegate void PortOpenEventHandler(object sender, EventArgs e);
public event PortOpenEventHandler PortOpen;
public void OpenPort()
{
// Open port here...
// ... and throw the PortOpen event.
if (this.PortOpen != null)
{
this.PortOpen(this, EventArgs.Empty);
}
}
}