Develop Reference

C# Winform Registry set and get functions appear to work, but don't actually change the registry

I'm trying to use this registry hack I found online:
;Disables F1 key - Help and Support - in Windows 10
;Ramesh Srinivasan, Winhelponline.com
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0\win32]
#=""
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0\win64]
#=""
When I run it as a .reg command via Windows Explorer and watch the registry with regedit, it works as intended. Removing it is another registry file that simply removes the \0 subkey (and win32 and 64 with it). I'm trying to emulate this function with C# in a Winform using .net CORE:
private void CheckF1()
{
// Registry data from ;Ramesh Srinivasan, Winhelponline.com
RegistryKey F1key = Registry.CurrentUser.OpenSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\Classes\TypeLib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0");
// EGADS! It's active!
if (F1key == null)
{
fckF1RestoreBtn.Enabled = false;
fckF1KillBtn.Enabled = true;
fckF1Status.Text = "That creepy bugger is waiting and watching.";
}
else
{
fckF1RestoreBtn.Enabled = true;
fckF1KillBtn.Enabled = false;
fckF1Status.Text = "The F1-Help function had been put in it's place.";
}
}
private void fckF1KillBtn_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Registry.CurrentUser.CreateSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0\win32");
Registry.CurrentUser.CreateSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0\win64");
CheckF1();
}
private void fckF1RestoreBtn_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Registry.CurrentUser.DeleteSubKeyTree(#"SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0");
CheckF1();
}
Weirdly the code "sees" a setting and responds like it should. Even to the point that whichever toggle position it was in on close it remembers when I load the file again. It's almost like it's playing along to screw with me. Regardless, when I watch the registry, none of my code has any actual effect though by all appearances it seems to work otherwise (it doesn't actually of course because the registry change isn't happening).
NOTE: I have already updated my manifest file for the project to include elevated permissions:
<requestedExecutionLevel level="highestAvailable" uiAccess="false" />
Here's the breakpoint on the test statement to see if the subkeys are there that shows they are:
Meanwhile the registry location for the exact path shown in the debug doesn't have the 1.0\0 path at all:
I don't know how the code is reading phantom values. Someone closed my previous question pointing to another answer that didn't have any effect (Registry key deleted but still getting value from registry c#):
"Prefer 32 bit" was never checked for my project in the first place
Modifying my code as recommended had no effect
var key = RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey(RegistryHive.CurrentUser, RegistryView.Registry64)
.OpenSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Classes\TypeLib\{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0");
Adding "Wow64Node" to the path makes no difference in execution.
EXPECTED BEHAVIOR
Checking to see if the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\Typelib{8cec5860-07a1-11d9-b15e-000d56bfe6ee}\1.0\0 path is present should return null if the \0 path is not present
Adding and removing the subkeys should show in the registry

So apparently HKEY_CURRENT_USERS is an alias. When the above code runs, it updates in HKEY_USERS under the specific logged in user. There's a question that talks about this behavior here: write registry to hkey_current_user instead of hkey_users
That said, the code appears to work, it's just that the registry doesn't update HKCU like when you run .reg commands. To verify it was working, I'd run the toggle that kills the keys then click them in Regedit and it would say they didn't exist. When I toggled back, I could click on them. So basically, it works (not sure if it required the "using" blocks as others suggested, but I see no reason to take them out).
Now my problem is that it points to the admin user and NOT the regular user because I'm running it and regedit as admin. It took forever to determine this based on running regedit as user in one case and admin in another. Bottom line, this won't work and I'll probably end up running .reg files in the command line instead.

How to set Windows 10 and above Lock Screen Wallpaper from WPF?

I want to set Lock Screen Wallpaper of Windows 10 and above from WPF application. I have searched and found the following links are useful.
https://stackoverflow.com/a/51785913/5523095
https://superuser.com/a/1274588
Based on the suggestion from the above answers I am trying to change the lock screen wallpaper using the following code.
RegistryKey key = Registry.CurrentUser.CreateSubKey(#"Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP", true);
key.SetValue(#"LockScreenImagePath", #"C:\Users\kumarm\Desktop\Wall.png");
key.SetValue(#"LockScreenImageUrl", #"C:\Users\kumarm\Desktop\Wall.png");
key.SetValue("LockScreenImageStatus", 1, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
key.Flush();
But the lock screen wallpaper is not changing. Am I doing anything wrong?

Your code creates the wrong key in the registry. Also instead of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE you use HKEY_CURRENT_USER. Should be like this:
RegistryKey key = Registry.LocalMachine.CreateSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP", true);
key.SetValue(#"LockScreenImagePath", #"C:\Images\image.jpg");
key.SetValue(#"LockScreenImageUrl", #"C:\Images\image.jpg");
key.SetValue(#"LockScreenImageStatus", 1, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
key.Flush();
This code does work, but after that you cannot change the lock screen image in Windows settings - the possibility is blocked with the reference "Some of these settings are managed by your organization", which can be fixed by deleting registry keys or by setting empty "LockScreenImagePath" and "LockScreenImageUrl" values in the registry.

Desktop App. in C# - Multiple IE Versions with WebBrowser

I'm developing a desktop application, and I want to make a small browser with the possibilities of change the version of WebBrowser (obviously is IE).
I tried with change the registry of my application .exe, for example for this:
11001 (0x2AF9) or 7000 (0x1B58)
(Regkey.SetValue("myApp.exe", 0x1B58, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
If I do an "alert" of my WebBrowser, i get 11.xxxxx, but this never is changed.
I'm exhausted of try several things and nothing is working.
Someone has any idea about it?
Sorry for my english.
Thanks in advance.
Best regards,
Diego.
EDIT:
I tried with this:
RegistryKey Regkey32 = Microsoft.Win32.Registry.LocalMachine.OpenSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\\Microsoft\\Internet Explorer\\Main\\FeatureControl\\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION", true);
RegistryKey Regkey64 = null;
if (Environment.Is64BitOperatingSystem)
{
Regkey64 = Microsoft.Win32.Registry.LocalMachine.OpenSubKey(#"SOFTWARE\\Wow6432Node\\Microsoft\\Internet Explorer\\MAIN\\FeatureControl\\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION", true);
}
Regkey32.SetValue(Path.GetFileName(Application.ExecutablePath), versionIE, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
if (Environment.Is64BitOperatingSystem)
{
Regkey64.SetValue(Path.GetFileName(Application.ExecutablePath), versionIE, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
}
MessageBox.Show(webBrowser1.Version.ToString())
Return: 11.0.9600.16428 (always)...
Is possible change this version when we are changing the registry?

Webbrowser control ignores FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION reg entry

Im developing a custom browser solution with .net's Webbrowser control.
To disable the IE-Compatibilty View, I set the registry entry
Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION:
[Sreenshot regedit] http://zbirk.mirk.at/browserreg.png "Screenshot"
i tried to use the values: dword=8000,dword=8888,dword=9000, but the webbrowser control seems to ignore these reg entries.
Maybe someone had this problems too and may help me.

The WebBrowser control definately DOES respect these keys.
Remember that while taskman may show application.exe in the name column, if you are debugging the exe name is application.vshost.exe
So in my application sI just attempt to create the key every time the app runs. If it fails to create it (because it already exists) then I continue running, if it creates the key then I inform the user that they need to restart the application.

ensure that you are not running within vshost
the app name would be different ie appname.vshost.exe

Thx for your reply, now its working.
Her is my working peace of code:
public void setIEcomp()
{
String appname = Process.GetCurrentProcess().ProcessName+".exe";
RegistryKey RK8 = Registry.LocalMachine.OpenSubKey("Software\\Microsoft\\Internet Explorer\\Main\\FeatureControl\\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION",RegistryKeyPermissionCheck.ReadWriteSubTree);
int value9 = 9999;
int value8 = 8888;
Version ver = webBrowser1.Version;
int value = value9;
try
{
string[] parts = ver.ToString().Split('.');
int vn = 0;
int.TryParse(parts[0], out vn);
if (vn != 0)
{
if (vn == 9)
value = value9;
else
value = value8;
}
}
catch
{
value = value9;
}
//Setting the key in LocalMachine
if (RK8 != null)
{
try
{
RK8.SetValue(appname, value, RegistryValueKind.DWord);
RK8.Close();
}
catch(Exception ex)
{
//MessageBox.Show(ex.Message);
}
}
}

I too could not see that FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION made any difference in my application.
I was testing the FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION functionality by manually editing the registry with regedit. Nothing I did made any difference. My hosted page was still failing on any new-ish JavaScript and could not load external libraries.
I found my mistake:
I was editing the 64-bit view of the registry with regedit. My app was running as a 32-bit app and looking at the 32-bit view of the registry. That's why my changes to the registry seemed to have no impact on my application. By the way, the WPF project template defaults to "Prefer 32-bit."
Manually editing with regedit within the Wow6432Node key worked:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\MAIN\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION
Of course, setting the DWORD value programmatically within your application will also work, since your 32-bit application will edit within the Wow6432Node.

An older post and solution is no longer accurate.
Running procmon and watching for FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION shows the following registry variables actually checked. This was for WINWORD.exe but other than that - take your pick...
HKU\S-1-5-21-[my-sid-paws-off]\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION\WINWORD.EXE
HKU\S-1-5-21-[my-sid-paws-off]\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION*
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\REGISTRY\MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION(Default)
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\REGISTRY\MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION\WINWORD.EXE
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION\WINWORD.EXE
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\REGISTRY\MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION*
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\FeatureControl\FEATURE_BROWSER_EMULATION*

In C#, is there a way to consistently be able to get the selected text contents of currently focused window?

In my c# .Net application, I've been trying to be able to retrieve the currently selected text in the currently focused window. (Note that it can be any window open in windows, such as word, or safari).
I'm able to retrieve the handle to the currently focused control. (Using a couple of interop calls to user32.dll, and kernel32.dll).
However, I've been unable to consistently be able to get back the selected text.
I've tried using SENDMESSAGE and GET_TEXT. However this only seems to work for some applications (works for simple applications like wordpad, doesn't work for more complex applications like firefox, or word).
I've tried using SENDMESSAGE and WM_COPY. However, again this only seems to work on some controls. (I would think that WM_COPY, would cause the exact same behaviour as manually pressing CTRL-C, but it doesn't).
I've tried using SENDMESSAGE and WM_KEYUP+WM_KEYDOWN to manually stimulate a copy command. BUt this doesn't constantly work either. (Perhaps of an overlap with the actual hotkey pressed by a user to invoke my applications).
Any ideas on consistently being able to retrieve the currently selected text ? (on any application).

I got this working by a combination of a couple of things. So:
Wait for whatever modifiers are currently held down to be released.
Send control+c (using this answer Trigger OS to copy (ctrl+c or Ctrl-x) programmatically)
bool stillHeld = true;
int timeSlept = 0;
do
{
// wait until our hotkey is released
if ((Keyboard.Modifiers & ModifierKeys.Control) > 0 ||
(Keyboard.Modifiers & ModifierKeys.Alt) > 0 ||
(Keyboard.Modifiers & ModifierKeys.Shift) > 0)
{
timeSlept += 50;
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(timeSlept);
}
else
{
stillHeld = false;
}
} while (stillHeld && timeSlept < 1000);
Keyboard.SimulateKeyStroke('c', ctrl: true);
I'm using WPF so Keyboard.Modifiers is System.Windows.Input.Keyboard, whereas Keyboard.SimulateKeyStroke is from Chris Schmick's answer.
Note, timeSlept is my max time to wait for the user to let go of the key before continuing on its merry way.

I managed to get text for wordpad/notepad and anything that supports UI automation.
The code below may work for you in some cases. I'm going to get a start on using Reflector to see how windows does it for textboxes in the TextBoxBase.SelectedText property.
public static string SelectedText
{
get
{
AutomationElement focusedElement = AutomationElement.FocusedElement;
object currentPattern = null;
if (focusedElement.TryGetCurrentPattern(TextPattern.Pattern, out currentPattern))
{
TextPattern textPattern = (TextPattern)currentPattern;
TextPatternRange[] textPatternRanges = textPattern.GetSelection();
if (textPatternRanges.Length > 0)
{
string textSelection = textPatternRanges[0].GetText(-1);
return textSelection;
}
}
return string.Empty;
}
set
{
AutomationElement focusedElement = AutomationElement.FocusedElement;
IntPtr windowHandle = new IntPtr(focusedElement.Current.NativeWindowHandle);
NativeMethods.SendMessage(windowHandle, NativeMethods.EM_REPLACESEL, true, value);
}
}

I don't believe that it is possible, the currently focused may not contain any selected text. (It may not even contain any text at all). Or the current selection could be an icon, or an image.
Perhaps requiring the user to copy the selected text to the clipboard first may be a solution.

I've possibly misunderstood the question, but could you just send Ctrl+c? If you know the window is always foremost and the text to be copied is selected?
SendKeys.SendWait("^c");
Once copied to the clipboard, it's not tricky to programatically retrieve the contents (you could even check it's actually text at that point).

I think creating clipboard monitor is a good option. I suggest you to look at Klipper (KDE clipboard module), it copied everything you select in the clipboard list, either content is file, folder or some text.
More details can be found here.

Hm... you find it to be easy? How come?
The best alternative to SendKeys.SendWait("^c"); I found was this one:
http://www.c-sharpcorner.com/Forums/ShowMessages.aspx?ThreadID=46203
However, it only works for a few apps, like notepad. For web browsers, it just crashes.
Anyone got anything better?

Try the GetWindowText() API on controls for which the other methods do not work.