Thread Locking CollectionViewSource - c#

I added an event handler to my code and it broke all access to the CollectionViewSources in the SystemHTA class saying "The calling thread cannot access this object because a different thread owns it". My class was working when "this.systemHTA = new SystemHTA();" was placed outside of the DeviceManager_StateChanged() function.
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
private DeviceManager DeviceManager = DeviceManager.Instance;
public SystemHTA systemHTA;
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void Window_Loaded(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
DeviceManager.StateChanged += new EventHandler<DeviceManagerStateChangedEventArgs>(DeviceManager_StateChanged);
DeviceManager.Initialize();
}
void DeviceManager_StateChanged(object sender, DeviceManagerStateChangedEventArgs e)
{
if (e.State == DeviceManagerState.Operational)
{
this.systemHTA = new SystemHTA();
}
}
private void button1_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
this.systemHTA.GetViewSourceTest();
}
}
public class SystemHTA
{
private CollectionViewSource _deviceTestSource;
public SystemHTA()
{
_deviceTestSource = new CollectionViewSource();
_deviceTestSource.Source = CreateLoadData<HWController>.ControllerCollection;
}
public void GetViewSourceTest()
{
ListCollectionView view = (ListCollectionView)_deviceTestSource.View; //This creates an error saying a thread already owns _deviceTestSource
}
}

This is not about 'Thread Locking' but about the well known problem that a GUI (either WPF or WinForms) is not threadsafe and in a Debug build there is active checking for cross-thread calls.
So you already know the solution: create the SystemHTA object on the main thread. Your problem may shift to loading it from the DeviceMgr stuff, you may have to use Control.Dispatcher.Invoke() here.

I ended up replacing the CollectionViewSource with an ObservableCollection and everything works fine.

Related

DispatcherTimer ticking not working when started in ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem() method

I've created a TimerManager class for my WPF application.
This class handles the start and stop the dispatcher timer.
Here is the class:
public static class TimerManager
{
static DispatcherTimer disTimer;
static Model m = Model.GetInstance();
static TimerManager()
{
disTimer = new DispatcherTimer();
disTimer.Tick += disTimer_tick;
disTimer.Interval = new TimeSpan(0, 0, 1);
}
public static void StartTimer()
{
disTimer.Start();
}
public static void StopTimer()
{
disTimer.Stop();
}
private static void disTimer_tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
m.Tick++;
}
}
And I've created a Model class that represents the ticking in the UI.
(Binding in MainWindow.xaml -> xy textbox text field "{Binding Tick}").
class Model : INotifyPropertyChanged
{
private Model()
{
}
static Model instance;
public static Model GetInstance()
{
if (instance == null)
{
instance = new Model();
}
return instance;
}
int tick;
public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
public void OnNotifyPropertyChanged([CallerMemberName] string propertyName = null)
{
PropertyChangedEventArgs e = new PropertyChangedEventArgs(propertyName);
PropertyChangedEventHandler handler = PropertyChanged;
if (handler != null)
{
handler(this, e);
}
}
public int Tick
{
get
{
return tick;
}
set
{
tick = value;
OnNotifyPropertyChanged();
}
}
}
And here is the MainWindow class:
Model m;
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
m = Model.GetInstance();
this.DataContext = m;
}
private void startButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem(o =>
{
TimerManager.StartTimer();
});
//TimerManager.StartTimer();
}
private void stopButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
TimerManager.StopTimer();
}
When I click the start button I use the ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem() method. In that method, I start the timer but the timer tick is not run at every one second.
When I don't use ThreadPool this works. But this solution is not good for me; ThreadPool is important for me because I use an HTTP web server (in local).
My question is: why is the ticking not working if I use ThreadPool?
The DispatcherTimer object has thread affinity. That is, it is tied to a specific thread. In particular, it is designed specifically to raise its Tick event in the thread in which it was created, using the Dispatcher for that thread.
Your ThreadManager class's static constructor will be called when the type is first used. In your non-working example, this occurs in the queued work item method, causing the static constructor to be executed in the thread pool thread used to execute that work item method. This in turn causes the DispatcherTimer object you create to be owned by that thread, and to have its Tick event raised in that thread by the Dispatcher for that thread.
Except, thread pool threads don't have Dispatchers. So there's no Dispatcher there to raise the Tick event for the DispatcherTimer object. Even if there was, without a call to Application.Run() to have the dispatcher loop executed, the Dispatcher wouldn't actually get to dispatch anything, including the Tick event.
What you need is to make sure that when you create the DispatcherTimer object, the code that creates that object is executed in the dispatcher thread, which is your main UI thread.
There are a couple of ways to do that. IMHO, the best way is to make your ThreadManager class not a static class and to create an instance of it in your MainWindow constructor. For example:
class TimerManager
{
DispatcherTimer disTimer;
Model m = Model.GetInstance();
public TimerManager()
{
disTimer = new DispatcherTimer();
disTimer.Tick += disTimer_tick;
disTimer.Interval = new TimeSpan(0, 0, 1);
}
public void StartTimer()
{
disTimer.Start();
}
public void StopTimer()
{
disTimer.Stop();
}
private void disTimer_tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
m.Tick++;
}
}
and:
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
TimerManager _timerManager = new TimerManager();
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
this.DataContext = Model.GetInstance();
}
private void startButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem(o =>
{
_timerManager.StartTimer();
});
}
private void stopButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
_timerManager.StopTimer();
}
}
Since you know your MainWindow object has to be created in the dispatcher thread, and you know that non-static field initialization happens at the same time the constructor is called, in that same dispatcher thread, the above ensures that your TimerManager object is created in the dispatcher thread.
This gives you complete control over the lifetime of the TimerManager object, particularly when it's created but of course also when it can be discarded. Given the nature of the DispatcherTimer object itself, it's my opinion that this is better than maintaining a statically-held instance.
This approach also gives you the option of having a manager object for each dispatcher thread (in rare cases, a program might have more than one…you should try very hard to avoid getting into that situation, but it can be useful for types to at least be compatible with such a situation).
That said, if you really want to keep the static implementation, you can do that by providing a method that can be called explicitly when you want to initialize the class, so you can make sure that the initialization happens in the right thread:
static class TimerManager
{
static DispatcherTimer disTimer;
static Model m = Model.GetInstance();
public static void Initialize()
{
disTimer = new DispatcherTimer();
disTimer.Tick += disTimer_tick;
disTimer.Interval = new TimeSpan(0, 0, 1);
}
public static void StartTimer()
{
disTimer.Start();
}
public static void StopTimer()
{
disTimer.Stop();
}
private static void disTimer_tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
m.Tick++;
}
}
Then in your MainWindow class:
public partial class MainWindow : Window
{
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
this.DataContext = Model.GetInstance();
StaticTimerManager.Initialize();
}
private void startButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem(o =>
{
StaticTimerManager.StartTimer();
});
}
private void stopButton_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
StaticTimerManager.StopTimer();
}
}
All you need to do here is make sure you call the Initialize() method from the main UI thread where you actually have a running dispatcher, before you attempt to call either of the other two static methods in the class.
This approach could also be made to work with multiple threads (i.e. if you have more than one dispatcher thread), but it would be trickier, especially if you want to be able to call the StartTimer() method from a different thread that actually owns the timer object. I'd recommend against the static class approach if you really did wind up in that situation.

C# - How to update Main UI from a thread in another class

I'm actually learning (the hard way) c# and been fighting for days with a problem :
I'm writing my first c# application with WPF (dotNet 4.0). When I click on a button, a BackgroundWorker thread is used and call a method from an external class, this way my UI don't freeze -> my method run as expected.
Then I tried to update a ListView control from thos external class to get some kind of progress (text) and I miserably failed.
I understand that I need to use a delegate and the dispatcher to update my control.
I tried to use the solution offered here How to update UI from another thread running in another class . (I cannot comment on it because of my low rep) and I miss some parts of the puzzle.
What the YourEventArgs(status) is referring to ? I just don't get the way to fire an event and pass the content back to my UI while my method is running inside the BGW.
So far I have this piece of code (Updated from answer):
namespace AppMain
{
public partial class MainWindow
{
BackgroundWorker AppWorker = new BackgroundWorker();
public MainWindow()
{
InitializeComponent();
AppWorker.WorkerSupportsCancellation = true;
AppWorker.DoWork += AppWorker_DoWork;
AppWorker.RunWorkerCompleted += AppWorker_RunWorkerCompleted;
}
private void btnLoad_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
lstTest.Items.Add("Processing data...");
AppWorker.RunWorkerAsync();
}
public void AppWorker_DoWork(object sender, System.ComponentModel.DoWorkEventArgs e)
{
SetXmlData xml = new SetXmlData();
xml.ProgressUpdate += (s, evt) =>
{
Dispatcher.BeginInvoke((Action)(() =>
{
lstTest.Items.Add("this is a test : " + evt.myData); //how to retrieve the myData property from evt ?
}));
};
xml.FlushData();
}
public void AppWorker_RunWorkerCompleted(object sender, System.ComponentModel.RunWorkerCompletedEventArgs e)
{
if (!(e.Cancelled))
{
lstTest.Items.Add("Done");
}
else
{
MessageBox.Show("Cancelled");
}
}
}
}
SetXmlData.cs
namespace AppMain
{
public class SetXmlData
{
public event EventHandler ProgressUpdate;
//update method
public void update(object input)
{
if (ProgressUpdate != null)
ProgressUpdate(this, new YourEventArgs { myData = (string)input });
}
//calculation method
public void FlushData()
{
MessageBox.Show("this is a test !");
update("test");
}
}
public class YourEventArgs : EventArgs
{
public string myData { get; set; }
}
}
Thanks for your help.
You can simply Invoke the ProgressUpdate event from the FlushData() method.
Simply call:
If (ProgressUpdate !=null )
{
ProgressUpdate(this,new YourEventArgs())
}
this is the source instance where the event originated from.
You could just create YourEventArgs by inheriting from EventArgs class.
public class YourEventArgs : EventArgs
{
//Put any property that you want to pass back to UI here.
}
When the event gets raised in the UI:
RaiseEvent.ProgressUpdate += (s, e) =>
{
Dispatcher.BeginInvoke((Action)(() =>
{
lstTest.Items.Add("this is a test : ");
//Add items to your UI control here...
}));
};
e will be of type YourEventArgs.
On a side note, you should never touch UI thread from a diffent thread (like background worker thread in your example). Since your event-handler already does the Dispatcher.BeginInvoke, that's safe.
Also, your ProgressUpdate event should be inside of your class SetXmlData.
try get;set; Example:
Form1:
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
static public string gettext { get; set; }
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Class1.send(); //call to class function
textBox1.Text = gettext; //items.add(gettext)
}
}
Class1:
class Class1
{
static public void send()
{
Form1.gettext = "Marko"; //Set gettext to string "Marko"
}
}

Should I put a BackgroundWorker inside a Singleton?

I have an application that takes a Wireshark capture file and feeds it (all the containing packets) into a network adapter.
Currently my application is a big mess - countless global variables & every task opened within a seperate BackgroundWorker instance etc...
To clarify - the purpose of using BackgroundWorkers here (more specifically the DoWork, RunWorkerCompleted events and the WorkerReportsProgress property) is to prevent the packet feeding operations from freezing my UI. To stop an operation, I need access to these workes - for now, global variables are used to achieve this.
So the question is - should I place my BackgroundWorker objects inside a Singleton-type class and then call this object when necessary?
From a technical point of view is possible, after all the singleton pattern is a design pattern that restricts the instantiation of a class to one object
you can try something like this
public class BackWorkerSingleton
{
private BackgroundWorker _backgroundWorker;
private static readonly object myLock = new object();
private static BackWorkerSingleton _backWorkerSingleton = new BackWorkerSingleton();
public delegate void ReportProgressEventHandler(object sender,MyEventsArgs e);
public event ReportProgressEventHandler ReportProgress = delegate{ };
private BackWorkerSingleton()
{
_backgroundWorker = new BackgroundWorker();
_backgroundWorker.DoWork += new DoWorkEventHandler(_backgroundWorker_DoWork);
_backgroundWorker.ProgressChanged += new ProgressChangedEventHandler(_backgroundWorker_ProgressChanged);
}
void _backgroundWorker_ProgressChanged(object sender, ProgressChangedEventArgs e)
{
this.ReportProgress( this, new MyEventsArgs(){Progress = e.ProgressPercentage});
}
void _backgroundWorker_DoWork(object sender, DoWorkEventArgs e)
{
// do your work here
}
public void StartTheJob()
{
_backgroundWorker.RunWorkerAsync();
}
public static BackWorkerSingleton Worker
{
get
{
lock (myLock)
{
if (_backWorkerSingleton == null)
{
_backWorkerSingleton = new BackWorkerSingleton();
}
}
return _backWorkerSingleton;
}
}
}
class MyEventsArgs:EventArgs
{
public int Progress { get; set; }
}
and here the report progress
private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
BackWorkerSingleton.Worker.ReportProgress += new BackWorkerSingleton.ReportProgressEventHandler(Worker_ReportProgress);
}
void Worker_ReportProgress(object sender, MyEventsArgs e)
{
}
and call it like this
BackWorkerSingleton.Worker.StartJob()

Order of form_load method execution

I am creating a winforms application which uses Gmaps.net. I am unable to alter the order in which on Load methods are being called. For some reason the map_load is being called before the man_Load. Is there any way to change the order of this ?
If I can provide any more information to help just ask.
Thanks!
Dan.
public partial class main : Form
{
public main()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void main_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
MessageBox.Show("main_load");
}
private void map_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
MessageBox.Show("map_load");
}
}
It seems that you used the WinForms designer to create the map. The code behind is in the InitializeComponent() method and seems that the map is being loaded before the MainForm is loaded.
My recommendation is to create the map, once the MainForm has been loaded:
public partial class main : Form
{
public main()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
private void main_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Control map = CreateMap();
map.Docking = DockStyle.Fill;
this.Controls.Add(map);
}
private Control CreateMap()
{
// Create a new GMaps.NET object, intialize it and return
}
}
Hope it helps.

Problem controlling the flow of an application

I have a Windows Forms application that I'm working on, but I'm having trouble when I start the application. The application should load saved information from a config file, and then check for new items. When I start the application, it starts looking for new items before it has finished loading saved items. Because of this the user is alerted of new items that are not really new, they just have not been loaded from the file yet.
The Form:
public class MainForm : Form
{
A a;
public MainForm()
{
InitializeComponent();
a = new A();
a.ItemsFound += new A.NewItemsFoundEventHandler(a_FoundItems);
a.ItemsLoaded += new A.ItemsLoadedEventHandler(a_ItemsLoaded);
a.LoadItems();
}
public void a_FoundItems(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
//Alert user of new items.
}
public void a_ItemsLoaded(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
//Update GUI with items loaded from file.
this.UpdateTheGUI_ThisIsNotARealMethodInMyProgram();
//Then look for new items.
a.CheckForUpdates();
}
}
The other object:
public class A
{
public A(){}
public void LoadItems()
{
//Load Items from save file...
OnItemsLoaded(this);
}
public void CheckForUpdates()
{
//Check for new items...
//If new items are found, raise ItemsFound event
OnNewItemsFound(this,new EventArgs());
}
public delegate void NewItemsFoundEventHandler(object sender, EventArgs e);
public event NewItemsFoundEventHandler ItemsFound;
protected void OnNewItemsFound(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
if(ItemsFound != null)
{
ItemsFound(sender,e);
}
}
public delegate void ItemsLoadedEventHandler(object sender, EventArgs e);
public event ItemsLoadedEventHandler ItemsLoaded;
protected void OnItemsLoaded(object sender)
{
if(ItemsLoaded != null)
{
ItemsLoaded(sender,new System.EventArgs());
}
}
}
Should I have object A call it's functions on a new thread, and lock so CheckForUpdates cannot be called if LoadItems is running, or is there a simpler way to do this that I'm missing?
EDIT:
I found the problem. I was clearing the List of items (so it would not grow forever), but I was only filling it with the newly found items. So every time I ran the application only the newest items where in the list, and all the older items were flushed out.
STUPID!!!
Thanks for the help though, and sorry for the crappy question.
Is there any reason why the check is not in the constructor?
public MainForm()
{
InitializeComponent();
a = new A();
a.ItemsFound += new A.NewItemsFoundEventHandler(a_FoundItems);
a.ItemsLoaded += new A.ItemsLoadedEventHandler(a_ItemsLoaded);
a.LoadItems();
a.CheckForUpdates();
}
Hmm, from the code you've posted i dont see a problem, especially assuming all this runs on the ui thread.. can you post the code for the loading of items?
Perhaps the loading it self is firing the ItemsFound event? You could do the subscription for ItemsFound in the eventhandler for ItemsLoaded instead of in the constructor.
public class MainForm : Form
{
A a;
public MainForm()
{
InitializeComponent();
a = new A();
a.ItemsLoaded += new A.ItemsLoadedEventHandler(a_ItemsLoaded);
a.LoadItems();
}
public void a_ItemsLoaded(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
a.ItemsFound += new A.NewItemsFoundEventHandler(a_FoundItems);
a.CheckForUpdates();
}
}

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