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Defining Selection Sets

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When creating multiple views and controls, you can define sets of objects that are referred to as selection sets. A selection set enables you to define the objects one time, without having to define them repeatedly for each view or control. Typically, selection sets are used when you have a set of related .NET objects. For example, The FileSystem formatting file (FileSystem.format.ps1xml) defines a selection set of the file system types that several views use.

Where Selection Sets are Defined and Referenced

You define selection sets as part of the common data that can be used by all the views and controls defined in the formatting file. The following example shows how to define three selection sets.

<Configuration>
  <SelectionSets>
    <SelectionSet>...</SelectionSet>
    <SelectionSet>...</SelectionSet>
    <SelectionSet>...</SelectionSet>
  </SelectionSets>
</Configuration>

You can reference a selection sets in the following ways:

  • Each view has a ViewSelectedBy element that defines which objects are displayed by using the view. The ViewSelectedBy element has a SelectionSetName child element that specifies the selection set that all the definitions of the view use. There is no restriction on the number of selection sets that you can reference from a view.

  • In each definition of a view or control, the EntrySelectedBy element defines which objects are displayed by using that definition. Typically a view or control has only one definition so the objects are defined by the ViewSelectedBy element. The EntrySelectedBy element of the definition has a SelectionSetName child element that specifies the selection set. If you specify the selection set for a definition, you cannot specify any of the other child elements of the EntrySelectedBy element.

  • In each definition of a view or control, the SelectionCondition element can be used to specify a condition for when the definition is used. The SelectionCondition element has a SelectionSetName child element that specifies the selection set that triggers the condition. The condition is triggered when any of the objects defined in the selection set are displayed. For more information about how to set these conditions, see Defining Conditions for when Data is Displayed.

Selection Set Example

The following example shows a selection set that is taken directly from the FileSystem formatting file provided by Windows PowerShell. For more information about other Windows PowerShell formatting files, see Windows PowerShell Formatting Files.

<SelectionSets>
  <SelectionSet>
    <Name>FileSystemTypes</Name>
    <Types>
     <TypeName>System.IO.DirectoryInfo</TypeName>
     <TypeName>System.IO.FileInfo</TypeName>
     <TypeName>Deserialized.System.IO.DirectoryInfo</TypeName>
     <TypeName>Deserialized.System.IO.FileInfo</TypeName>
    </Types>
  </SelectionSet>
</SelectionSets>

The previous selection set is referenced in the ViewSelectedBy element of a table view.

<ViewDefinitions>
  <View>
    <Name>Files</Name>
    <ViewSelectedBy>
      <SelectionSetName>FileSystemTypes</SelectionSetName>
    </ViewSelectedBy>
    <TableControl>...</TableControl>
  </View>
</ViewDefinitions>

XML Elements

There is no limit to the number of selection sets that you can define. The following XML elements are used to create a selection set.

  • The SelectionSets element defines the sets of .NET objects that are referenced by the views and controls of the formatting file.

  • The SelectionSet element defines a single set of .NET objects.

  • The Name element specifies the name that is used to reference the selection set.

  • The Types element specifies the .NET types of the objects of the selection set. (Within formatting files, objects are specified by their .NET type.)

The following XML elements are used to specify a selection set.

See Also

SelectionSets

SelectionSet

Name

Types

PowerShell Formatting Files

Defining Conditions for when Data is Displayed

Writing a PowerShell Formatting and Types File