Using the Clipboard

Article
11/19/2022

This section has code samples for the following tasks:

Implementing the Cut, Copy, and Paste Commands
Monitoring Clipboard Contents
Querying the Clipboard Sequence Number
Creating a Clipboard Format Listener
Creating a Clipboard Viewer Window
Adding a Window to the Clipboard Viewer Chain

Implementing the Cut, Copy, and Paste Commands

This section describes how standard Cut, Copy, and Paste commands are implemented in an application. The example in this section uses these methods to place data on the clipboard using a registered clipboard format, the CF_OWNERDISPLAY format, and the CF_TEXT format. The registered format is used to represent rectangular or elliptical text windows, called labels.

Selecting Data

Before information can be copied to the clipboard, the user must select specific information to be copied or cut. An application should provide a means for the user to select information within a document and some kind of visual feedback to indicate selected data.

An application should load an accelerator table containing the standard keyboard accelerators for the Edit menu commands. The TranslateAccelerator function must be added to the application's message loop for the accelerators to take effect. For more information about keyboard accelerators, see Keyboard Accelerators.

Processing the `WM_INITMENUPOPUP` Message

Not all clipboard commands are available to the user at any given time. An application should process the WM_INITMENUPOPUP message to enable the menu items for available commands and disable unavailable commands.

Following is the WM_INITMENUPOPUP case for an application named Label.

case WM_INITMENUPOPUP:
    InitMenu((HMENU) wParam);
    break;

The InitMenu function is defined as follows.

void WINAPI InitMenu(HMENU hmenu) 
{ 
    int  cMenuItems = GetMenuItemCount(hmenu); 
    int  nPos; 
    UINT id; 
    UINT fuFlags; 
    PLABELBOX pbox = (hwndSelected == NULL) ? NULL : 
        (PLABELBOX) GetWindowLong(hwndSelected, 0); 
 
    for (nPos = 0; nPos < cMenuItems; nPos++) 
    { 
        id = GetMenuItemID(hmenu, nPos); 
 
        switch (id) 
        { 
            case IDM_CUT: 
            case IDM_COPY: 
            case IDM_DELETE: 
                if (pbox == NULL || !pbox->fSelected) 
                    fuFlags = MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_GRAYED; 
                else if (pbox->fEdit) 
                    fuFlags = (id != IDM_DELETE && pbox->ichSel 
                            == pbox->ichCaret) ? 
                        MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_GRAYED : 
                        MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_ENABLED; 
                else 
                    fuFlags = MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_ENABLED; 
 
                EnableMenuItem(hmenu, id, fuFlags); 
                break; 
 
            case IDM_PASTE: 
                if (pbox != NULL && pbox->fEdit) 
                    EnableMenuItem(hmenu, id, 
                        IsClipboardFormatAvailable(CF_TEXT) ? 
                            MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_ENABLED : 
                            MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_GRAYED 
                    ); 
                else 
                    EnableMenuItem(hmenu, id, 
                        IsClipboardFormatAvailable( 
                                uLabelFormat) ? 
                            MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_ENABLED : 
                            MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_GRAYED 
                    ); 
 
        } 
    } 
}

Processing the `WM_COMMAND` Message

To process menu commands, add the WM_COMMAND case to your application's main window procedure. Following is the WM_COMMAND case for the Label application's window procedure.

case WM_COMMAND: 
    switch (LOWORD(wParam)) 
    { 
        case IDM_CUT: 
            if (EditCopy()) 
                EditDelete(); 
            break; 
 
        case IDM_COPY: 
            EditCopy(); 
            break; 
 
        case IDM_PASTE: 
            EditPaste(); 
            break; 
 
        case IDM_DELETE: 
            EditDelete(); 
            break; 
 
        case IDM_EXIT: 
            DestroyWindow(hwnd); 
    } 
    break;

To carry out the Copy and Cut commands, the window procedure calls the application-defined EditCopy function. For more information, see Copying Information to the Clipboard. To carry out the Paste command, the window procedure calls the application-defined EditPaste function. For more information about the EditPaste function, see Pasting Information from the Clipboard.

Copying Information to the Clipboard

In the Label application, the application-defined EditCopy function copies the current selection to the clipboard. This function does the following:

Opens the clipboard by calling the OpenClipboard function.
Empties the clipboard by calling the EmptyClipboard function.
Calls the SetClipboardData function once for each clipboard format the application provides.
Closes the clipboard by calling the CloseClipboard function.

Depending on the current selection, the EditCopy function either copies a range of text or copies an application-defined structure representing an entire label. The structure, called LABELBOX, is defined as follows.

#define BOX_ELLIPSE  0 
#define BOX_RECT     1 
 
#define CCH_MAXLABEL 80 
#define CX_MARGIN    12 
 
typedef struct tagLABELBOX {  // box 
    RECT rcText;    // coordinates of rectangle containing text 
    BOOL fSelected; // TRUE if the label is selected 
    BOOL fEdit;     // TRUE if text is selected 
    int nType;      // rectangular or elliptical 
    int ichCaret;   // caret position 
    int ichSel;     // with ichCaret, delimits selection 
    int nXCaret;    // window position corresponding to ichCaret 
    int nXSel;      // window position corresponding to ichSel 
    int cchLabel;   // length of text in atchLabel 
    TCHAR atchLabel[CCH_MAXLABEL]; 
} LABELBOX, *PLABELBOX;

Following is the EditCopy function.

BOOL WINAPI EditCopy(VOID) 
{ 
    PLABELBOX pbox; 
    LPTSTR  lptstrCopy; 
    HGLOBAL hglbCopy; 
    int ich1, ich2, cch; 
 
    if (hwndSelected == NULL) 
        return FALSE; 
 
    // Open the clipboard, and empty it. 
 
    if (!OpenClipboard(hwndMain)) 
        return FALSE; 
    EmptyClipboard(); 
 
    // Get a pointer to the structure for the selected label. 
 
    pbox = (PLABELBOX) GetWindowLong(hwndSelected, 0); 
 
    // If text is selected, copy it using the CF_TEXT format. 
 
    if (pbox->fEdit) 
    { 
        if (pbox->ichSel == pbox->ichCaret)     // zero length
        {   
            CloseClipboard();                   // selection 
            return FALSE; 
        } 
 
        if (pbox->ichSel < pbox->ichCaret) 
        { 
            ich1 = pbox->ichSel; 
            ich2 = pbox->ichCaret; 
        } 
        else 
        { 
            ich1 = pbox->ichCaret; 
            ich2 = pbox->ichSel; 
        } 
        cch = ich2 - ich1; 
 
        // Allocate a global memory object for the text. 
 
        hglbCopy = GlobalAlloc(GMEM_MOVEABLE, 
            (cch + 1) * sizeof(TCHAR)); 
        if (hglbCopy == NULL) 
        { 
            CloseClipboard(); 
            return FALSE; 
        } 
 
        // Lock the handle and copy the text to the buffer. 
 
        lptstrCopy = GlobalLock(hglbCopy); 
        memcpy(lptstrCopy, &pbox->atchLabel[ich1], 
            cch * sizeof(TCHAR)); 
        lptstrCopy[cch] = (TCHAR) 0;    // null character 
        GlobalUnlock(hglbCopy); 
 
        // Place the handle on the clipboard. 
 
        SetClipboardData(CF_TEXT, hglbCopy); 
    } 
 
    // If no text is selected, the label as a whole is copied. 
 
    else 
    { 
        // Save a copy of the selected label as a local memory 
        // object. This copy is used to render data on request. 
        // It is freed in response to the WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD 
        // message. 
 
        pboxLocalClip = (PLABELBOX) LocalAlloc( 
            LMEM_FIXED, 
            sizeof(LABELBOX) 
        ); 
        if (pboxLocalClip == NULL) 
        { 
            CloseClipboard(); 
            return FALSE; 
        } 
        memcpy(pboxLocalClip, pbox, sizeof(LABELBOX)); 
        pboxLocalClip->fSelected = FALSE; 
        pboxLocalClip->fEdit = FALSE; 
 
        // Place a registered clipboard format, the owner-display 
        // format, and the CF_TEXT format on the clipboard using 
        // delayed rendering. 
 
        SetClipboardData(uLabelFormat, NULL); 
        SetClipboardData(CF_OWNERDISPLAY, NULL); 
        SetClipboardData(CF_TEXT, NULL); 
    } 
 
    // Close the clipboard. 
 
    CloseClipboard(); 
 
    return TRUE; 
}

Pasting Information from the Clipboard

In the Label application, the application-defined EditPaste function pastes the content of the clipboard. This function does the following:

Opens the clipboard by calling the OpenClipboard function.
Determines which of the available clipboard formats to retrieve.
Retrieves the handle to the data in the selected format by calling the GetClipboardData function.
Inserts a copy of the data into the document. The handle returned by GetClipboardData is still owned by the clipboard, so an application must not free it or leave it locked.
Closes the clipboard by calling the CloseClipboard function.

If a label is selected and contains an insertion point, the EditPaste function inserts the text from the clipboard at the insertion point. If there is no selection or if a label is selected, the function creates a new label, using the application-defined LABELBOX structure on the clipboard. The LABELBOX structure is placed on the clipboard by using a registered clipboard format.

The structure, called LABELBOX, is defined as follows.

#define BOX_ELLIPSE  0 
#define BOX_RECT     1 
 
#define CCH_MAXLABEL 80 
#define CX_MARGIN    12 
 
typedef struct tagLABELBOX {  // box 
    RECT rcText;    // coordinates of rectangle containing text 
    BOOL fSelected; // TRUE if the label is selected 
    BOOL fEdit;     // TRUE if text is selected 
    int nType;      // rectangular or elliptical 
    int ichCaret;   // caret position 
    int ichSel;     // with ichCaret, delimits selection 
    int nXCaret;    // window position corresponding to ichCaret 
    int nXSel;      // window position corresponding to ichSel 
    int cchLabel;   // length of text in atchLabel 
    TCHAR atchLabel[CCH_MAXLABEL]; 
} LABELBOX, *PLABELBOX;

Following is the EditPaste function.

VOID WINAPI EditPaste(VOID) 
{ 
    PLABELBOX pbox; 
    HGLOBAL   hglb; 
    LPTSTR    lptstr; 
    PLABELBOX pboxCopy; 
    int cx, cy; 
    HWND hwnd; 
 
    pbox = hwndSelected == NULL ? NULL : 
        (PLABELBOX) GetWindowLong(hwndSelected, 0); 
 
    // If the application is in edit mode, 
    // get the clipboard text. 
 
    if (pbox != NULL && pbox->fEdit) 
    { 
        if (!IsClipboardFormatAvailable(CF_TEXT)) 
            return; 
        if (!OpenClipboard(hwndMain)) 
            return; 
 
        hglb = GetClipboardData(CF_TEXT); 
        if (hglb != NULL) 
        { 
            lptstr = GlobalLock(hglb); 
            if (lptstr != NULL) 
            { 
                // Call the application-defined ReplaceSelection 
                // function to insert the text and repaint the 
                // window. 
 
                ReplaceSelection(hwndSelected, pbox, lptstr); 
                GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
            } 
        } 
        CloseClipboard(); 
 
        return; 
    } 
 
    // If the application is not in edit mode, 
    // create a label window. 
 
    if (!IsClipboardFormatAvailable(uLabelFormat)) 
        return; 
    if (!OpenClipboard(hwndMain)) 
        return; 
 
    hglb = GetClipboardData(uLabelFormat); 
    if (hglb != NULL) 
    { 
        pboxCopy = GlobalLock(hglb); 
        if (pboxCopy != NULL) 
        { 
            cx = pboxCopy->rcText.right + CX_MARGIN; 
            cy = pboxCopy->rcText.top * 2 + cyText; 
 
            hwnd = CreateWindowEx( 
                WS_EX_NOPARENTNOTIFY | WS_EX_TRANSPARENT, 
                atchClassChild, NULL, WS_CHILD, 0, 0, cx, cy, 
                hwndMain, NULL, hinst, NULL 
            ); 
            if (hwnd != NULL) 
            { 
                pbox = (PLABELBOX) GetWindowLong(hwnd, 0); 
                memcpy(pbox, pboxCopy, sizeof(LABELBOX)); 
                ShowWindow(hwnd, SW_SHOWNORMAL); 
                SetFocus(hwnd); 
            } 
            GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
        } 
    } 
    CloseClipboard(); 
}

Registering a Clipboard Format

To register a clipboard format, add a call to the RegisterClipboardFormat function to your application's instance initialization function, as follows.

// Register a clipboard format. 
 
// We assume that atchTemp can contain the format name and
// a null-terminator, otherwise it is truncated.
//
LoadString(hinstCurrent, IDS_FORMATNAME, atchTemp, 
    sizeof(atchTemp)/sizeof(TCHAR)); 
uLabelFormat = RegisterClipboardFormat(atchTemp); 
if (uLabelFormat == 0) 
    return FALSE;

Processing the `WM_RENDERFORMAT` and `WM_RENDERALLFORMATS` Messages

If a window passes a NULL handle to the SetClipboardData function, it must process the WM_RENDERFORMAT and WM_RENDERALLFORMATS messages to render data upon request.

If a window delays rendering a specific format and then another application requests data in that format, then a WM_RENDERFORMAT message is sent to the window. In addition, if a window delays rendering one or more formats, and if some of those formats remain unrendered when the window is about to be destroyed, then a WM_RENDERALLFORMATS message is sent to the window before its destruction.

To render a clipboard format, the window procedure should place a non-NULL data handle on the clipboard using the SetClipboardData function. If the window procedure is rendering a format in response to the WM_RENDERFORMAT message, it must not open the clipboard before calling SetClipboardData. But if it is rendering one or more formats in response to the WM_RENDERALLFORMATS message, it must open the clipboard and check that the window still owns the clipboard before calling SetClipboardData, and it must close the clipboard before returning.

The Label application processes the WM_RENDERFORMAT and WM_RENDERALLFORMATS messages as follows.

case WM_RENDERFORMAT: 
    RenderFormat((UINT) wParam); 
    break; 
 
case WM_RENDERALLFORMATS:
    if (OpenClipboard(hwnd))
    {
        if (GetClipboardOwner() == hwnd)
        {
            RenderFormat(uLabelFormat);
            RenderFormat(CF_TEXT);
        }
        CloseClipboard();
    }
    break;

In both cases, the window procedure calls the application-defined RenderFormat function, defined as follows.

The structure, called LABELBOX, is defined as follows.

#define BOX_ELLIPSE  0 
#define BOX_RECT     1 
 
#define CCH_MAXLABEL 80 
#define CX_MARGIN    12 
 
typedef struct tagLABELBOX {  // box 
    RECT rcText;    // coordinates of rectangle containing text 
    BOOL fSelected; // TRUE if the label is selected 
    BOOL fEdit;     // TRUE if text is selected 
    int nType;      // rectangular or elliptical 
    int ichCaret;   // caret position 
    int ichSel;     // with ichCaret, delimits selection 
    int nXCaret;    // window position corresponding to ichCaret 
    int nXSel;      // window position corresponding to ichSel 
    int cchLabel;   // length of text in atchLabel 
    TCHAR atchLabel[CCH_MAXLABEL]; 
} LABELBOX, *PLABELBOX;

void WINAPI RenderFormat(UINT uFormat) 
{ 
    HGLOBAL hglb; 
    PLABELBOX pbox; 
    LPTSTR  lptstr; 
    int cch; 
 
    if (pboxLocalClip == NULL) 
        return; 
 
    if (uFormat == CF_TEXT) 
    { 
        // Allocate a buffer for the text. 
 
        cch = pboxLocalClip->cchLabel; 
        hglb = GlobalAlloc(GMEM_MOVEABLE, 
            (cch + 1) * sizeof(TCHAR)); 
        if (hglb == NULL) 
            return; 
 
        // Copy the text from pboxLocalClip. 
 
        lptstr = GlobalLock(hglb); 
        memcpy(lptstr, pboxLocalClip->atchLabel, 
            cch * sizeof(TCHAR)); 
        lptstr[cch] = (TCHAR) 0; 
        GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
 
        // Place the handle on the clipboard. 
 
        SetClipboardData(CF_TEXT, hglb); 
    } 
    else if (uFormat == uLabelFormat) 
    { 
        hglb = GlobalAlloc(GMEM_MOVEABLE, sizeof(LABELBOX)); 
        if (hglb == NULL) 
            return; 
        pbox = GlobalLock(hglb); 
        memcpy(pbox, pboxLocalClip, sizeof(LABELBOX)); 
        GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
 
        SetClipboardData(uLabelFormat, hglb); 
    } 
}

Processing the `WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD` Message

A window can process the WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD message in order to free any resources that it set aside to support delayed rendering. For example the Label application, when copying a label to the clipboard, allocates a local memory object. It then frees this object in response to the WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD message, as follows.

case WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD: 
    if (pboxLocalClip != NULL) 
    { 
        LocalFree(pboxLocalClip); 
        pboxLocalClip = NULL; 
    } 
    break;

Using the Owner-Display Clipboard Format

If a window places information on the clipboard by using the CF_OWNERDISPLAY clipboard format, it must do the following:

Process the WM_PAINTCLIPBOARD message. This message is sent to the clipboard owner when a portion of the clipboard viewer window must be repainted.
Process the WM_SIZECLIPBOARD message. This message is sent to the clipboard owner when the clipboard viewer window has been resized or its content has changed. Typically, a window responds to this message by setting the scroll positions and ranges for the clipboard viewer window. In response to this message, the Label application also updates a SIZE structure for the clipboard viewer window.
Process the WM_HSCROLLCLIPBOARD and WM_VSCROLLCLIPBOARD messages. These messages are sent to the clipboard owner when a scroll bar event occurs in the clipboard viewer window.
Process the WM_ASKCBFORMATNAME message. The clipboard viewer window sends this message to an application to retrieve the name of the owner-display format.

The window procedure for the Label application processes these messages, as follows.

LRESULT CALLBACK MainWindowProc(hwnd, msg, wParam, lParam) 
HWND hwnd; 
UINT msg; 
WPARAM wParam; 
LPARAM lParam; 
{ 
    static RECT rcViewer; 
 
    RECT rc; 
    LPRECT lprc; 
    LPPAINTSTRUCT lpps; 
 
    switch (msg) 
    { 
        //
        // Handle other messages.
        //
        case WM_PAINTCLIPBOARD: 
            // Determine the dimensions of the label. 
 
            SetRect(&rc, 0, 0, 
                pboxLocalClip->rcText.right + CX_MARGIN, 
                pboxLocalClip->rcText.top * 2 + cyText 
            ); 
 
            // Center the image in the clipboard viewer window. 
 
            if (rc.right < rcViewer.right) 
            { 
                rc.left = (rcViewer.right - rc.right) / 2; 
                rc.right += rc.left; 
            } 
            if (rc.bottom < rcViewer.bottom) 
            { 
                rc.top = (rcViewer.bottom - rc.bottom) / 2; 
                rc.bottom += rc.top; 
            } 
 
            // Paint the image, using the specified PAINTSTRUCT 
            // structure, by calling the application-defined 
            // PaintLabel function. 
 
            lpps = (LPPAINTSTRUCT) GlobalLock((HGLOBAL) lParam); 
            PaintLabel(lpps, pboxLocalClip, &rc); 
            GlobalUnlock((HGLOBAL) lParam); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_SIZECLIPBOARD: 
            // Save the dimensions of the window in a static 
            // RECT structure. 
 
            lprc = (LPRECT) GlobalLock((HGLOBAL) lParam); 
            memcpy(&rcViewer, lprc, sizeof(RECT)); 
            GlobalUnlock((HGLOBAL) lParam); 
 
            // Set the scroll ranges to zero (thus eliminating 
            // the need to process the WM_HSCROLLCLIPBOARD and 
            // WM_VSCROLLCLIPBOARD messages). 
 
            SetScrollRange((HWND) wParam, SB_HORZ, 0, 0, TRUE); 
            SetScrollRange((HWND) wParam, SB_VERT, 0, 0, TRUE); 
 
            break; 
 
        case WM_ASKCBFORMATNAME: 
            LoadString(hinst, IDS_OWNERDISPLAY, 
                (LPSTR) lParam, wParam); 
            break; 
 
        default: 
            return DefWindowProc(hwnd, msg, wParam, lParam); 
    } 
    return 0; 
}

Monitoring Clipboard Contents

There are three ways of monitoring changes to the clipboard. The oldest method is to create a clipboard viewer window. Windows 2000 added the ability to query the clipboard sequence number, and Windows Vista added support for clipboard format listeners. Clipboard viewer windows are supported for backward compatibility with earlier versions of Windows. New programs should use clipboard format listeners or the clipboard sequence number.

Querying the Clipboard Sequence Number

Each time the contents of the clipboard change, a 32-bit value known as the clipboard sequence number is incremented. A program can retrieve the current clipboard sequence number by calling the GetClipboardSequenceNumber function. By comparing the value returned against a value returned by a previous call to GetClipboardSequenceNumber, a program can determine whether the clipboard contents have changed. This method is more suitable to programs which cache results based on the current clipboard contents and need to know whether the calculations are still valid before using the results from that cache. Note that this is a not a notification method and should not be used in a polling loop. To be notified when clipboard contents change, use a clipboard format listener or a clipboard viewer.

Creating a Clipboard Format Listener

A clipboard format listener is a window which has registered to be notified when the contents of the clipboard has changed. This method is recommended over creating a clipboard viewer window because it is simpler to implement and avoids problems if programs fail to maintain the clipboard viewer chain properly or if a window in the clipboard viewer chain stops responding to messages.

A window registers as a clipboard format listener by calling the AddClipboardFormatListener function. When the contents of the clipboard change, the window is posted a WM_CLIPBOARDUPDATE message. The registration remains valid until the window unregister itself by calling the RemoveClipboardFormatListener function.

Creating a Clipboard Viewer Window

A clipboard viewer window displays the current content of the clipboard, and receives messages when the clipboard content changes. To create a clipboard viewer window, your application must do the following:

Add the window to the clipboard viewer chain.
Process the WM_CHANGECBCHAIN message.
Process the WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD message.
Remove the window from the clipboard viewer chain before it is destroyed.

Adding a Window to the Clipboard Viewer Chain

A window adds itself to the clipboard viewer chain by calling the SetClipboardViewer function. The return value is the handle to the next window in the chain. A window must keep track of this value — for example, by saving it in a static variable named hwndNextViewer.

The following example adds a window to the clipboard viewer chain in response to the WM_CREATE message.

case WM_CREATE: 
 
    // Add the window to the clipboard viewer chain. 
 
    hwndNextViewer = SetClipboardViewer(hwnd); 
    break;

Code snippets are shown for the following tasks:

Processing the `WM_CHANGECBCHAIN` Message

A clipboard viewer window receives the WM_CHANGECBCHAIN message when another window is removing itself from the clipboard viewer chain. If the window being removed is the next window in the chain, the window receiving the message must unlink the next window from the chain. Otherwise, this message should be passed to the next window in the chain.

The following example shows the processing of the WM_CHANGECBCHAIN message.

case WM_CHANGECBCHAIN: 
 
    // If the next window is closing, repair the chain. 
 
    if ((HWND) wParam == hwndNextViewer) 
        hwndNextViewer = (HWND) lParam; 
 
    // Otherwise, pass the message to the next link. 
 
    else if (hwndNextViewer != NULL) 
        SendMessage(hwndNextViewer, uMsg, wParam, lParam); 
 
    break;

Removing a Window from the Clipboard Viewer Chain

To remove itself from the clipboard viewer chain, a window calls the ChangeClipboardChain function. The following example removes a window from the clipboard viewer chain in response to the WM_DESTROY message.

case WM_DESTROY: 
    ChangeClipboardChain(hwnd, hwndNextViewer); 
    PostQuitMessage(0); 
    break;

Processing the `WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD` Message

The WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD message notifies a clipboard viewer window that the content of the clipboard has changed. A window should do the following when processing the WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD message:

Determine which of the available clipboard formats to display.
Retrieve the clipboard data and display it in the window. Or if the clipboard format is CF_OWNERDISPLAY, send a WM_PAINTCLIPBOARD message to the clipboard owner.
Send the message to the next window in the clipboard viewer chain.

For an example of processing the WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD message, see the example listing in Example of a Clipboard Viewer.

Example of a Clipboard Viewer

The following example shows a simple clipboard viewer application.

HINSTANCE hinst; 
UINT uFormat = (UINT)(-1); 
BOOL fAuto = TRUE; 
 
LRESULT APIENTRY MainWndProc(hwnd, uMsg, wParam, lParam) 
HWND hwnd; 
UINT uMsg; 
WPARAM wParam; 
LPARAM lParam; 
{ 
    static HWND hwndNextViewer; 
 
    HDC hdc; 
    HDC hdcMem; 
    PAINTSTRUCT ps; 
    LPPAINTSTRUCT lpps; 
    RECT rc; 
    LPRECT lprc; 
    HGLOBAL hglb; 
    LPSTR lpstr; 
    HBITMAP hbm; 
    HENHMETAFILE hemf; 
    HWND hwndOwner; 
 
    switch (uMsg) 
    { 
        case WM_PAINT: 
            hdc = BeginPaint(hwnd, &ps); 
 
            // Branch depending on the clipboard format. 
 
            switch (uFormat) 
            { 
                case CF_OWNERDISPLAY: 
                    hwndOwner = GetClipboardOwner(); 
                    hglb = GlobalAlloc(GMEM_MOVEABLE, 
                        sizeof(PAINTSTRUCT)); 
                    lpps = GlobalLock(hglb);
                    memcpy(lpps, &ps, sizeof(PAINTSTRUCT)); 
                    GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
 
                    SendMessage(hwndOwner, WM_PAINTCLIPBOARD, 
                        (WPARAM) hwnd, (LPARAM) hglb); 
 
                    GlobalFree(hglb); 
                    break; 
 
                case CF_BITMAP: 
                    hdcMem = CreateCompatibleDC(hdc); 
                    if (hdcMem != NULL) 
                    { 
                        if (OpenClipboard(hwnd)) 
                        { 
                            hbm = (HBITMAP) 
                                GetClipboardData(uFormat); 
                            SelectObject(hdcMem, hbm); 
                            GetClientRect(hwnd, &rc); 
 
                            BitBlt(hdc, 0, 0, rc.right, rc.bottom, 
                                hdcMem, 0, 0, SRCCOPY); 
                            CloseClipboard(); 
                        } 
                        DeleteDC(hdcMem); 
                    } 
                    break; 
 
                case CF_TEXT: 
                    if (OpenClipboard(hwnd)) 
                    { 
                        hglb = GetClipboardData(uFormat); 
                        lpstr = GlobalLock(hglb); 
 
                        GetClientRect(hwnd, &rc); 
                        DrawText(hdc, lpstr, -1, &rc, DT_LEFT); 
 
                        GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
                        CloseClipboard(); 
                    } 
                    break; 
 
                case CF_ENHMETAFILE: 
                    if (OpenClipboard(hwnd)) 
                    { 
                        hemf = GetClipboardData(uFormat); 
                        GetClientRect(hwnd, &rc); 
                        PlayEnhMetaFile(hdc, hemf, &rc); 
                        CloseClipboard(); 
                    } 
                    break; 
 
                case 0: 
                    GetClientRect(hwnd, &rc); 
                    DrawText(hdc, "The clipboard is empty.", -1, 
                        &rc, DT_CENTER | DT_SINGLELINE | 
                        DT_VCENTER); 
                    break; 
 
                default: 
                    GetClientRect(hwnd, &rc); 
                    DrawText(hdc, "Unable to display format.", -1, 
                        &rc, DT_CENTER | DT_SINGLELINE | 
                        DT_VCENTER); 
            } 
            EndPaint(hwnd, &ps); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_SIZE: 
            if (uFormat == CF_OWNERDISPLAY) 
            { 
                hwndOwner = GetClipboardOwner(); 
                hglb = GlobalAlloc(GMEM_MOVEABLE, sizeof(RECT)); 
                lprc = GlobalLock(hglb); 
                GetClientRect(hwnd, lprc); 
                GlobalUnlock(hglb); 
 
                SendMessage(hwndOwner, WM_SIZECLIPBOARD, 
                    (WPARAM) hwnd, (LPARAM) hglb); 
 
                GlobalFree(hglb); 
            } 
            break; 
 
        case WM_CREATE: 
 
            // Add the window to the clipboard viewer chain. 
 
            hwndNextViewer = SetClipboardViewer(hwnd); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_CHANGECBCHAIN: 
 
            // If the next window is closing, repair the chain. 
 
            if ((HWND) wParam == hwndNextViewer) 
                hwndNextViewer = (HWND) lParam; 
 
            // Otherwise, pass the message to the next link. 
 
            else if (hwndNextViewer != NULL) 
                SendMessage(hwndNextViewer, uMsg, wParam, lParam); 
 
            break; 
 
        case WM_DESTROY: 
            ChangeClipboardChain(hwnd, hwndNextViewer); 
            PostQuitMessage(0); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD:  // clipboard contents changed. 
 
            // Update the window by using Auto clipboard format. 
 
            SetAutoView(hwnd); 
 
            // Pass the message to the next window in clipboard 
            // viewer chain. 
 
            SendMessage(hwndNextViewer, uMsg, wParam, lParam); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_INITMENUPOPUP: 
            if (!HIWORD(lParam)) 
                InitMenu(hwnd, (HMENU) wParam); 
            break; 
 
        case WM_COMMAND: 
            switch (LOWORD(wParam)) 
            { 
                case IDM_EXIT: 
                    DestroyWindow(hwnd); 
                    break; 
 
                case IDM_AUTO: 
                    SetAutoView(hwnd); 
                    break; 
 
                default: 
                    fAuto = FALSE; 
                    uFormat = LOWORD(wParam); 
                    InvalidateRect(hwnd, NULL, TRUE); 
            } 
            break; 
 
        default: 
            return DefWindowProc(hwnd, uMsg, wParam, lParam); 
    } 
    return (LRESULT) NULL; 
} 
 
void WINAPI SetAutoView(HWND hwnd) 
{ 
    static UINT auPriorityList[] = { 
        CF_OWNERDISPLAY, 
        CF_TEXT, 
        CF_ENHMETAFILE, 
        CF_BITMAP 
    }; 
 
    uFormat = GetPriorityClipboardFormat(auPriorityList, 4); 
    fAuto = TRUE; 
 
    InvalidateRect(hwnd, NULL, TRUE); 
    UpdateWindow(hwnd); 
} 
 
void WINAPI InitMenu(HWND hwnd, HMENU hmenu) 
{ 
    UINT uFormat; 
    char szFormatName[80]; 
    LPCSTR lpFormatName; 
    UINT fuFlags; 
    UINT idMenuItem; 
 
    // If a menu is not the display menu, no initialization is necessary. 
 
    if (GetMenuItemID(hmenu, 0) != IDM_AUTO) 
        return; 
 
    // Delete all menu items except the first. 
 
    while (GetMenuItemCount(hmenu) > 1) 
        DeleteMenu(hmenu, 1, MF_BYPOSITION); 
 
    // Check or uncheck the Auto menu item. 
 
    fuFlags = fAuto ? MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_CHECKED : 
        MF_BYCOMMAND | MF_UNCHECKED; 
    CheckMenuItem(hmenu, IDM_AUTO, fuFlags); 
 
    // If there are no clipboard formats, return. 
 
    if (CountClipboardFormats() == 0) 
        return; 
 
    // Open the clipboard. 
 
    if (!OpenClipboard(hwnd)) 
        return; 
 
    // Add a separator and then a menu item for each format. 
 
    AppendMenu(hmenu, MF_SEPARATOR, 0, NULL); 
    uFormat = EnumClipboardFormats(0); 
 
    while (uFormat) 
    { 
        // Call an application-defined function to get the name 
        // of the clipboard format. 
 
        lpFormatName = GetPredefinedClipboardFormatName(uFormat); 
 
        // For registered formats, get the registered name. 
 
        if (lpFormatName == NULL) 
        {

        // Note that, if the format name is larger than the
        // buffer, it is truncated. 
            if (GetClipboardFormatName(uFormat, szFormatName, 
                    sizeof(szFormatName))) 
                lpFormatName = szFormatName; 
            else 
                lpFormatName = "(unknown)"; 
        } 
 
        // Add a menu item for the format. For displayable 
        // formats, use the format ID for the menu ID. 
 
        if (IsDisplayableFormat(uFormat)) 
        { 
            fuFlags = MF_STRING; 
            idMenuItem = uFormat; 
        } 
        else 
        { 
            fuFlags = MF_STRING | MF_GRAYED; 
            idMenuItem = 0; 
        } 
        AppendMenu(hmenu, fuFlags, idMenuItem, lpFormatName); 
 
        uFormat = EnumClipboardFormats(uFormat); 
    } 
    CloseClipboard(); 
 
} 
 
BOOL WINAPI IsDisplayableFormat(UINT uFormat) 
{ 
    switch (uFormat) 
    { 
        case CF_OWNERDISPLAY: 
        case CF_TEXT: 
        case CF_ENHMETAFILE: 
        case CF_BITMAP: 
            return TRUE; 
    } 
    return FALSE; 
}

Using the Clipboard

Implementing the Cut, Copy, and Paste Commands

Selecting Data

Creating an Edit Menu

Processing the `WM_INITMENUPOPUP` Message

Processing the `WM_COMMAND` Message

Copying Information to the Clipboard

Pasting Information from the Clipboard

Registering a Clipboard Format

Processing the `WM_RENDERFORMAT` and `WM_RENDERALLFORMATS` Messages

Processing the `WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD` Message

Using the Owner-Display Clipboard Format

Monitoring Clipboard Contents

Querying the Clipboard Sequence Number

Creating a Clipboard Format Listener

Creating a Clipboard Viewer Window

Adding a Window to the Clipboard Viewer Chain

Processing the `WM_CHANGECBCHAIN` Message

Removing a Window from the Clipboard Viewer Chain

Processing the `WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD` Message

Example of a Clipboard Viewer

Feedback

Feedback

Additional resources

Using the Clipboard

Implementing the Cut, Copy, and Paste Commands

Selecting Data

Creating an Edit Menu

Processing the WM_INITMENUPOPUP Message

Processing the WM_COMMAND Message

Copying Information to the Clipboard

Pasting Information from the Clipboard

Registering a Clipboard Format

Processing the WM_RENDERFORMAT and WM_RENDERALLFORMATS Messages

Processing the WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD Message

Using the Owner-Display Clipboard Format

Monitoring Clipboard Contents

Querying the Clipboard Sequence Number

Creating a Clipboard Format Listener

Creating a Clipboard Viewer Window

Adding a Window to the Clipboard Viewer Chain

Processing the WM_CHANGECBCHAIN Message

Removing a Window from the Clipboard Viewer Chain

Processing the WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD Message

Example of a Clipboard Viewer

Feedback

Feedback

Additional resources

Processing the `WM_INITMENUPOPUP` Message

Processing the `WM_COMMAND` Message

Processing the `WM_RENDERFORMAT` and `WM_RENDERALLFORMATS` Messages

Processing the `WM_DESTROYCLIPBOARD` Message

Processing the `WM_CHANGECBCHAIN` Message

Processing the `WM_DRAWCLIPBOARD` Message