How can I find WPF controls by name or type?

Question

I need to search a WPF control hierarchy for controls that match a given name or type. How can I do this?

Answer 1

This will dismiss some elements - you should extend it like this in order to support a wider array of controls. For a brief discussion, have a look here

 /// 

 /// Helper methods for UI-related tasks.
 /// 
 public static class UIHelper
 {
   /// 

   /// Finds a parent of a given item on the visual tree.
   /// 
   /// The type of the queried item.
   /// A direct or indirect child of the
   /// queried item.
   /// The first parent item that matches the submitted
   /// type parameter. If not matching item can be found, a null
   /// reference is being returned.
   public static T TryFindParent(DependencyObject child)
     where T : DependencyObject
   {
     //get parent item
     DependencyObject parentObject = GetParentObject(child);

     //we've reached the end of the tree
     if (parentObject == null) return null;

     //check if the parent matches the type we're looking for
     T parent = parentObject as T;
     if (parent != null)
     {
       return parent;
     }
     else
     {
       //use recursion to proceed with next level
       return TryFindParent(parentObject);
     }
   }

   /// 

   /// This method is an alternative to WPF's
   ///  method, which also
   /// supports content elements. Do note, that for content element,
   /// this method falls back to the logical tree of the element!
   /// 
   /// The item to be processed.
   /// The submitted item's parent, if available. Otherwise
   /// null.
   public static DependencyObject GetParentObject(DependencyObject child)
   {
     if (child == null) return null;
     ContentElement contentElement = child as ContentElement;

     if (contentElement != null)
     {
       DependencyObject parent = ContentOperations.GetParent(contentElement);
       if (parent != null) return parent;

       FrameworkContentElement fce = contentElement as FrameworkContentElement;
       return fce != null ? fce.Parent : null;
     }

     //if it's not a ContentElement, rely on VisualTreeHelper
     return VisualTreeHelper.GetParent(child);
   }
}