How do I dynamically create check boxes from an array using the form?

Question

I would like to use the code to dynamically create check boxes based on an array or object I pass to the function. Can you revise this function to take an array? I have a script

Answer 1

To do this, first we need to add a param block to the function to accept the input:

function GenerateForm {
    param(
        [string[]]$CheckBoxLabels
    )
   # Rest of code goes here ...
}

Then, remove all existing references to $checkBox1 through 3, and let's start building those based on the parameter instead:

# Keep track of number of checkboxes
$CheckBoxCounter = 1

# When we create a new textbox, we add it to an array for easy reference later
$CheckBoxes = foreach($Label in $CheckBoxLabels) {
    $CheckBox = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.CheckBox        
    $CheckBox.UseVisualStyleBackColor = $True
    $System_Drawing_Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size
    $System_Drawing_Size.Width = 104
    $System_Drawing_Size.Height = 24
    $CheckBox.Size = $System_Drawing_Size
    $CheckBox.TabIndex = 2

    # Assign text based on the input
    $CheckBox.Text = $Label

    $System_Drawing_Point = New-Object System.Drawing.Point
    $System_Drawing_Point.X = 27
    # Make sure to vertically space them dynamically, counter comes in handy
    $System_Drawing_Point.Y = 13 + (($CheckBoxCounter - 1) * 31)
    $CheckBox.Location = $System_Drawing_Point
    $CheckBox.DataBindings.DefaultDataSourceUpdateMode = 0

    # Give it a unique name based on our counter
    $CheckBox.Name = "CheckBox$CheckBoxCounter"

    # Add it to the form
    $form1.Controls.Add($CheckBox)
    # return object ref to array
    $CheckBox
    # increment our counter
    $CheckBoxCounter++
}

Now, all we need to do is change the Click event handler to loop over the array instead of referencing individual checkboxes:

$handler_button1_Click= 
{
    $listBox1.Items.Clear();

    # Keep track of whether something has been added to the list
    $ContentPresent = $false
    # Iterate over the checkboxes, one by one
    foreach($CheckBox in $CheckBoxes){
        if($CheckBox.Checked){
            $listBox1.Items.Add("{0} (with value ""{1}"") has been checked" -f ($CheckBox.Name,$CheckBox.Text))
            $ContentPresent = $True
        }
    }

    # If something was already added to the list, no need to show default message
    if (-not $ContentPresent) { $listBox1.Items.Add("No CheckBox selected....") } 
}

With Computer names:

With Animal names:

You could sand the edges further by setting the location and size of other controls based on the number of checkboxes you have