StatusBar.md

StatusBar Class

Overview

The StatusBar class provides access to AutoCAD's status bar for displaying messages and progress indicators.

Namespace

Autodesk.AutoCAD.ApplicationServices

Inheritance Hierarchy

System.Object
  └─ StatusBar

Key Methods

Method	Return Type	Description
SetMessageString(string)	void	Sets the status bar message
SetProgressMeter(string)	void	Sets progress meter text
SetProgressMeterLimit(int)	void	Sets progress meter maximum value
SetProgressMeterPos(int)	void	Sets progress meter position
ShowProgressMeter()	void	Shows the progress meter
HideProgressMeter()	void	Hides the progress meter

Code Examples

Example 1: Simple Status Message

using Autodesk.AutoCAD.ApplicationServices;

StatusBar statusBar = Application.StatusBar;

statusBar.SetMessageString("Processing data...");

// Do work
System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(2000);

statusBar.SetMessageString("Complete!");

Example 2: Progress Meter

using Autodesk.AutoCAD.ApplicationServices;

StatusBar statusBar = Application.StatusBar;

// Set up progress meter
statusBar.SetProgressMeterLimit(100);
statusBar.ShowProgressMeter();

for (int i = 0; i <= 100; i++)
{
    statusBar.SetProgressMeterPos(i);
    statusBar.SetMessageString($"Processing: {i}%");
    
    // Do work
    System.Threading.Thread.Sleep(50);
}

statusBar.HideProgressMeter();
statusBar.SetMessageString("Processing complete!");

Example 3: Progress with Custom Range

using Autodesk.AutoCAD.ApplicationServices;

StatusBar statusBar = Application.StatusBar;

int totalItems = 250;
statusBar.SetProgressMeterLimit(totalItems);
statusBar.ShowProgressMeter();

for (int i = 0; i < totalItems; i++)
{
    statusBar.SetProgressMeterPos(i);
    statusBar.SetMessageString($"Processing item {i + 1} of {totalItems}");
    
    // Process item
}

statusBar.HideProgressMeter();
statusBar.SetMessageString($"Processed {totalItems} items");

Example 4: Progress with Try-Finally

using Autodesk.AutoCAD.ApplicationServices;

StatusBar statusBar = Application.StatusBar;

try
{
    statusBar.SetProgressMeterLimit(100);
    statusBar.ShowProgressMeter();
    
    for (int i = 0; i <= 100; i++)
    {
        statusBar.SetProgressMeterPos(i);
        
        // Do work that might throw exception
        
        if (i == 50)
        {
            // Simulate error
            throw new System.Exception("Error at 50%");
        }
    }
}
catch (System.Exception ex)
{
    statusBar.SetMessageString($"Error: {ex.Message}");
}
finally
{
    // Always hide progress meter
    statusBar.HideProgressMeter();
}

Best Practices

1. Always Hide Progress Meter: Use try-finally to ensure progress meter is hidden even if an error occurs
2. Update Frequency: Don't update too frequently (causes flickering), update every 1-5% is usually sufficient
3. Clear Messages: Set a final message when operation completes
4. User Feedback: Provide meaningful messages that describe what's happening

Related Objects

• Application - Provides access to StatusBar

References

• Autodesk Official Documentation