NsDialogs FAQ

How to Enable/Disable a control

Use the standard NSIS EnableWindow command.

NSDialogs lets you pop the hwnd of a control created via ${NSD_Create*}. EnableWindow takes a hwnd as one of its parameters. With this, you can easily enable/disable a control.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
var button
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
	Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateCheckbox} 0 0 50% 6% "Enable button below"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd EnDisableButton
 
	${NSD_CreateButton} 25% 25% 50% 50% "Hello World"
		Pop $button
		EnableWindow $button 0 # start out disabled
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function EnDisableButton
	Pop $hwnd
	${NSD_GetState} $hwnd $0
	${If} $0 == 1
		EnableWindow $button 1
	${Else}
		EnableWindow $button 0
	${EndIf}
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

How to Show/Hide a control

Use the standard NSIS ShowWindow command.

NSDialogs lets you pop the hwnd of a control created via ${NSD_Create*}. ShowWindow takes a hwnd as one of its parameters. With this, you can easily show/hide a control.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
var button
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateCheckbox} 0 0 50% 6% "Show button below"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd EnDisableButton
 
	${NSD_CreateButton} 25% 25% 50% 50% "Hello World"
		Pop $button
		ShowWindow $button ${SW_HIDE} # start out hidden
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function EnDisableButton
	Pop $hwnd
	${NSD_GetState} $hwnd $0
	${If} $0 == 1
		ShowWindow $button ${SW_SHOW}
	${Else}
		ShowWindow $button ${SW_HIDE}
	${EndIf}
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

How to create a multi-line edit (text) control

Although multi-line is a Style of a control, for Edit (Text) controls it is one of few styles that cannot be set once the control has already been created - so you can't use ${NSD_AddStyle}.

Instead, you will have to create the control manually:

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateText} 0 0 100% 40% "This is NOT a$\r$\nmulti-line$\r$\nedit control"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	nsDialogs::CreateControl EDIT \
		"${__NSD_Text_STYLE}|${WS_VSCROLL}|${ES_MULTILINE}|${ES_WANTRETURN}" \
		"${__NSD_Text_EXSTYLE}" \
		0 50% 100% 40% \
		"This IS a$\r$\nmulti-line$\r$\nedit control"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

Or, much cleaner, using the NsDialogs_CreateTextMultiline header:

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "nsDialogs_createTextMultiline.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateText} 0 0 100% 40% "This is NOT a$\r$\nmulti-line$\r$\nedit control"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	${NSD_CreateTextMultiline} 0 50% 100% 40% "This IS a$\r$\nmulti-line$\r$\nedit control"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

How to create a Text Password control

See the nsDialogs documentation - a Password control is one of the controls supported by default; ${NSD_CreatePassword}

How to create a Numbers-only Text control

See the nsDialogs documentation - a Password control is one of the controls supported by default; ${NSD_CreateNumber}

How to create a Read-only Text control

The read-only state of a Text control can be set using SendMessage with the EM_SETREADONLY flag.

Note that a read-only Edit (Text) control is not the same as a disabled Text control. A disabled Text control will display its text grayed out, a read-only Text control remains black on a light grey background. In addition, a disabled multi-line Text control cannot be scrolled. A read-only multi-line Text control, on the other, can be scrolled.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
var textControl
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateCheckBox} 0 0 50% 6% "Set text field below read-only"
	    Pop $hwnd
	    ${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd SetReadonly
	${NSD_CreateText} 0 12% 100% 8% "Hello World"
		Pop $textControl
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function SetReadonly
	Pop $hwnd
	${NSD_GetState} $hwnd $0
	SendMessage $textControl ${EM_SETREADONLY} $0 0
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

How to create two groups of RadioButtons

Use ${NSD_AddStyle} to add the WS_GROUP style to the first radiobutton of each group. In Windows' UI handling, all radiobuttons are considered to be part of the same group if no group starter is defined.

Therefore, to have two radiobutton groups of two radiobuttons each, you must specify a group starter for each, otherwise the third and fourth radiobuttons will be considered part of the first group.

Setting a group starter is easy using ${NSD_AddStyle}, use:

${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP} # WS_GROUP is defined in winmessages.nsh
</higlight-nsis>
 
example:
<highlight-nsis>
!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 0 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 1"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP}
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 12% 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 2"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 50% 0 40% 6% "Group 2, Radio 1"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP}
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 50% 12% 40% 6% "Group 2, Radio 2"
		Pop $hwnd
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

How to easily handle radiobutton selections

Often you do not want to specify separate OnClick functions for each radiobutton...

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 0 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 1"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP}
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd Group1Radio1Click
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 12% 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 2"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd Group1Radio2Click
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function Group1Radio1Click
	Pop $hwnd
	MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio1"
FunctionEnd
Function Group1Radio2Click
	Pop $hwnd
	MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio2"
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

But the only obvious alternative seems to be to place each in a different variable and comparing the hwnd on the stack when the callback function is called to that variable.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
var Group1Radio1
var Group1Radio2
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 0 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 1"
		Pop $Group1Radio1
		${NSD_AddStyle} $Group1Radio1 ${WS_GROUP}
		${NSD_OnClick} $Group1Radio1 RadioClick
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 12% 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 2"
		Pop $Group1Radio2
		${NSD_OnClick} $Group1Radio2 RadioClick
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function RadioClick
	Pop $hwnd
	${If} $hwnd == $Group1Radio1
	    MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio1"
	${ElseIf} $hwnd == $Group1Radio2
	    MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio2"
	${EndIf}
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

However, you can eliminate both by making use of the getUserData and setUserData commands of nsDialogs. Using these *UserData commands, you can store data in a control and easily retrieve this later.

To simplify the use of these commands, we'll be using the header from NsDialogs UserData.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre
 
var dialog
var hwnd
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 0 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 1"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP}
		${NSD_SetUserData} $hwnd "Group1Radio1"
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd RadioClick
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 12% 40% 6% "Group 1, Radio 2"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_SetUserData} $hwnd "Group1Radio2"
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd RadioClick
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function RadioClick
	Pop $hwnd
	${NSD_GetUserData} $hwnd $0
	${If} $0 == "Group1Radio1"
	    MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio1"
	${ElseIf} $0 == "Group1Radio2"
	    MessageBox MB_OK "onClick:Group1Radio2"
	${EndIf}
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd

Using this method, you can easily set a variable to an internal string stored on the radiobutton control without any If-ElseIf-EndIf or Case selections in the OnClick event function at all.

!include "nsDialogs.nsh"
!include "winmessages.nsh"
!include "logiclib.nsh"
OutFile "test.exe"
 
Page Custom pre post
 
var dialog
var hwnd
var minor
 
Function pre
	nsDialogs::Create 1018
		Pop $dialog
 
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 0 40% 6% "I am 14 years of age or older"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_AddStyle} $hwnd ${WS_GROUP}
		${NSD_SetUserData} $hwnd "false"
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd RadioClick
	${NSD_CreateRadioButton} 0 12% 40% 6% "I am younger than 14 of age"
		Pop $hwnd
		${NSD_SetUserData} $hwnd "true"
		${NSD_OnClick} $hwnd RadioClick
 
	nsDialogs::Show
FunctionEnd
 
Function RadioClick
	Pop $hwnd
	${NSD_GetUserData} $hwnd $minor
FunctionEnd
 
Function post
	${If} $minor == ""
	    MessageBox MB_OK "Please specify your age group"
	    Abort
	${ElseIf} $minor == true
	    MessageBox MB_OK "installation will continue with content appropriate for your age"
	${Else}
	    MessageBox MB_OK "installation will continue normally"
	${EndIf}
FunctionEnd
 
Section ""
SectionEnd