Create Dynamic Zoho Creator Grids Using the Infragistics XamDataGrid

The Infragistics WPF UI controls allow you to build modern, Microsoft Office-inspired apps for desktop and touch devices. When paired with the CData ADO.NET Provider for Zoho Creator, you can build dynamic grids, charts, and other visualizations with access to live Zoho Creator data. This article walks through creating a dynamic grid in Visual Studio using the Infragistics XamDataGrid control.

You will need to install the Infragistics WPF UI components to continue. Download a free trial here: https://www.infragistics.com/products/wpf.

Create a WPF Project

Open VisualStudio and create a new WPF project.

Add a TextBox for passing a SQL query to the CData ADO.NET Provider and a Button for executing the query.

The XAML at this stage is as follows:

< Window
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
        xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
        xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp"
        xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow"
        mc:Ignorable="d"
        Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800">
  < Grid>
    < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/>
    < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Height="44"/>
  < /Grid>
< /Window>

Add and Configure a XamDataGrid

After adding the initial controls, add a XamDataGrid to the App. The component will appear in the Visual Studio toolbox.

Arrange the component on the designer so that it is below the TextBox & Button and linked to the boundaries of the app.

Once the XamDataGrid is placed, edit the XAML to set the XamDataGrid DataSource attribute to "{Binding}" and set the FieldSettings AllowRecordFiltering and AllowSummaries attributes to "true." Next, add an empty method as the Click event handler for the Button component. The XAML at this stage is as follows:

< Window
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
        xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
        xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp"
        xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow"
        mc:Ignorable="d"
        Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800">
  < Grid>
    < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/>
    < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Click="Button_Click" Height="44"/>

    < igWPF:XamDataGrid Margin="10,59,10,10" DataSource="{Binding}">
      < igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings>
        < igWPF:FieldSettings AllowSummaries="True" AllowRecordFiltering="True"/>
      < /igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings>
    < /igWPF:XamDataGrid>

  < /Grid>
< /Window>

Connect to and Query Zoho Creator

The last step in building our WPG App with a dynamic DataGrid is connecting to and querying live Zoho Creator data. First add a reference to the CData ADO.NET Provider to the project (typically found in C:\Program Files\CData\CData ADO.NET Provider for Zoho Creator\lib).

Next, add the Provider to the namespace, along with the standard Data library:

using System.Data.CData.ZohoCreator;
using System.Data;

Finally, add the code to connect to Zoho Creator and query using the text from the TextBox to the Click event handler.

The connector is already registered with Zoho Creator as an OAuth application.

If you would prefer to use your own custom OAuth app, see the Help documentation.

private void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
  //connecting to Zoho Creator
  string connString = "AccountsServer=AccountsServer;";
  using (var conn = new ZohoCreatorConnection(connString))
  {
    //using the query from the TextBox
    var dataAdapter = new ZohoCreatorDataAdapter(textBox.Text, conn);
    var table = new DataTable();
    dataAdapter.Fill(table);
    
    //passing the DataRowCollection to the DataContext
    //  for use in the XamDataGrid
    this.DataContext = table.Rows;
  }
}

Run the Application

With the app fully configured, we are ready to display Zoho Creator data in our XamDataGrid. When you click "Execute," the app connects to Zoho Creator and submits the SQL query through the CData ADO.NET Provider.

Live Zoho Creator data is displayed in the grid.

Group the data by dragging and dropping a column name into the header.

As you add groupings and filters, the underlying SQL query is submitted directly to Zoho Creator, making it possible to drill down into live Zoho Creator data to find only the specific information you need.

Free Trial & More Information

At this point, you have created a dynamic WPF App with access to live Zoho Creator data. For more information, visit the CData ADO.NET Provider page. Download a free, 30-day trial and start working live Zoho Creator data in apps built using the Infragistics UI controls today.