Question

Normally, when tabbing through controls on a form, when the focus is set to a CheckBox control, the text is outlined to show focus.

I am using a CheckBox without the text (so only the box is displayed). How can I force the focus outline to be drawn around the box instead of the text?

Answer 1

Have a look – just to give you an idea:

public class MyCheckBox : CheckBox
{
  public MyCheckBox()
  {
    // AutoSize is virtual - so you should not call it here, just demo
    AutoSize = false;
    // You need padding to make the base.OnPaint() method leaving you some space
    Padding = new Padding( 2, 2, 0, 0 );
    Size = new Size( 17, 16 );
  }

  protected override void OnPaint( PaintEventArgs pevent )
  {
    base.OnPaint( pevent );
    if( !Focused )
    {
      return;
    }
    using( var pen = new Pen( Color.Black ) )
    {
      pen.DashStyle = DashStyle.Dot;
      pevent.Graphics.DrawRectangle( pen, new Rectangle( 0, 0, 16, 15 ) );
    }
  }
}