.NET Make C# Program run in background and at startup like Anti Virus [closed]

Question

For a big project I am going to be making a C# Program which does a variety of things that a user specified, there is a user interface, that will be accessible from a System Icon, and ever present logo on the screen.

I want the program to run at start up and be there in the background until shutdown, such as many common antivirus/malware programs out there today.

I also want the program to be installed in order to run.

I know there's alot here. I know how to get the program to run at startup (startup folder), but like with AntiVirus I want it to always be there, and not just be in the startup folder...

I originally thought this was a service, but I am not too sure now, and I am having a nightmare getting my head around it all. What is the best way to do this ? The GUI is a must.

Would appreciate any and all answers, tips and suggestions.

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Anti-virus programs and similar system tray applications sometimes or often have 2 components. There's a service that starts with the system, and a separate system tray application in the startup folder that interacts with the server to provider user access to service functionality when a user is logged in to a desktop. One of the questions you'll have to answer is whether you want anything running when nobody is logged in. If so, you'll want a service component. If not, you can maybe put everything in one application that creates a system tray icon. To put an icon in the system tray from a .NET application, refer to http://www.developer.com/net/net/article.php/3336751/C-Tip-Placing-Your-C-Application-in-the-System-Tray.htm

If I understand/recall correctly, there's a .NET component designed for putting icons in the system tray.

Answer 2

Here's the sample I mentioned above.

This code is located in the TaskbarUtility, and all events throughout the application create new Forms through here.

I'm not sure if this is the "right" way to do something like this, and I don't intend to be thread-jacking, but I figured I might as well share. :)

    List<CommonFormBase> activeWindows = new List<CommonFormBase>();

    public void LaunchApplication(ApplicationWindowType formTypeToLaunch)
    {
        CommonFormBase tempForm;
        switch (formTypeToLaunch)
        {
            //implement code to create a new form here
        }

        activeWindows.Add(tempForm);
        tempForm.Name = "UniqueName:" + System.DateTime.Now;
        tempForm.FormClosed += new FormClosedEventHandler(tempForm_FormClosed);
        tempForm.Show();
    }

    void tempForm_FormClosed(object sender, FormClosedEventArgs e)
    {
        if (sender is CommonFormBase)
        {
            //Get the index of the selected form
            int index = -1;
            for (int i = 0; i <= this.activeWindows.Count - 1; i++)
            {
                if (this.activeWindows[i].Name == ((Form)sender).Name)
                    index = i;
            }

            //Remove the selected form from the list
            if (index >= 0)
                activeWindows.RemoveAt(index);

            //Close the TaskbarUtility if no remaining windows
            //  and user choose to exit when none remain
            if (this.activeWindows.Count == 0 && CloseWhenNoWindowsRemain)
            {
                this.Close();
            }
        }
    }

Hope that makes sense.

The assumption is that not all users want the app to run all the time, so this will close the entire program when they enable the option.