Selecting objects on the Design Canvas

When you want to size or move an object, edit its properties, or delete it, you must select it on the Design Canvas. You can use the following selection techniques:

To select a single object - Click on the object. Alternatively, select the name of the object from the drop-down list in the field at the top of the Properties view.
To select multiple objects by clicking - Shift+Click or Ctrl+Click each object that you want to select.
To select multiple objects by drawing - Hold down the primary mouse button and draw a marquee on the Design Canvas around the objects that you want to select. Then release the mouse button.
To select all objects - Select Edit > Select All, or press Ctrl+A.

As an alternative to making selections directly on the Design Canvas, you can use the Outline view. The Visual Designer synchronizes the selection state between the Outline view and the Design Canvas.

Selected objects appear with a visible border that includes, in most cases, selection handles at the corners and the middle of each edge. You can drag a selection handle to resize the object. (Not all controls can be resized, and some allow changes to only one dimension; selection handles appear only where they are usable.)

Note: When multiple objects are selected, certain editing operations are not available. Only actions that can be simultaneously applied to all of the selected objects are possible. Similarly, the Properties view displays only those properties and events that are common to all selected controls.

Selecting the parent object

You can select the parent object of a control via the context (right-click) menu. For example, for a toolbar button, you can select the toolstrip control that contains it.

When you right-click a control on the form, the context menu has a Select option that lists all parent objects of that control. The first-level parent is always the form itself. If the form is the only parent of the control, the form name is shown on the primary context menu (for example Select Form_1). If there are one or more lower-level parents, the Select option has a sub-menu that lists all parent objects. Use the context menu to choose the one that you want to select.

This selection technique is useful when a parent object is densely populated with child controls, as it can be difficult or impossible to click the parent on the Design Canvas. For example, a panel control might fill the form, making it impossible to click the form object. A complex design with a multi-level hierarchy of nested controls can make it difficult to select the controls visually.

Another good method for selecting parent objects is to use the Outline view.

Deselecting objects

To deselect a single object - Shift+Click or Ctrl+Click on the object.
To deselect all currently selected objects - Click on an unselected object.