Adding a DataSource property to a Custom Control

To add a DataSource property to a custom control as shown in the following image, perform these steps:

1. Add the Prop ID sections to your Definition.XML file.
   The XML shown here is an example of a full definition file, and yours may look different.
   
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   Example of a Definition.xml file

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   <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
   <ControlType>
       <FullName>CustomControlDataSourceExample.DataSourceExample, CustomControlDataSourceExample</FullName>
       <Category>Listing</Category>
       <Group>Custom</Group>
       <Name>DataSrcEx</Name>
     <DisplayName>DataSourceEx</DisplayName>
       <Properties>
         <Prop ID="DataSourceType" friendlyname="Type" type="complex" serverControlType="property" category="Data Source" InitializeServerControl="initializeAssociationPropertyConfig" ClearServerControl="clearComplexPropertyConfig" ServerControl="SourceCode.Forms.Controls.Web.PropertyConfiguration.AssociationPropertyConfig, SourceCode.Forms.Controls.Web" />
         <Prop ID="FixedListItems" friendlyname="Items" type="string" serverControlType="property" category="Data Source" ReadOnly="true" />
         <Prop ID="AssociationSO" friendlyname="SmartObject" type="string" serverControlType="smartobject" category="Data Source" ReadOnly="true" />
         <Prop ID="AssociationMethod" friendlyname="Method" type="string" serverControlType="listmethod" category="Data Source" ReadOnly="true" />
         <Prop ID="ValueProperty" friendlyname="Value" type="string" serverControlType="property" category="Data Source" ReadOnly="true" />
         <Prop ID="DisplayTemplate" friendlyname="Display" type="string" serverControlType="property" category="Data Source" ReadOnly="true" />
       </Properties>
   </ControlType>
   

2. Add the get and set information shown here to your C# code file:
   
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   get and set data

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   //Link to the definition file
   [ControlTypeDefinition("CustomControlDataSourceExample.Definition.xml")]
   public class DataSourceExample : BaseControl
   {
       // add the following lines to your C# code in the relavant place
       public string DataSourceType
       {
           get
           {
               return this.Attributes["DataSourceType"];
           }
           set
           {
               this.Attributes["DataSourceType"] = value;
           }
       }
       protected override void RenderContents(System.Web.UI.HtmlTextWriter writer)
       {
           writer.Write(" <b>Basic DataSource Control</b>");
       }
   }