shivakb
9/23/2019 - 9:44 AM

Global keyboard capture in C# application

I want to capture a keyboard shortcut in my application and trigger a dialog to appear if the user presses a keyboard combo even outside of the app. Similar to Google Desktop Search's Ctrl, Ctrl to bring up the search dialog.

I have tried using some keyboard hook modules out there that basically use Win32 interop to get this effect but each implementation I've tried ties down the keyboard to some extent to where you start getting weird behaviors when the application is doing something intensive. Such as loading a large amount of data, this would cause the keyboard and mouse to lockup.

I'm looking for a lightweight solution that would allow this to be done without tying down the keyboard and mouse.

class GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs : HandledEventArgs
{
    public GlobalKeyboardHook.KeyboardState KeyboardState { get; private set; }
    public GlobalKeyboardHook.LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent KeyboardData { get; private set; }

    public GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs(
        GlobalKeyboardHook.LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent keyboardData,
        GlobalKeyboardHook.KeyboardState keyboardState)
    {
        KeyboardData = keyboardData;
        KeyboardState = keyboardState;
    }
}

//Based on https://gist.github.com/Stasonix
class GlobalKeyboardHook : IDisposable
{
    public event EventHandler<GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs> KeyboardPressed;

    // EDT: Added an optional parameter (registeredKeys) that accepts keys to restict
    // the logging mechanism.
    /// <summary>
    /// 
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="registeredKeys">Keys that should trigger logging. Pass null for full logging.</param>
    public GlobalKeyboardHook(Keys[] registeredKeys = null)
    {
        RegisteredKeys = registeredKeys;
        _windowsHookHandle = IntPtr.Zero;
        _user32LibraryHandle = IntPtr.Zero;
        _hookProc = LowLevelKeyboardProc; // we must keep alive _hookProc, because GC is not aware about SetWindowsHookEx behaviour.

        _user32LibraryHandle = LoadLibrary("User32");
        if (_user32LibraryHandle == IntPtr.Zero)
        {
            int errorCode = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
            throw new Win32Exception(errorCode, $"Failed to load library 'User32.dll'. Error {errorCode}: {new Win32Exception(Marshal.GetLastWin32Error()).Message}.");
        }



        _windowsHookHandle = SetWindowsHookEx(WH_KEYBOARD_LL, _hookProc, _user32LibraryHandle, 0);
        if (_windowsHookHandle == IntPtr.Zero)
        {
            int errorCode = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
            throw new Win32Exception(errorCode, $"Failed to adjust keyboard hooks for '{Process.GetCurrentProcess().ProcessName}'. Error {errorCode}: {new Win32Exception(Marshal.GetLastWin32Error()).Message}.");
        }
    }

    protected virtual void Dispose(bool disposing)
    {
        if (disposing)
        {
            // because we can unhook only in the same thread, not in garbage collector thread
            if (_windowsHookHandle != IntPtr.Zero)
            {
                if (!UnhookWindowsHookEx(_windowsHookHandle))
                {
                    int errorCode = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
                    throw new Win32Exception(errorCode, $"Failed to remove keyboard hooks for '{Process.GetCurrentProcess().ProcessName}'. Error {errorCode}: {new Win32Exception(Marshal.GetLastWin32Error()).Message}.");
                }
                _windowsHookHandle = IntPtr.Zero;

                // ReSharper disable once DelegateSubtraction
                _hookProc -= LowLevelKeyboardProc;
            }
        }

        if (_user32LibraryHandle != IntPtr.Zero)
        {
            if (!FreeLibrary(_user32LibraryHandle)) // reduces reference to library by 1.
            {
                int errorCode = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
                throw new Win32Exception(errorCode, $"Failed to unload library 'User32.dll'. Error {errorCode}: {new Win32Exception(Marshal.GetLastWin32Error()).Message}.");
            }
            _user32LibraryHandle = IntPtr.Zero;
        }
    }

    ~GlobalKeyboardHook()
    {
        Dispose(false);
    }

    public void Dispose()
    {
        Dispose(true);
        GC.SuppressFinalize(this);
    }

    private IntPtr _windowsHookHandle;
    private IntPtr _user32LibraryHandle;
    private HookProc _hookProc;

    delegate IntPtr HookProc(int nCode, IntPtr wParam, IntPtr lParam);

    [DllImport("kernel32.dll")]
    private static extern IntPtr LoadLibrary(string lpFileName);

    [DllImport("kernel32.dll", CharSet = CharSet.Auto)]
    private static extern bool FreeLibrary(IntPtr hModule);

    /// <summary>
    /// The SetWindowsHookEx function installs an application-defined hook procedure into a hook chain.
    /// You would install a hook procedure to monitor the system for certain types of events. These events are
    /// associated either with a specific thread or with all threads in the same desktop as the calling thread.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="idHook">hook type</param>
    /// <param name="lpfn">hook procedure</param>
    /// <param name="hMod">handle to application instance</param>
    /// <param name="dwThreadId">thread identifier</param>
    /// <returns>If the function succeeds, the return value is the handle to the hook procedure.</returns>
    [DllImport("USER32", SetLastError = true)]
    static extern IntPtr SetWindowsHookEx(int idHook, HookProc lpfn, IntPtr hMod, int dwThreadId);

    /// <summary>
    /// The UnhookWindowsHookEx function removes a hook procedure installed in a hook chain by the SetWindowsHookEx function.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="hhk">handle to hook procedure</param>
    /// <returns>If the function succeeds, the return value is true.</returns>
    [DllImport("USER32", SetLastError = true)]
    public static extern bool UnhookWindowsHookEx(IntPtr hHook);

    /// <summary>
    /// The CallNextHookEx function passes the hook information to the next hook procedure in the current hook chain.
    /// A hook procedure can call this function either before or after processing the hook information.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="hHook">handle to current hook</param>
    /// <param name="code">hook code passed to hook procedure</param>
    /// <param name="wParam">value passed to hook procedure</param>
    /// <param name="lParam">value passed to hook procedure</param>
    /// <returns>If the function succeeds, the return value is true.</returns>
    [DllImport("USER32", SetLastError = true)]
    static extern IntPtr CallNextHookEx(IntPtr hHook, int code, IntPtr wParam, IntPtr lParam);

    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
    public struct LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent
    {
        /// <summary>
        /// A virtual-key code. The code must be a value in the range 1 to 254.
        /// </summary>
        public int VirtualCode;

        // EDT: added a conversion from VirtualCode to Keys.
        /// <summary>
        /// The VirtualCode converted to typeof(Keys) for higher usability.
        /// </summary>
        public Keys Key { get { return (Keys)VirtualCode; } }

        /// <summary>
        /// A hardware scan code for the key. 
        /// </summary>
        public int HardwareScanCode;

        /// <summary>
        /// The extended-key flag, event-injected Flags, context code, and transition-state flag. This member is specified as follows. An application can use the following values to test the keystroke Flags. Testing LLKHF_INJECTED (bit 4) will tell you whether the event was injected. If it was, then testing LLKHF_LOWER_IL_INJECTED (bit 1) will tell you whether or not the event was injected from a process running at lower integrity level.
        /// </summary>
        public int Flags;

        /// <summary>
        /// The time stamp stamp for this message, equivalent to what GetMessageTime would return for this message.
        /// </summary>
        public int TimeStamp;

        /// <summary>
        /// Additional information associated with the message. 
        /// </summary>
        public IntPtr AdditionalInformation;
    }

    public const int WH_KEYBOARD_LL = 13;
    //const int HC_ACTION = 0;

    public enum KeyboardState
    {
        KeyDown = 0x0100,
        KeyUp = 0x0101,
        SysKeyDown = 0x0104,
        SysKeyUp = 0x0105
    }

    // EDT: Replaced VkSnapshot(int) with RegisteredKeys(Keys[])
    public static Keys[] RegisteredKeys;
    const int KfAltdown = 0x2000;
    public const int LlkhfAltdown = (KfAltdown >> 8);

    public IntPtr LowLevelKeyboardProc(int nCode, IntPtr wParam, IntPtr lParam)
    {
        bool fEatKeyStroke = false;

        var wparamTyped = wParam.ToInt32();
        if (Enum.IsDefined(typeof(KeyboardState), wparamTyped))
        {
            object o = Marshal.PtrToStructure(lParam, typeof(LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent));
            LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent p = (LowLevelKeyboardInputEvent)o;

            var eventArguments = new GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs(p, (KeyboardState)wparamTyped);

            // EDT: Removed the comparison-logic from the usage-area so the user does not need to mess around with it.
            // Either the incoming key has to be part of RegisteredKeys (see constructor on top) or RegisterdKeys
            // has to be null for the event to get fired.
            var key = (Keys)p.VirtualCode;
            if (RegisteredKeys == null || RegisteredKeys.Contains(key))
            {
                EventHandler<GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs> handler = KeyboardPressed;
                handler?.Invoke(this, eventArguments);

                fEatKeyStroke = eventArguments.Handled;
            }
        }

        return fEatKeyStroke ? (IntPtr)1 : CallNextHookEx(IntPtr.Zero, nCode, wParam, lParam);
    }
}
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
    public Form1()
    {
        InitializeComponent();
    }

    private GlobalKeyboardHook _globalKeyboardHook;

    private void buttonHook_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        // Hooks only into specified Keys (here "A" and "B").
        _globalKeyboardHook = new GlobalKeyboardHook(new Keys[] { Keys.A, Keys.B });

        // Hooks into all keys.
        _globalKeyboardHook = new GlobalKeyboardHook();
        _globalKeyboardHook.KeyboardPressed += OnKeyPressed;
    }

    private void OnKeyPressed(object sender, GlobalKeyboardHookEventArgs e)
    {
        // EDT: No need to filter for VkSnapshot anymore. This now gets handled
        // through the constructor of GlobalKeyboardHook(...).
        if (e.KeyboardState == GlobalKeyboardHook.KeyboardState.KeyDown)
        {
            // Now you can access both, the key and virtual code
            Keys loggedKey = e.KeyboardData.Key;
            int loggedVkCode = e.KeyboardData.VirtualCode;
        }
    }
}