# Load and Save Documents

> Give a Windows Forms editor New, Open, Save and Save As buttons: the built-in dialog boxes, byte arrays, document properties and a prompt for unsaved changes.

- **Product:** TX Text Control .NET for Windows Forms
- **Section:** Documentation
- **Kind:** Topic
- **Path:** TX Text Control .NET for Windows Forms > Getting Started > Document Editor > Load and Save Documents
- **3729 words**
- **Web URL:** https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-editor/load-save/
- **LLMs URL:** https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-editor/load-save/llms.txt
- **LLMs-Full URL:** https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-editor/load-save/llms-full.txt

---

An editor becomes useful once users can open their documents and save their work. `TextControl` brings the **Open** and **Save As** dialog boxes with it, and its `Load` and `Save` methods also work with files and byte arrays directly. Starting from the form of your first application, the steps below add **New**, **Open**, **Save** and **Save As**, remember the current file, and ask before unsaved changes are lost.

### Prerequisites

- The application from [Create Your First Windows Forms Application](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-editor/first-application/llms-full.txt), with a `TextControl` named `textControl1` on `Form1`.
- Four `Button` controls on the form, named `newButton`, `openButton`, `saveButton` and `saveAsButton`. Double-click each one in the designer to create its `Click` handler. Menu items or ribbon buttons work the same way.

### How Loading and Saving Works

[Load](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/load-method/llms-full.txt) replaces the complete contents of the editor with a document, and [Save](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/save-method/llms-full.txt) writes the complete document. Both come in two kinds of overloads:

- **With a dialog box.** Without a file name, `Load` opens the **Open** dialog box and `Save` opens the **Save As** dialog box. The `StreamType` values you pass decide which file format filters the dialog offers, and the method returns the `DialogResult` of the dialog.
- **Without a dialog box.** With a file path, a stream, a byte array or a string, the methods load and save directly. `Save` creates the file or overwrites it.

[Supported File Formats](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/overview/file-formats/llms-full.txt) lists the formats and their `StreamType` values.

### Add New, Open, Save and Save As

Replace the contents of *Form1.cs* with the following code, and keep the `namespace` that Visual Studio created around the class:

```csharp
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using TXTextControl;

public partial class Form1 : Form
{
    // The formats offered in the Open and Save As dialog boxes
    private const StreamType DocumentFormats =
        StreamType.WordprocessingML | StreamType.RichTextFormat |
        StreamType.HTMLFormat | StreamType.AdobePDF;

    private string currentFile;            // null until the document has a file
    private StreamType currentStreamType;
    private bool isModified;

    public Form1()
    {
        InitializeComponent();

        textControl1.Changed += textControl1_Changed;
        FormClosing += Form1_FormClosing;

        UpdateCaption();
    }

    private void newButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        if (!ConfirmSaveChanges())
        {
            return;
        }

        textControl1.ResetContents();

        currentFile = null;
        isModified = false;
        UpdateCaption();
    }

    private void openButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        if (!ConfirmSaveChanges())
        {
            return;
        }

        LoadSettings loadSettings = new LoadSettings()
        {
            // Import the merge fields of Word documents as fields
            ApplicationFieldFormat = ApplicationFieldFormat.MSWord
        };

        // Show the Open dialog box. Cancel leaves the document unchanged.
        if (textControl1.Load(DocumentFormats | StreamType.AllFormats, loadSettings) != DialogResult.OK)
        {
            return;
        }

        currentFile = loadSettings.LoadedFile;
        currentStreamType = loadSettings.LoadedStreamType;
        isModified = false;
        UpdateCaption();
    }

    private void saveButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        SaveDocument();
    }

    private void saveAsButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        SaveDocumentAs();
    }

    private bool SaveDocument()
    {
        // A new document has no file yet
        if (currentFile == null)
        {
            return SaveDocumentAs();
        }

        textControl1.Save(currentFile, currentStreamType);

        isModified = false;
        UpdateCaption();
        return true;
    }

    private bool SaveDocumentAs()
    {
        SaveSettings saveSettings = new SaveSettings();

        // Show the Save As dialog box
        if (textControl1.Save(DocumentFormats, saveSettings) != DialogResult.OK)
        {
            return false;
        }

        currentFile = saveSettings.SavedFile;
        currentStreamType = saveSettings.SavedStreamType;
        isModified = false;
        UpdateCaption();
        return true;
    }

    private void textControl1_Changed(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        if (!isModified)
        {
            isModified = true;
            UpdateCaption();
        }
    }

    private void Form1_FormClosing(object sender, FormClosingEventArgs e)
    {
        if (!ConfirmSaveChanges())
        {
            e.Cancel = true;
        }
    }

    // Returns false if the user canceled
    private bool ConfirmSaveChanges()
    {
        if (!isModified)
        {
            return true;
        }

        DialogResult result = MessageBox.Show(
            "Do you want to save the changes to the document?",
            "Save Changes",
            MessageBoxButtons.YesNoCancel,
            MessageBoxIcon.Question);

        if (result == DialogResult.Cancel)
        {
            return false;
        }

        if (result == DialogResult.Yes)
        {
            return SaveDocument();
        }

        return true;
    }

    private void UpdateCaption()
    {
        string name = currentFile == null ? "Untitled" : Path.GetFileName(currentFile);
        Text = name + (isModified ? "*" : "") + " - My Editor";
    }
}
```

The code works as follows:

- **New.** [ResetContents](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/resetcontents-method/llms-full.txt) deletes the complete contents of the editor.
- **Open.** `Load` with `StreamType` values and a [LoadSettings](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/loadsettings/llms-full.txt) object shows the **Open** dialog box with the filters of these formats. `StreamType.AllFormats` adds an **All Formats** item that shows every file the dialog can open. After the user has opened a file, [LoadedFile](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/loadsettings/loadedfile-property/llms-full.txt) and [LoadedStreamType](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/loadsettings/loadedstreamtype-property/llms-full.txt) contain its path and format.
- **Word fields.** [ApplicationFieldFormat](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/loadsettings/applicationfieldformat-property/llms-full.txt) set to `MSWord` imports the fields of Word and RTF documents, such as merge fields, into [ApplicationFields](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/applicationfields-property/llms-full.txt). Without it, the fields are not imported as fields.
- **Save.** A document that has a file is saved to it in its format. A new document goes to **Save As**.
- **Save As.** `Save` with `StreamType` values and a [SaveSettings](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/savesettings/llms-full.txt) object shows the **Save As** dialog box. [SavedFile](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/savesettings/savedfile-property/llms-full.txt) and [SavedStreamType](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/savesettings/savedstreamtype-property/llms-full.txt) contain the path and format the user chose.
- **Unsaved changes.** [Changed](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/changed-event/llms-full.txt) occurs when the contents change. The code marks the document as modified, shows an asterisk in the caption, and asks before **New**, **Open** or closing the form discards the changes.

Press **F5**, type some text and click **saveAsButton**. Save the document as DOCX, change it, and click **newButton**: the application asks whether to save the changes.

### Load and Save Without a Dialog Box

For files your code knows, pass the path and the format:

```csharp
textControl1.Load("template.docx", StreamType.WordprocessingML);
textControl1.Save("letter.rtf", StreamType.RichTextFormat);
```

A document that comes from a database or a web service, or goes into an email attachment, is usually a byte array. `Load` and `Save` take it with a [BinaryStreamType](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/binarystreamtype/enumeration/llms-full.txt):

```csharp
// Load a document from a byte array
byte[] data = File.ReadAllBytes("template.docx");
textControl1.Load(data, BinaryStreamType.WordprocessingML);

// Save the document to byte arrays, as DOCX and as PDF
byte[] docx;
textControl1.Save(out docx, BinaryStreamType.WordprocessingML);

byte[] pdf;
textControl1.Save(out pdf, BinaryStreamType.AdobePDF);
```

`Save` creates the arrays, so you do not allocate them.

### Save Document Properties

`SaveSettings` also carries the properties of the document, such as its title and author, and [TextControl.DocumentSettings](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol/textcontrol/documentsettings-property/llms-full.txt) contains the properties of a loaded document. [Save the Document as PDF](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/pdf/create/#save-the-document-as-pdf) sets them in a first example, and [Document Properties](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/document-editor/properties/llms-full.txt) explains them in detail.

### Add the Commands to the Ribbon

In a ribbon application, **New**, **Open**, **Save** and **Save As** belong in the Application Menu, the **File** tab. It has no commands of its own: select the ribbon, open the collection editor of [ApplicationMenuItems](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol-windows-forms-ribbon/ribbon/applicationmenuitems-property/llms-full.txt) in the **Properties** window and add a [RibbonButton](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/reference/txtextcontrol-windows-forms-ribbon/ribbonbutton/llms-full.txt) for each command. Their `Click` handlers call the same methods as the buttons above.

The TX Words sample installed with the setup implements these commands with a ribbon, in *%USERPROFILE%\\Documents\\TX Text Control 34.0.NET for Windows Forms\\CSharp\\TX Words\\Ribbon*.

### Next Steps

- [Create a Document Programmatically](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-processing/create/llms-full.txt): build a document in code.
- [Create a PDF](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/pdf/create/llms-full.txt): PDF options such as passwords and PDF/A.
- [Loading and Saving Documents](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/document-editor/load-save/llms-full.txt): configure the **Open** and **Save As** dialog boxes and find the other load and save options.
- [Supported File Formats](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/overview/file-formats/llms-full.txt): the formats you can load and save.

---

## Nearby

- **Previous:** [Create a Ribbon Application With Sidebar Support](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-editor/ribbon-sidebar/llms-full.txt)
- **Next:** [Document Processing](https://docs.textcontrol.com/tx-text-control-dotnet-winforms/getting-started/document-processing/llms-full.txt)