Class InputInjector

Namespace

Terminal.Gui.Testing

Assembly

Terminal.Gui.dll

Provides an API for injecting mouse and keyboard input into Terminal.Gui applications.

public class InputInjector : IInputInjector

Inheritance

object

InputInjector

Implements

IInputInjector

Inherited Members

object.Equals(object)

object.Equals(object, object)

object.GetHashCode()

object.GetType()

object.MemberwiseClone()

object.ReferenceEquals(object, object)

object.ToString()

Examples

Example 1: Basic key injection (using extension method)

using IApplication app = Application.Create();
app.Init(DriverRegistry.Names.ANSI);

app.Keyboard.KeyDown += (s, e) => {
    Console.WriteLine($"Key pressed: {e}");
};

// Simple injection using extension method
app.InjectKey(Key.A);
app.InjectKey(Key.Enter);

Example 2: Mouse injection with Direct mode (preserving timestamps)

using IApplication app = Application.Create();
app.Init(DriverRegistry.Names.ANSI);

IInputInjector injector = app.GetInputInjector();
InputInjectionOptions options = new() { Mode = InputInjectionMode.Direct };

DateTime baseTime = new(2025, 1, 1, 12, 0, 0);

// First click
injector.InjectMouse(new() {
    ScreenPosition = new(10, 10),
    Flags = MouseFlags.LeftButtonPressed,
    Timestamp = baseTime
}, options);

injector.InjectMouse(new() {
    ScreenPosition = new(10, 10),
    Flags = MouseFlags.LeftButtonReleased,
    Timestamp = baseTime.AddMilliseconds(50)
}, options);

// Second click 600ms later (prevents double-click detection)
injector.InjectMouse(new() {
    ScreenPosition = new(10, 10),
    Flags = MouseFlags.LeftButtonPressed,
    Timestamp = baseTime.AddMilliseconds(600)
}, options);

injector.InjectMouse(new() {
    ScreenPosition = new(10, 10),
    Flags = MouseFlags.LeftButtonReleased,
    Timestamp = baseTime.AddMilliseconds(650)
}, options);

Example 3: Event sequence with virtual time

VirtualTimeProvider timeProvider = new();
using IApplication app = Application.Create(timeProvider);
app.Init(DriverRegistry.Names.ANSI);

// Inject sequence with delays (virtual time advances instantly)
InputEvent[] sequence = [
    new KeyInjectionEvent(Key.H),
    new KeyInjectionEvent(Key.E) { Delay = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(100) },
    new KeyInjectionEvent(Key.L) { Delay = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(100) },
    new KeyInjectionEvent(Key.L) { Delay = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(100) },
    new KeyInjectionEvent(Key.O)
];

app.InjectSequence(sequence);
// Virtual time has advanced by 300ms, but test executes instantly

Example 4: Testing ANSI encoding with Pipeline mode

using IApplication app = Application.Create();
app.Init(DriverRegistry.Names.ANSI);

IInputInjector injector = app.GetInputInjector();

// Use Pipeline mode to test encoding/decoding
InputInjectionOptions options = new() { Mode = InputInjectionMode.Pipeline };

// Key will go through: Key → ANSI sequence → Parser → Key event
injector.InjectKey(Key.F1, options);
injector.InjectKey(Key.CursorUp.WithCtrl, options);

Remarks

InputInjector offers two injection modes to support different testing scenarios:

• Direct Mode (default): Bypasses ANSI encoding/decoding and directly raises events. Ideal for fast, deterministic tests that don't need to verify encoding/parsing behavior. Use this mode when you want precise control over timestamps and event timing.
• Pipeline Mode: Routes input through the complete processing pipeline including ANSI encoding/decoding. Use this mode when testing driver-level behavior or verifying that escape sequences are correctly encoded and parsed.

For convenience, use the extension methods in InputInjectionExtensions: InjectKey(IApplication, Key), InjectMouse(IApplication, Mouse), and InjectSequence(IApplication, params InputInjectionEvent[]) to inject input without directly accessing the injector.

When you need to specify injection options (such as Direct mode with timestamps), use GetInputInjector() to access the injector directly.

Constructors

InputInjector(IInputProcessor, ITimeProvider, TestInputSource?)

Initializes a new instance of the InputInjector class.

Methods

InjectKey(Key, InputInjectionOptions?)

Injects a keyboard event. Handles encoding, queueing, and processing automatically.

InjectMouse(Mouse, InputInjectionOptions?)

Injects a mouse event. Handles encoding, queueing, and processing automatically.

InjectSequence(IEnumerable<InputInjectionEvent>, InputInjectionOptions?)

Injects a sequence of input events with delays between them.

ProcessQueue()

Forces processing of the input queue (usually automatic).

See Also

InputInjectionExtensions