LibClipboardSharp

A safe, idiomatic C# wrapper for the jtanx/libclipboard cross-platform clipboard library.

Features

• Cross-platform support: Windows, Linux, and macOS
• Safe memory management: Uses SafeHandle to prevent memory leaks
• Thread-safe design: Proper disposal and resource management
• Async clipboard monitoring: Event-driven change detection with cancellation support
• Robust error handling: Specific exceptions with detailed error information
• Logging integration: Uses Microsoft.Extensions.Logging for diagnostics
• Modern .NET: Targets .NET 8.0+ with nullable reference types

Installation

NuGet Package (Recommended)

dotnet add package LibClipboardSharp

Manual Installation

1. Clone this repository
2. Build the library: dotnet build
3. Include the native libclipboard binaries in your application's runtime directory

Native Library Requirements

This wrapper requires the native libclipboard shared library to be available:

• Windows: libclipboard.dll
• Linux: libclipboard.so or liblibclipboard.so
• macOS: libclipboard.dylib or liblibclipboard.dylib

You will need to build libclipboard locally and then place the appropriate binary in your application's output directory or ensure it's in the system's library search path.

Usage Examples

Basic Text Operations

using LibClipboard.Core;

// Create a clipboard instance
using var clipboard = new Clipboard();

// Set text to clipboard
clipboard.SetText("Hello, LibClipboardSharp!");

// Get text from clipboard
if (clipboard.TryGetText(out string text))
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Clipboard contains: {text}");
}

// Check if clipboard has text
if (clipboard.HasText)
{
    string content = clipboard.GetText();
    Console.WriteLine($"Text: {content}");
}

Image Operations

using LibClipboard.Core;

using var clipboard = new Clipboard();

// Read image from file and set to clipboard
byte[] imageData = File.ReadAllBytes("image.png");
clipboard.SetImage(imageData);

// Get image from clipboard
if (clipboard.TryGetImage(out byte[] clipboardImage))
{
    File.WriteAllBytes("clipboard_image.png", clipboardImage);
    Console.WriteLine("Image saved from clipboard");
}

Clipboard Change Monitoring

using LibClipboard.Core;

var options = new ClipboardOptions
{
    PollingInterval = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(500),
    EnableChangeDetection = true
};

using var clipboard = new Clipboard(options);

// Subscribe to change events
clipboard.OnClipboardChanged += (sender, e) =>
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Clipboard changed at {e.Timestamp}");
    Console.WriteLine($"Has text: {e.HasText}, Has image: {e.HasImage}");
};

// Start monitoring with cancellation support
using var cts = new CancellationTokenSource();
var pollingTask = clipboard.StartPollingAsync(cancellationToken: cts.Token);

// Do other work...
await Task.Delay(10000);

// Stop monitoring
cts.Cancel();
await pollingTask;

Configuration Options

using LibClipboard.Core;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;

// Create logger
using var loggerFactory = LoggerFactory.Create(builder =>
    builder.AddConsole().SetMinimumLevel(LogLevel.Debug));
var logger = loggerFactory.CreateLogger<Clipboard>();

// Configure options
var options = new ClipboardOptions
{
    MaxDataSize = 5 * 1024 * 1024, // 5MB limit
    TrimWhitespace = true,          // Auto-trim text
    PollingInterval = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(250)
};

using var clipboard = new Clipboard(options, logger);

Error Handling

using LibClipboard.Core;

try
{
    using var clipboard = new Clipboard();
    clipboard.SetText("Sample text");
}
catch (ClipboardInitializationException ex)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Failed to initialize clipboard: {ex.Message}");
    // Handle missing native library or initialization failure
}
catch (ClipboardAccessException ex)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Clipboard access failed: {ex.Message}");
    // Handle clipboard access issues (permissions, lock, etc.)
}

Threading Considerations

⚠️ Important: This library does not automatically marshal calls to a specific thread. On Windows, clipboard operations often require the Single-Threaded Apartment (STA) model, typically the UI thread in desktop applications.

For UI Applications:

• WPF: Use Dispatcher.Invoke() to call clipboard methods from the UI thread
• WinForms: Use Control.Invoke() to ensure proper thread context
• Console apps: Generally work without special threading considerations

Example for WPF:

private async void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
    await Dispatcher.InvokeAsync(() =>
    {
        using var clipboard = new Clipboard();
        clipboard.SetText("Hello from UI thread!");
    });
}

API Reference

Clipboard Class

Properties

• bool HasText - Checks if clipboard contains text
• bool HasImage - Checks if clipboard contains an image
• bool HasOwnership - Checks if this application owns the clipboard

Methods

• void SetText(string text) - Sets clipboard text content
• string GetText() - Gets clipboard text content
• bool TryGetText(out string text) - Safely attempts to get text
• void SetImage(byte[] imageBytes) - Sets clipboard image content
• byte[] GetImage() - Gets clipboard image content
• bool TryGetImage(out byte[] imageBytes) - Safely attempts to get image
• void Clear() - Clears clipboard content
• Task StartPollingAsync(TimeSpan? interval, CancellationToken token) - Starts change monitoring

Events

• EventHandler<ClipboardChangedEventArgs> OnClipboardChanged - Fired when clipboard content changes

ClipboardOptions Class

Properties

• TimeSpan PollingInterval - Interval for change detection (default: 100ms)
• bool EnableChangeDetection - Enable/disable polling (default: true)
• long MaxDataSize - Maximum data size in bytes (default: 10MB)
• bool TrimWhitespace - Auto-trim text content (default: false)

Exception Types

• ClipboardInitializationException - Native library initialization failed
• ClipboardAccessException - Clipboard operation failed
• UnsupportedClipboardFormatException - Unsupported data format

Building from Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/LibClipboardSharp.git
cd LibClipboardSharp

# Restore dependencies
dotnet restore

# Build the library
dotnet build

# Run tests (if available)
dotnet test

# Create NuGet package
dotnet pack

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Dependencies

• Microsoft.Extensions.Logging.Abstractions 8.0.0
• Native libclipboard library (runtime dependency)

Supported Platforms

• Windows (x64, x86, ARM64)
• Linux (x64, ARM64)
• macOS (x64, ARM64)

The library automatically detects the platform and loads the appropriate native library.