c# BackgroundWorker cancelling problem

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I am suing backgroundworker do some time consuming work and I want to cancel it if I don't want to wait long time until it finish.

in one of my dowork I can check the CancelationPending periodically, since I put it in for statement where in loop, but there is another situation.
let's say that I am going after a large amount of data from our system. In this case I can't periodically check CancelationPending.
Assuming the dowork is off doing its job for a very long time, how do you cancel the thread?

Posted 23-Aug-11 18:17pm

Alimjan Yasin

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Simon Bang Terkildsen · Accepted Answer · 2011-08-23T18:37:00

You can't force the termination of a background worker, it simply isn't designed for that.

You have 3 options, in the order in which I would use them.

1) If you use .NET 4.0 you can use the TPL, Sacha Barber has written a series of articles on the subject.
Task Parallel Library: 1 of n[^]

2) You can use the good old System.Threading.Thread
Threading Tutorial (X#)[^]

3) You can get the get the Thread the BackgroundWorker is running on in the DoWork event save it in a field and you can then abort the thread.

C#

private Thread _backgroundWorkerThread;

public void StartBackgroundWorker()
{
    BackgroundWorker backgroundWorker = new BackgroundWorker();
    backgroundWorker.DoWork += DoWork;
    backgroundWorker.RunWorkerAsync();
}

public void AbortBackgroundWorker()
{
    if(_backgroundWorkerThread != null)
        _backgroundWorkerThread.Abort();
}

void DoWork(object sender, DoWorkEventArgs e)
{
    try
    {
        _backgroundWorkerThread = Thread.CurrentThread;

        // Do your work...
    }
    catch(ThreadAbortException)
    {
        // Do your clean up here.
    }
}