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High Contrast

Windows High Contrast (contrast themes) is an accessibility setting, not a visual preference. Users who enable it have committed to a specific high-contrast color scheme for everything on screen, and Microsoft's accessibility guidelines require applications to let the user's scheme win over any application-chosen colors. SftTabs/NET 3.0 follows this rule when high contrast mode is active.

When high contrast mode is active, the tab control:

  • uses the system colors of the user's contrast theme for all its elements, such as SystemColors.Control and SystemColors.ControlText for tabs and SystemColors.Highlight for the accent color,
  • ignores colors set by the application for the control, its tabs and parts - the user's contrast theme wins,
  • draws tabs, buttons, checkboxes, radio buttons and progress bars without Windows themes; the Themed look draws the tabs like the Standard look.

The HighContrastMode property has three values (see HighContrastModeEnum):

ValueDescription
HighContrastModeEnum.AutoFollow the Windows contrast theme setting. The control switches when the setting changes.
HighContrastModeEnum.OnAlways use the system colors, regardless of the Windows setting. Useful for testing.
HighContrastModeEnum.Off (default)Ignore the Windows contrast theme setting and draw normally. Not recommended in shipping applications - users with accessibility needs will see colors that do not follow their contrast theme.

The HighContrastChanged event occurs each time the control switches between its own colors and the colors of the contrast theme, so the application can update its own colors around the tab control. The HighContrastActive property returns the current state at any time.

Images, such as tab images and application-defined button images, are drawn as defined. Make sure that the images used in the tab control remain visible with the user's contrast theme colors.

Dark mode and Windows High Contrast are independent settings. If both are active, high contrast takes precedence, because honoring the user's contrast theme is the stronger accessibility requirement. See Dark Mode.

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