FillWeight Layout DataGridView Columns using VB.Net

FillWeight Layout DataGridView Columns using VB.Net

In this tutorial, you will learn the purpose of FillWeight in your DataGridView Edit Columns properties.

First, create your Visual Basic project and add a DataGridView on your Form1 designer.

Sample DataGridView in a Form1 designer.

Next, go to the DataGridView’s property tab and set the AutoSizeColumnsMode from None to Fill.

AutoSizeColumnsMode from None to Fill.

Then, we are going to add columns to the blank DataGridView. To add new columns, go again to the properties tab and click the Column collection.

Columns Collection Property.

Then, we will add ID, Name and Address Columns to our DataGridView. After adding the three columns, you will notice that the columns width are distributed evenly.

Output from added columns.

Now, if you want to make a column reduce its width, all you have to do is to adjust its FillWeight property located at the columns collection property then on the Unbound Column Properties.

Unbound Column Property – FillWeight property location.

So, we are going to adjust the fillweight of the ID column so that it wouldn’t look inappropriate or occupy space because like for example your ID consists of 4 numbers. I adjust the fillweight of the ID column from 100 to 50 and here’s the output.

Expected output when the ID’s fillweight has been modified.

This is much better compared to the recent width of the ID column. Let’s try to add values on our DataGridView by applying this line of code on our Form Load event.

Public Class Form1

Private Sub Form1_Load(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load
DataGridView1.Rows.Add("1234", "Ian Lavapiez", "Iloilo City")
DataGridView1.Rows.Add("1235", "Juan de la Cruz", "Bacolod")
DataGridView1.Rows.Add("1236", "Pedro Penduko", "Antique")
DataGridView1.Rows.Add("1237", "Hero Lacataria", "Capiz")
End Sub

End Class

Here’s the expected output when we applied the line of code to our project.

This is the end of our tutorial FillWeight Layout DataGridView Columns using VB.Net.

For questions or any other concerns or thesis/capstone creation with documentation, you can contact me through the following:

E-Mail: [email protected]

Facebook: facebook.com/kirk.lavapiez

Contact No.: +639771069640

Ian Hero L. Lavapiez

BSIT Graduate, soon to be MIT.

System Analyst and Developer

Related topic(s) that you may like:

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• Limiting Data Selection Query in mySQL using VB.Net

Technology stack and requirements

To run this VB.NET project, you need the following on your development machine:

• Visual Studio 2019 or later. The free Community Edition is enough for building, debugging, and running the project.
• .NET Framework 4.7.2 or higher. Most Windows 10 and 11 systems have it preinstalled through Windows Update.
• MySQL Server 8.0 or MSSQL Express 2019. Choose whichever your capstone panel prefers; both work with VB.NET data adapters.
• MySQL Connector/NET or SqlClient library. Add via NuGet Package Manager inside Visual Studio.
• Crystal Reports (optional). Required only if the project generates printable reports; install the runtime redistributable.

Installing the source code

The download link contains a ZIP archive with the full solution. Extract and set up in five steps:

1. Extract the archive to a folder outside Program Files (avoids permission issues).
2. Open the .sln file in Visual Studio. It loads the full solution with all forms and modules.
3. Restore NuGet packages. Right-click the solution then Restore NuGet Packages if prompted.
4. Import the database. Locate the .sql file in the archive and import via phpMyAdmin (MySQL) or SQL Server Management Studio.
5. Update the connection string in App.config or module code to match your local database name, user, and password.

How to use this project for your BSIT capstone

This VB.NET project maps cleanly to standard BSIT capstone documentation. Suggested chapter alignment:

• Chapter 1 (Introduction). Discuss the problem the system solves in real-world context. Cite Philippine business or academic use cases where a manual process could be replaced.
• Chapter 2 (Review of Related Literature). Compare this system’s features against 5-10 similar published projects. Cite journals like IJERT or IEEE Access for academic-standard sources.
• Chapter 3 (Methodology). Include Use Case Diagram, Data Flow Diagram, Entity Relationship Diagram, and Activity Diagram covering all major workflows in the system.
• Chapter 4 (Results and Discussion). Screenshot each module of the running system with a caption explaining what data it processes and which user role interacts with it.
• Chapter 5 (Conclusion and Recommendations). Identify features that could be added in a Version 2, such as web dashboard, mobile app, or REST API export.

Modules typical of FillWeight Layout DataGridView Columns using VB.Net

• Master data. CRUD forms for the primary entities the system manages, with search and filter.
• Transaction processing. Data entry forms for the day-to-day operations the system automates.
• Reports. Formatted printable output summarizing activity per day, per user, or per category.
• User management. Login with role-based permissions (Admin, Encoder, Viewer).
• Backup and restore. Export database to a .sql or .bak file and restore when needed.

Common enhancements for capstone review

• Modernize the UI. Add Bunifu or Guna UI controls for a more polished, modern appearance.
• Add printable receipts. Integrate a printer preview form with page-setup options.
• Multi-user concurrency. Ensure the database handles simultaneous writes without lost-update errors.
• Web version. Rewrite the front-end in ASP.NET Core or React for a modern deployment path.