Create Excel comment with background image in C#, VB.NET

Syncfusion® Excel (XlsIO) library is a .NET Excel library used to create, read, and edit Excel documents. It also converts Excel documents to PDF files. Using this library, you can create an Excel comment with a background image.

What is the use of a comment?

Comments are used to add notes to individual cells, which help readers with additional content for the data it contains. When a cell has a comment, a red triangle indicator appears in the upper-right corner of the cell. When you rest the pointer on the cell, the comment appears.

Steps to create an Excel comment with a background image, programmatically:

Step 1: Create a new C# console application project.

Create a new C# console application

Step 2: Install the Syncfusion.XlsIO.WinForms NuGet package as reference to your .NET Framework application from NuGet.org.

Install NuGet package

Step 3: Add an image to your project as an embedded resource using the following steps.

1. In Visual Studio, click the Project menu, and select Add Existing Item. Find and select the image you want to add to your project.

Find and select the image

2. In the Solution Explorer window, right-click the image file you just added to your project and select Properties from the popup menu. The Properties tool window appears.

Properties tool window

3. In the Properties window, change the Build Action property to Embedded Resource.

Adding Embedded Resource

4. Build the project. The image will be compiled into your project’s assembly.

Step 4: Include the following namespace in the Program.cs file.

C#

using Syncfusion.XlsIO;
using System.Drawing;
using System.IO;
using System.Reflection;

VB.NET

Imports Syncfusion.XlsIO
Imports System.Drawing
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Reflection

Step 5: Use the following code snippet to create Excel comment with background image in C#, VB.NET.

C#

using (ExcelEngine excelEngine = new ExcelEngine())
{
    // Instantiate the Excel application object
    IApplication application = excelEngine.Excel;
 
    // Add a workbook
    IWorkbook workbook = application.Workbooks.Create(1);
 
    // Open existing image
    Assembly assembly = typeof(Program).GetTypeInfo().Assembly;
    Stream fileStream = assembly.GetManifestResourceStream("ExcelCommentWithBackgroundImage.Image.PNG");
 
    // The first worksheet object in the worksheets collection is accessed
    IWorksheet worksheet = workbook.Worksheets[0];
 
    // Add comment with background image
    worksheet.Range["D5"].AddComment().Text = "Comment With Background Image";
    worksheet.Range["D5"].AddComment().Fill.UserPicture(Image.FromStream(fileStream), "Image.jpg");
 
    // Save the workbook
    Stream stream = File.Create("Output.xlsx");
    workbook.SaveAs(stream);
}

VB.NET

Using excelEngine As ExcelEngine = New ExcelEngine()
    ' Instantiate the Excel application object
    Dim application As IApplication = excelEngine.Excel
 
    ' Add a workbook
    Dim workbook As IWorkbook = application.Workbooks.Create(1)
 
    'Open existing image
    Dim assembly As Assembly = GetType(Module1).GetTypeInfo.Assembly
    Dim fileStream As Stream = assembly.GetManifestResourceStream("ExcelCommentWithBackgroundImage_VB.Image.PNG")
 
    'The first worksheet object in the worksheets collection is accessed
    Dim worksheet As IWorksheet = workbook.Worksheets(0)
 
    'Add comment with background image
    worksheet.Range("D5").AddComment.Text = "Comment With Background Image"
    worksheet.Range("D5").AddComment.Fill.UserPicture(Image.FromStream(fileStream), "Image.PNG")
 
    'Save the workbook
    Dim stream As Stream = File.Create("Output.xlsx")
    workbook.SaveAs(stream)
End Using

Step 6: Please ensure that System.Drawing.dll is referred to your project.

System.Drawing

A complete Windows Forms working example of how to create Excel comment with background image in C# and VB can be downloaded from Create Excel Comment With Background Image.zip.

By executing the program, you will get the output Excel file as shown below.

Output Excel document

Refer here to explore the rich set of Syncfusion Excel (XlsIO) library features.

See Also:

How to add comments to Excel cell?

How to set RTF text to cell comment using XlsIO?

How to format comments in a cell using XlsIO

How to resize comment box using C#,VB.NET?

How do I insert watermark in MS Excel?

How to set background color for a entire worksheet ?

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed learning about Create Excel comment with background image in C#, VB.NET.

You can refer to our XIsIO’s feature tour page to learn about its other groundbreaking features. Explore our UG documentation and online demos to understand how to manipulate data in Excel documents.

If you are an existing user, you can access our latest components from the License and Downloads page. For new users, you can try our 30-day free trial to check out XlsIO and other Syncfusion® components.

If you have any queries or require clarification, please let us know in the comments below or contact us through our support forums, Support Tickets, or feedback portal. We are always happy to assist you!