Controls look different at runtime and design time

Question

I have a regular button (or any other control), which at design time looks 3D like this:

And at runtime looks flat like this:

Of course I want it to look 3D, but I can't see any reason, option or property to make it 3D. I thought that maybe it's a .NET issue, but even targeting .NET 4.5.3 didn't help.

P.S: Obviously I have windows 7, so this can't be the issue

Answer 1

Normally, the Application.EnableVisualStyles() method is called by default in the static void Main() method, inside the program.cs file. Maybe you're maintaining an older app, or someone removed that line at some point. Check to see if it's missing.

static class Program
{
    [STAThread]
    static void Main()
    {
        // Enable visual styles for your application.
        Application.EnableVisualStyles();

        Application.SetCompatibleTextRenderingDefault(false);
        Application.Run(new Form1());
    }
}

Technically, you can call that method from anywhere in your application, but then controls that have already been drawn may retain the older "flat" look. Best to leave it in the program.cs file, and execute it before you start up the message loop for your application.