CreateFrame

Main Menu
WoW API Lua API FrameXML util Widget API Widget scripts XML schema Events CVars Macro commands Combat Log Escape sequences Hyperlinks API changes HOWTOs wowuidev

Creates a Frame object.

frame = CreateFrame(frameType [, name, parent, template, id])

Arguments

frameType

string - Type of the frame; e.g. "Frame" or "Button".

name

string? - Globally accessible name to assign to the frame, or nil for an anonymous frame.

parent

Frame?🔗 - Parent object to assign to the frame, or nil to be parentless; cannot be a string. Can also be set with Region:SetParent()

template

string? - Comma-delimited list of virtual XML templates to inherit; see also a complete list of FrameXML templates.

id

number? - ID to assign to the frame. Can also be set with Frame:SetID()

Returns

frame

Frame🔗 - The created Frame object or one of the other frame type objects.

Frame types

Possible frame types are available from the XML schema {⁠, ⁠}:

Frame ArchaeologyDigSiteFrame Browser Button CheckButton Checkout CinematicModel ColorSelect Cooldown DressUpModel EditBox FogOfWarFrame GameTooltip MessageFrame

Model ModelScene MovieFrame OffScreenFrame PlayerModel QuestPOIFrame ScenarioPOIFrame ScrollFrame SimpleHTML Slider StatusBar TabardModel UnitPositionFrame

Details

• Fires the frame's OnLoad script, if it has one from an inherited template.
• Frames cannot be deleted or garbage collected, so it may be preferable to reuse them.
• Intrinsic frames may also be used.

Example

• Shows a texture which is also parented to UIParent so it will be have the same UI scale and hidden when toggled with Alt-Z

inv_mushroom_11

local f = CreateFrame("Frame", nil, UIParent)
f:SetPoint("CENTER")
f:SetSize(64, 64)

f.tex = f:CreateTexture()
f.tex:SetAllPoints(f)
f.tex:SetTexture("interface/icons/inv_mushroom_11")

• Creates a button which inherits textures and widget scripts from UIPanelButtonTemplate

Click me

local btn = CreateFrame("Button", nil, UIParent, "UIPanelButtonTemplate")
btn:SetPoint("CENTER")
btn:SetSize(100, 40)
btn:SetText("Click me")
btn:SetScript("OnClick", function(self, button, down)
	print("Pressed", button, down and "down" or "up")
end)
btn:RegisterForClicks("AnyDown", "AnyUp")

• Displays an animated model for a DisplayID.

local m = CreateFrame("PlayerModel")
m:SetPoint("CENTER")
m:SetSize(200, 200)
m:SetDisplayInfo(21723) -- murloccostume.m2

• Registers for events being fired, like chat messages and when you start/stop moving.

local function OnEvent(self, event, ...)
	print(event, ...)
end

local f = CreateFrame("Frame")
f:RegisterEvent("CHAT_MSG_CHANNEL")
f:RegisterEvent("PLAYER_STARTED_MOVING")
f:RegisterEvent("PLAYER_STOPPED_MOVING")
f:SetScript("OnEvent", OnEvent)

Patch changes

Patch 2.0.1 (2006-12-05): The fourth argument, inheritFrame, now accepts comma-separated values.
Patch 1.11.0 (2006-06-19): Added fourth argument, inheritFrame.
Patch 1.10.0 (2006-03-28): Added.

See also

• CreateFramePool()