A popular topic that comes up when talking about MVVM is the use of a ViewModelLocator and the many different ways one can be implemented.  Rather than getting into the pros and cons on when or why you should use it, I decided I would just post my version of a simple ViewModelLocator and let those who like it use it, and those who don’t, well you know…  :)

First, a disclaimer.  I have not used this code in a production application, it is just something I was tossing around while reading others’ posts on the subject.

1. MainView.xaml

2. MainViewModel.cs

3. ViewModelLocator.cs

I have a codepaste of the ViewModelLocator.cs file if you are interested but don’t feel like re-typing the 50 lines of code!

Enjoy!

Additional Resources

• Simple ViewModel Locator for MVVM: The Patients Have Left the Asylum - by John Papa
• ViewModel binding with the Managed Extensibility Framework - by Jeremy Likness
• MVVM Light Toolkit - by Laurent Bugnion