Automate a Windows app with custom (non-standard) controls using AutoIt's Window Info tool and Control functions
domain: autoitscript.com · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
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Steps
Open the AutoIt Window Info tool (bundled with the AutoIt install) and hover the target control to read its class, instance, and text under the Control tab
Use the captured control identifier, e.g. [CLASS:Button; INSTANCE:2], as the controlID parameter to ControlClick, ControlSend, or ControlGetText
If a control resists ControlClick, call WinActivate() on its parent window first, since some controls only accept programmatic clicks while their window is active/foreground
For apps whose custom-drawn controls don't appear in the Window Info tool at all, fall back to coordinate-based MouseClick/Send against the window's client area computed via WinGetPos
Verify state changes indirectly (pixel color, window title, or a follow-up control read) since custom controls often don't expose reliable text/state properties to query back
Known gotchas
AutoIt's control functions target standard Win32 controls; apps that draw their own custom controls may expose nothing usable in the Window Info tool, forcing coordinate- or image-based fallbacks
ControlClick works in the background for many controls, but some applications explicitly ignore or mishandle background clicks and require the real window to be topmost/active first
Coordinate-based fallbacks break whenever the window is resized, moved, placed on a different-DPI monitor, or the app's layout changes — they are the least stable option and should be a last resort
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