Create custom VisualState in xaml and manually set it in CodeBehind - wpf

Question

I have a TabItem style, which has VisualStates.
<VisualState x:Name="MouseOver">
<!-- Tab turns bronze when mouseover -->
</VisualState>
Now I want to have a custom visual state and manually set the state in codebehind instead of relying on the MouseOver event.
<VisualState x:Name="CustomVisualState">
<!-- this will be a storyboard to cause flashing -->
</VisualState>
Then I need to set it in CodeBehind.
MyTabItem.VisualState = CustomVisualState. //something like this

Answer 1

Have you tried
VisualStateManager.GoToState
Takes a Control, string with the custom state name and a bool flag for using transitions.
Example Usage From msdn
private void UpdateStates(bool useTransitions)
{
if (Value >= 0)
{
VisualStateManager.GoToState(this, "Positive", useTransitions);
}
else
{
VisualStateManager.GoToState(this, "Negative", useTransitions);
}
if (IsFocused)
{
VisualStateManager.GoToState(this, "Focused", useTransitions);
}
else
{
VisualStateManager.GoToState(this, "Unfocused", useTransitions);
}
}
A slightly more complicated example usage from here
Given this xaml
<Grid x:Name="LayoutRoot" Background="LightBlue">
<VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
<VisualStateGroup x:Name="SG1">
<VisualStateGroup.Transitions>
<VisualTransition GeneratedDuration="00:00:01">
<VisualTransition.GeneratedEasingFunction>
<ElasticEase EasingMode="EaseOut"/>
</VisualTransition.GeneratedEasingFunction>
</VisualTransition>
</VisualStateGroup.Transitions>
<VisualState x:Name="SG1Normal"/>
<VisualState x:Name="SG1EllipseRight" >
<Storyboard>
<DoubleAnimationUsingKeyFrames BeginTime="00:00:00" Duration="00:00:00.0010000" Storyboard.TargetName="ellipse" Storyboard.TargetProperty="(UIElement.RenderTransform).(TransformGroup.Children)[3].(TranslateTransform.X)">
<EasingDoubleKeyFrame KeyTime="00:00:00" Value="320"/>
</DoubleAnimationUsingKeyFrames>
</Storyboard>
</VisualState>
</VisualStateGroup>
</VisualStateManager.VisualStateGroups>
<Ellipse x:Name="ellipse" Fill="Red" Stroke="Black"
Height="116" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="50,98,0,0"
VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="235" RenderTransformOrigin="0.5,0.5" >
<Ellipse.RenderTransform>
<TransformGroup>
<ScaleTransform/>
<SkewTransform/>
<RotateTransform/>
<TranslateTransform/>
</TransformGroup>
</Ellipse.RenderTransform>
</Ellipse>
</Grid>
Changing state can be done like so.
VisualStateManager.GoToState(this, SG1EllipseRight.Name, true);
Or alternatively
VisualStateManager.GoToState(control, "SG1EllipseRight", true);

Answer 2

Try this,
VisualStateManager.GoToElementState(Control, "StateName", true/false);
or
VisualStateManager.GoToState(Control, "StateName", true/false);

Answer 3

The VisualStateManager also enables you to specify when a control
enters a specific state. The method that you should call to change
states depends on your scenario. If you create a control that uses the
VisualStateManager in its ControlTemplate, call the GoToState method.
For more information about how to create controls that use the
VisualStateManager, see Creating a Control That Has a Customizable
Appearance. If you use the VisualStateManager outside of a
ControlTemplate (for example, if you use a VisualStateManager in a
UserControl or in a single element), call the GoToElementState method.
In either case, the VisualStateManager performs the logic that is
required to appropriately start and stop the storyboards that are
associated with the involved state. - VisualStateManager Class
That is how different between GoToElementState and GoToState.