Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp 0.3.0

Prefix Reserved 
dotnet add package Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp --version 0.3.0
                    


                    

                
NuGet\Install-Package Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp -Version 0.3.0
This command is intended to be used within the Package Manager Console in Visual Studio, as it uses the NuGet module's version of Install-Package. 
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp" Version="0.3.0">
  <PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
  <IncludeAssets>runtime; build; native; contentfiles; analyzers</IncludeAssets>
</PackageReference>
For projects that support PackageReference, copy this XML node into the project file to reference the package. 
<PackageVersion Include="Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp" Version="0.3.0" />
                    


                            Directory.Packages.props
                        

                    

                
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp">
  <PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
  <IncludeAssets>runtime; build; native; contentfiles; analyzers</IncludeAssets>
</PackageReference>
                    


                            Project file
For projects that support Central Package Management (CPM), copy this XML node into the solution Directory.Packages.props file to version the package. 
paket add Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp --version 0.3.0
                    


                    

                
#r "nuget: Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp, 0.3.0"
#r directive can be used in F# Interactive and Polyglot Notebooks. Copy this into the interactive tool or source code of the script to reference the package. 
#:package Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp@0.3.0
#:package directive can be used in C# file-based apps starting in .NET 10 preview 4. Copy this into a .cs file before any lines of code to reference the package. 
#addin nuget:?package=Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp&version=0.3.0
                    


                            Install as a Cake Addin
                        

                    

                
#tool nuget:?package=Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp&version=0.3.0
                    


                            Install as a Cake Tool

Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp

Enables dotnet run for packaged Windows applications.

Overview

This package provides MSBuild targets that seamlessly integrate with the .NET CLI, enabling developers to build and launch packaged Windows applications with a simple dotnet run command. Under the hood, it invokes winapp run to create a loose layout package, register it with Windows, and launch the app — simulating a full MSIX install for debugging.

Features

  • Automatic Detection: Detects when your project is a packaged WinUI/WinAppSDK application
  • Seamless Integration: Hooks into the standard dotnet run pipeline, invoking winapp run automatically
  • Loose Layout Package: Registers your build output as a loose layout package with Windows (like a real MSIX install)
  • Zero Configuration: Works out of the box with standard WinUI project templates

Usage

  1. Add this package to your WinUI project:
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp" Version="0.1.10" PrivateAssets="all" />
  1. Run your application:
dotnet run

How It Works

When you run dotnet run, this package:

  1. Builds your project normally
  2. Detects if the project uses Windows App SDK with packaging
  3. Prepares a loose-layout package in the output directory
  4. Registers the package with Windows via winapp run (like a real MSIX install)
  5. Launches the application using the Windows Application Activation Manager

Requirements

  • Windows 10 or later
  • .NET 8.0 or later
  • Windows App SDK 1.4 or later

Configuration

Set these MSBuild properties in your .csproj to customize behavior:

Property Default Description
EnableWinAppRunSupport true Enable/disable the run support functionality
WinAppLaunchArgs (empty) Arguments to pass to the app on launch
WinAppRunUseExecutionAlias false Launch via execution alias instead of AUMID activation. Useful for console apps that need terminal I/O.
WinAppRunNoLaunch false Only register identity without launching the app
WinAppRunDebugOutput false Capture OutputDebugString messages and first-chance exceptions. Only one debugger can attach at a time (prevents VS/VS Code). Use WinAppRunNoLaunch instead to attach a different debugger. Cannot be combined with WinAppRunNoLaunch.

Example:

<PropertyGroup>
  
  <WinAppRunUseExecutionAlias>true</WinAppRunUseExecutionAlias>

  
  <WinAppRunDebugOutput>true</WinAppRunDebugOutput>
</PropertyGroup>

Troubleshooting

Application fails to launch

Ensure your appxmanifest.xml is correctly configured with:

  • Valid Identity (Name, Publisher, Version)
  • Valid Application entry (Id, Executable, EntryPoint)

Debug identity registration fails

Run Visual Studio or the terminal as Administrator, or ensure Developer Mode is enabled in Windows Settings.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

There are no supported framework assets in this package.

Learn more about Target Frameworks and .NET Standard.

This package has no dependencies.

NuGet packages

This package is not used by any NuGet packages.

GitHub repositories

This package is not used by any popular GitHub repositories.

Version Downloads Last Updated
0.3.0 80 4/22/2026