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WPF Sample Application

This sample demonstrates how to use winapp CLI with a WPF application to add package identity and package as MSIX.

For a complete step-by-step guide, see the .NET Getting Started Guide - the same steps apply to WPF, WinForms, and other .NET UI frameworks.

What This Sample Shows

  • WPF desktop application with modern UI
  • Using Windows Runtime APIs to retrieve package identity
  • Using Win2D (Microsoft.Graphics.Win2D) — a third-party WinRT component that requires activatable class registration
  • NuGet package references (Microsoft.WindowsAppSDK, Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools, Microsoft.Graphics.Win2D) added directly to .csproj
  • Using Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp NuGet package for automatic dotnet run support with package identity
  • Using Windows App SDK via NuGet for modern Windows APIs
  • MSIX packaging with app manifest and assets

Prerequisites

  • .NET 10.0 SDK
  • winapp CLI built locally: run .\scripts\build-cli.ps1 from the repo root (this builds the CLI and produces the Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp NuGet package in artifacts/nuget/)

Setup

Run winapp init in this directory. It auto-detects the .csproj and runs the .NET-specific setup flow:

winapp init

This will validate the TargetFramework, add required NuGet packages to the .csproj, and generate the manifest, assets, and development certificate. No winapp.yaml is needed for .NET projects.

Building and Running

Run

The .csproj includes the Microsoft.Windows.SDK.BuildTools.WinApp NuGet package, which hooks into dotnet run to automatically register a loose layout package with identity and launch the app:

dotnet run

The WPF window will display:

Package Family Name: wpf-app.debug_12345abcde
Windows App Runtime Version: 1.8-stable (1.8.0)
Win2D: <GPU device description>

The Win2D line confirms that CanvasDevice was activated successfully, which requires the InProcessServer entries for Microsoft.Graphics.Canvas.dll to be registered.

Note: Win2D requires a platform-specific build (not AnyCPU). Use -r win-x64 or -r win-arm64 when building or packaging.

Package as MSIX

The .csproj is configured to automatically run winapp pack after dotnet publish using the winapp CLI bundled in the NuGet package. If a devcert.pfx certificate exists in the project directory, the MSIX will be signed automatically; otherwise, an unsigned MSIX is produced.

# Publish and package in one command (produces an unsigned MSIX)
dotnet publish

# To produce a signed MSIX, first generate a dev certificate:
winapp cert generate --if-exists skip

# Then publish again — the certificate will be picked up automatically
dotnet publish

# Install certificate (first time only, requires admin)
winapp cert install .\devcert.pfx

# Install the generated MSIX
# The .msix file will be in the project directory

Double-click the .msix file to install. The app will be available in your Start Menu and can be launched like any other installed app.