Visual Studio

As explained in .NET MAUI in Action

Visual Studio is an integrated development environment for building, debugging, testing, and deploying software.

Visual Studio is a GUI development environment for creating and working with .NET MAUI apps. It combines project templates, code completion, testing, debugging, design feedback, and platform selection in one place. Its main practical advantage is discoverability: developers can find options by navigating the interface instead of remembering commands. section 2.1 section 2.1.1

For a first app, create a project from the Blank .NET MAUI Template, name it AlohaWorld, choose a save location, and let Visual Studio generate the solution. Solution Explorer then shows the project files and folders. On Windows, searching templates for “maui” is the quickest way to narrow the list. section 2.1.1 section 2.1.1

Figure 2.3 You can filter project templates in Visual Studio using the language, platform, and project type drop-downs, but the free text filter is the quickest way to find what you’re looking for. In this example, we’ve entered maui as a search term and narrowed the list of project templates to .NET MAUI projects.

Use the project-template search to find .NET MAUI templates quickly before creating a new app. section 2.1.1

Run a .NET MAUI app from the toolbar by selecting an appropriate target:

• On Windows, use the Run-button drop-down to choose a Windows framework target, then click Run. Enable Windows Developer Mode when required to run unsigned development apps. section 2.2.1
• On macOS, choose the build profile and target beside Run. Targets include the local Mac and supported iOS simulators. section 2.2.2

Update a running AlohaWorld app

Open MainPage.xaml and change the Label text from “Hello, World!” to “Aloha, World!”. Hot Reload can apply supported edits while the app runs. Imported image changes may require a rebuild or restart: add the image under Resources, set its Build Action to MauiImage, and update the Image Source filename. section 2.4.1 section 2.4.2

Figure 2.18 The Hot Reload button in Visual Studio

The Hot Reload control applies supported changes to a running app; its menu can enable reload on file save. section 2.4.1

Visual Studio is a strong fit when integrated tooling matters. XAML Live Preview, IntelliSense, IntelliCode, testing, debugging, and simple target selection reduce friction, while the .NET CLI remains a lighter alternative. The CLI does not target Windows directly; Windows command-line builds use MSBuild instead. section 2.1

How .NET MAUI in Action covers it

How deep it goes

Provides procedural template, target-selection, and Hot Reload steps, while deferring generated-file details and multi-platform targeting.

Examples

Uses an AlohaWorld app, Blank .NET MAUI Template, XAML label edit, custom image import, and Windows or macOS run targets.

What it assumes

Starts from creating a blank .NET MAUI project and does not assume prior mobile or .NET MAUI experience.

What you can do after

Apply it via Visual Studio to create a .NET MAUI app, choose a target, run it, and update supported changes while debugging.

How it connects

Connects .NET MAUI with the .NET CLI, MSBuild, XAML Live Preview, IntelliSense, IntelliCode, Hot Reload, and Solution Explorer.

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Related concepts

• IDEkind of · An integrated development environment (IDE) is a software application that combines source-code editing with tools for developing, building, running, or debugging programs.
• .NET CLIalternative to · .NET CLI is the command-line toolset for creating, building, running, testing, publishing, and managing .NET applications and projects.
• Visual Studio Codecontrasts with · Visual Studio Code is Microsoft’s cross-platform source-code editor, extensible with tools for programming, debugging, and other development workflows.
• debuggerused by · A debugger is a software tool for controlling program execution and inspecting runtime state to investigate behavior and diagnose defects.

This explainer was generated by Manning's knowledge graph from the text of .NET MAUI in Action. The section links point to the parts of the book it draws on.