glue-manual-repro

name	glue-manual-repro
description	Manually launching a built GlueFormsCore.exe to repro/verify an editor UI bug (layout, startup state, first-launch behavior). Triggers: GlueFormsCore.exe, %AppData%\GlueFormsCore, settings.xml, GlueLayoutSettings.xml, simulating first launch.

For investigating a UI/layout bug that a unit test can't pin alone (timing, first-launch state, window rendering) — driving the real GlueFormsCore.exe yourself is fine; the process doc's "don't drive the tool yourself" rule is about the final user-facing manual-test step, not internal repro.

Landmines

• Build Glue with All.sln, not Glue.csproj alone. A Glue.csproj-only build boots with no plugins loaded (Explorer tree, property grid, etc. all silently missing) — the window looks badly broken in a way that has nothing to do with the bug you're chasing. Costs a full rebuild cycle to notice.
• settings.xml's LastProjectFile must be the .csproj, not the .gluj. Glue opens it via Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project; a .gluj path throws a real "Could not load the project" popup.
• User profile lives at %AppData%\GlueFormsCore\settings.xml and GlueLayoutSettings.xml. Back both up before simulating a fresh/first-launch profile (delete or rewrite them), restore after — these are the developer's real Glue preferences, not scratch files.
• A backgrounded/unfocused window doesn't repaint. Program.cs forces RenderOptions.ProcessRenderMode = SoftwareOnly; a screenshot of an occluded or non-foreground window shows stale/blank content. Bring it to the foreground and maximize (ShowWindow/SetForegroundWindow via P/Invoke in PowerShell) immediately before capturing.
• A project auto-load on startup can take minutes, not seconds (MSBuild restore, codegen) — a window title still reading generic "FlatRedBall Editor" (no project path) means it hasn't finished; don't read the UI state as final until the title shows the loaded .csproj path.
• exitwhenquiet may never fire. The automation hook (MainGlueWindow.StartExitWhenQuietWatcherIfRequested) exits only once TaskManager.Self.AreAllAsyncTasksDone has held for N seconds, and on some projects that never happens — Glue loads fine and then just stays open (issue #2053). Don't build a headless verify loop on a clean exit; launch, wait for the title to show the .csproj, kill, and assert on files written.

Reusable pattern

Self-serve-log via a temporary File.AppendAllText probe in the suspect code path (see the self-serve-logging skill), launch the exe from Bash/PowerShell, drive it headlessly where possible (writing settings.xml directly beats simulating clicks), then read the log — don't ask the user to transcribe anything.