winapp-cli

name

winapp-cli

description

Windows App Development CLI (winapp) for building, packaging, signing, debugging, and UI-automating Windows applications. Use when asked to initialize Windows app projects, create MSIX packages, manage AppxManifest.xml or development certificates, run an app as packaged for debugging, automate Windows UI via Microsoft UI Automation, publish to the Microsoft Store, or access Windows SDK build tools. Covers commands like init, pack, run, unregister, manifest, cert, sign, store, ui, and tool. Supports .NET (csproj), C++, Electron, Rust, Tauri, Flutter, and other Windows frameworks.

Windows App Development CLI

winapp manages Windows SDKs, MSIX packaging, app identity, manifests, certificates, signing, store publishing, and UI automation for any framework targeting Windows (.NET/csproj, C++, Electron, Rust, Tauri, Flutter, etc.). Public preview — subject to change.

Prerequisites

• Windows 10 or later
• Install via one of:
  • WinGet: winget install Microsoft.WinAppCli --source winget
  • npm (Electron/Node): npm install @microsoft/winappcli --save-dev
  • CI: setup-WinAppCli GitHub Action
  • Manual: GitHub Releases

Commands

Command	Purpose
init	Initialize project: SDKs (stable/preview/experimental/none), manifest, winapp.yaml. .csproj projects skip winapp.yaml and use NuGet directly. Does not auto-generate a cert (v0.2.0+).
restore / update	Restore or update SDK package versions (--setup-sdks preview for preview SDKs).
pack <dir>	Build MSIX. Flags: --generate-cert, --cert <pfx> --cert-password, --self-contained (bundles WinAppSDK runtime), --output. Auto-discovers third-party WinRT components from .winmd (v0.2.1+).
run <dir> [-- <app args>]	Pack as loose layout and launch as packaged app — ideal for IDE F5 debugging without producing an MSIX. Supports -- arg passthrough (v0.3.1+). (v0.3.0+)
create-debug-identity <exe>	Add sparse package identity to an exe so it can call identity-gated APIs (notifications, Windows AI, shell integration) without full packaging.
unregister	Remove sideloaded dev packages registered by run / create-debug-identity.
manifest	Generate AppxManifest.xml; supports placeholders and qualified names. manifest update-assets <image> generates all required icon sizes from one source (PNG or SVG, v0.2.1+).
cert generate / install / info	Manage dev certs. cert info <pfx> --password <pwd> shows subject/issuer/validity. --export-cer exports the public key. --json available on generate and info. (v0.2.1+)
sign <target> --cert <pfx>	Sign MSIX or exe; optional timestamp server.
tool	Run Windows SDK build tools with paths configured.
store	Run Microsoft Store Developer CLI for store submission/validation/publishing.
create-external-catalog	Generate CodeIntegrityExternal.cat for TrustedLaunch sparse packages.
ui list-windows / inspect / click / search / wait-for / get-focused	UI automation via Microsoft UI Automation. All support --json. JSON envelopes for inspect, get-focused, search, and wait-for changed in v0.3.1 — see references/ui-json-envelope.md (other ui subcommands keep their pre-0.3.1 output). (v0.3.0+)
node create-addon / add-electron-debug-identity / clear-electron-debug-identity	Electron/Node helpers. All commands also exposed as typed JS/TS functions from @microsoft/winappcli (v0.2.1+).

CI tip: pass --no-prompt to skip interactive prompts.

Workflow

Standard init → package flow:

1. Initialize the project in your app folder. Sets up SDK refs, manifest, and winapp.yaml (.csproj projects skip the YAML and configure NuGet directly).

   winapp init        # add --no-prompt in CI
   

2. Generate a dev signing certificate — required for sideloading. init no longer creates one for non-.csproj projects (v0.2.0+). Pin the output path so later steps can reference it.

   winapp cert generate --publisher "CN=My Company" --output ./mycert.pfx --install
   

3. Build your app with the framework's own toolchain (dotnet build, npm run build, cargo build, etc.).

4. Package as MSIX, signing with the cert from step 2.

   winapp pack ./build-output --cert ./mycert.pfx --cert-password password --output MyApp.msix
   

5. (Optional) Re-sign with a production cert before distribution.

   winapp sign MyApp.msix --cert ./prod.pfx --cert-password $env:CERT_PWD
   

6. (Optional) Submit to the Microsoft Store with winapp store … (wraps the Store Developer CLI).

Alternate flows

• Debug identity-gated APIs without packaging (notifications, Windows AI, shell):

  winapp create-debug-identity ./bin/MyApp.exe
  ./bin/MyApp.exe
  

• Run as packaged app for IDE F5 (loose layout; app args after --):

  winapp run ./bin/Debug/net10.0-windows10.0.26100.0/win-x64 \
    --manifest ./appxmanifest.xml -- --my-flag value
  

• Electron:

  npx winapp init
  npx winapp node add-electron-debug-identity
  npx winapp pack ./out --output MyElectronApp.msix
  

Gotchas

• winapp ui --json envelope reshaped in v0.3.1 — ui inspect, ui get-focused, ui search, and ui wait-for use new shapes; per-element id / parentSelector / windowHandle are removed (use selector). Full schemas in references/ui-json-envelope.md.
• winapp init no longer auto-generates a certificate (v0.2.0+) — run winapp cert generate explicitly. The old --no-cert flag was removed.
• .csproj projects skip winapp.yaml — SDK packages live in the project file. Hybrid setups need adjustment.
• NuGet global cache, not %userprofile%/.winapp/packages (v0.2.0+) — scripts depending on the old folder will break.
• Re-run create-debug-identity after any manifest change — identity is bound at registration time.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Fix
Certificate not trusted	winapp cert install <pfx> to add to local machine store
Identity-gated API fails	Re-run create-debug-identity after manifest changes
SDK not found	winapp restore or winapp update
run / create-debug-identity registration error 0x800704EC	Developer Mode is off — enable it in Settings → Privacy & security → For developers (or Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModelUnlock' -Name AllowDevelopmentWithoutDevLicense -Value 1), then retry
run / create-debug-identity registration error 0x80073CFB	Package already registered with a conflicting identity — run winapp unregister (or winapp unregister --force if registered from a different project tree), then retry

References

• winapp CLI repo · Full usage docs · .NET guide · Samples
• Windows App SDK · MSIX overview · Package identity overview