windows-flutter-exe

name	windows-flutter-exe
description	Build, verify, and package Flutter desktop apps for Windows into a distributable executable bundle (EXE plus required DLL/data dependencies, optional installer-ready artifacts). Use when a user asks to generate a Windows Flutter executable, ship a Windows desktop release, include runtime dependencies, or troubleshoot missing DLL/runtime issues in Windows Flutter distribution.

Windows Flutter Executable Packaging

Overview

Produce a Windows Flutter release bundle that runs on end-user machines by packaging the complete build/windows/x64/runner/Release output instead of only the .exe. Use this workflow to avoid broken deliveries caused by missing plugin DLLs, flutter_windows.dll, or data/ assets.

Required Inputs

• App root containing pubspec.yaml
• Windows build host (or CI runner) with Flutter + Visual Studio C++ desktop workload
• Target architecture (default: x64)
• Output directory for shipping artifacts

Workflow

1) Preflight

• Confirm Windows target is enabled:

  flutter config --enable-windows-desktop
  

• Confirm toolchain:

  flutter doctor -v
  

• Ensure flutter doctor shows no blocking Windows desktop issues.

2) Build Release

• From app root:

  flutter pub get
  flutter build windows --release
  

• Release output location: build/windows/x64/runner/Release

3) Bundle All Runtime Dependencies

Package the full Release folder, not only <app>.exe. Required runtime surfaces:

• <app>.exe
• flutter_windows.dll
• data/ directory
• Plugin/native DLLs generated by Flutter plugins

4) Create a Distributable Archive

Run the bundled helper:

bash ./skills/windows-flutter-exe/scripts/build_windows_flutter_bundle.sh \
  --app-root <APP_ROOT> \
  --out-dir <OUTPUT_DIR>

This script can:

• Build Windows release
• Validate required runtime files
• Copy full Release payload into a versioned bundle directory
• Generate SHA256 manifest
• Produce a .zip artifact

5) Optional VC++ Redistributable Inclusion

If your distribution policy requires bundling the VC++ runtime installer, provide it to the script:

bash ./skills/windows-flutter-exe/scripts/build_windows_flutter_bundle.sh \
  --app-root <APP_ROOT> \
  --out-dir <OUTPUT_DIR> \
  --vc-redist-path <PATH_TO_VC_REDIST_X64_EXE>

6) Clean-Machine Validation (Release Gate)

• Test the packaged bundle on a clean Windows machine/VM.
• Confirm app launch without missing DLL errors.
• Confirm plugin features that depend on native libraries.

Troubleshooting

• Missing flutter_windows.dll: package entire Release directory, not exe-only.
• MSVCP140.dll or VCRUNTIME140.dll errors: install or ship Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable (x64).
• App runs locally but not on user machine: validate on clean VM and compare bundle contents with CI artifact.
• Plugin feature fails in release only: verify plugin DLLs are present in packaged bundle.

Deliverables Checklist

• windows-x64/ folder containing exe + all dependencies
• windows-x64.zip archive
• SHA256SUMS.txt
• Optional vc_redist.x64.exe inside bundle (if policy requires)