Setting Up Your Development Environment for .NET MAUI on Android

This guide will walk you through the essential steps to set up your development environment for building .NET MAUI applications that target Android.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

• Visual Studio 2022 version 17.3 or later. Download from the official Visual Studio website.
• .NET 6 SDK or later. This is usually included with Visual Studio installations.

Installing .NET MAUI Workload

To develop .NET MAUI applications, you need to install the .NET MAUI workload.

Option 1: Using Visual Studio Installer

1. 1.
2. Open the Visual Studio Installer.
3. 2.
4. Click the Modify button for your Visual Studio installation.
5. 3.
6. In the workloads tab, scroll down and check the .NET Multi-platform App UI development workload.
7. 4.
8. In the individual components tab, ensure that .NET MAUI development tools and Android SDK setup (latest) are selected.
9. 5.
10. Click Modify to begin the installation.

Option 2: Using the Command Line

You can also install the workload using the .NET CLI:

dotnet workload install maui

Android SDK and Emulator Setup

For Android development, you'll need the Android SDK and an Android emulator or a physical device.

Installing Android SDK Components

Visual Studio installer usually handles this. If you need to manage SDK components manually:

1. 1.
2. Open the Android Device Manager from Visual Studio (Tools > Android > Android Device Manager).
3. 2.
4. Create a new virtual device or select an existing one.
5. 3.
6. Ensure you have the necessary Android SDK Platforms and Build-Tools installed. You can manage these through the SDK Manager within the Android Device Manager or by navigating to your Android SDK installation directory and running tools/bin/sdkmanager.

Configuring an Android Emulator

1. 1.
2. In the Android Device Manager, click Create device.
3. 2.
4. Select a hardware profile and a system image (e.g., Android 13.0 - API Level 33).
5. 3.
6. Click Create.
7. 4.
8. Once created, you can start the emulator from the Android Device Manager and deploy your .NET MAUI application to it.

Using a Physical Android Device

1. 1.
2. Enable Developer options and USB debugging on your Android device. The steps vary by device manufacturer and Android version, but generally involve going to Settings > About phone and tapping the Build number multiple times.
3. 2.
4. Connect your Android device to your computer via USB.
5. 3.
6. Authorize your computer for USB debugging when prompted on your device.
7. 4.
8. Visual Studio should detect your device and list it as a deployment target.

Creating Your First .NET MAUI App

1. 1.
2. Open Visual Studio 2022.
3. 2.
4. Click Create a new project.
5. 3.
6. Search for ".NET MAUI" and select the .NET MAUI App template.
7. 4.
8. Click Next, provide a project name and location, then click Create.
9. 5.
10. Once the project is created, select your Android device or emulator from the dropdown menu in the Visual Studio toolbar.
11. 6.
12. Click the Play button (or press F5) to build and deploy your app to the selected target.

Congratulations! You have successfully set up your environment and deployed your first .NET MAUI application to an Android target.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

• Installation errors: Ensure you have administrator privileges and a stable internet connection. Try running the Visual Studio Installer as an administrator.
• Emulator not starting: Check your emulator settings, ensure sufficient disk space, and that virtualization is enabled in your BIOS.
• Device not detected: Verify USB debugging is enabled, your device is authorized, and the correct USB drivers are installed for your device.
• Build failures: Clean and rebuild your project. Check for any pending SDK or workload updates.

For more detailed troubleshooting and advanced configurations, please refer to the official .NET MAUI documentation.