Getting the Microsoft Community Template Studio to Work on .NET 9: My Journey and Solution

I recently embarked on the challenge of getting the Microsoft Community Template Studio to work with the latest .NET 9 release, so it could interact with the image processing library already built in .NET 9. While Template Studio has long been an invaluable tool for kickstarting modern Windows app projects, it had fallen behind recent framework updates, making it difficult to get a clean build on the newest .NET versions, being permanently tied to .NET 7. After persistent troubleshooting and , I'm happy to share that I finally got a fully working version running on .NET 9.

The Challenge

Template Studio had not seen significant updates since 2023, and since then, .NET and WinUI have undergone substantial evolving changes. This led to issues around package compatibility, SDK references, and namespace changes that prevented out-of-the-box success on .NET 9. Building the community's favourite starter project resulted in numerous build errors and missing references, which appeared overwhelming at first.

The Process

My approach was methodical:

• I examined existing GitHub issues and discussions, including Issue #4773 where users shared frustrations about the outdated state.

• I isolated specific build errors related to assembly mismatches, deprecated packages, and migration requirements.

• Collaboratively, I provided detailed feedback and insights in the GitHub issue thread—see my final comment under jonathanmcnamee’s post.

• I updated NuGet package references to their latest compatible versions for .NET 9, refactored obsolete namespaces, and ensured all project SDK versions aligned properly.

• Further debugging followed until a clean compile and stable run was achieved.

The Outcome

Now, the project compiles and runs successfully on .NET 9, paving the way for developers adopting the latest .NET and WinUI ecosystem to harness the benefits of Template Studio without the previous blockers.

Sharing My Work

To help others facing similar challenges, I've shared my base project to GitHub under Community Template - Ported to .net 9. his should serve as a reference or starting point for anyone looking to use Template Studio on .NET 9.

Final Thoughts

While Template Studio remains an invaluable tool, this experience underscores the critical importance of maintaining tools like these in lockstep with the rapidly evolving .NET ecosystem. I hope this post and the shared code empower fellow developers and encourage further community-driven enhancement for Template Studio.

GitHub

Visit GitHub for a working copy of the code