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Drop MSIX scaffold cruft so VS stops demanding deployment#3

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StuartMeeks wants to merge 1 commit into
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fix-deploy-unpackaged
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Drop MSIX scaffold cruft so VS stops demanding deployment#3
StuartMeeks wants to merge 1 commit into
masterfrom
fix-deploy-unpackaged

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@StuartMeeks

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Problem

F5 in Visual Studio failed with:

The project needs to be deployed before we can debug. Please enable Deploy in the Configuration Manager.

Deploy was already checked. The advice is for MSIX-packaged projects; unpackaged WinUI 3 apps shouldn't have Deploy checked at all, AND shouldn't have the MSIX tooling enabled in the csproj.

Root cause

The csproj still carried <EnableMsixTooling>true</EnableMsixTooling> + the conditional Msix ProjectCapability / HasPackageAndPublishMenu blocks from the template, which made VS classify the project as needing MSIX deployment. WindowsPackageType=None says we ship unpackaged, so the deploy step finds nothing to deploy and the F5 path errors out.

CLAUDE.md is explicit:

Unpackaged distribution. This is load-bearing — do not reintroduce MSIX / packaged assumptions.

Changes

  • Remove EnableMsixTooling, the conditional Msix ProjectCapability, and the HasPackageAndPublishMenu block from Snipdeck.App.csproj
  • Remove <Deploy /> from Snipdeck.App in the slnx so the build doesn't try to run a deploy step
  • Delete Package.appxmanifest (only meaningful for MSIX-packaged builds)
  • Delete Assets/*.png (the Start tile / store / lock screen images those manifests pointed at) and the Content Include entries that referenced them
  • The Win32 app.manifest stays (DPI awareness, etc.) and is unrelated

Test plan

  • dotnet test tests/Snipdeck.Core.Tests — still green
  • You: F5 in Visual Studio no longer demands deploy and the window comes up
  • CI's Windows job still builds the App project (any reference to a deleted asset would surface here)

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

VS was failing debug with "The project needs to be deployed before we can
debug. Please enable Deploy in the Configuration Manager." even though Deploy
was checked. Root cause: the csproj still carried EnableMsixTooling=true and
the matching Msix ProjectCapability / HasPackageAndPublishMenu blocks from
the template, which made VS classify the project as needing MSIX deployment.
WindowsPackageType=None says we ship unpackaged, so the deploy step finds
nothing to deploy and the F5 path errors out.

CLAUDE.md is explicit: unpackaged distribution, no MSIX assumptions. Removing
the MSIX bits and the dead assets that go with them:
  - EnableMsixTooling, Msix ProjectCapability, HasPackageAndPublishMenu
  - Package.appxmanifest (only meaningful for MSIX-packaged builds)
  - Assets/*.png (Start tile / store / lock screen images for MSIX manifests)
  - <Deploy /> on Snipdeck.App in the slnx — F5 no longer needs a deploy step
  - Content Include entries pointing at the now-deleted assets

The Win32 app.manifest stays (DPI awareness etc.) and is unrelated.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
@StuartMeeks StuartMeeks deleted the fix-deploy-unpackaged branch May 29, 2026 16:35
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