Skip to content

Comments

[xabt] support @(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable) items#10770

Draft
jonathanpeppers wants to merge 1 commit intomainfrom
dev/peppers/RuntimeEnvironmentVariable
Draft

[xabt] support @(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable) items#10770
jonathanpeppers wants to merge 1 commit intomainfrom
dev/peppers/RuntimeEnvironmentVariable

Conversation

@jonathanpeppers
Copy link
Member

Context: dotnet/sdk@bd5d3af

dotnet run now passes in dotnet run -e FOO=BAR as @(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable) MSBuild items.

To opt in to this new feature, we need to add:

<ProjectCapability Include="RuntimeEnvironmentVariableSupport" />

As well as update the _GenerateEnvironmentFiles MSBuild target:

<!-- RuntimeEnvironmentVariable items come from 'dotnet run -e NAME=VALUE' -->
<_GeneratedAndroidEnvironment Include="@(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable->'%(Identity)=%(Value)')" />

I added a new test to verify we have the env vars on-device at runtime.

Note that I tested this in combination with a local .NET SDK build:

We won't be able to merge this until we have a .NET SDK here that includes the above commit.

Context: dotnet/sdk@bd5d3af

`dotnet run` now passes in `dotnet run -e FOO=BAR` as
`@(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable)` MSBuild items.

To opt in to this new feature, we need to add:

    <ProjectCapability Include="RuntimeEnvironmentVariableSupport" />

As well as update the `_GenerateEnvironmentFiles` MSBuild target:

    <!-- RuntimeEnvironmentVariable items come from 'dotnet run -e NAME=VALUE' -->
    <_GeneratedAndroidEnvironment Include="@(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable->'%(Identity)=%(Value)')" />

I added a new test to verify we have the env vars on-device at runtime.

Note that I tested this in combination with a local .NET SDK build:

* #10769

We won't be able to merge this until we have a .NET SDK here that
includes the above commit.
@jonathanpeppers jonathanpeppers added the copilot `copilot-cli` or other AIs were used to author this label Feb 4, 2026
@jonathanpeppers
Copy link
Member Author

This is waiting on a .NET SDK that has the change:

jonathanpeppers added a commit to dotnet/sdk that referenced this pull request Feb 20, 2026
Fixes: #52492

# `dotnet watch` for .NET MAUI Scenarios

## Overview

This implements `dotnet watch` / Hot Reload for mobile platforms (Android, iOS), which cannot use the standard named pipe transport. Similar to how web applications already use websockets for reloading CSS and JavaScript, we use the same model for mobile applications.

## Transport Selection

| Platform        | Transport  | Reason                                                                        |
|-----------------|------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Desktop/Console | Named Pipe | Existing implementation, Fast, local IPC                                      |
| Android/iOS     | WebSocket  | Named pipes don't work over the network; `adb reverse` tunnels the connection |

`dotnet-watch` detects WebSocket transport via the `HotReloadWebSockets` capability:

```xml
<ProjectCapability Include="HotReloadWebSockets" />
```

Mobile workloads (Android, iOS) add this capability to their SDK targets. This allows any workload to opt into WebSocket-based hot reload.

## SDK Changes

### Architecture

Both named pipe and WebSocket transports now share a common `ClientTransport` abstraction consumed by `DefaultHotReloadClient`:

- **`NamedPipeClientTransport`** — existing local IPC path
- **`WebSocketClientTransport`** — new path for mobile, composes a sealed `KestrelWebSocketServer`

The agent side mirrors this with a `Transport` base class (`NamedPipeTransport` / `WebSocketTransport`).

### WebSocket Details

`dotnet-watch` already has a WebSocket server for web apps: `BrowserRefreshServer`. This server:

- Hosts via Kestrel on a local HTTP or HTTPS endpoint (e.g., `http://127.0.0.1:<port>` or `https://localhost:<port>`)
- Communicates with JavaScript (`aspnetcore-browser-refresh.js`) injected into web pages
- Sends commands like "refresh CSS", "reload page", "apply Blazor delta"

For mobile, we reuse the Kestrel infrastructure but with a different protocol:

| Server                     | Client                 | Protocol                                   |
|----------------------------|------------------------|--------------------------------------------|
| `BrowserRefreshServer`     | JavaScript in browser  | JSON messages for CSS/page refresh         |
| `WebSocketClientTransport` | Startup hook on device | Binary delta payloads (same as named pipe) |

`WebSocketClientTransport` composes a sealed `KestrelWebSocketServer` (shared with `BrowserRefreshServer`) and speaks the same binary protocol as the named pipe transport, just over WebSocket instead. Static asset updates (CSS) are also supported.

### WebSocket Authentication

To prevent unauthorized processes from connecting to the hot reload server, `WebSocketClientTransport` uses RSA-based authentication identical to `BrowserRefreshServer`:

1. **Server generates RSA key pair:** `SharedSecretProvider` creates a 2048-bit RSA key on startup
2. **Public key exported:** The public key (X.509 SubjectPublicKeyInfo, Base64-encoded) is passed to the app via `DOTNET_WATCH_HOTRELOAD_WEBSOCKET_KEY`
3. **Client encrypts secret:** The startup hook generates a random 32-byte secret, encrypts it with RSA-OAEP-SHA256 using the public key
4. **Secret sent as subprotocol:** The encrypted secret is URL-encoded (`WebUtility.UrlEncode`) and sent as the WebSocket subprotocol header — same encoding as `BrowserRefreshServer`
5. **Server validates:** `WebSocketClientTransport.HandleRequestAsync` decodes and decrypts the subprotocol value, accepting the connection only if decryption succeeds

### HTTPS Support

`KestrelWebSocketServer` supports binding both HTTP and HTTPS ports simultaneously via the `securePort` parameter. When `AgentWebSocketSecurePort` is configured, the server binds a WSS endpoint alongside the WS endpoint.

### Environment Variables

`dotnet-watch` launches the app via:

```dotnetcli
dotnet run --no-build \
  -e DOTNET_WATCH=1 \
  -e DOTNET_MODIFIABLE_ASSEMBLIES=debug \
  -e DOTNET_WATCH_HOTRELOAD_WEBSOCKET_ENDPOINT=ws://127.0.0.1:<port> \
  -e DOTNET_WATCH_HOTRELOAD_WEBSOCKET_KEY=<base64-encoded-rsa-public-key> \
  -e DOTNET_STARTUP_HOOKS=<path to DeltaApplier.dll>
```

The port is dynamically assigned (defaults to 0, meaning the OS picks an available port) to avoid conflicts in CI and parallel test scenarios. The `DOTNET_WATCH_AGENT_WEBSOCKET_PORT` environment variable can override this if a specific port is needed. `DOTNET_WATCH_AGENT_WEBSOCKET_SECURE_PORT` optionally enables WSS.

These environment variables are passed as `@(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable)` MSBuild items to the workload. See `dotnet-run-for-maui.md` for details on `dotnet run` and environment variables.

## Android Workload Changes (Example Integration)

### [dotnet/android#10770](dotnet/android#10770) — RuntimeEnvironmentVariable Support

Enables the Android workload to receive env vars from `dotnet run -e`:

- Adds `<ProjectCapability Include="RuntimeEnvironmentVariableSupport" />`
- Adds `<ProjectCapability Include="HotReloadWebSockets" />` to opt into WebSocket-based hot reload
- Configures `@(RuntimeEnvironmentVariable)` items, so they will apply to Android.

### [dotnet/android#10778](dotnet/android#10778) — dotnet-watch Integration

1. **Startup Hook:** Parses `DOTNET_STARTUP_HOOKS`, includes the assembly in the app package, rewrites the path to just the assembly name (since the full path doesn't exist on device)
2. **Port Forwarding:** Runs `adb reverse tcp:<port> tcp:<port>` so the device can reach the host's WebSocket server via `127.0.0.1:<port>` (port is parsed from the endpoint URL)
3. **Prevents Double Connection:** Disables startup hooks in `Microsoft.Android.Run` (the desktop launcher) so only the mobile app connects

## Data Flow

1. **Build:** `dotnet-watch` builds the project, detects `HotReloadWebSockets` capability
2. **Launch:** `dotnet run -e DOTNET_WATCH_HOTRELOAD_WEBSOCKET_ENDPOINT=ws://127.0.0.1:<port> -e DOTNET_WATCH_HOTRELOAD_WEBSOCKET_KEY=<key> -e DOTNET_STARTUP_HOOKS=...`
3. **Workload:** Android build tasks:a
   - Include the startup hook DLL in the APK
   - Set up ADB port forwarding for the dynamically assigned port
   - Rewrite env vars for on-device paths
4. **Device:** App starts → StartupHook loads → `Transport.TryCreate()` reads env vars → `WebSocketTransport` encrypts secret with RSA public key → connects to `ws://127.0.0.1:<port>` with encrypted secret as subprotocol
5. **Server:** `WebSocketClientTransport` validates the encrypted secret, accepts connection
6. **Hot Reload:** File change → delta compiled → sent over WebSocket → applied on device

## iOS

Similar changes will be made in the iOS workload to opt into WebSocket-based hot reload:

- Add `<ProjectCapability Include="HotReloadWebSockets" />`
- Handle startup hooks and port forwarding similar to Android

## Dependencies

- **[runtime#123964](dotnet/runtime#123964 [mono] read `$DOTNET_STARTUP_HOOKS` — needed for Mono runtime to honor startup hooks (temporary workaround via `RuntimeHostConfigurationOption`)

Co-authored-by: Tomas Matousek <tomat@microsoft.com>
Sign up for free to join this conversation on GitHub. Already have an account? Sign in to comment

Labels

copilot `copilot-cli` or other AIs were used to author this

Projects

None yet

Development

Successfully merging this pull request may close these issues.

1 participant