XAML.io v0.8: Existing WPF Apps Run in the Browser, No Rewrite
XAML.io v0.8 runs existing WPF apps in the browser using original C#/XAML code, testable live with a free compatibility analyzer.
The OpenSilver team has released v0.8 of XAML.io, its free browser-based .NET IDE, headlined by a new 'Migrate from WPF' feature that moves an existing WPF app to the web without rewriting the code. To back up the claim, they migrated Microsoft's classic WPF reference app, Family.Show, and made both the running version and its full source available for direct comparison against the original WPF code. According to the team, 97% of the original C# and XAML remains untouched.
The key design decision is that the output isn't an AI-regenerated rewrite but real .NET and real XAML rendered to the actual browser DOM: a TextBox becomes a textarea, an Image becomes an img tag, preserving browser features like text selection, accessibility, and search indexing. Unavoidable changes are kept small and visible, with design-time warnings and runtime stack traces surfacing every automatic edit instead of hiding it.
The tooling is fully self-serve: a no-signup compatibility analyzer that runs entirely in-browser via WASM (code never leaves the machine), Roslyn-based one-click fixes, and a built-in example gallery. Limits are stated plainly too—source import is still a technology preview best suited to small-to-mid projects, third-party UI suites like Telerik, DevExpress, and Syncfusion aren't yet supported, and native Win32/P-Invoke interop can't run in a browser at all. Even so, it offers a compelling option for teams wanting to make internal line-of-business apps centrally updatable and reachable from any browser.