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OpenMaui Linux Platform

A comprehensive Linux platform implementation for .NET MAUI using SkiaSharp rendering.

Build Status NuGet License

Developed by MarketAlly LLC Lead Architect: David H. Friedel Jr.

Overview

This project brings .NET MAUI to Linux desktops with native X11/Wayland support, hardware-accelerated Skia rendering, and full platform service integration.

Key Features

  • Full Control Library: 35+ controls including Button, Label, Entry, CarouselView, RefreshView, SwipeView, and more
  • Native Integration: X11 and Wayland display server support
  • Accessibility: AT-SPI2 screen reader support and high contrast mode
  • Platform Services: Clipboard, file picker, notifications, global hotkeys, drag & drop
  • Input Methods: IBus and XIM support for international text input
  • High DPI: Automatic scale factor detection for GNOME, KDE, and X11

Quick Start

Installation

# Install the templates
dotnet new install OpenMaui.Linux.Templates

# Create a new project (choose one):
dotnet new openmaui-linux -n MyApp           # Code-based UI
dotnet new openmaui-linux-xaml -n MyApp      # XAML-based UI (recommended)

cd MyApp
dotnet run

Manual Installation

dotnet add package OpenMaui.Controls.Linux --prerelease

XAML Support

OpenMaui fully supports standard .NET MAUI XAML syntax. Use the familiar XAML workflow:

<!-- MainPage.xaml -->
<ContentPage xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/dotnet/2021/maui"
             xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2009/xaml"
             x:Class="MyApp.MainPage">
    <VerticalStackLayout>
        <Label Text="Hello, OpenMaui!" FontSize="32" />
        <Button Text="Click me" Clicked="OnButtonClicked" />
        <Entry Placeholder="Enter text..." />
        <Slider Minimum="0" Maximum="100" />
    </VerticalStackLayout>
</ContentPage>

// MauiProgram.cs
var builder = MauiApp.CreateBuilder();
builder
    .UseMauiApp<App>()
    .UseOpenMauiLinux();  // Enable Linux with XAML support

Supported Controls

Category Controls
Basic Button, Label, Entry, Editor, CheckBox, Switch, RadioButton
Layout StackLayout, ScrollView, Border, Page
Selection Picker, DatePicker, TimePicker, Slider, Stepper
Display Image, ImageButton, ActivityIndicator, ProgressBar
Collection CollectionView, CarouselView, IndicatorView
Gesture SwipeView, RefreshView
Navigation NavigationPage, TabbedPage, FlyoutPage, Shell
Menu MenuBar, MenuFlyout, MenuItem
Graphics GraphicsView, Border

Platform Services

Service Description
ClipboardService System clipboard access
FilePickerService Native file open dialogs
FolderPickerService Folder selection dialogs
NotificationService Desktop notifications (libnotify)
GlobalHotkeyService System-wide keyboard shortcuts
DragDropService XDND drag and drop protocol
LauncherService Open URLs and files
ShareService Share content with other apps
SecureStorageService Encrypted credential storage
PreferencesService Application settings
BrowserService Open URLs in default browser
EmailService Compose emails
SystemTrayService System tray icons

Accessibility

  • AT-SPI2: Screen reader support for ORCA and other assistive technologies
  • High Contrast: Automatic detection and color palette support
  • Keyboard Navigation: Full keyboard accessibility

Requirements

  • .NET 9.0 SDK or later
  • Linux (kernel 5.4+)
  • X11 or Wayland
  • SkiaSharp native libraries

System Dependencies

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt-get install libx11-dev libxrandr-dev libxcursor-dev libxi-dev libgl1-mesa-dev libfontconfig1-dev

Fedora:

sudo dnf install libX11-devel libXrandr-devel libXcursor-devel libXi-devel mesa-libGL-devel fontconfig-devel

Documentation

Sample Applications

Full sample applications are available in the maui-linux-samples repository:

Sample Description
TodoApp Task manager with NavigationPage, XAML data binding, CollectionView
ShellDemo Control showcase with Shell navigation and flyout menu

Quick Example

using OpenMaui.Platform.Linux;

var app = new LinuxApplication();

app.MainPage = new ContentPage
{
    Content = new VerticalStackLayout
    {
        Spacing = 10,
        Children =
        {
            new Label
            {
                Text = "Welcome to MAUI on Linux!",
                FontSize = 24
            },
            new Button
            {
                Text = "Click Me"
            },
            new Entry
            {
                Placeholder = "Enter your name"
            }
        }
    }
};

app.Run();

Building from Source

git clone https://github.com/open-maui/maui-linux.git
cd maui-linux
dotnet build
dotnet test

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  .NET MAUI                       │
│              (Virtual Views)                     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                  Handlers                        │
│         (Platform Abstraction)                   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│              Skia Views                          │
│        (SkiaButton, SkiaLabel, etc.)            │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│           SkiaSharp Rendering                    │
│         (Hardware Accelerated)                   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│              X11 / Wayland                       │
│          (Display Server)                        │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Roadmap

  • Core control library (35+ controls)
  • Platform services integration
  • Accessibility (AT-SPI2)
  • Input method support (IBus/XIM)
  • High DPI support
  • Drag and drop
  • Global hotkeys
  • Complete Wayland support
  • Hardware video acceleration
  • GTK4 interop layer

License

Copyright (c) 2025 MarketAlly LLC. Licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments