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Maui App Lifecycle

.NET MAUI app lifecycle guidance — the four app states, cross-platform Window lifecycle events (Created, Activated, Deactivated, Stopped, Resumed, Destroying), platform-specific lifecycle mapping, backgrounding and resume behavior, and state-preservation patterns. USE FOR: "app lifecycle", "window lifecycle events", "save state on background", "resume app", "OnStopped", "OnResumed", "backgrounding", "deactivated event", "ConfigureLifecycleEvents", "platform lifecycle hooks". DO NOT USE FOR: navigation events (use maui-shell-navigation), dependency injection setup (use maui-dependency-injection), platform API invocation (use conditional compilation and partial classes).

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SKILL.md

maui-app-lifecycle

license: MIT

.NET MAUI App Lifecycle

Handle application state transitions correctly in .NET MAUI. This skill covers the cross-platform Window lifecycle events, their platform-native mappings, and patterns for preserving state across backgrounding and resume cycles.

When to Use

Saving or restoring state when the app backgrounds or resumes
Subscribing to Window lifecycle events (Created, Activated, Deactivated, Stopped, Resumed, Destroying)
Hooking into platform-native lifecycle callbacks via ConfigureLifecycleEvents
Deciding where to place initialization, teardown, or refresh logic
Understanding the difference between Deactivated and Stopped

When Not to Use

Page-level navigation events — use Shell navigation guidance instead
Registering services at startup — use dependency injection guidance instead
Calling platform-specific APIs outside lifecycle context — use platform invoke guidance instead

Inputs

The target lifecycle transition (e.g., "save draft when backgrounded", "refresh data on resume")
Which platforms the developer targets (Android, iOS, Mac Catalyst, Windows)
Whether the app uses multiple windows (iPad, Mac Catalyst, desktop Windows)

App States

A .NET MAUI app moves through four states:

2 files · 15 KB9 KB

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Not Running	Process does not exist
Running	Foreground, receiving input
Deactivated	Visible but lost focus (dialog, split-screen, notification shade)
Stopped	Fully backgrounded, UI not visible

Event	Fires when
`Created`	Native window allocated
`Activated`	Window receives input focus
`Deactivated`	Window loses focus (may still be visible)
`Stopped`	Window is no longer visible
`Resumed`	Window returns to foreground after Stopped
`Destroying`	Native window is being torn down

Window Event	Android Callback
Created	`OnCreate`
Activated	`OnResume`
Deactivated	`OnPause`
Stopped	`OnStop`
Resumed	`OnRestart` → `OnStart` → `OnResume`
Destroying	`OnDestroy`

Window Event	UIKit Callback	`AddiOS` builder method
Created	`WillFinishLaunching` / `SceneWillConnect`	`.WillFinishLaunching()` / `.SceneWillConnect()`
Activated	`DidBecomeActive`	`.OnActivated()`
Deactivated	`WillResignActive`	`.OnResignActivation()`
Stopped	`DidEnterBackground`	`.DidEnterBackground()`
Resumed	`WillEnterForeground`	`.WillEnterForeground()`
Destroying	`WillTerminate`	`.WillTerminate()`

Window Event	WinUI Callback
Created	`OnLaunched`
Activated	`Activated` (foreground)
Deactivated	`Activated` (background)
Stopped	`VisibilityChanged` (false)
Resumed	`VisibilityChanged` (true)
Destroying	`Closed`

Maui App Lifecycle

.NET MAUI App Lifecycle

When to Use

When Not to Use

Inputs

App States

Window Lifecycle Events

Subscribing via CreateWindow

Subscribing via a Custom Window Subclass

Workflow: Save and Restore State on Background

Platform Lifecycle Mapping

Android

iOS / Mac Catalyst

Windows (WinUI)

Hooking Native Lifecycle Directly

Common Pitfalls