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VS 2022: No possibility to debug a background task anymore

Heiko 1,311 Reputation points
2025-09-23T16:59:40.18+00:00

In VS 2022 it's not possible anymore to start or to debug a UWP background task. It doesn't matter whether I have a pure UWP app or a desktop bridge app with UWP background task. In pure UWP apps I have no drop-down list anymore where I could choose the background task to start. If I debug desktop bridge apps, I have the drop-down list, but it contains only the WPF project, the package project and a UWP project but not the background task project. If I start debugging of my package project, the WPF app successfully registers the UWP background task, but I it doesn't appear in the drop-down list. If I start degugging a pure UWP project, register successfully the background task, I have no drop-down list.

Developer technologies | Universal Windows Platform (UWP)
Answer accepted by question author
  1. Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 2,325 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff
    2025-09-24T10:43:46.03+00:00

    Hello Heiko ,

    If you used to be able to debug UWP background tasks in VS 2022 and now can’t, this is typically a UI/tooling state issue rather than a project problem.

    Check these first!:

    • Debug UI: Background tasks appear under Lifecycle Events, not in the Debug Target dropdown. Show the Debug Location toolbar and use Lifecycle Events → Background Tasks.
    • Registration: Start your app under the debugger so the task registers in this session; only registered tasks appear in the list. See Microsoft’s guide: Debug a background task.
    • Trigger type: Some triggers don’t show in Lifecycle Events (e.g., ApplicationTrigger, MediaProcessingTrigger, ControlChannelTrigger, push-related). Trigger those in code (e.g., RequestAsync) and hit breakpoints in the task. Details in the same doc above.

    If the Lifecycle Events dropdown used to be there but vanished:

    Project configuration sanity checks:

    • Background task project is a Windows Runtime Component and is referenced by the app/package project.
    • Task is declared in Package.appxmanifest (Declarations → Background Tasks) with the correct Entry point (Namespace.ClassName).
    • For Desktop Bridge, ensure the WinRT component is included in the Windows Application Packaging Project and declared via uap:Extension.
    • Clear stale registrations: uninstall the app, then F5 again. PowerShell example: Get-AppxPackage YourAppName | Remove-AppxPackage.

    Helpful docs:

    Hope this solves your problem.

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