This presentation covers two main areas: developing on Windows, and developing for Windows. Learn about all the latest tools and methods you can use to build great software while using Windows, as well as the newest improvements for building powerful and exciting Windows applications.
Want to explore the topics from this presentation on your own?
- Check out the resources below for links to documentation and tools covered in the presentation
- Install Windows Terminal for a modern terminal experience
- Try WinGet to quickly set up your development environment
- Install Windows Subsystem for Linux to run Linux tools alongside Windows
- Explore WinUI 3 to start building modern Windows applications
By the end of this presentation, you will be able to:
- Discover the latest developer tools and workflows for building software on Windows, including improvements to the terminal, package management, and developer environment setup
- Explore new capabilities for building Windows applications, including modern UI frameworks and platform features that make Windows apps more powerful
- Understand how Windows is evolving to provide a more productive and streamlined developer experience across both "developing on" and "developing for" Windows scenarios
Try these prompts with GitHub Copilot to explore the topics from this presentation. Open Copilot Chat in Visual Studio Code (Ctrl+Alt+I on Windows/Linux, Cmd+Shift+I on Mac), paste a prompt, and see what you learn. Try connecting the Microsoft Learn MCP Server for the latest official documentation.
Use these as a starting point — or write your own!
- Explore the developer tools ecosystem:
Using the Microsoft Learn MCP Server, give me an overview of the Windows developer tools ecosystem — what are Windows Terminal, WinGet, and Dev Home, and how do they work together to streamline setting up a development environment?
- Dive into building Windows apps:
Explain the differences between WinUI 3, WPF, and WinForms for building modern Windows desktop applications. When should I choose each one?
- Get hands-on with WSL Containers:
Using the Microsoft Learn MCP Server, find the latest documentation on WSL Containers (wslc) and walk me through how to build and run a containerized Linux app on Windows
- Windows — The platform for developers, covering tools and app development
- Windows Terminal — A modern, feature-rich terminal application for command-line users
- WinGet (Windows Package Manager) — Command-line tool for discovering, installing, and managing applications
- WinUI 3 — The modern native UI framework for building Windows desktop applications
- Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) — Run Linux distributions natively on Windows
- WSL Containers (wslc) — Build and run OCI container images directly on Windows via WSL
| Resource | Description |
|---|---|
| Windows Developer Documentation | Get started building Windows applications |
| Windows Terminal Documentation | Learn about Windows Terminal features and customization |
| Windows Package Manager (WinGet) | Install and manage developer tools with WinGet |
| WinUI 3 Documentation | Build modern Windows desktop apps with WinUI |
| Windows Subsystem for Linux Documentation | Official WSL documentation on Microsoft Learn |
| WSL Containers | Learn about WSL Containers and the WSL Container SDK |
| Set Up a Development Environment on Windows | Guide to configuring Windows for development |
| Explore Microsoft Build 2026 Labs and Sessions | Explore lab and session repos to further your learning from Microsoft Build |
| Watch the session recording | Watch the recorded Microsoft Build session. |
The Microsoft Learn MCP Server gives your AI agent direct access to Microsoft's official documentation — grounded, up-to-date answers about the products and services covered in this presentation.
Visual Studio Code — One click installation:
GitHub Copilot CLI — Run this to install the Learn MCP Server as a plugin:
/plugin install microsoftdocs/mcp
For more info, other clients, and to post questions, visit the Learn MCP Server repo.
 Craig Loewen 📢 |
 Kayla Cinnamon 📢 |
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