How to Update Extensions for Visual Studio 2026 Insiders

Visual Studio 2026, codenamed Dev18, is the next-gen AI-powered IDE. It empowers millions of developers around the world. They create applications for Web, Desktop, Mobile, Gaming, and more.

The VS team shares the public preview version of the IDE with early adopters. This happens before releasing it to the Stable channel.

To match Windows, the Preview channel is now called Insiders. Insiders can try new features before everyone else.

Now, the first VS2026 Insiders release is available for download. Further details in this article.

Visual Studio’s extensibility model adds to its robustness. Several extensions are hosted in the VS Marketplace. They cater to the specific needs of developers in different stages of software development.

Since VS2026 is the next major release, the extensions need to be checked for compatibility. Extension developers include this in the manifest file, with the .vsixmanifest file extension, that comes with the VSIX package.

Typically, this is defined as a Version Range based on the supported features. For example, ARM support starts in VS from v17.4.

Open the VS extension solution. Then, locate the manifest file. Double-click to open it in the UI. This UI is specially designed to visually edit the file.

On the left-side vertical tabs, select Install Targets. Here, you should specify the version range for each Identifier and Architecture combination of VS. Refer to the below screenshot.

This version range is represented as a half-open interval in the format [min, max), where the lower bound is inclusive (and required) and the upper bound is exclusive (and optional).

It begins with an open square bracket. The least supported version follows, then the unsupported version. Both are separated by a comma. It concludes with a closing parentheses.

For example:

[17.6, 19.0) for a .NET MAUI feature that’s available from VS2022 v17.6 (the first version to support .NET MAUI workload on VS ARM64) to VS2026 v18.x on ARM64 installations, but not in the next major version, presumably v19 (one higher than the current major version).

Since upper-bound is optional, the version range can also be specified as [17.0,), meaning it supports VS2022 and newer without restrictions.

Also update the version ranges of project assets, dependencies, and prerequisites in the relevant tabs.

The vsixmanifest file is an XML file akin to Project files with a csproj file extension. You can edit it in a plain text editor too. But pay due attention while doing so. Here is a minimal sample:

<PackageManifest
    Version="2.0.0"
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/vsx-schema/2011"
    xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/vsx-schema-design/2011">
    <Metadata>
        <!-- Project metadata -->
    </Metadata>
    <Installation>
        <InstallationTarget
            Id="Microsoft.VisualStudio.Community"
            Version="[17.6, 19.0)">
            <ProductArchitecture>amd64</ProductArchitecture>
        </InstallationTarget>
        <InstallationTarget
            Id="Microsoft.VisualStudio.Community"
            Version="[17.6, 19.0)">
            <ProductArchitecture>arm64</ProductArchitecture>
        </InstallationTarget>
    </Installation>
    <Prerequisites>
        <!-- Prerequisites -->
    </Prerequisites>
    <Assets>
        <!-- Project assets -->
    </Assets>
</PackageManifest>

After that, build and test the features in the installed VS to make sure they work correctly.

Finally, publish the extension update to the VS Marketplace for others to download.

I’m happy to share that all of my actively supported extensions have already been updated for the VS2026 Insiders release. Kindly update.

If you find these extensions useful, kindly support the work by adding your review to the VS Marketplace:

• .NET MAUI Project and Item Templates
  • Updated for .NET MAUI 10, check this article for details.
• Blazor Hybrid Windows Desktop Templates
• WinUI 3 Windows Desktop Templates

Much of my time is spent on adding new features to the templates pack. If you would like to recognize the work, kindly consider sponsoring on the GitHub Sponsor page. This will help sustain the momentum. You can also support by buying me a coffee on the Buy Me a Coffee page. Thanks in advance.

Happy coding. Stay connected as we continue to learn and share the experiences from this exciting journey of being a .NET developer.