With October 12th around the corner, Silverlight will finally reach its end of life and will no longer be receiving future quality or security updates. Even though its last version was released back in 2011 we still hear from developers with applications that have been developed and remain in use. And for anyone who is tasked to maintain one of these applications; what are the alternatives?
There are several options you can consider for migrating applications from Silverlight to a supported platform for delivering Rich Internet Applications, but a viable alternative that you should consider is Uno Platform. An open source-platform that delivers on the RIA promise without any plugins needed – using only C# and familiar XAML.
What is Uno Platform and why should I choose it to migrate my Silverlight application?
Uno Platform is a UI platform for single-codebase applications for Windows, Web/WebAssembly, iOS, macOS, Android and Linux and though we can find 50 Reasons why Uno is an excellent choice, here are the reasons that would stand out for existing Silverlight developers amongst many others.
Uno uses UWP/WinUI XAML which has a lot in common with the Silverlight version of XAML
– Much of the XAML will port with simple namespace changes.
– Where there are not direct control matches, there are alternatives.
Uno applications are developed in C# so code-reuse is maximized;
1. The C# code-behind will port easily.
2. Pure business logic should port easily.
3. There are Uno implementations of many of the MVVM implementations that were made popular by Silverlight.
4. Uno can target WebAssembly and modern browsers, as well as many other platforms, so the migrated application can be deployed widely.
5. Most Silverlight apps were modeled after desktop apps, and are therefore designed to exploit a landscape style orientation – ideal for UWP and WebAssembly apps.
The Uno Platform is a natural choice for continuing the delivery of such applications on Windows, iOS, Android, and WebAssembly. Using only C# and familiar XAML, you can quickly modernize your Silverlight line of business applications and continue running them on the Web (via WebAssembly) without any plugins needed.
To help you make the switch and migrate your Silverlight application to WinUI and Uno Platform we prepared a Silverlight Migration Guide and migrated a sample Time Entry RIA application with accompanying source code, techniques, and considerations you need to make when deciding to move forward.
If you are new to Uno Platform, we recommend starting with our official step-by-step onboarding tutorial.
Join us this year at UnoConf 2021. The virtual event, set for November 30th, 2021, will be easy to join from around the world. Register now and save your spot for the largest conference event dedicated to Uno Platform.
