Is it possible to use "PackageReference" in Xamarin.Android or Xamarin.iOS projects?

Question

By default, Xamarin.iOS and Xamarin.Android projects use a package.config file to manage Nuget dependencies. The Microsoft page about Package references (PackageReference) in project files says:

By default, PackageReference is used for .NET Core projects, .NET Standard projects, and UWP projects targeting Windows 10 Build 15063 (Creators Update) and later. .NET full framework projects support PackageReference, but currently default to packages.config. To use PackageReference, migrate the dependencies from packages.config into your project file, then remove packages.config.

I think this is not clear about the use of PackageReference style in Xamarin.Android or Xamarin.iOS projects.

My question: is it possible to use PackageReference in Xamarin.iOS and Xamarin.Android projects?

Answer 1

Yes, PackageReference works for Xamarin.iOS|Android projects and in Visual Studio for Windows or Mac or via the cmd-line (nuget restore or via msbuild).

Add the following to the top of your Xamarin.iOS and/or Xamarin.Android .csproj file:

  <PropertyGroup>
    <RestoreProjectStyle>PackageReference</RestoreProjectStyle>
  </PropertyGroup>

My current steps are:

• Copy your packages.config as a backup
  • Use it as a reference when you re-add the packages on the last step
• Manually remove all packages from the project (Xamarin.iOS or Xamarin.Android)
• Edit the csproj and add the PackageReference
• Re-add just the top-level packages

Note: I do the manual package remove one-by-one via the IDE in order to properly update the project references. Also, when re-adding them after the PackageReference additional, the csproj is updated correctly (you can do this manually in the csproj text but it is a pain and easy to screwup).