WebAssembly browser app WasmEnableHotReload not documented

[ArcadeMode]

Description

Dotnet browser apps (webassembly) require a different hotreload property that is not documented.
false

Notably this affects the build output such that no dependency from dotnet.js on hotreload exists. This is key in being able to build a bundler-compatible (i.e. webpack, vite) artifact with dotnet build. Otherwise the user is left to dotnet publish, wich is a significantly slower developer experience.

Page URL

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/test/hot-reload?view=aspnetcore-10.0

Content source URL

https://github.com/dotnet/AspNetCore.Docs/blob/main/aspnetcore/test/hot-reload.md

Document ID

41ab3e64-1abc-987b-13db-4e49f2d68ff3

Platform Id

1cda9d28-057f-aa71-aff9-a3eea3b1d260

Article author

@tdykstra

Metadata

• ID: 41ab3e64-1abc-987b-13db-4e49f2d68ff3
• PlatformId: 1cda9d28-057f-aa71-aff9-a3eea3b1d260
• Service: aspnet-core
• Sub-service: testing

Related Issues

[wadepickett]

@ArcadeMode, thanks very much for taking the time to identify and create this issue. Much appreciated!

[wadepickett]

🤖 AI Triage Summary

📌 Note to community: This is an automated preliminary analysis to help our documentation team quickly review, determine scope and prioritize this issue. This report is not a resolution or answer to your question—it's an internal triage tool that identifies potentially relevant docs, code samples, and versions to look into. A team member will review this issue and respond. Thank you for your contribution!

---

This preliminary assessment report was run by: @wadepickett
Date: 2026-03-01
Issue: 36819
Model: GitHub Copilot

---

Issue Analysis: WasmEnableHotReload not documented in Hot Reload article for non-Blazor WebAssembly browser apps

✅ Issue Validation

Status: Valid and actionable

📋 Issue Summary

The issue reports that the <WasmEnableHotReload> MSBuild property is not documented in the main Hot Reload article (aspnetcore/test/hot-reload.md), which is the article linked from the published page at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/test/hot-reload. This property controls whether Hot Reload DLLs and infrastructure are included in the build output for .NET WebAssembly browser apps. When set to false, the dependency from dotnet.js on Hot Reload is removed, producing bundler-compatible artifacts (e.g., webpack, vite) with dotnet build instead of requiring the slower dotnet publish.

Key finding: The WasmEnableHotReload property is documented in two other locations:

1. aspnetcore/blazor/debug.md — under "Control Hot Reload" (aspnetcore-10.0+ moniker)
2. aspnetcore/release-notes/aspnetcore-10/includes/blazor.md — under "Hot Reload for Blazor WebAssembly and .NET on WebAssembly"

However, it is missing from:

1. The main Hot Reload article (aspnetcore/test/hot-reload.md) — the page the issue reporter references
2. The WebAssembly Browser App article (aspnetcore/client-side/dotnet-interop/wasm-browser-app.md) — relevant for non-Blazor WASM scenarios using the wasmbrowser template

The prior related issue #35795 (closed) documented this for Blazor scenarios, but the Hot Reload article itself and the non-Blazor WebAssembly Browser App article were not updated.

📁 Potentially Affected Files

These files have been identified as possibly related to this issue and may need review.

File	Path	Lines	Section
Main article (Hot Reload)	aspnetcore/test/hot-reload.md	114-121	"Disable Hot Reload"
WebAssembly Browser App	aspnetcore/client-side/dotnet-interop/wasm-browser-app.md	61-95	"Project configuration"
Blazor debug (existing docs)	aspnetcore/blazor/debug.md	522-542	"Control Hot Reload"
Release notes (existing docs)	aspnetcore/release-notes/aspnetcore-10/includes/blazor.md	691-710	"Hot Reload for Blazor WebAssembly and .NET on WebAssembly"

📝 Preliminary Change Assessment

The following are initial observations for the documentation team to evaluate—not final decisions.

Potential documentation update 1: Hot Reload article

File: aspnetcore/test/hot-reload.md
Location: Lines 114-121 (in or near the "Disable Hot Reload" section)
Type: New section or expanded content under "Disable Hot Reload"

Current content (lines 114-121):

## Disable Hot Reload

The following setting in `Properties/launchSettings.json` disables Hot Reload:

```json
"hotReloadEnabled" : false

**Suggested direction:**
Add a subsection or new section for WebAssembly-specific Hot Reload control, gated to the `>= aspnetcore-10.0` moniker. For example:

```markdown
::: moniker range=">= aspnetcore-10.0"

## WebAssembly Hot Reload (WasmEnableHotReload)

The `WasmEnableHotReload` MSBuild property controls whether Hot Reload infrastructure is included in the build output for .NET WebAssembly apps, including both Blazor WebAssembly and non-Blazor WebAssembly Browser App (`wasmbrowser` template) projects. The property is set to `true` by default for the `Debug` configuration.

Setting this property to `false` removes Hot Reload dependencies from the `dotnet build` output, which can be important when producing bundler-compatible artifacts (for example, for use with webpack or vite).

To disable Hot Reload for WebAssembly apps, set the property to `false` in the app's project file (`.csproj`):

```xml
<PropertyGroup>
  <WasmEnableHotReload>false</WasmEnableHotReload>
</PropertyGroup>

To enable Hot Reload for a custom (non-Debug) configuration, set the property to true:

<PropertyGroup>
  <WasmEnableHotReload>true</WasmEnableHotReload>
</PropertyGroup>

For more information on controlling Hot Reload in Blazor WebAssembly, see xref:blazor/debug#control-hot-reload.

::: moniker-end

### Potential documentation update 2: WebAssembly Browser App article
**File:** [`aspnetcore/client-side/dotnet-interop/wasm-browser-app.md`](https://github.com/dotnet/AspNetCore.Docs/blob/787071898f2d8fddf93494dd8a6bdebb261f92fe/aspnetcore/client-side/dotnet-interop/wasm-browser-app.md#L61-L95)
**Location:** Lines 61-95 (in the "Project configuration" section)
**Type:** New note or paragraph

**Current content (lines 84-95):**
```markdown
The following is an example project file (`.csproj`) after configuration. The `{TARGET FRAMEWORK}` placeholder is the target framework:

```xml
<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk.WebAssembly">

  <PropertyGroup>
    <TargetFramework>{TARGET FRAMEWORK}</TargetFramework>
    <AllowUnsafeBlocks>true</AllowUnsafeBlocks>
  </PropertyGroup>

</Project>

**Suggested direction:**
Add a `[!NOTE]` block after the project file example, gated to `>= aspnetcore-10.0`, explaining `WasmEnableHotReload` and its impact on build output:

```markdown
> [!NOTE]
> In .NET 10 and later, the `WasmEnableHotReload` MSBuild property controls whether Hot Reload infrastructure is included in the build output. It's `true` by default for the `Debug` configuration. Set the property to `false` to produce bundler-compatible (e.g., webpack, vite) build output without

[wadepickett]

@tdykstra, since it is in your area. I ran the report above in case that is helpful.