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Initial SDK setup

Learn how to install the Braze SDK for Xamarin. Installing the Braze SDK will provide you with basic analytics functionality as well as working in-app messages with which you can engage your users.

Step 1: Get the Xamarin binding

A Xamarin binding is a way to use native libraries in Xamarin apps. The implementation of a binding consists of building a C# interface to the library, and then using that interface in your application. See the Xamarin documentation. There are two ways to include the Braze SDK binding: using NuGet or compiling from source.

The simplest integration method involves getting the Braze SDK from the NuGet.org central repository. In the Visual Studio sidebar, right click Packages folder and click Add Packages.... Search for ‘Braze’ and install the BrazePlatform.BrazeAndroidBinding package into your project.

The second integration method is to include the binding source. Under appboy-component/src/androidnet6 you will find our binding source code; adding a project reference to the BrazeAndroidBinding.csproj in your Xamarin application will cause the binding to be built with your project and provide you access to the Braze Android SDK.

A Xamarin binding is a way to use native libraries in Xamarin apps. The implementation of a binding consists of building a C# interface to the library and then using that interface in your application. There are two ways to include the Braze SDK binding: using NuGet or compiling from source.

The simplest integration method involves getting the Braze SDK from the [NuGet.org][2] central repository. In the Visual Studio sidebar, right-click Packages folder and click Add Packages.... Search for ‘Braze’ and install the latest Xamarin iOS NuGet packages: Braze.iOS.BrazeKit, Braze.iOS.BrazeUI, and [Braze.iOS.BrazeLocation]https://www.nuget.org/packages/Braze.iOS.BrazeLocation into your project.

We also provide the compatibility libraries packages: Braze.iOS.BrazeKitCompat and Braze.iOS.BrazeUICompat, to help make your migration to .NET MAUI easier.

The second integration method is to include the binding source. Under appboy-component/src/iosnet6 you will find our binding source code; adding a project reference to the BrazeiOSBinding.csproj in your Xamarin application will cause the binding to be built with your project and provide you access to the Braze iOS SDK. Make sure BrazeiOSBinding.csproj is showing in your project’s “Reference” folder.

Step 2: Configure your Braze instance

Step 2.1: Configure the Braze SDK in Braze.xml

Now that the libraries have been integrated, you have to create an Braze.xml file in your project’s Resources/values folder. The contents of that file should resemble the following code snippet:

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  <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
  <resources>
    <string translatable="false" name="com_braze_api_key">YOUR_API_KEY</string>
    <string translatable="false" name="com_braze_custom_endpoint">YOUR_CUSTOM_ENDPOINT_OR_CLUSTER</string>
    <string-array name="com_braze_internal_sdk_metadata">
      <item>XAMARIN</item>
      <item>NUGET</item>
    </string-array>
  </resources>

If you are including the binding source manually, remove <item>NUGET</item> from your code.

Step 2.2: Add required permissions to Android manifest

Now that you’ve added your API key, you need to add the following permissions to your AndroidManifest.xml file:

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<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET" />

For an example of your AndroidManifest.xml, see the Android MAUI sample application.

Step 2.3: Track user sessions and registering for in-app messages

To enable user session tracking and register your app for in-app messages, add the following call to the OnCreate() lifecycle method of the Application class in your app:

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RegisterActivityLifecycleCallbacks(new BrazeActivityLifecycleCallbackListener());

When setting up your Braze instance, add the following snippet to configure your instance:

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var configuration = new BRZConfiguration("YOUR_API_KEY", "YOUR_ENDPOINT");
configuration.Api.AddSDKMetadata(new[] { BRZSDKMetadata.Xamarin });
braze = new Braze(configuration);

See the App.xaml.cs file in the iOS MAUI sample application.

Step 3: Test the integration

Now you can launch your application and see sessions being logged to the Braze dashboard (along with device information and other analytics). For a more in-depth discussion of best practices for the basic SDK integration, consult the Android integration instructions.

Now you can launch your application and see sessions being logged to the Braze dashboard. For a more in-depth discussion of best practices for the basic SDK integration, consult the iOS integration instructions.

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