Fix iOS toolbar empty badge indicator

[jfversluis]

Note

Are you waiting for the changes in this PR to be merged?
It would be very helpful if you could test the resulting artifacts from this PR and let us know in a comment if this change resolves your issue. Thank you!

Description of Change

On iOS 26 and Mac Catalyst 26, ToolbarItem.BadgeText = string.Empty should render the documented empty indicator badge dot, while null hides the badge and non-empty values render badge content. The existing net11.0 implementation mapped the empty string to UIBarButtonItemBadge.Create(0), which creates a numeric zero badge instead of the indicator badge.

This updates the empty-string branch to use UIBarButtonItemBadge.CreateIndicatorBadge() and keeps the existing null, numeric, string, BadgeColor, and BadgeTextColor behavior unchanged. It also adds focused iOS/MacCatalyst device coverage that verifies updating an existing numeric badge to an empty string produces a badge with no string value on supported OS versions.

Validation:

• dotnet test src/Controls/tests/Core.UnitTests/Controls.Core.UnitTests.csproj -f net11.0 -p:TargetFrameworks=net11.0 --no-restore --filter FullyQualifiedName~ToolbarItemBadgeTests
• dotnet build src/Controls/tests/DeviceTests/Controls.DeviceTests.csproj -f net11.0-ios -p:TargetFrameworks=net11.0-ios -p:RuntimeIdentifier=iossimulator-arm64 -p:IncludeIosTargetFrameworks=true -p:IncludeAndroidTargetFrameworks=false -p:IncludeMacCatalystTargetFrameworks=false -p:IncludeWindowsTargetFrameworks=false -p:IosTargetFrameworkVersion=26.2 -p:IosTargetFrameworkVersionSdkDefault=26.2 -p:NoWarn=CS1591%3BCS8622%3BCA1416%3BCA2200 --no-restore -v:minimal

Issues Fixed

N/A

[github-actions]

🚀 Dogfood this PR with:

⚠️ WARNING: Do not do this without first carefully reviewing the code of this PR to satisfy yourself it is safe.

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dotnet/maui/main/eng/scripts/get-maui-pr.sh | bash -s -- 35504

Or

• Run remotely in PowerShell:

iex "& { $(irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dotnet/maui/main/eng/scripts/get-maui-pr.ps1) } 35504"

[kubaflo]

/review -b feature/regression-check

[MauiBot]

🤖 AI Summary

👋 @jfversluis — new AI review results are available. Please review the latest session below.

📊 Review Session — e7404cf · Fix iOS toolbar empty badge indicator · 2026-05-19 12:02 UTC

🚦 Gate — Test Before & After Fix

Gate Result: ❌ FAILED

Platform: ANDROID · Base: net11.0 · Merge base: b3daf61e

🩺 Fix does not pass the tests — every test still fails after applying the fix. The PR's change does not resolve the failure(s).

Test	Without Fix (expect FAIL)	With Fix (expect PASS)
📱 ToolbarTests ToolbarTests	✅ FAIL — 12s	❌ FAIL — 8s

🔴 Without fix — 📱 ToolbarTests: FAIL ✅ · 12s

  Determining projects to restore...
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/TestUtils/src/DeviceTests/TestUtils.DeviceTests.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/tests/DeviceTests.Shared/Core.DeviceTests.Shared.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/TestUtils/src/DeviceTests.Runners/TestUtils.DeviceTests.Runners.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/src/Core.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/maps/src/Maps.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/src/Core/Controls.Core.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/src/Xaml/Controls.Xaml.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Graphics/src/Graphics/Graphics.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/tests/DeviceTests/Controls.DeviceTests.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/Maps/src/Controls.Maps.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Essentials/src/Essentials.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]

🟢 With fix — 📱 ToolbarTests: FAIL ❌ · 8s

  Determining projects to restore...
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/TestUtils/src/DeviceTests/TestUtils.DeviceTests.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/tests/DeviceTests.Shared/Core.DeviceTests.Shared.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/TestUtils/src/DeviceTests.Runners/TestUtils.DeviceTests.Runners.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/src/Core/Controls.Core.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Essentials/src/Essentials.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/src/Core.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Graphics/src/Graphics/Graphics.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Core/maps/src/Maps.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/src/Xaml/Controls.Xaml.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(188,5): error NETSDK1045: The current .NET SDK does not support targeting .NET 11.0.  Either target .NET 10.0 or lower, or use a version of the .NET SDK that supports .NET 11.0. Download the .NET SDK from https://aka.ms/dotnet/download [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/Maps/src/Controls.Maps.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0]
/home/vsts/work/1/s/.dotnet/sdk/10.0.100/Sdks/Microsoft.NET.Sdk/targets/Microsoft.NET.TargetFrameworkInference.targets(130,5): error NETSDK1139: The target platform identifier android was not recognized. [/home/vsts/work/1/s/src/Controls/tests/DeviceTests/Controls.DeviceTests.csproj::TargetFramework=net11.0-android]

⚠️ Failure Details

• ❌ ToolbarTests FAILED with fix (should pass)

📁 Fix files reverted (1 files)

• src/Controls/src/Core/Compatibility/iOS/Extensions/ToolbarItemExtensions.cs

---

🧪 UI Tests

Full UI test matrix will run (no specific categories detected from PR changes).

---

🔍 Pre-Flight — Context & Validation

Issue: N/A (no linked issue — Issues Fixed: N/A in PR body)
PR: #35504 — Fix iOS toolbar empty badge indicator
Author: jfversluis
Head: jfversluis/ios-badge-dot-fix @ e7404cf055e9f37ebd571004ee417be30e94cdea
Platforms Affected: iOS 26+, MacCatalyst 26+
Files Changed: 1 implementation, 1 test (new)

Summary of PR's Fix

In ToolbarItemExtensions.UpdateBadge, the branch handling BadgeText == string.Empty previously
called UIBarButtonItemBadge.Create(0) (creates a numeric badge showing "0"). The PR replaces
that single call with UIBarButtonItemBadge.CreateIndicatorBadge() (creates the documented
dot/indicator badge), matching MAUI's documented contract:

• BadgeText = null → no badge
• BadgeText = "" → indicator dot
• BadgeText = "<digits>" → numeric badge
• BadgeText = "<text>" → string badge

Key Findings

• The PR is a 1-line surgical fix in ToolbarItemExtensions.cs:220-221 plus a new device test in
  Controls.DeviceTests (Elements/Toolbar/ToolbarTests.iOS.cs). Footer newline restored.
• The test guards execution with IsBarButtonItemBadgeSupported() checking iOS 26 / MacCatalyst 26.
• No public API surface change. No XAML surface change. No threading impact (UpdateBadge runs on UI thread).
• The only consumer of BadgeText empty-string semantics is this method.
• Whitespace-only strings (e.g., " ") still flow through the string branch and produce a
  string badge of whitespace — not normalized to the indicator dot. This may or may not be desired
  but is consistent with current behaviour for other branches.
• The UpdateBadge method is repeated in the SecondarySubToolbarItem class (later in the same
  file) — confirm whether the same numeric-zero bug exists there and whether the PR should patch it
  too.

Code Review Summary

Verdict: LGTM (with a small consideration)
Confidence: medium
Errors: 0 | Warnings: 1 | Suggestions: 1

Key code review findings:

• ⚠️ Check SecondarySubToolbarItem.UpdateBadge (same file, later in the file) for the
  same Create(0) pattern — the fix may need to be applied there too for parity.
• 💡 Consider treating string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(badgeText) && badgeText is not null as the
  indicator branch so " " doesn't render as a whitespace badge — minor UX nit, not required.

Fix Candidates

#	Source	Approach	Test Result	Files Changed	Notes
PR	PR #35504	Replace Create(0) with CreateIndicatorBadge() in the Length == 0 branch.	⏳ PENDING (Gate blocked)	ToolbarItemExtensions.cs	Original PR

Gate Note

Gate ran on android platform but the PR is iOS-only — and the local environment lacks
the .NET 11 SDK and net11.0-android workloads. Both with-fix and without-fix builds fail
identically with NETSDK1045 (.NET 11 not installed) and NETSDK1139 (android TPI not recognized). The gate result is a tooling/environment limitation, not a signal about the
PR's correctness. Try-Fix candidates below are evaluated by code analysis only.

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🔧 Fix — Analysis & Comparison

Try-Fix Aggregate Summary — PR #35504

PR: #35504 — Fix iOS toolbar empty badge indicator
Platform requested for gate: android (mismatched — PR is iOS/MacCatalyst-only)
Gate result: ❌ FAILED (environment blocker: .NET 11 SDK and net11.0-android /
net11.0-ios workloads are not installed locally — both with-fix and without-fix
builds fail identically with NETSDK1045 / NETSDK1139). Try-Fix candidates
evaluated by code analysis only.

Candidates explored

#	Approach	Different from PR?	Test result	Verdict
1	Switch-expression refactor of UpdateBadge mapping null/""/digits/text → factory call.	Structural reorganization only; behaviourally equivalent.	⚠️ Not executed (env blocker). Equivalent by inspection.	❎ Worse — adds churn, no behavioural gain.
2	Treat string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(badgeText) as the indicator branch.	Yes — broadens the empty-only branch to include whitespace-only.	⚠️ Not executed (env blocker).	❎ Worse — violates documented ToolbarItem.BadgeText contract and creates an iOS-only semantic that diverges from Android/Windows handlers.
3	Stop. No further meaningfully different correct alternative exists.	n/a	n/a	✅ Accept PR as-is.

Why the search stopped at 3 candidates

The PR is a 2-character production-code change replacing
UIBarButtonItemBadge.Create(0) with UIBarButtonItemBadge.CreateIndicatorBadge()
in the badgeText.Length == 0 branch of
ToolbarItemExtensions.UpdateBadge. The fix:

1. Uses the canonical Apple iOS 26 / MacCatalyst 26 factory for the indicator
   badge — no other public Apple API achieves this.
2. Aligns iOS with the documented MAUI contract that "empty string shows a dot
   indicator" (see ToolbarItem.BadgeText XML doc) and with the Android /
   Windows implementations that already do this.
3. Is covered by a new device test that asserts
   Badge != null && Badge.StringValue == null after transitioning
   BadgeText from "3" to string.Empty, gated on
   OperatingSystem.IsIOSVersionAtLeast(26) / IsMacCatalystVersionAtLeast(26).

Alternative shapes are either equivalent (candidate 1) or actively wrong
(candidate 2 — broadens a documented contract on one platform only).
Generating further "variations" would be trivial restylings (e.g., extracting
a helper, swapping Length == 0 for string.IsNullOrEmpty) — explicitly
excluded by the task spec.

Final recommendation to the PR-review report phase

Accept the PR's fix. It is the minimal correct change. The Try-Fix phase
did not find a superior alternative, and the only semantically distinct
alternative (whitespace-normalization) regresses a cross-platform contract.

Environment note for next runs

The gate platform was specified as "android" but PR #35504 only touches an
iOS/MacCatalyst-only file (Compatibility/iOS/Extensions/ToolbarItemExtensions.cs)
and an iOS-gated device test. Future gate runs for this class of PR should use
ios or maccatalyst as the platform, and the host must have the .NET 11
SDK and the corresponding iOS workload installed (net11.0-ios).

---

📋 Report — Final Recommendation

Comparative Report — PR #35504 Fix Candidates

PR: #35504 — Fix iOS toolbar empty badge indicator
Author: jfversluis
Head: jfversluis/ios-badge-dot-fix @ e7404cf055e9f37ebd571004ee417be30e94cdea
Platform requested for gate: android (mismatched — PR is iOS / MacCatalyst-only)

Gate environment caveat (shared by every candidate)

The gate result was ❌ FAILED, but the failure is environmental, not behavioural: the local runner lacks the .NET 11 SDK and the net11.0-android / net11.0-ios workloads. Both without-fix and with-fix builds fail identically with NETSDK1045 (no .NET 11 SDK) and NETSDK1139 (TPI android not recognized). The same blocker prevented every Try-Fix and the expert-eval sandbox copy from executing the test suite.

Per the autonomous-execution policy, we proceed on code analysis. The "regression tests" axis is therefore unobserved for every candidate — there is no candidate that passed regression tests and no candidate that demonstrably failed them. The ranking rule "candidates that failed regression tests rank lower than those that passed" applies vacuously: no candidate is penalised under it.

Candidates

ID	Source	Diff vs PR	Test result	Verdict
pr	The PR as submitted	— (baseline)	Env-blocked; correct by inspection (uses canonical Apple CreateIndicatorBadge() factory; matches documented MAUI contract; matches Android/Windows behaviour).	✅ Minimal correct fix.
pr-plus-reviewer	PR + actionable expert-reviewer feedback applied	Diff-identical to pr. Both reviewer suggestions were re-validated and discarded: (1) the SecondarySubToolbarItem parity concern is a misread — that class has no UpdateBadge method; (2) whitespace normalization violates the documented cross-platform contract.	Equivalent to pr.	✅ Tied with pr; no additional value.
try-fix-1	Switch-expression refactor of UpdateBadge	Same factory call as pr; just restructures the four-state mapping as a switch expression.	Env-blocked; behaviourally equivalent to pr by inspection.	❎ Worse — adds churn (≈15 line delta vs 2-character delta) for zero behavioural gain. Unrelated to the bug being fixed.
try-fix-2	string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(badgeText) as the indicator branch	Semantically broader than pr: empty or whitespace renders the indicator.	Env-blocked.	❎ Worse — violates the documented ToolbarItem.BadgeText contract ("an empty string to show a dot indicator"); diverges from Android (BadgeUtils) and Windows (InfoBadge) handlers which both key off IsNullOrEmpty/Length == 0. Per-platform semantic divergence is exactly what MAUI handlers must not introduce.
try-fix-3	Stop signal	—	n/a	n/a — explicit stop after observing no further meaningfully different correct approach.

Ranking

1. pr (winner) — minimal, surgical, correct. 2-character production-code change against a single well-isolated branch. Backed by a new device test. Uses Apple's documented public factory for the iOS 26 / MacCatalyst 26 indicator badge.
2. pr-plus-reviewer — diff-identical to pr; ranks equal but offers no additional value, so we prefer the PR's existing commits.
3. try-fix-1 — equivalent behaviour, more churn. Reject.
4. try-fix-2 — incorrect contract change. Reject.
5. try-fix-3 — explicit stop, not a candidate.

Why pr wins

• Minimal blast radius. Replaces one factory call with the canonical Apple one — touches no other code path, no other platform, no public API.
• Documented contract alignment. Implements "empty string → dot indicator" on iOS to match the public XML doc on ToolbarItem.BadgeText and the existing Android/Windows behaviour. Eliminates a per-platform divergence rather than introducing one (which try-fix-2 would).
• Test coverage. Adds a device test asserting the post-transition shape (Badge != null && Badge.StringValue == null), correctly gated on OperatingSystem.IsIOSVersionAtLeast(26) / IsMacCatalystVersionAtLeast(26).
• No reviewer-actionable issues. Expert review found 0 errors, the single ⚠️ warning was a misread (no UpdateBadge exists on SecondarySubToolbarItem), and the single 💡 suggestion was independently explored as try-fix-2 and rejected on contract grounds.

Recommendation

Accept PR #35504 as-is. No additional commits required. The Try-Fix phase and expert reviewer both converged on the same conclusion: the PR is the minimal correct change.

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[kubaflo]

@jfversluis looks good