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First Steps with UI for Blazor in a Web App

This article explains how to use the Telerik UI for Blazor components in a .NET 8 Blazor Web App project template. You will create a new application from scratch, learn how to add the UI for Blazor components to a project, and finally, add a UI component to a view.

This step-by-step tutorial starts with the basics and is suitable for first-time Blazor or Telerik component users. If you are already familiar with the Telerik NuGet source, components, and Blazor in general, you may prefer the Telerik UI for Blazor Workflow Details article. It provides more setup options and suggests possible enhancements.

Prerequisites

  • To successfully complete the steps in this tutorial, make sure you have an up-to-date Visual Studio, which is compatible with the .NET version of your choice. If you are not using Visual Studio, some of the steps require using the .NET CLI or editing files manually. In this case, also refer to the Workflow Details tutorial.

  • To learn more about the compatibility of the Telerik UI for Blazor components with different browser and .NET versions, see the system requirements.

  • This online documentation covers the latest version of Telerik UI for Blazor, which is 6.2.0. If needed, download the offline PDF documentation for the required older product version.

Step 0: Download Telerik UI for Blazor

  • If you have already purchased a Telerik UI for Blazor license, continue with the next step and create a new project.

  • If you are new to UI for Blazor and haven't purchased a license yet, you must download and install the trial version of the UI for Blazor components—this will activate your free trial and allow you to use the components. During the installation, select the Set up Telerik NuGet package source checkbox and the installer will configure the Telerik online NuGet feed automatically. You will use this feed later in the tutorial.

Trial users must complete the installation of the components. Otherwise their trial license will not activate and you cannot complete the tutorial successfully.

Step 1: Create a New Project

  1. Open Visual Studio and select Create a new project.

  2. Select the Blazor Web App project type, enter a name for your project, and then click Next.

  3. Select the desired Interactive render mode and Global Interactivity location. Global interactivity ensures easier setup and usage of the Telerik components.

  4. Click Create.

Most Telerik Blazor components require interactivity. They will not respond to user actions and the Blazor framework will not refresh their UI in static render mode. Telerik Blazor components with JavaScript rendering (Barcodes, Charts, Gauges, Maps, and QR Codes) will not render in static render mode at all.

The Account section in the Blazor Web App template with identity is static by design. Most Telerik Blazor components cannot work in this section.

Step 2: Add the Telerik NuGet Feed to Visual Studio

In this tutorial, you will use the Telerik NuGet feed to download the UI for Blazor components. This NuGet feed is private and requires you to authenticate with your Telerik user name and password:

  1. In Visual Studio and go to Tools > NuGet Package Manager > Package Manager Settings.

  2. Select Package Sources and then click the + button to add a new package source.

  3. Enter a Name for the new package source, for example, telerik.com.

  4. Add the https://nuget.telerik.com/v3/index.json URL as a Source. Click OK.

    Add the Telerik NuGet Feed in Visual Studio

  5. Whenever Visual Studio displays a dialog to enter credentials for nuget.telerik.com, use your Telerik account email and password.

For alternative NuGet package download options, check the Workflow article. You can also authenticate with nuget.telerik.com with an API key.

Step 3: Install the Telerik UI for Blazor Components

  1. Right-click each project that will use Telerik Blazor components, and select Manage NuGet Packages.

    • Apps with interactive Server render mode need the Telerik Nuget package in the server project.
    • Apps with global interactive Auto or WebAssembly render mode need the Telerik NuGet package in the client project.
  2. Install the Telerik Blazor NuGet package:

    1. Select the telerik.com Package source that you added earlier. As this is a private NuGet feed, you must authenticate with your Telerik account username and password.
    2. Select the Browse tab, find the NuGet package, and click Install. Commercial license holders must install Telerik.UI.for.Blazor. Trial users must install Telerik.UI.for.Blazor.Trial.

Step 4: Enable the Blazor UI Components

To enable the Telerik UI for Blazor components, you must add several client-side dependencies to the application, include the required @using statements, add the TelerikRootComponent component, and register the Telerik Blazor service.

4.1. Add the Telerik UI for Blazor Client Assets

1. Add the telerik-blazor.js file to your App.razor file as a static asset.

HTML

<head>
    . . .
    <script src="_content/Telerik.UI.for.Blazor/js/telerik-blazor.js"></script>

    <!-- For Trial licenses, use
      <script src="_content/Telerik.UI.for.Blazor.Trial/js/telerik-blazor.js"></script>
    -->
</head>

2. To select the appearance and color scheme for the Telerik Blazor components, add the theme stylesheet as a static asset in your App.razor file.

HTML

<head>
    . . .
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="_content/Telerik.UI.for.Blazor/css/kendo-theme-default/all.css" />

    <!-- For Trial licenses, use
        <link rel="stylesheet" href="_content/Telerik.UI.for.Blazor.Trial/css/kendo-theme-default/all.css" />
      -->
</head>

4.2. Include @using Statements

Add the @using directives below in the ~/_Imports.razor file in all projects in which you installed the Telerik NuGet package in Step 3. This configures the project to recognize the Telerik components in all files. You can register one or both icon namespaces, depending on the icon type you use.

_Imports.razor

@using Telerik.Blazor
@using Telerik.Blazor.Components
@using Telerik.SvgIcons
@using Telerik.FontIcons

4.3. Add the TelerikRootComponent

Use a single TelerikRootComponent component as a top-level component in the app.

Add a <TelerikRootComponent> to the app layout file (by default, MainLayout.razor). Make sure that the TelerikRootComponent wraps all the content in the MainLayout.

MainLayout.razor

@inherits LayoutComponentBase

<TelerikRootComponent>
    @* existing MainLayout.razor content here *@
</TelerikRootComponent>

You can learn more about the TelerikRootComponent purpose and usage in its dedicated documentation.

The TelerikRootComponent requires an interactive render mode. Layout components are interactive only in applications with Global Interactivity location. This section 4.3 applies only to apps with Global interactivity. If your app is using Per page/component interactivity, then check Using TelerikRootComponent in apps with per component interactivity instead.

4.4. Register the Telerik Blazor Service

In a Blazor Web App project with interactive render mode Server, you register services in the Program.cs file of your project.

For interactive render modes WebAssembly and Auto, register the service in the Program.cs file of both the server and client project.

C#

// ...

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);

// ...

builder.Services.AddTelerikBlazor();

// ...

var app = builder.Build();

Now your Blazor Server project can use the Telerik UI for Blazor components.

Step 5: Add a Component to a View

The final step in this tutorial is to use a Telerik UI for Blazor component in a view and run it in the browser.

  1. In the ~/Components/Pages/Home.razor view, add a TelerikButton component.

    RAZOR

    <TelerikButton>Say Hello</TelerikButton>
    
  2. Optionally, hook up a click handler that will show a message. The resulting view will look like this:

    RAZOR

    @page "/"
    
    <TelerikButton ThemeColor="@ThemeConstants.Button.ThemeColor.Primary"
                OnClick="@SayHelloHandler">Say Hello</TelerikButton>
    
    <p>@HelloString</p>
    
    @code {
        private MarkupString HelloString { get; set; }
    
        private void SayHelloHandler()
        {
            string msg = $"Hello from <strong>Telerik UI for Blazor</strong> at {DateTime.Now.ToString("HH:mm:ss")}!" +
                "<br /> Now you can use C# to write front-end!";
    
            HelloString = new MarkupString(msg);
        }
    }
    
  3. Run the app in the browser. You should see something like this:

    Telerik Blazor app in the browser

Well done! Now you have your first Telerik UI for Blazor component running in your Blazor app.

Next Steps

See Also

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