feat(windows): support react-native-windows new architecture

[PHILLIPS71]

Description

The Windows build for react-native-screens has been broken for consumers using autolinking, as reported in #3589.

The root cause is that the library's Windows native module was built against react-native-windows@0.64, which is long out of date and incompatible with current New Architecture tooling. This manifested as a linker error (LNK1104 win10-\) caused by autolinking discovering the legacy .sln files that include Microsoft.ReactNative.vcxproj, leaving $(Platform) unresolved.

This PR fixes the autolinking issue and fully migrates the Windows native layer to the Fabric (New Architecture) component model required by react-native-windows@0.81.

Closes #3589.

Changes

Autolinking fix

• Added explicit windows platform config in react-native.config.js pointing autolinking only at RNScreens\RNScreens.vcxproj (no solution file), preventing the legacy .sln files from being auto-discovered and causing the $(Platform) linker error

react-native-windows upgrade

• Upgraded react-native-windows from ^0.64.8 to ^0.81.4
• Regenerated native module scaffold against react-native-windows@0.81.4; switches from the legacy UWP property sheets (Microsoft.ReactNative.Uwp.CppLib.*) to the new arch ones (Microsoft.ReactNative.CppLib.*)

Fabric migration
react-native-windows 0.81 removes the Paper renderer entirely. The IViewManager* interface family no longer exists. All Paper ViewManager classes and their XAML base classes have been replaced with the Fabric AddViewComponent / builder / UserData pattern.

Removed Paper
All *ViewManager classes (ScreenViewManager, ScreenStackViewManager, ScreenContainerViewManager, ScreenStackHeaderConfigViewManager, ScreenStackHeaderSubviewViewManager, ModalScreenViewManager, SearchBarViewManager) and their associated XAML base classes.

Added Fabric

File	Role
Screen.h/.cpp	ScreenProps, ScreenEventEmitter, ScreenUserData, and RegisterScreenLike helper shared by Screen and ModalScreen
ModalScreen.h/.cpp	Thin wrapper, delegates to RegisterScreenLike with "RNSModalScreen"
ScreenStack.h/.cpp	Registers RNSScreenStack with onFinishTransitioning emitter infrastructure
ScreenContainer.h/.cpp	Registers RNSScreenContainer; no custom props per spec
ScreenStackHeaderConfig.h/.cpp	Stub registration, see Notes
ScreenStackHeaderSubview.h/.cpp	Stub registration, see Notes
SearchBar.h/.cpp	Stub registration, see Notes
BaseProps.h	Shared minimal IComponentProps for stub components; required by the Fabric framework to safely deliver base ViewProps

Updated:

• ReactPackageProvider.cpp replaces AddViewManager calls with IReactPackageBuilderFabric; falls back gracefully on non-Fabric hosts

Lifecycle events
The old implementation dispatched onWillAppear, onAppear, onWillDisappear, and onDisappear from XAML Loading, Loaded, and Unloaded events. Fabric has no pre-mount hook, so onWillAppear + onAppear are both dispatched from ComponentView::Mounted, and onWillDisappear + onDisappear from ComponentView::Unmounted.

The Will* events are co-incident with their counterparts on Windows. This matches the old behaviour for Disappear (the old Unloaded handler also fired both synchronously) and is an acknowledged approximation for WillAppear.

Notes

• Native version downgrade: react-native devDependency is downgraded from 0.84.0 to 0.81.5 to match react-native-windows@0.81.4. The peer dependency floor is also lowered from >=0.82.0 to >=0.81.0

• Stub components: ScreenStackHeaderConfig, ScreenStackHeaderSubview, and SearchBar are registered as stubs. The previous implementation was also non-functional for these components (empty XAML StackPanel with no props applied or events fired). A non-empty stub registration is required, an empty builder lambda causes the Fabric framework to crash when delivering props. Native implementations are tracked as follow-up work.

• react-native-restart: was removed as it doesn't support the new architecture

Known gaps (follow-up work):

• stackAnimation and replaceAnimation are accepted and stored but not applied; no native transition animations exist on Windows yet
• ScreenStackHeaderConfig / ScreenStackHeaderSubview require a Windows title bar strategy before they can be implemented; SearchBar maps naturally to WinUI AutoSuggestBox and is a self-contained follow-up

[kkafar]

Thanks for the PR, that's awesome. Tag me once it is ready for review.

[PHILLIPS71]

@kkafar ready for a first pass whenever you get a chance!

One thing worth discussing: the existing windows-build-test.yml dynamically creates a fresh example app on every CI run, it queries npm for the latest react-native-windows version, spins up a matching RN project, builds it, then throws it away. It works, but there's no committed WindowsExample/ in the repo the way FabricExample/ exists for iOS and Android.

Should we instead commit a concrete WindowsExample/ and simplify the pipeline to just build it directly? It would be consistent with how the other platforms work and give contributors something to actually run. The trade-off is that react-native-windows tends to trail react-native releases by a minor version, so it would need to pin a different RN version than FabricExample/ and require a periodic update when RNW catches up.

[kkafar]

Thanks for the PR!

I've left initial notes. I haven't gone through the component code yet, but I've reviewed surrounding changes.

[kkafar]

This can not be lowered. We've just recently started using peerDependencies explicitly (see here) and it's meant to denote lowest supported version according to our policy. It's 0.82 since not-yet-released 4.25.0.

[kkafar]

I see it might be problematic :/ I'll ask some people internally whether it would be possible for us to go back to react-native: "*".

[kkafar]

This also should not be changed. We keep the dev library dependencies up-to-date so that we can react to changes in the react-native core & report issues there when necessary.

[PHILLIPS71]

The downgrade was necessary because react-native-windows trails behind react-native's versioning. react-native-windows@0.81.4 only supports react-native@0.81.x, and 0.84 is not yet supported upstream. This also caused the peer dependency range to drop from >=0.82.0 to >=0.81.0, which I agree is not ideal.

[kkafar]

Regarding the question about WindowsExample you asked - I consider it. I do not remember exact rationale, but IIRC we had an windows example at some point (?), but no one to really maintain it. So my answer here depends on whether we can find a maintainer for that part of the codebase. The "core team at SWM" is now heavily invested in the "in-tree platforms" and this won't change for many more months to come.

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

This PR modernizes the Windows native implementation of react-native-screens to work with current react-native-windows New Architecture (Fabric) tooling and removes legacy Windows solution artifacts that were being picked up by autolinking and breaking consumers.

Changes:

• Migrates the Windows native layer from legacy Paper IViewManager*/XAML-based managers to Fabric AddViewComponent registrations (with several components currently stubbed).
• Upgrades Windows dev tooling/dependencies to react-native-windows@^0.81.4 and regenerates the Windows C++/WinRT project structure.
• Removes old Windows solution files and adjusts examples to avoid unsupported dependencies (e.g., react-native-restart, gesture-handler on Windows).

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 58 out of 64 changed files in this pull request and generated 8 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
windows/RNScreens65.sln	Removes legacy solution that could be auto-discovered by autolinking.
windows/RNScreens63.sln	Removes legacy solution that could be auto-discovered by autolinking.
windows/RNScreens62.sln	Removes legacy solution that could be auto-discovered by autolinking.
windows/RNScreens/targetver.h	Adds standard Windows SDK targeting header for the regenerated project.
windows/RNScreens/resource.h	Adds resource header for the regenerated project.
windows/RNScreens/pch.h	Updates precompiled header to new RNW 0.81+ includes and WinUI composition headers.
windows/RNScreens/pch.cpp	Normalizes PCH compilation unit.
windows/RNScreens/packages.lock.json	Adds NuGet lock for RNW 0.81+ dependencies.
windows/RNScreens/codegen/NativeScreensModuleSpec.g.h	Adds Windows codegen output for the TurboModule spec.
windows/RNScreens/codegen/.clang-format	Disables formatting in codegen output directory.
windows/RNScreens/SearchBarViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/SearchBarViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/SearchBar.h	Converts SearchBar to Fabric stub registration API.
windows/RNScreens/SearchBar.cpp	Registers SearchBar as a Fabric stub component.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderSubviewViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderSubviewViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderSubview.h	Converts header subview to Fabric stub registration API.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderSubview.cpp	Registers header subview as a Fabric stub component.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderConfigViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderConfigViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderConfig.h	Converts header config to Fabric stub registration API.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStackHeaderConfig.cpp	Registers header config as a Fabric stub component.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStack.h	Converts ScreenStack to Fabric stub registration API.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenStack.cpp	Registers ScreenStack as a Fabric stub component.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenContainerViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenContainerViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenContainer.h	Converts ScreenContainer to Fabric stub registration API.
windows/RNScreens/ScreenContainer.cpp	Registers ScreenContainer as a Fabric stub component.
windows/RNScreens/Screen.h	Replaces legacy XAML Screen class with Fabric registration entrypoints.
windows/RNScreens/Screen.cpp	Implements Fabric RNSScreen behavior (activityState visibility + lifecycle event forwarding).
windows/RNScreens/ReactPackageProvider.idl	Renames WinRT namespace to ReactNativeScreens.
windows/RNScreens/ReactPackageProvider.h	Updates provider namespace and method signature formatting.
windows/RNScreens/ReactPackageProvider.cpp	Switches to Fabric registration via IReactPackageBuilderFabric and registers components.
windows/RNScreens/RNScreens.vcxproj.filters	Regenerated filters file for the new project structure.
windows/RNScreens/RNScreens.vcxproj	Regenerated RNW 0.81.4 C++ library project and dependencies.
windows/RNScreens/RNScreens.rc	Adds resource script for the regenerated project.
windows/RNScreens/RNScreens.h	Adds Windows TurboModule scaffolding header (currently mismatched vs JS module name).
windows/RNScreens/RNScreens.cpp	Adds Windows TurboModule scaffolding implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ModalScreenViewManager.h	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ModalScreenViewManager.cpp	Removes legacy Paper view manager implementation.
windows/RNScreens/ModalScreen.h	Adds Fabric registration API for modal screen wrapper.
windows/RNScreens/ModalScreen.cpp	Registers modal screen behavior via shared RegisterScreenLike.
windows/RNScreens/BaseProps.h	Adds shared “stub” props + stub component registration helper.
windows/RNScreens.sln	Adds a new RNW 0.81+ solution file.
windows/ExperimentalFeatures.props	Enables RNW New Architecture + experimental NuGet mode for the Windows solution build.
windows/.gitignore	Updates ignored artifacts for modern Visual Studio/RNW builds.
src/core.ts	Updates native linking check to use UIManager.hasViewManagerConfig.
package.json	Includes Windows output in published files + updates RN/RNW versions and adds Windows codegen config.
apps/src/screens/Gestures.tsx	Removes react-native-restart usage from example screen.
apps/Example.tsx	Avoids gesture-handler usage on Windows by dynamically requiring and adding Windows fallbacks.
TVOSExample/yarn.lock	Removes react-native-restart resolution from tvOS example lockfile.
TVOSExample/package.json	Removes react-native-restart from tvOS example dependencies.
TVOSExample/ios/Podfile.lock	Removes react-native-restart pod references.
TVOSExample/App.tsx	Simplifies re-export.
README.md	Updates Windows installation notes to reflect Fabric-only / RNW 0.81+ requirement.
NuGet.config	Adds NuGet feeds needed for RNW public packages.
FabricExample/yarn.lock	Removes react-native-restart resolution from Fabric example lockfile.
FabricExample/package.json	Removes react-native-restart from Fabric example dependencies.
FabricExample/ios/Podfile.lock	Removes react-native-restart pod references.

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[PHILLIPS71]

Thanks @kkafar, I've reverted the removal of react-native-restart and used an interop file that will become a non-op in Windows, there is https://github.com/ahmedawaad1804/react-native-restart-newarch that supports the new architecture, though it can probably be handled in a separate pr.

[tux2nicolae]

@PHILLIPS71 thank you for your work, and thanks kkafar for review-ing it.

With the release of react-native-windows 0.82.0 which targets the 0.82.0 i think the peer dependency min version problem is solved by itself ?

We're waiting for windows support as well for a while and this PR gives us some hope

[PHILLIPS71]

@tux2nicolae I believe so, I've update the branch against main and updates to react-native-windows@0.82.3 so this PR doesn't become stale.

[tux2nicolae]

@PHILLIPS71 that's awesome, thx, @kkafar when you find some time can you review this one more time please?