net10.0-macos app crashes at xamarin_vm_initialize in Mac App Store sandbox (SIGABRT)

[Sexadegen]

A net10.0-macos app crashes on launch when submitted to the Mac App Store. The crash occurs in xamarin_vm_initialize before any user code runs. The same app previously shipped successfully as net8.0-macos without any special configuration.
Crash stack (identical across two separate review submissions):

abort()
← xamarin_assertion_message [imageOffset: 50940]
← xamarin_vm_initialize [imageOffset: 60720]
← xamarin_main [imageOffset: 90848]
← main [imageOffset: 94708]
Exception: EXC_CRASH (SIGABRT) / abort() called
Platform: macOS 26.3 (ARM64, Mac16,8)
Build version: confirmed across build 12 and build 13 — identical offsets, different UUIDs

What I've tried:

Added <UseInterpreter>true</UseInterpreter> to the Release PropertyGroup — build succeeds, crash is identical, same offsets. Confirms UseInterpreter is silently ignored for net10.0-macos.
Added <PublishAot>true</PublishAot> — probably resolves the crash but breaks reflection-based SQLite (sqlite-net-pcl) and JSON (Newtonsoft.Json) at runtime. Not viable without significant AOT annotation work.
Attempted downgrade to net8.0-macos — blocked by NETSDK1202 (net8 workload EOL) when building with .NET SDK 10.0.201.

Project configuration:

<TargetFramework>net10.0-macos</TargetFramework>
<RuntimeIdentifier>osx-arm64</RuntimeIdentifier>

Entitlements (Release):

<key>com.apple.security.app-sandbox</key><true/>
<key>com.apple.security.network.client</key><true/>
<key>com.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-write</key><true/>

No JIT-related entitlements present or permitted for App Store distribution.
Expected behaviour
App launches successfully in the Mac App Store sandbox, consistent with net8.0-macos behaviour.
Actual behaviour
xamarin_vm_initialize calls xamarin_assertion_message then abort(). App never reaches user code.

Crashlog-0330-125502.log
Crashlog-0403-143758.log

Questions for the team:

1. Is UseInterpreter intentionally unsupported for net10.0-macos? If so, what is the supported mechanism for avoiding JIT in the App Store sandbox?
2. Is there a known regression between net8.0-macos and net10.0-macos in how the Mono VM initialises under the hardened runtime + App Sandbox?
3. Is PublishAot the only supported path for Mac App Store distribution with net10.0-macos, and if so, is there guidance on making reflection-dependent NuGet packages AOT-compatible?

[rolfbjarne]

Added <UseInterpreter>true</UseInterpreter> to the Release PropertyGroup — build succeeds, crash is identical, same offsets. Confirms UseInterpreter is silently ignored for net10.0-macos.

This is correct; UseInterpreter has no effect with macOS apps (this is documented for the property here: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/ios/building-apps/build-properties#useinterpreter)

This is because macOS apps use the CoreCLR runtime, not the Mono runtime, and only the latter has an interpreter. macOS apps will always use the JIT.

Note that for sandbox apps, this means you'll need to enable the hardened runtime in your csproj:

<PropertyGroup>
    <UseHardenedRuntime>true</UseHardenedRuntime>
</PropertyGroup>

and enabling the JIT entitlement in Entitlements.plist:

<key>com.apple.security.cs.allow-jit</key>
<true/>

Can you try that and see if it works?

[dotnet-policy-service]

Hi @@Sexadegen. We have added the "need-info" label to this issue, which indicates that we have an open question for you before we can take further action. This issue will be closed automatically in 7 days if we do not hear back from you by then - please feel free to re-open it if you come back to this issue after that time.

[Sexadegen]

Thanks @rolfbjarne that resolved my issue with the App Store approval.