What is the correct way to create a single-instance WPF application?

Question

Using C# and WPF under .NET (rather than Windows Forms or console), what is the correct way to create an application that can only be run as a single instance?

I kno

Answer 1

Named-mutex-based approaches are not cross-platform because named mutexes are not global in Mono. Process-enumeration-based approaches don't have any synchronization and may result in incorrect behavior (e.g. multiple processes started at the same time may all self-terminate depending on timing). Windowing-system-based approaches are not desirable in a console application. This solution, built on top of Divin's answer, addresses all these issues:

using System;
using System.IO;

namespace TestCs
{
    public class Program
    {
        // The app id must be unique. Generate a new guid for your application. 
        public static string AppId = "01234567-89ab-cdef-0123-456789abcdef";

        // The stream is stored globally to ensure that it won't be disposed before the application terminates.
        public static FileStream UniqueInstanceStream;

        public static int Main(string[] args)
        {
            EnsureUniqueInstance();

            // Your code here.

            return 0;
        }

        private static void EnsureUniqueInstance()
        {
            // Note: If you want the check to be per-user, use Environment.SpecialFolder.ApplicationData instead.
            string lockDir = Path.Combine(
                Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.CommonApplicationData),
                "UniqueInstanceApps");
            string lockPath = Path.Combine(lockDir, $"{AppId}.unique");

            Directory.CreateDirectory(lockDir);

            try
            {
                // Create the file with exclusive write access. If this fails, then another process is executing.
                UniqueInstanceStream = File.Open(lockPath, FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write, FileShare.None);

                // Although only the line above should be sufficient, when debugging with a vshost on Visual Studio
                // (that acts as a proxy), the IO exception isn't passed to the application before a Write is executed.
                UniqueInstanceStream.Write(new byte[] { 0 }, 0, 1);
                UniqueInstanceStream.Flush();
            }
            catch
            {
                throw new Exception("Another instance of the application is already running.");
            }
        }
    }
}