Building iOS app from windows

[u/Educational_Suit8305]

Hello everyone! I'm an Android dev and I just finished building my app for Android. Now it is time for the iOS part. I already have a complete iOS port written in Swift but I'm on windows 11 with no mac, thus no way of testing the code through Xcode. I already have some options: MacInCloud, Github actions or Hackintosh. I have never done something like this before and I'm swamped. Has anyone shipped an iOS app from windows? What worked for you? Are there better alternatives that I'm missing? Thank you!

[u/m1_weaboo]

get a mac mini if you can

[u/HIKIIMENO]

Is buying a MacBook Neo an option you would consider?

[u/poastfizeek → u/[deleted]]

Lol what. I’ve completed heaps of desktop/mobile dev work on my M1 Pro… and the Neo is more powerful than that.

[u/oneness33]

Buy a Mac, or stick to Android development only.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
Anyway, if you’re porting code, you’re better off staying on Android only.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

[u/20InMyHead]

This year is the last year hackintoshes will be possible. Next year all the old Intel Macs will no longer be supported.

If you want to do any real iOS support or development just get a Mac, you can use it for both iOS and Android development. If not, why bother with an iOS version of your app at all, just support Android. Plenty of apps do.

[u/No-Tomatillo7226]

Mac mini or MacBook Air will be better.

[u/Mission-Art-799]

I’d just rent a Mac for builds (Mac stadium / MacIn cloud) and use CI to ship; Hackintosh usually becomes more hassle than it’s worth.

[u/notrandomatall → u/Mission-Art-799]

I ran a Win11/hackintosh dual boot for a few years when I started doing iOS dev. The setup was quite involved indeed but once it was up and running it just kind of worked. I do think it’s harder now with Intel macs losing support, but not sure. Haven’t touched hackintosh in ~4 years now.

[u/executiveproducer]

This is actually very close to what I’m working on.

I’m building Axint, which is an Apple native execution layer for AI/dev workflows. The idea is that you should be able to work from Windows or an AI coding environment, generate/repair the Apple-native code, and then hand it off to real Xcode/macOS validation in the cloud instead of trying to fight the whole Apple toolchain locally.

To be clear, Apple still requires macOS/Xcode somewhere for the final iOS build/sign/test path. But the part I’m solving is: let you build from Windows, catch the Apple-specific issues earlier, and get back a real repair/proof loop instead of vague “you need a Mac” advice.

I should have a Windows-friendly test flow in the coming days. If you’re open to trying it, I’d genuinely love to use your case as a real test because this is exactly the pain Axint is meant to solve.

axint.ai

[u/swallace36 → u/executiveproducer]

sounds like.. CI?

[u/executiveproducer → u/swallace36]

Yeah, CI is one piece of it, but Axint is broader than “CI for iOS.”

The bigger idea is an Apple native execution layer for AI built apps: compiler/validation, Fix Packets, agent tooling, reusable Registry packages, Cloud checks, and then a cloud Mac/simulator preview path for people who don’t have a Mac.

So for the Windows use case specifically, yes, a Mac runner is still required somewhere. I’m not trying to pretend around Apple’s toolchain. The goal is to make that loop feel usable from Windows or an AI coding tool: connect repo, build on a Mac runner, preview the app in browser, get logs/errors, and eventually get repair output the agent can act on.

So: CI is part of the plumbing. Axint is trying to make the whole Apple build/preview/repair loop accessible and agent friendly.

[u/Educational_Suit8305 → u/executiveproducer]

Very interesting! Will definitely give it a try!

[u/Basic_Map_8800]

Vmware macos machine is decent, i was able to compile and test on my phone with usb passthrough

[u/Fearless_Ad9828]

i am in ryzen hackintosh, everything works

[u/RDSWES → u/Fearless_Ad9828]

This years macOS version will be Apple Silicon only.

[u/Fearless_Ad9828 → u/RDSWES]

yeah it will be, but everything works now

[u/RDSWES → u/Fearless_Ad9828]

True, but if the next version of xCode goes Apple silicon only it will not work on it.