Setup iOS

Create native iOS and iPadOS mobile applications with Lime and OpenFL by compiling to C++.

Automatic Install

There is no automatic setup available for iOS.

Manual Install

In order to build applications for iOS, you must have a current version of Xcode installed.

You can find Xcode in the macOS App Store.

Before you can build for a device, you will also need to connect your device to your computer with USB. Then, make sure that you have valid developer certificates set up in Xcode, and that you have provisioned the device.

Due to the restrictive nature of Apple’s developer tools, building iOS apps is supported on computers running macOS only. iOS apps cannot be built from Windows or Linux. There are currently no plans to support iOS development from non-macOS host systems at this time. However, you can technically use the AIR target to build iOS apps on Windows. If you are interested in contributing a stable way to develop C++ iOS applications from other host systems, please open a topic on the forums to discuss your implementation plans.

Build & Run

To compile an iOS or iPadOS application bundle, run lime build ios. Add the -debug option to create a debug build. Add the -release option to create a release build.

To compile and launch an application on a physical iOS device connected to your computer with USB, run lime test ios.

Note: You may need to unlock the connected iOS device before you can install an app. If your iOS device asks, you may also need to tell it that you trust your computer. With some Lime versions, you may also need to launch Xcode on your computer before it will detect your connected iOS device.

If you prefer to test in a simulator instead, run lime test ios -simulator to target the iOS simulator included with Xcode instead of a physical device.

Specify the -appstore option to create a build to be submitted to the iOS App Store. Alternatively, specify the -adhoc option for ad hoc distribution to specific devices outside of the App Store. For enterprise distribution within your organization, specify the -enterprise option.

Note: The first time that you compile a project for C++, it will take a noticably long time. However, compiling the same project again should be significantly faster because parts of your code that have not changed do not need to be recompiled. To force all of code to be recompiled for C++, use the -clean option.

Advanced Configuration

The <config:ios /> element in your project.xml file is used to specify advanced configuration options for iOS. A few of the more commonly-used advanced configuration options for iOS are documented below. For more details about the available advanced options, see Config Values: iOS.

The <config:cpp /> element in your project.xml file is used to specify advanced configuration options for C++. For a complete list of these advanced option, see Config Values: C++.

Code Signing

To compile for iOS, you must specify code signing options. These may be added to a <config:ios/> element in your project.xml file.

To specify your Apple Developer Team ID, add the team-id attribute.

<config:ios team-id="XXXXXXXXXX"/>

If you need to manually specify the path to a provisioning profile (typically with a .mobileprovision extension), add the provisioning-profile attribute.

<config:ios provisioning-profile="path/to/file.mobileprovision"/>

If you need to manually specify a code signing identity, add the identity attribute.

<config:ios identity="iPhone Developer"/>

Help & Forums

You should not need to install the Xcode command-line tools. If this is not the case, or if you encounter other problems when setting up Lime for iOS, please visit the community forums or our Discord server.