Developing applications for Apple’s mobile operating system on a Microsoft Windows platform presents a unique set of challenges. The official software development kit (SDK) and integrated development environment (IDE), Xcode, are exclusively designed for macOS. Therefore, direct application compilation and testing for iOS on Windows are not natively supported. Alternative methods and tools are required to bridge this gap.
The ability to target the iOS ecosystem from a Windows environment offers several advantages. It broadens accessibility for developers who prefer or are constrained to using Windows-based systems. Furthermore, it can streamline development workflows for cross-platform applications, potentially reducing costs and development time. Historically, achieving this required complex setups involving virtual machines or remote access to macOS systems, but evolving technologies have introduced more integrated solutions.