Neil Hughes
Apple's new Xcode Cloud allows development teams to more easily collaborate, even when working remotely, and it automatically builds apps for all Apple devices and platforms, freeing up a developer's Mac to accomplish other tasks.
Xcode Cloud will be available to developers in a limited beta starting today. Apple said it will expand access to its free beta throughout the summer and fall, with a full launch in late 2021.
Pricing and availability details were not given at Monday's WWDC keynote, but Apple promised that more information will be shared with developers this fall.
With Xcode Cloud, Apple says teams will be able to find and fix issues faster. Developers can commit a change to their code, and because it is stored and compiled in the cloud, everyone on a team can see the changes.
Xcode Cloud will run automated tests in parallel, allowing them to be completed in a fraction of the time. Apps will be simulated running on every Apple device and platform.
Once compiled, the app can be automatically distributed not only to testers on a team, but also to external beta testers with TestFlight.
Accordingly, Apple also announced that its TestFlight beta service will be coming to the Mac.
Apple also emphasized security with Xcode Cloud, noting that the source code for apps is used in a temporary build environment. Xcode Cloud will only store the products of the build, ensuring code is kept private.
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3 Comments
No mention of whether there would be a free basic version for independent developers. I have a feeling that this is a "not for you" product. If so, that's too bad because this was the most exciting new developer tool announced during the keynote. It has the potential to allow developers to use mobile devices to develop and test their mobile apps. I can imagine being able to make code changes on an iPad and then test the app on the same device while in the field. That would be very cool indeed and not something that is easy to do now while on the road.
Likely going to cost extra. But this is the first step in getting Xcode on iPad. For many years Xcode has had the option to collaboratively compile. Now add in data center level parallel compiling managed for you in the Cloud. With the added bonus of team collaboration features and beta distribution channels. Sounds very interesting. A lot of companies are doing this in house or with Mac Stadium and other vendors. This is a new way of thinking about things with likely much more to come.
This looks like Apple’s first foray into providing a turnkey and integrated continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) tools for those who aren’t already setup for doing DevOps. It could be a very big deal for shops who cannot afford the time and money to glue together the collection of disparate tools that it typically takes to implement this capability. It sounds like Apple has listened to current DevOps practitioners based on them specifically addressing the on-prem vs off-prem concerns that many organizations struggle with due to IP and InfoSec concerns. This could be a big deal for smaller to medium sized dev shops - if the price is right. These systems are not inexpensive so it will be interesting to see where Apple sets the price tags.