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iOS Objective-C Basics (Retired) Fundamentals of C Compile and Run

ryan clark
PLUS
ryan clark
Courses Plus Student 70 Points

can xcode be ran in a windows environment? please advise.

please advise

4 Answers

You can, but you will have to build a virtual machine for Mac OS X on your PC. You will have to simulate an installation of Mac OS X on Windows by using virtualization software like VMWare, or an open source alternative, like VirtualBox. Then download the operating system (OS X) on to it, either from a CD or through iTunes, as this is the only way to work with Xcode.

There are plenty of tutorials online on how to set up a virtual environment and it could take you about an hour or so to create. I built a virtual environment when I wanted to learn MS SQL Server, it's not that hard, plus you can build several virtual machines running different operating systems if you are so inclined. Just do a google search for "Xcode for Windows" and you should find some recent tutorials on how to do it.

I am not sure if you can publish your app through a virtual machine, but if you do please let us know or write a blog/tutorial on it.

Happy coding!

Chris Rene
Chris Rene
13,603 Points

Xcode is a Mac application and can only be run on the Mac OS X software.

Michael Hulet
Michael Hulet
47,912 Points

It's theoretically possible using the Virtual Machine idea above, but it's kinda hard to obtain a copy of the OS X installer capable of running with a VM as a target disk, and even if you do, it's technically piracy, so it's illegal in the US. Developing for iOS exclusively on Windows is going to be pretty hard, but if you're really that committed, you can follow one or more of the ideas in this StackOverflow thread