Macbook Xcode Performance
Xcode 12 is built as a Universal app that runs 100% natively on Intel-based CPUs and Apple Silicon for great performance and a snappy interface. It also includes a unified macOS SDK that includes all the frameworks, compilers, debuggers, and other tools you need to build apps that run natively on Apple Silicon and the Intel x8664 CPU. Eye-opening graphics performance. The available 10th-generation Intel processor with powerful new Iris Plus graphics delivers up to 80 per cent faster graphics performance than the previous generation. 1 That means effortless video editing, faster 3D rendering.
9 Tweaks to Speed up Xcode Builds
As projects grow, build times can become problematic. However, there are several tweaks you can make to Xcode that can decrease the amount of time it takes for builds to complete without any extra work.
UPDATE: This article has been expanded to add two factors to think about when speeding up VMs. In addition, this article references Xcode 9. With reports that Xcode 11 builds are up to 50% slower, Xcode build speed has become an even hotter topic.
Increase the thread count:
By default, Xcode typically uses the same number of threads as the number of cores in the machine’s CPU. However, you can dramatically reduce build times – in some instances by a full 30% - by increasing the thread count beyond the default. This takes advantage of some processors’ ability to multi-thread or simulate additional cores. Keep in mind that you may need to experiment to determine if there are diminishing returns for parallelized builds with your code base, and then adjust the thread count accordingly.
Enable the New Build System:
Apple’s “New Build System” is written completely in Swift and was designed for overall performance and dependency management improvements. Be aware that while the New Build System is available in Xcode 9+, it must be enabled in Xcode under Project/Workplace Settings since “Standard Build” will be the default option. Alternatively, the New Build System can be enabled via command line (details linked below).
You can find more details and instructions for enabling the New Build System here:
Xcode New Build System for Speedy Swift Builds
Tweak the iOS simulator:
The Apple iOS test simulator lets you test across different software and hardware combinations (but only from a Mac). By using Physical Size or Pixel Accurate window sizes, you can reduce both the size of your tests and the time it takes for them to complete. These configuration changes use less resources and help prevent tests from slowing down simulating pixels that no one will ever see.
You can find configuration instructions here: Adjusting the Xcode iPhone simulator scale and size
Use parallelized builds:
Parallelized builds can reduce total Xcode build times by building components of the app that do not depend on each other at the same time. For projects with many smaller dependencies that can easily be run in parallel, this can offer significant time savings. Gains will obviously depend on how your code is written, but it is worth testing since parallelized builds aren’t enabled by default. You can enable parallel builds by editing the Xcode Scheme and checking ‘Parallel Builds’ in the build action of the scheme.
You can find more detail on leveraging parallelized builds here: When should I check “Parallelize Build” for an Xcode scheme?
Turn on build time summary:
Build time summary enables reporting on the build times of each piece of the Xcode build. In other words, build time summary can help you identify the parts of the build that are impacting build times and further optimize the build order for overall gains. While not a fix in and of itself, the insights that build time summary provides can be useful in prioritizing efforts when trying to optimize your build times.
Bigger build machines:
This one isn’t technically an Xcode tweak, but bigger build machines do have an outsized impact when attempting to speed up builds. More computing power simply translates into faster completion of processes and builds. Our testing shows that moving from a dual-core Mac mini to a 12-core Mac Pro can give a 3x speedup without any additional effort. When you’re ready to upgrade or scale your Mac infrastructure, feel free to contact us at MacStadium.
UPDATE - Increase your clock speed:
With the recent Xcode 11 release, more and more builds are showing signs of single-threaded-like behavior. That is, some elements are not being run in parallel like before. In this event, hardware with more cores is not necessarily better. MacStadium is currently finding customers can complete builds faster by picking a 6-core 2013 Mac Pro, which has a 3.5 GHz clock speed over the 12-core 2013 Mac Pro at 2.7 GHz. Individual builds vary, but this a factor to check.
Caesars rewards phone number. UPDATE - Enable caching:
Xcode now supports caching automatically as long as users do not run the Product > Clean feature before builds. This is a great improvement for local developers who are the primary audience for Apple’s continued development. For teams, the caching features of Bazel make it a very attractive choice. The implementation of Bazel is not always easy, but implementing Bazel for iOS and macOS builds was the specific focus of the 2019 BazelCon. All the talks are now on YouTube.
If you’re running dozens or hundreds of builds a day as part of a CI pipeline, you can improve performance by leveraging a virtualized Mac fleet. Orka, the first and only solution built for orchestrating genuine Apple hardware allows you to orchestrate many build machines using Kubernetes technology.
You can try an Orka sandbox and see for yourself how easy it is to manage a Jenkins pipeline, spin-up VMs and achieve near bare metal speeds on a hypervisor built specifically for macOS and iOS app development. Have questions? Talk to a sales engineer about how Orka can transform your Xcode build process.
Additional Resources:
Of course, these are only a few of the suggestions you can use to speed your Xcode build times. The following resources can provide additional information and suggestions on improving your Xcode build times.
With an all-new design that looks great on macOS Big Sur, Xcode 12 has customizable font sizes for the navigator, streamlined code completion, and new document tabs. Xcode 12 builds Universal apps by default to support Mac with Apple Silicon, often without changing a single line of code.
Designed for macOS Big Sur.
Xcode 12 looks great on macOS Big Sur, with a navigator sidebar that goes to the top of the window and clear new toolbar buttons. The navigator defaults to a larger font that’s easier to read, while giving you multiple size choices. New document tabs make it easy to create a working set of files within your workspace.
Document tabs.
The new tab model lets you open a new tab with a double-click, or track the selected file as you click around the navigator. You can re-arrange the document tabs to create a working set of files for your current task, and configure how content is shown within each tab. The navigator tracks the open files within your tabs using strong selection.
Navigator font sizes.
3d home sketch software. The navigator now tracks the system setting for “Sidebar icon size” used in Finder and Mail. You can also choose a unique font size just for Xcode within Preferences, including the traditional dense information presentation, and up to large fonts and icon targets.
Code completion streamlined.
A new completion UI presents only the information you need, taking up less screen space as you type. And completions are presented much faster, so you can keep coding at maximum speed.
Redesigned organizer.
An all-new design groups all critical information about each of your apps together in one place. Choose any app from any of your teams, then quickly navigate to inspect crash logs, energy reports, and performance metrics, such as battery consumption and launch time of your apps when used by customers.
SwiftUI
SwiftUI offers new features, improved performance, and the power to do even more, all while maintaining a stable API that makes it easy to bring your existing SwiftUI code forward into Xcode 12. A brand new life cycle management API for apps built with SwiftUI lets you write your entire app in SwiftUI and share even more code across all Apple platforms. And a new widget platform built on SwiftUI lets you build widgets that work great on iPad, iPhone, and Mac. Your SwiftUI views can now be shared with other developers, and appear as first-class controls in the Xcode library. And your existing SwiftUI code continues to work, while providing faster performance, better diagnostics, and access to new controls.
Universal app ready.
Xcode 12 is built as a Universal app that runs 100% natively on Intel-based CPUs and Apple Silicon for great performance and a snappy interface.* It also includes a unified macOS SDK that includes all the frameworks, compilers, debuggers, and other tools you need to build apps that run natively on Apple Silicon and the Intel x86_64 CPU. Mac driver for linksys wusb6100m.
Updated automatically
When you open your project in Xcode 12, your app is automatically updated to produce release builds and archives as Universal apps. When you build your app, Xcode produces one binary “slice” for Apple Silicon and one for the Intel x86_64 CPU, then wraps them together as a single app bundle to share or submit to the Mac App Store. You can test this at any time by selecting “Any Mac” as the target in the toolbar.
Test multiple architectures.
On the new Mac with Apple Silicon, you can run and debug apps running on either the native architecture or on Intel virtualization by selecting “My Mac (Rosetta)” in the toolbar.
Multiplatform template
New multiplatform app templates set up new projects to easily share code among iOS, iPadOS, and macOS using SwiftUI and the new lifecycle APIs. The project structure encourages sharing code across all platforms, while creating special custom experiences for each platform where it makes sense for your app.
Improved auto-indentation
Swift code is auto-formatted as you type to make common Swift code patterns look much better, including special support for the “guard” command.
StoreKit testing
New tools in Xcode let you create StoreKit files that describe the various subscription and in-app purchase products your app can offer, and create test scenarios to make sure everything works great for your customers — all locally testable on your Mac.
Get started.
Xcode 7 Download
Download Xcode 12 and use these resources to build apps for all Apple platforms.
All current Macs run Xcode just fine. https://vacgecom.hatenablog.com/entry/2020/12/12/212338.
In the end tho, the questions may be: can you work on a small screen; is an SSD size-constrained for your work; does that work require more physical ram than a portable can support?
Xcode Macbook Air
If you can outline your app goals - Mac or iOS or both or ? - and what your app's content might require - image authoring/editing; audio authoring/editing; video authoring/editing; database editing/warehousing/serving, you can then better ask the real questions that pertain to you. Remember, other applications may be open at the same time, such as a browser, text editor, etc., etc. You should also provide for a tested and reliable backup.
Xcode 7
Also, don't be shy about visiting the nearest Apple Store for hands on. And finally, see the 'More Like This' links on the right.
Good luck in any case.
Macbook Air Xcode Performance
Sep 22, 2013 3:11 PM
