kivy for ios without mac?

[yan she]

Hello, I want package my kivy project as an app on iphone. But I do not have the mac. Is the mac environment is necessary?

[ElliotG]

Yes, a Mac is required to build a Kivy app for iOS. Here's why:

1. Xcode Requirement

• Xcode is Apple's official IDE for developing iOS apps. It is only available on macOS.

• Kivy uses kivy-ios (a toolchain to compile Kivy apps for iOS), which depends on Xcode to build, sign, and package the app.

2. Code Signing with Certificates

• To distribute or even run an iOS app on a physical device, Apple requires code signing with a valid Apple Developer Certificate, which can only be done through Xcode or other macOS tools.

3. Simulator and Device Testing

• iOS simulators for testing are only available on Xcode.

• Running your app on real iOS devices requires macOS to use Xcode or idevicesyslog (another tool that's also tied to macOS environments).

4. Tooling Compatibility

• The kivy-ios toolchain specifically integrates with Xcode for building the final .ipa (iOS App Package) file.

💡 Workarounds (Not Ideal):

• Cloud Mac Services:

  • Services like MacStadium, GitHub Actions (with macOS runners), or GitLab CI/CD offer cloud-based macOS environments, but these come with limitations and cost.

• Hackintosh:

  • Building a Hackintosh (non-Apple hardware running macOS) is technically possible but violates Apple's terms of service and can be unstable.

✅ Best Solution:
Use a Mac (even a Mac Mini or a used MacBook) for developing and deploying Kivy apps to iOS. It ensures compatibility, smoother debugging, and faster iteration.

[Tomek CEDRO]

Yup, unfortunately true, you need a Mac hardware to run macOS, this
comes from Apple licensing, not legal to run a VM and hard to setup.

What is more take into a consideration predestined Mac hardware life
cycles (~5 years), if you want to buy a second-hand Mac you need one
with the latest macOS as this is required by XCode as this is required
to publish in the AppStore.. so it may turn out new MacMini would be
the chapest choice in the long run ;-)

Also note new Mac use ARM64 CPU architecture, not Intel, this is
important when you want to run VM inside ;-)

Tomek

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CeDeROM, SQ7MHZ, http://www.tomek.cedro.info