AppCode 2021.2 Help

AppCode FAQ

General

Is there a free AppCode version?

No, AppCode is a commercial product. However, you can try AppCode by using a free 30-day trial or Early Access Program (pre-release) versions as long as they are available.

In some cases, AppCode, along with other JetBrains desktop products, can be used for free or at 50% discount, for example, for university students, open source contributors, and startups. Check out all the special offers on our website or contact our sales support for more details.

How do I leave feedback or submit bugs and support requests?
  • To report a bug or suggest a new feature, add an issue in YouTrack: log in to your JetBrains account and click New Issue.

  • To submit a support request, select Help | Contact Support from the AppCode main menu. Mind collecting all necessary product logs before sending the request.

  • To leave feedback, select Help | Contact Support from the main menu.

Is AppCode available on macOS only?

Yes. The point is that AppCode strongly relies on the Xcode toolchain and build system. Apple doesn't port its iOS/macOS toolchain to Windows, thus, AppCode also can't do it.

However, you can use CLion to work with Swift Package Manager projects on Linux — just install the Swift plugin to enable the Swift language support.

Is AppCode available as a plugin for IntelliJ IDEA?

No, AppCode requires separate licensing.

AppCode and Xcode

Do I need Xcode to work with AppCode and why?

Yes, AppCode cannot run without Xcode. AppCode uses SDKs, simulators, LLDB, and SourceKit that are bundled in Xcode and cannot be used separately. Before you start working with AppCode, make sure that you have a supported Xcode version installed.

Can I edit the Xcode-specific settings in AppCode?

Yes, select File | Project Settings from the main menu or press ⌃ ⌥ ⇧ S. Here you can configure build settings, build phases, and more. For some settings (for example, entitlements or provisioning profiles), Xcode still provides more convenient tools for editing. You can open your project in Xcode by selecting File | Open Project in Xcode from the main menu and change the necessary settings there. The changes will appear in AppCode as soon as you apply them in Xcode.

Which Xcode features are not supported in AppCode?

AppCode currently doesn’t support such features as Interface Builder, SwiftUI preview, certificate management, and running and debugging WatchOS applications. Find the full list here.

Are there any tools for designing user interfaces in AppCode?

No, AppCode doesn’t support Interface Builder, and there are no plugins for editing UI available. If you double-click a storyboard file in AppCode, it will be opened in Xcode, and you will be able to edit your view layouts there.

Is SwiftUI preview supported?

Currently not, but we have a feature request you can vote for. There's no estimated time frame yet, but in the meantime, you can use the InjectionIII application as a workaround. For more details, see Create a SwiftUI application in AppCode.

Keymaps and shortcuts

Can I use the Xcode keymap in AppCode and vice versa?

You can use the Xcode keymap in AppCode, but not the other way round. To use the Xcode keymap in AppCode, go to AppCode | Preferences | Keymap and select Xcode from the list.

A shortcut is not working. What should I do?

This may happen if an AppCode shortcut conflicts with some global system actions or shortcuts for third-party software. To fix it, reassign or disable the conflicting shortcut. You can see the list of all conflicting shortcuts in the warning that appears at the bottom of the Keymap page of the Preferences dialog ⌃ ⌥ S.

There is no shortcut for an action. How can I add it?

Go to AppCode | Preferences | Keymap, find a necessary action in the list, right-click it, and select Add Keyboard Shortcut. See more in Configure keyboard shortcuts.

How to memorize AppCode shortcuts?
  • Use the Key Promoter X plugin while working in the IDE. It shows a popup notification with the corresponding keyboard shortcut for any action that you perform.

  • Use the IDE Features Trainer plugin to learn useful AppCode features and shortcuts for them.

  • Print a keymap to keep it on your desk and consult it as needed.

If you don’t remember a shortcut for an action, you can quickly find any action available in the IDE using the Search Everywhere dialog — just press Shift twice, go to the Actions tab, and start typing the action name.

UI and appearance

How do I quickly find an action and its shortcut?

Press ⌃ ⇧ A and start typing the action name in the dialog that opens. See more details in Searching Everywhere.

Where can I find more UI themes for AppCode?

In addition to the standard dark, light, and high contrast themes, you can choose one from the plethora of other themes available in our plugin repository.

Running and debugging

Which build system and debugger are used in AppCode?

AppCode uses the build system bundled in Xcode to build your project and the LLDB distribution bundled in Xcode to debug it. This guarantees that the binary compiled by AppCode is the same as the one you can create in Xcode.

Is it possible to debug view hierarchies in AppCode??

No, but AppCode supports integration with Reveal — a tool that allows debugging view layouts. While debugging in AppCode, click the Debug in Reveal the Reveal icon button to open your application in Reveal. See more in Reveal integration.

Performance

What to do in case of performance or memory issues?

Sometimes, performance slowdowns may be caused by the lack of memory. Enable the memory indicator to understand if it is your case. If so, try to increase the memory heap, and if this doesn’t help, report an issue to our support team.

How can I speed up code analysis?

Code analysis is a memory-consuming process that may significantly affect the IDE performance. To lighten up this process, you can switch off unnecessary code inspections or tune the analysis options for the current file. See more details in Speed up code analysis.

How to speed up indexing?

To speed up the indexing process, you can exclude some files or folders from indexing. See more details in Speed up indexing.

Integrations

Which languages/technologies are supported in addition to Swift and Objective-C?

In addition to Swift and Objective-C, AppCode supports such languages as C/C++, HTML, JavaScript, XML, JSON, Markdown, and other. Find the full list in Supported languages.

Out-of the box, you can work with CocoaPods, database tools, Git (or GitHub) and other version control systems, and more.

Also, there is the great variety of plugins for AppCode that you can use for free. They extend AppCode functionality in many aspects, for example, by enabling support for bash scripts, AppleScript, Docker, Vim, and more. You can install plugins from the Plugins page of the Preferences dialog ⌃ ⌥ S.

Last modified: 19 October 2021