Exploring Swift on Windows: A New Era in Cross-Platform Development

The Swift project has unveiled a groundbreaking development—downloadable Swift toolchain images customized for Windows. This marks a significant stride in the journey to bring the Swift programming language to Windows, a collaborative effort involving the Swift community and swift.org developers.

The Swift Revolution on Windows

A Comprehensive Porting Effort

Porting Swift to Windows extends far beyond adapting the compiler. It encompasses the entire Swift ecosystem, including the standard library and core libraries like dispatch, Foundation, and XCTest. These libraries enable developers to create robust applications without delving into the intricacies of the underlying system. To delve deeper into this journey, explore the LLVM Developer Conference presentation on the topic.

Seamless Integration with Windows

With core libraries and Swift’s interoperability with C in place, developers can craft Windows applications entirely in Swift, tapping into the extensive library support available on the Windows platform.

A Glimpse into Swift’s Potential: The Demo Calculator

Building with Swift on Windows

An illustrative example of Swift’s prowess on Windows is a calculator application developed entirely in Swift. This project was brought to life using:

• The Swift toolchain tailored for Windows
• An installation of Visual Studio 2019, providing essential components like CMake, Ninja, and the Windows SDK

Demonstrating Versatility

This demonstration highlights the seamless interaction between Swift-written application code and underlying system libraries, showcasing Swift’s versatility on the Windows platform.

Pioneering Cross-Platform Applications with Swift

Early Adoption and Exploration

Early adopters, including companies like Readdle, have ventured into creating cross-platform applications using Swift. This involves bringing a plethora of existing Swift libraries to Windows, enhancing support for their applications.

The Ongoing Journey

While Swift’s initial support on Windows is a milestone, there’s still work to be done, especially concerning tools like LLDB and the Swift Package Manager, to ensure complete compatibility with this platform.

Getting Started and Engaging with the Swift on Windows Community

Onboarding Resources

For those eager to embrace Swift on Windows, the “Getting Started” section offers comprehensive guidance. Early adopters encountering issues or insights are encouraged to report them through the Swift Bug Tracker.

Opportunities for Contribution

Swift’s accessibility is enriched by its extensive library ecosystem. You can contribute actively by publishing new libraries and packages for Swift on Windows or by porting existing ones, further enhancing the Swift experience.

Core Tooling Development

Individuals interested in core tooling development will find ample opportunities to enhance the debugger and refine Windows support within the Swift Package Manager. The Swift Bug Tracker serves as the central hub for tracking issues and submitting patches via GitHub repositories.

Community Engagement

A dedicated section on the Swift forums invites discussions about the development of Swift on Windows. Here, you can engage with the community, raise issues, introduce yourself, and share your focus within the tooling realm.

Conclusion

This moment marks an exciting chapter in the world of cross-platform development, as Swift takes its place on the Windows stage. With robust toolchains, an ever-expanding library ecosystem, and an enthusiastic community, Swift on Windows promises a future filled with innovation and possibilities. Join this journey, contribute your expertise, and help shape Swift into a vibrant, cross-platform powerhouse. We eagerly anticipate the groundbreaking applications and solutions that will emerge from this union of Swift and Windows.