Formula
Group
OS
Keywords
OS Interprocess Communication Objective-C
Last edited time
Apr 24, 2024 12:49 PM
Slug
Status
Draft
Title
👉 Overview
👀 What ?
macOS XPC, or 'XPC services', is a lightweight, high-performance interprocess communication mechanism that allows for data exchange and service requests between processes on macOS. It acts as a bridge for communication and coordination between different applications and system services within the macOS operating system.
🧐 Why ?
macOS XPC is crucial because it facilitates seamless and efficient communication between different processes or applications within the macOS environment. Without XPC, interprocess coordination would be more complex, potentially leading to performance issues or software bugs. It's vital for developers working on macOS or users who want to understand the inner workings of their operating system.
⛏️ How ?
To utilize macOS XPC, developers need to have a solid understanding of Objective-C or Swift, as these are the primary languages used for macOS development. XPC services are typically implemented as bundles in an application's Contents/XPCServices directory. Developers should also be familiar with Apple's XPC API, which allows for the creation and management of XPC connections and service requests.
⏳ When ?
XPC was introduced with the release of macOS 10.7 Lion in 2011. Since then, it has become a core part of the macOS system architecture, used extensively by Apple's own applications and system services.
⚙️ Technical Explanations
At a technical level, macOS XPC works by establishing an asynchronous, two-way communication channel between two processes. An XPC connection consists of a client and a service. The client sends a message to the service and can optionally receive a reply. Messages are delivered in the order they were sent, and reply messages are delivered in the order their corresponding requests were sent. XPC services are implemented as separate processes, which means that an app can offload some of its work to an XPC service, which can run on a separate core or processor. This architecture allows for better performance and security, as each service runs in its own isolated environment and can be granted only the necessary privileges.