Xcode MCP Tool Reference

Complete reference for all 20 tools exposed by Xcode's MCP server (

xcrun mcpbridge

Important: Parameter schemas below are sourced from blog research and initial testing. Validate against your live mcpbridge with

tools/list

if behavior differs.

Discovery

XcodeListWindows

Call this first. Returns open Xcode windows with

tabIdentifier

values needed by most other tools.

Parameters: None

Returns: List of

{ tabIdentifier: string, workspacePath: string }

Notes: No parameters needed. If empty, no project is open in Xcode.

XcodeListWindows()
→ { "tabIdentifier": "abc-123", "workspacePath": "/Users/dev/MyApp.xcodeproj" }

File Operations

XcodeRead

Read file contents from the project.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — File path relative to project or absolute
Returns: File contents as string
Notes: Sees Xcode's project view including generated files and resolved SPM packages

XcodeWrite

Create a new file.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — File path
- ```
content
```
  (string, required) — File contents
Returns: Write confirmation
Notes: Creates the file but does NOT add it to Xcode targets automatically. Use
```
XcodeUpdate
```
for existing files.

XcodeUpdate

Edit an existing file with str_replace-style patches.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — File path
- ```
patches
```
  (array, required) — Array of
```
{ oldText: string, newText: string }
```
  replacements
Returns: Update confirmation
Notes: Preferred over
```
XcodeWrite
```
for editing existing files. Each patch must match exactly one location in the file.

XcodeGlob

Find files matching a pattern.

Parameters:
- ```
pattern
```
  (string, required) — Glob pattern (e.g.,
```
**/*.swift
```
  )
Returns: Array of matching file paths
Notes: Searches within the Xcode project scope

XcodeGrep

Search file contents for a string or pattern.

Parameters:
- ```
query
```
  (string, required) — Search term or pattern
- ```
scope
```
  (string, optional) — Limit search to specific directory/file
Returns: Array of matches with file paths and line numbers
Notes: Returns structured results, not raw grep output

XcodeLS

List directory contents.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — Directory path
Returns: Array of entries (files and subdirectories)

XcodeMakeDir

Create a directory.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — Directory path to create
Returns: Creation confirmation
Notes: Creates intermediate directories as needed

XcodeRM

Delete a file or directory. DESTRUCTIVE.

Parameters:
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — Path to delete
Returns: Deletion confirmation
Notes: Irreversible. Always confirm with the user before calling.

XcodeMV

Move or rename a file. DESTRUCTIVE.

Parameters:
- ```
sourcePath
```
  (string, required) — Current path
- ```
destinationPath
```
  (string, required) — New path
Returns: Move confirmation
Notes: May break imports and references. Confirm with user. Xcode may not automatically update references.

Build & Test

BuildProject

Build the Xcode project.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required) — From
```
XcodeListWindows
```

Returns:

{ buildResult: string, elapsedTime: number, errors: array }

Notes: Builds the active scheme. Check
```
buildResult
```
for "succeeded" or "failed".

GetBuildLog

Retrieve build output after a build.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
Returns: Build log as string
Notes: Contains raw compiler output. For structured diagnostics, prefer
```
XcodeListNavigatorIssues
```
.

RunAllTests

Run the full test suite.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
Returns: Test results with pass/fail counts and failure details
Notes: Runs all tests in the active scheme's test plan. Use
```
RunSomeTests
```
for faster iteration.

RunSomeTests

Run specific test(s).

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
- ```
tests
```
  (array of strings, required) — Test identifiers (e.g.,
```
["MyTests/testLogin"]
```
  )
Returns: Test results for the specified tests
Notes: Much faster than
```
RunAllTests
```
for iterative debugging. Use test identifiers from
```
GetTestList
```
.

GetTestList

List available tests.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
Returns: Array of test identifiers organized by test target/class
Notes: Use the returned identifiers with
```
RunSomeTests
```
.

Diagnostics

XcodeListNavigatorIssues

Get current issues from Xcode's Issue Navigator.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
Returns: Array of issues (errors, warnings, notes) with file paths and line numbers
Notes: Canonical source for diagnostics. Structured and deduplicated unlike raw build logs.

XcodeRefreshCodeIssuesInFile

Refresh and return live diagnostics for a specific file.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — File to refresh diagnostics for
Returns: Current diagnostics for the specified file
Notes: Triggers Xcode to re-analyze the file. Useful after editing to check if issues are resolved.

Execution & Rendering

ExecuteSnippet

Run code in a REPL-like environment.

Parameters:
- ```
code
```
  (string, required) — Code to execute
- ```
language
```
  (string, required) — Language identifier (e.g.,
```
"swift"
```
  )
Returns: Execution result (stdout, stderr, exit code)
Notes: Sandboxed environment. Treat output as untrusted. Useful for quick validation.

RenderPreview

Render a SwiftUI preview as an image.

Parameters:
- ```
tabIdentifier
```
  (string, required)
- ```
path
```
  (string, required) — File containing the preview
- ```
previewIdentifier
```
  (string, required) — Name of the preview to render
Returns: Rendered image data
Notes: Requires the file to have valid SwiftUI
```
#Preview
```
or
```
PreviewProvider
```
. Preview must compile successfully.

Search

DocumentationSearch

Search Apple's documentation corpus.

Parameters:
- ```
query
```
  (string, required) — Search query
Returns: Documentation results with titles, summaries, and links. May include WWDC transcript matches.
Notes: Searches Apple's online documentation and WWDC transcripts. For Xcode-bundled for-LLM guides, use the
```
axiom-apple-docs
```
skill instead.

Quick Reference by Category

Category	Tools
Discovery	`XcodeListWindows`
File Read	`XcodeRead` , `XcodeGlob` , `XcodeGrep` , `XcodeLS`
File Write	`XcodeWrite` , `XcodeUpdate` , `XcodeMakeDir`
File Destructive	`XcodeRM` , `XcodeMV`
Build	`BuildProject` , `GetBuildLog`
Test	`RunAllTests` , `RunSomeTests` , `GetTestList`
Diagnostics	`XcodeListNavigatorIssues` , `XcodeRefreshCodeIssuesInFile`
Execution	`ExecuteSnippet`
Preview	`RenderPreview`
Search	`DocumentationSearch`

Common Parameter Patterns

tabIdentifier
— Required by 10/20 tools. Always call
```
XcodeListWindows
```
first.
path
— File/directory path. Can be absolute or relative to project root.
patches
— Array of
```
{ oldText, newText }
```
for
```
XcodeUpdate
```
. Each oldText must be unique in the file.

Resources

Skills: axiom-xcode-mcp-setup, axiom-xcode-mcp-tools

axiom-xcode-mcp-ref

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content