---
title: os_xcode
description: Activate the host Xcode tools.
---

# `os_xcode`

`os_xcode` makes the latest installed Xcode toolchain and macOS SDK available to dependent tasks. It is a dependency, not a function, and takes no arguments.

On macOS, xx inspects Xcode applications in `/Applications` and `~/Applications`, along with the Xcode application selected by `xcode-select` when it is elsewhere. It checks each installation with its own `xcodebuild`, then uses the installation reporting the latest Xcode version. xx sets `DEVELOPER_DIR` and `SDKROOT`, adds the Xcode developer and default toolchain binaries to `PATH`, and exposes `/usr/bin/xcrun` through an xx-owned command-scoped binary directory. It does not add `/usr/bin` to `PATH`.

xx reports an error when no complete Xcode installation is available. Apple Command Line Tools alone are not sufficient. Automatic installation and explicit version selection are not currently supported.

The symbol is safe to load on Linux and Windows, but activating it reports that Xcode is only available on macOS.

## Example

```starlark
load("@os@1", "os_run", "os_xcode")

os_run(
    ("xcodebuild", "-project", "MyApp.xcodeproj", "-scheme", "MyApp", "build"),
    deps=[os_xcode],
)
```

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Description: Activate the host Xcode tools.

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