Microsoft previews SignalR client for iOS

Microsoft has introduced a Swift client for its SignalR library for ASP.NET, allowing iOS developers to add real-time web functionality to their applications.

SignalR Swift is a client library for connecting to SignalR servers from Swift applications, according to Microsoft. The client also works with the Azure SignalR service.

Introduced in a public preview April 22, the SignalR Swift client mends a situation in which iOS developers who wanted real-time bi-directional communication with SignalR needed to rely on community-built clients or make their own Swift implementation, both of which brought forth maintenance and compatibility issues, Microsoft said. With the new client, iOS developers can add real-time features such as chat, notifications, and live dashboards to SwiftUI or UIKit apps, and leverage full SignalR functionality including hubs, groups, and client/server streaming on iOS and macOS.

Samples leveraging the client can be found at github.com/dotnet. Instructions on installing the Swift client are at devblogs.microsoft.com.

SignalR is intended to simplify the process of adding real-time web functionality to applications. This real-time capability enables server code to push content to connected clients instantly, rather than having the server wait for a client to request new data.