IOS Networking

iOS Networking Skill

Core Rules

1. Always use async/await (NOT completion handlers) for new networking code. Completion handlers are legacy — Swift Concurrency is the standard since iOS 15.
2. Build a generic APIClient with an Endpoint protocol for type-safe requests. Never scatter raw URLSession calls throughout the codebase.
3. Use actor-based TokenManager for thread-safe OAuth2 token refresh with deduplication. Never allow multiple simultaneous refresh requests.
4. Handle ALL HTTP status codes properly:
   • 401 → refresh token, retry original request
   • 429 → respect Retry-After header, exponential backoff
   • 5xx → retry with exponential backoff + jitter
   • 4xx (other) → client error, do not retry
5. Use URLProtocol mocking for tests (NOT mocking URLSession itself). URLProtocol intercepts at the transport layer and tests real serialization paths.
6. Reuse URLSession instances — creating a session per request prevents HTTP/2 connection multiplexing and wastes memory.
7. Use URLCache with .useProtocolCachePolicy as the default cache policy. Configure cache size explicitly for production apps.
8. NWPathMonitor for connectivity awareness, NOT pre-flight checks. Never gate a request on reachability — just make the request and handle the error.
9. Codable with .convertFromSnakeCase and custom date strategies. Avoid manual CodingKeys when snake_case conversion handles it.
10. Keep ATS enabled. Use domain-specific exceptions in Info.plist only when absolutely necessary. Never disable ATS globally.

Decision Guide

Architecture Patterns

Minimal URLSession Call (Quick Reference)

func fetchUser(id: Int) async throws -> User {
    let url = URL(string: "https://api.example.com/users/\(id)")!
    let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(from: url)

    guard let http = response as? HTTPURLResponse, (200...299).contains(http.statusCode) else {
        throw NetworkError.httpError(statusCode: (response as? HTTPURLResponse)?.statusCode ?? -1)
    }

    let decoder = JSONDecoder()
    decoder.keyDecodingStrategy = .convertFromSnakeCase
    decoder.dateDecodingStrategy = .iso8601
    return try decoder.decode(User.self, from: data)
}

Production API Client (Quick Reference)

// 1. Define endpoint
struct GetUserEndpoint: Endpoint {
    typealias Response = User
    let userId: Int
    var path: String { "/users/\(userId)" }
    var method: HTTPMethod { .get }
}

// 2. Call through client
let user = try await apiClient.send(GetUserEndpoint(userId: 42))

Authenticated Request Flow

Request → AuthInterceptor (attach token)
       → URLSession.data(for:)
       → 401? → TokenManager.forceRefresh()
              → Retry original request with new token
       → Decode response

Common Mistakes to Avoid

File Upload Decision Tree

Need to upload?
├── Small file (<5MB) → URLSession upload task with Data
├── Large file (>5MB) → URLSession upload task with file URL
├── Multiple files → MultipartFormData builder
├── Background upload → Background URLSession config
└── Progress tracking → URLSessionTaskDelegate (async delegate)

HTTP Method Semantics

Testing Strategy

1. Unit tests: URLProtocol mock → test request building, response parsing, error handling
2. Integration tests: Staged/sandbox API → test real network stack
3. Snapshot tests: Capture request/response pairs for regression

// URLProtocol mock setup
final class MockURLProtocol: URLProtocol {
    static var requestHandler: ((URLRequest) throws -> (HTTPURLResponse, Data))?

    override class func canInit(with request: URLRequest) -> Bool { true }
    override class func canonicalRequest(for request: URLRequest) -> URLRequest { request }

    override func startLoading() {
        guard let handler = Self.requestHandler else {
            client?.urlProtocolDidFinishLoading(self)
            return
        }
        do {
            let (response, data) = try handler(request)
            client?.urlProtocol(self, didReceive: response, cacheStoragePolicy: .notAllowed)
            client?.urlProtocol(self, didLoad: data)
            client?.urlProtocolDidFinishLoading(self)
        } catch {
            client?.urlProtocol(self, didFailWithError: error)
        }
    }

    override func stopLoading() {}
}

// Usage in tests
let config = URLSessionConfiguration.ephemeral
config.protocolClasses = [MockURLProtocol.self]
let session = URLSession(configuration: config)
let client = APIClient(session: session)

MockURLProtocol.requestHandler = { request in
    let response = HTTPURLResponse(url: request.url!, statusCode: 200, httpVersion: nil, headerFields: nil)!
    let data = try JSONEncoder().encode(User(id: 1, name: "Test"))
    return (response, data)
}

let user = try await client.send(GetUserEndpoint(userId: 1))
XCTAssertEqual(user.name, "Test")

Performance Checklist

• Reuse URLSession instances (one per configuration type)
• Configure httpMaximumConnectionsPerHost (default 6, increase for API-heavy apps)
• Enable HTTP/2 (default in URLSession, verify server supports it)
• Set appropriate timeoutIntervalForRequest (30s default, reduce for user-facing)
• Use waitsForConnectivity = true for non-urgent requests
• Configure URLCache size (memoryCapacity + diskCapacity)
• Use AsyncBytes for streaming instead of buffering large responses
• Cancel tasks when views disappear (use .task modifier in SwiftUI)

Minimum Deployment Targets

References

• URLSession Fundamentals — configurations, async tasks, background sessions, streaming
• API Client Architecture — Endpoint protocol, generic client, interceptors, Codable patterns
• Error Handling & Retry — NetworkError, exponential backoff, token management
• Advanced Topics — WebSocket, caching, NWPathMonitor, multipart, GraphQL