xtool 1.22.2 Fixes Apple ID Login by Presenting the Tool to Apple as a Pixel 7
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xtool 1.22.2 Fixes Apple ID Login by Presenting the Tool to Apple as a Pixel 7
The open-source Xcode replacement for Linux and Windows now has 10,825 stars, a 7 GB SDK download and 103 open issues, several of them about signing in.
xtool, an MIT-licensed tool that builds and installs iOS apps from Linux, Windows under WSL and macOS, shipped version 1.22.2 on Oct. 14. The release notes say the update changes the device fingerprint used for Apple ID login so that xtool presents to Apple as a Pixel 7, and that everyone who signs in with an Apple ID has to log in again.
The repository, owned by the xtool-org GitHub organisation, describes itself as a "Cross-platform Xcode replacement" that builds a SwiftPM package into an iOS app, signs it and installs it on a device. The GitHub API listed 10,825 stars, 489 forks and 103 open issues and pull requests on Oct. 15. It was created on Nov. 17, 2024.
What the Pixel 7 change touches
The notes list five changes. The login one is listed under the gsa component as "fix login when client-info doesn't match", by Kabir Oberai in pull request #337. A second change, #340, adds newer Apple root certificates. The release was cut by github-actions, and its contributors are Oberai and Alex Pawlowski, whose first contribution is #208.
The notes do not say why Apple was rejecting the previous fingerprint, and the repository page does not explain how signing works internally. The practical effect is that a login that failed before is meant to work after a reinstall and one fresh sign-in.
Four releases in five weeks, two of them breaking
Authentication has changed in more than one recent release. Version 1.20.0, on Sept. 21, changed the macOS auth backend and also forced Linux users to reinstall the Darwin SDK, which grows to about 7 GB. A --slim option exists.
| Version | Published (UTC) | Notable change |
|---|---|---|
| 1.19.2 | Sept. 11 | Fixes for HTTP 503 errors during auth |
| 1.20.0 | Sept. 21 | Swift 6.4 support, SDK reinstall, Apple ID re-login |
| 1.21.0 | Oct. 5 | Deployment target raised to iOS 17 and macOS 14 |
| 1.22.2 | Oct. 14 | Apple ID fingerprint changed to a Pixel 7 |
The 1.21.0 notes also say xtool now prunes Xcode when installing from the .xip archive, which is how the SDK reaches a Linux machine. The tool's own setup command handles that, and the open issues show where it hurts: #316 reports xtool setup hanging at 72 percent during Xcode XIP extraction on WSL2, and #283 reports that the two-factor code never arrives.
What a free Apple Account still limits
xtool does not change what Apple allows. Apple's membership comparison page says a free Apple Account can register up to 10 App IDs that expire after 7 days, 3 devices that expire after 7 days, and 3 apps per device. Provisioning profiles expire 7 days from issuance. Distribution needs a paid Apple Developer Program or Enterprise Program membership.
| Free Apple Account limit | Figure |
|---|---|
| App IDs | 10, expiring after 7 days |
| Devices | 3, expiring after 7 days |
| Apps per device | 3 |
Issue #305 shows the edge case: a free-team certificate with a leading-zero serial number is never matched, so xtool asks to revoke certificates on every run. Issue #308 reports that auth login returns an expired token.
What it still cannot do
The oldest request, #144, is the ability to build Xcode projects at all. xtool builds SwiftPM packages. Issue #313 reports that a widget app extension compiles to an empty, dead-stripped binary and crashes on launch, and #311 asks for iOS Simulator support on Linux and Windows. Native Windows support without WSL is the subject of #331.
The repository page does not mention App Store submission. Linux developers who also run KDE Plasma 6.8, which dropped its X11 session, get a build path to a device without a Mac. For anyone targeting Apple's newest hardware, such as the HomeView due Nov. 13, the SDK still has to come from Apple's own Xcode download.
Users on Apple ID auth need to update to 1.22.2 and sign in again.
Sources
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