SwiftData

Overview

Apple's native persistence framework using @Model classes and declarative queries. Built on Core Data, designed for SwiftUI.

Core principle Reference types (class) + @Model macro + declarative @Query for reactive SwiftUI integration.

Requires iOS 17+, Swift 5.9+ Target iOS 26+ (this skill focuses on latest features) License Proprietary (Apple)

When to Use SwiftData

Choose SwiftData when you need

• ✅ Native Apple integration with SwiftUI
• ✅ Simple CRUD operations
• ✅ Automatic UI updates with @Query
• ✅ CloudKit sync (iOS 17+)
• ✅ Reference types (classes) with relationships

Use SQLiteData instead when

• Need value types (structs)
• CloudKit record sharing (not just sync)
• Large datasets (50k+ records) with specific performance needs

Use GRDB when

• Complex raw SQL required
• Fine-grained migration control needed

For migrations See the axiom-swiftdata-migration skill for custom schema migrations with VersionedSchema and SchemaMigrationPlan. For migration debugging, see axiom-swiftdata-migration-diag.

Example Prompts

These are real questions developers ask that this skill is designed to answer:

Basic Operations

1. "I have a notes app with folders. I need to filter notes by folder and sort by last modified. How do I set up the @Query?"

→ The skill shows how to use @Query with predicates, sorting, and automatic view updates

2. "When a user deletes a task list, all tasks should auto-delete too. How do I set up the relationship?"

→ The skill explains @Relationship with deleteRule: .cascade and inverse relationships

3. "I have a relationship between User → Messages → Attachments. How do I prevent orphaned data when deleting?"

→ The skill shows cascading deletes, inverse relationships, and safe deletion patterns

CloudKit & Sync

4. "My chat app syncs messages to other devices via CloudKit. Sometimes messages conflict. How do I handle sync conflicts?"

→ The skill covers CloudKit integration, conflict resolution strategies (last-write-wins, custom resolution), and sync patterns

5. "I'm adding CloudKit sync to my app, but I get 'Property must have a default value' error. What's wrong?"

→ The skill explains CloudKit constraints: all properties must be optional or have defaults, explains why (network timing), and shows fixes

6. "I want to show users when their data is syncing to iCloud and what happens when they're offline."

→ The skill shows monitoring sync status with notifications, detecting network connectivity, and offline-aware UI patterns

7. "I need to share a playlist with other users. How do I implement CloudKit record sharing?"

→ The skill covers CloudKit record sharing patterns (iOS 26+) with owner/permission tracking and sharing metadata

Performance & Optimization

8. "I need to query 50,000 messages but only display 20 at a time. How do I paginate efficiently?"

→ The skill covers performance patterns, batch fetching, limiting queries, and preventing memory bloat with chunked imports

9. "My app loads 100 tasks with relationships, and displaying them is slow. I think it's N+1 queries."

→ The skill shows how to identify N+1 problems without prefetching, provides prefetching pattern, and shows 100x performance improvement

10. "I'm importing 1 million records from an API. What's the best way to batch them without running out of memory?"

→ The skill shows chunk-based importing with periodic saves, memory cleanup patterns, and batch operation optimization

11. "Which properties should I add indexes to? I'm worried about over-indexing slowing down writes."

→ The skill explains index optimization patterns: when to index (frequently filtered/sorted properties), when to avoid (rarely used, frequently changing), maintenance costs

Migration from Legacy Frameworks

12. "We're migrating from Realm to SwiftData. What are the biggest differences in how we write code?"

→ The skill shows Realm → SwiftData pattern equivalents: @Persisted → @Attribute, threading model differences, relationship handling

13. "We have Core Data in production. What's the safest way to migrate to SwiftData while keeping both running?"

→ The skill covers dual-stack migration: reading Core Data, writing to SwiftData, marking migrated records, gradual cutover, validation

14. "Our Realm app uses background threads for all database operations. How do I convert to SwiftData's async/await model?"

→ The skill explains thread-confinement migration: actor-based safety, removing manual DispatchQueue, proper async context patterns, Swift 6 concurrency

15. "I need to migrate our CloudKit sync from Realm Sync (deprecated) to SwiftData CloudKit integration."

→ The skill shows Realm Sync → SwiftData CloudKit migration, addressing sync feature gaps, testing new sync implementation

---

@Model Definitions

Basic Model

import SwiftData

@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String
    var title: String
    var artist: String
    var duration: TimeInterval
    var genre: String?

    init(id: String, title: String, artist: String, duration: TimeInterval, genre: String? = nil) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
        self.artist = artist
        self.duration = duration
        self.genre = genre
    }
}

Key patterns

• Use final class, not struct
• Use @Attribute(.unique) for primary key-like behavior
• Provide explicit init (SwiftData doesn't synthesize)
• Optional properties (String?) are nullable

Relationships

@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String
    var title: String

    @Relationship(deleteRule: .cascade, inverse: \Album.tracks)
    var album: Album?

    init(id: String, title: String, album: Album? = nil) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
        self.album = album
    }
}

@Model
final class Album {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String
    var title: String

    @Relationship(deleteRule: .cascade)
    var tracks: [Track] = []

    init(id: String, title: String) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
    }
}

Many-to-Many Self-Referential Relationships

@MainActor  // Required for Swift 6 strict concurrency
@Model
final class User {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String
    var name: String

    // Users following this user (inverse relationship)
    @Relationship(deleteRule: .nullify, inverse: \User.following)
    var followers: [User] = []

    // Users this user is following
    @Relationship(deleteRule: .nullify)
    var following: [User] = []

    init(id: String, name: String) {
        self.id = id
        self.name = name
    }
}

CRITICAL: SwiftData automatically manages BOTH sides when you modify ONE side.

✅ Correct — Only modify ONE side

// user1 follows user2 (modifying ONE side)
user1.following.append(user2)
try modelContext.save()

// SwiftData AUTOMATICALLY updates user2.followers
// Don't manually append to both sides - causes duplicates!

❌ Wrong — Don't manually update both sides

user1.following.append(user2)
user2.followers.append(user1)  // Redundant! Creates duplicates in CloudKit sync

Unfollowing (remove from ONE side only)

user1.following.removeAll { $0.id == user2.id }
try modelContext.save()
// user2.followers automatically updated

Verifying relationship integrity (for debugging)

// Check if relationship is truly bidirectional
let user1FollowsUser2 = user1.following.contains { $0.id == user2.id }
let user2FollowedByUser1 = user2.followers.contains { $0.id == user1.id }

// These MUST always match after save()
assert(user1FollowsUser2 == user2FollowedByUser1, "Relationship corrupted!")

CloudKit Sync Recovery (if relationships become corrupted)

// If CloudKit sync creates duplicate/orphaned relationships:

// 1. Backup current state
let backup = user.following.map { $0.id }

// 2. Clear relationships
user.following.removeAll()
user.followers.removeAll()
try modelContext.save()

// 3. Rebuild from source of truth (e.g., API)
for followingId in backup {
    if let followingUser = fetchUser(id: followingId) {
        user.following.append(followingUser)
    }
}
try modelContext.save()

// 4. Force CloudKit resync (in ModelConfiguration)
// Re-create ModelContainer to force full sync after corruption recovery

Delete rules

• .cascade - Delete related objects
• .nullify - Set relationship to nil
• .deny - Prevent deletion if relationship exists
• .noAction - Leave relationship as-is (careful!)

ModelContainer Setup

SwiftUI App

import SwiftUI
import SwiftData

@main
struct MusicApp: App {
    var body: some Scene {
        WindowGroup {
            ContentView()
        }
        .modelContainer(for: [Track.self, Album.self])
    }
}

Custom Configuration

let schema = Schema([Track.self, Album.self])

let config = ModelConfiguration(
    schema: schema,
    url: URL(fileURLWithPath: "/path/to/database.sqlite"),
    cloudKitDatabase: .private("iCloud.com.example.app")
)

let container = try ModelContainer(
    for: schema,
    configurations: config
)

In-Memory (Tests)

let config = ModelConfiguration(isStoredInMemoryOnly: true)
let container = try ModelContainer(
    for: schema,
    configurations: config
)

Queries in SwiftUI

Basic @Query

import SwiftUI
import SwiftData

struct TracksView: View {
    @Query var tracks: [Track]

    var body: some View {
        List(tracks) { track in
            Text(track.title)
        }
    }
}

Automatic updates View refreshes when data changes.

Filtered Query

struct RockTracksView: View {
    @Query(filter: #Predicate<Track> { track in
        track.genre == "Rock"
    }) var rockTracks: [Track]

    var body: some View {
        List(rockTracks) { track in
            Text(track.title)
        }
    }
}

Sorted Query

@Query(sort: \.title, order: .forward) var tracks: [Track]

// Multiple sort descriptors
@Query(sort: [
    SortDescriptor(\.artist),
    SortDescriptor(\.title)
]) var tracks: [Track]

Combined Filter + Sort

@Query(
    filter: #Predicate<Track> { $0.duration > 180 },
    sort: \.title
) var longTracks: [Track]

ModelContext Operations

Accessing ModelContext

struct ContentView: View {
    @Environment(\.modelContext) private var modelContext

    func addTrack() {
        let track = Track(
            id: UUID().uuidString,
            title: "New Song",
            artist: "Artist",
            duration: 240
        )
        modelContext.insert(track)
    }
}

Insert

let track = Track(id: "1", title: "Song", artist: "Artist", duration: 240)
modelContext.insert(track)

// Save immediately (optional - auto-saves on view disappear)
try modelContext.save()

Fetch

let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>(
    predicate: #Predicate { $0.genre == "Rock" },
    sortBy: [SortDescriptor(\.title)]
)

let rockTracks = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)

Update

// Just modify properties — SwiftData tracks changes
track.title = "Updated Title"

// Save if needed immediately
try modelContext.save()

Delete

modelContext.delete(track)
try modelContext.save()

Batch Delete

try modelContext.delete(model: Track.self, where: #Predicate { track in
    track.genre == "Classical"
})

Predicates

Basic Comparisons

#Predicate<Track> { $0.duration > 180 }
#Predicate<Track> { $0.artist == "Artist Name" }
#Predicate<Track> { $0.genre != nil }

Compound Predicates

#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.genre == "Rock" && track.duration > 180
}

#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.artist == "Artist" || track.artist == "Other Artist"
}

String Matching

// Contains
#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.title.contains("Love")
}

// Case-insensitive contains
#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.title.localizedStandardContains("love")
}

// Starts with
#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.artist.hasPrefix("The ")
}

Relationship Predicates

#Predicate<Track> { track in
    track.album?.title == "Album Name"
}

#Predicate<Album> { album in
    album.tracks.count > 10
}

Swift 6 Concurrency

@MainActor Isolation

import SwiftData

@MainActor
@Model
final class Track {
    var id: String
    var title: String

    init(id: String, title: String) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
    }
}

Why SwiftData models are not Sendable. Use @MainActor to ensure safe access from SwiftUI.

Background Context

import SwiftData

actor DataImporter {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    init(container: ModelContainer) {
        self.modelContainer = container
    }

    func importTracks(_ tracks: [TrackData]) async throws {
        // Create background context
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)

        for track in tracks {
            let model = Track(
                id: track.id,
                title: track.title,
                artist: track.artist,
                duration: track.duration
            )
            context.insert(model)
        }

        try context.save()
    }
}

Pattern Use ModelContext(modelContainer) for background operations, not @Environment(\.modelContext) which is main-actor bound.

CloudKit Integration

Enable CloudKit Sync

let schema = Schema([Track.self])

let config = ModelConfiguration(
    schema: schema,
    cloudKitDatabase: .private("iCloud.com.example.MusicApp")
)

let container = try ModelContainer(
    for: schema,
    configurations: config
)

Capabilities Required

1. Enable iCloud in Xcode (Signing & Capabilities)
2. Select CloudKit
3. Add iCloud container: iCloud.com.example.MusicApp

Note SwiftData CloudKit sync is automatic - no manual conflict resolution needed.

CloudKit Constraints (CRITICAL)

When using CloudKit sync, ALL properties must be optional or have default values

@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = UUID().uuidString  // ✅ Has default
    var title: String = ""  // ✅ Has default
    var duration: TimeInterval = 0  // ✅ Has default
    var genre: String? = nil  // ✅ Optional

    // ❌ These don't work with CloudKit:
    // var requiredField: String  // No default, not optional
}

Why CloudKit only syncs to private zones, and network delays mean new records may not have all fields populated yet.

Relationship Constraint All relationships must be optional

@Model
final class Track {
    @Relationship(deleteRule: .cascade, inverse: \Album.tracks)
    var album: Album?  // ✅ Must be optional for CloudKit
}

Monitoring Sync Status (iOS 26+)

struct ContentView: View {
    @Environment(\.modelContext) private var modelContext
    @State private var isSyncing = false

    var body: some View {
        VStack {
            if isSyncing {
                Label("Syncing with iCloud...", systemImage: "icloud.and.arrow.up.fill")
                    .foregroundColor(.blue)
            }

            List {
                // Your content
            }
        }
        .task {
            // Monitor sync notifications
            for await notification in NotificationCenter.default
                .notifications(named: NSNotification.Name("CloudKitSyncDidComplete")) {
                isSyncing = false
            }
        }
    }
}

Handling CloudKit Sync Conflicts

SwiftData uses last-write-wins by default. If you need custom resolution:

@MainActor
@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = UUID().uuidString
    var title: String = ""
    var lastModified: Date = Date()  // Track modification time
    var deviceID: String = ""  // Track which device modified

    init(id: String = UUID().uuidString, title: String = "", deviceID: String) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
        self.deviceID = deviceID
        self.lastModified = Date()
    }
}

// Conflict resolution pattern: Keep newest version
actor ConflictResolver {
    let modelContext: ModelContext

    init(context: ModelContext) {
        self.modelContext = context
    }

    func resolveTrackConflict(_ local: Track, _ remote: Track) {
        // Remote is newer
        if remote.lastModified > local.lastModified {
            local.title = remote.title
            local.lastModified = remote.lastModified
            local.deviceID = remote.deviceID
        }
        // Local is newer - keep local (do nothing)
    }
}

Offline Handling & Network Status

import Network

@MainActor
class NetworkMonitor: ObservableObject {
    @Published var isConnected = false
    private let monitor = NWPathMonitor()

    init() {
        monitor.pathUpdateHandler = { [weak self] path in
            DispatchQueue.main.async {
                self?.isConnected = path.status == .satisfied
            }
        }
        monitor.start(queue: DispatchQueue.global())
    }
}

struct OfflineAwareView: View {
    @StateObject private var networkMonitor = NetworkMonitor()
    @Query var tracks: [Track]

    var body: some View {
        VStack {
            if !networkMonitor.isConnected {
                Label("You're offline. Changes will sync when online.", systemImage: "wifi.slash")
                    .font(.caption)
                    .foregroundColor(.orange)
            }

            List(tracks) { track in
                Text(track.title)
            }
        }
    }
}

CloudKit Record Sharing (iOS 26+)

@MainActor
@Model
final class SharedPlaylist {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = UUID().uuidString
    var name: String = ""
    var ownerID: String = ""  // CloudKit User ID of owner

    @Relationship(deleteRule: .cascade, inverse: \Track.playlist)
    var tracks: [Track] = []

    // Share metadata
    var sharedWith: [String] = []  // Array of shared user IDs
    var sharePermission: SharePermission = .readOnly

    init(name: String, ownerID: String) {
        self.name = name
        self.ownerID = ownerID
    }
}

enum SharePermission: String, Codable {
    case readOnly
    case readWrite
}

// Share a playlist with another user
actor PlaylistSharing {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func sharePlaylist(_ playlist: SharedPlaylist, with userID: String) async throws {
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)

        // Add user to shared list
        if !playlist.sharedWith.contains(userID) {
            playlist.sharedWith.append(userID)
            try context.save()
        }

        // Note: Actual CloudKit share URL generation requires CKShare
        // This is handled by system frameworks
    }
}

Resolving "Property must be optional or have default value" Error

Problem You get this error when trying to use CloudKit sync:

Property 'title' must be optional or have a default value for CloudKit synchronization

Solution

// ❌ Wrong - required property
@Model
final class Track {
    var title: String
}

// ✅ Correct - has default
@Model
final class Track {
    var title: String = ""
}

// ✅ Also correct - optional
@Model
final class Track {
    var title: String?
}

Testing CloudKit Sync (Without iCloud)

let schema = Schema([Track.self])

// Test configuration (no CloudKit sync)
let testConfig = ModelConfiguration(isStoredInMemoryOnly: true)

let container = try ModelContainer(for: schema, configurations: testConfig)

For real CloudKit testing

1. Sign in to iCloud on test device
2. Enable CloudKit in Capabilities
3. Use real device (simulator CloudKit is unreliable)
4. Check iCloud status in Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud

iOS 26+ Features

Enhanced Relationship Handling

@Model
final class Track {
    @Relationship(
        deleteRule: .cascade,
        inverse: \Album.tracks,
        minimum: 0,
        maximum: 1  // Track belongs to at most one album
    ) var album: Album?
}

Transient Properties

@Model
final class Track {
    var id: String
    var duration: TimeInterval

    @Transient
    var formattedDuration: String {
        let minutes = Int(duration) / 60
        let seconds = Int(duration) % 60
        return String(format: "%d:%02d", minutes, seconds)
    }
}

Transient Computed property, not persisted.

History Tracking

// Enable history tracking
let config = ModelConfiguration(
    schema: schema,
    cloudKitDatabase: .private("iCloud.com.example.app"),
    allowsSave: true,
    isHistoryEnabled: true  // iOS 26+
)

Performance Patterns

Batch Fetching

let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>(
    sortBy: [SortDescriptor(\.title)]
)
descriptor.fetchLimit = 100  // Paginate results

let tracks = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)

Prefetch Relationships (Prevent N+1 Queries)

let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
descriptor.relationshipKeyPathsForPrefetching = [\.album]  // Eager load album

let tracks = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)
// No N+1 queries - albums already loaded

CRITICAL Without prefetching, accessing track.album.title in a loop triggers individual queries for EACH track:

// ❌ SLOW: N+1 queries (1 fetch tracks + 100 fetch albums)
let tracks = try modelContext.fetch(FetchDescriptor<Track>())
for track in tracks {
    print(track.album?.title)  // 100 separate queries!
}

// ✅ FAST: 2 queries total (1 fetch tracks + 1 fetch all albums)
let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
descriptor.relationshipKeyPathsForPrefetching = [\.album]
let tracks = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)
for track in tracks {
    print(track.album?.title)  // Already loaded
}

Faulting (Lazy Loading)

SwiftData uses faulting (lazy loading) by default:

let track = tracks.first
// Album is a fault - not loaded yet

let albumTitle = track.album?.title
// Album loaded on access (separate query)

Use faulting strategically

• ✅ Good when you access relationships in only 10-20% of cases
• ✅ Good for large relationship graphs you partially use
• ❌ Bad when you access relationships in loops → use prefetching instead

Batch Operations (Performance for Large Datasets)

// ❌ SLOW: 1000 individual saves
for track in largeDataset {
    track.genre = "Updated"
    try modelContext.save()  // Expensive - 1000 times
}

// ✅ FAST: Single save operation
for track in largeDataset {
    track.genre = "Updated"
}
try modelContext.save()  // Once for entire batch

Index Optimization (iOS 26+)

Create indexes on frequently queried properties:

@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = UUID().uuidString

    @Attribute(.indexed)  // ✅ Add index
    var genre: String = ""

    @Attribute(.indexed)
    var releaseDate: Date = Date()

    var title: String = ""
    var duration: TimeInterval = 0
}

// Now these queries are faster:
@Query(filter: #Predicate { $0.genre == "Rock" }) var rockTracks: [Track]
@Query(filter: #Predicate { $0.releaseDate > Date() }) var upcomingTracks: [Track]

When to add indexes

• ✅ Properties used in @Query filters frequently
• ✅ Properties used in sort operations
• ✅ Properties used in relationships
• ❌ NOT properties that are rarely filtered
• ❌ NOT properties that change frequently (maintenance cost)

Memory Optimization: Fetch Chunks

For very large datasets (100k+ records), fetch in chunks:

actor DataImporter {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func importLargeDataset(_ items: [Item]) async throws {
        let chunkSize = 1000
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)

        for chunk in items.chunked(into: chunkSize) {
            for item in chunk {
                let track = Track(
                    id: item.id,
                    title: item.title,
                    artist: item.artist,
                    duration: item.duration
                )
                context.insert(track)
            }

            try context.save()  // Save after each chunk

            // Prevent memory bloat
            context.delete(model: Track.self, where: #Predicate { _ in true })
        }
    }
}

extension Array {
    func chunked(into size: Int) -> [[Element]] {
        stride(from: 0, to: count, by: size).map {
            Array(self[$0..<Swift.min($0 + size, count)])
        }
    }
}

Avoiding Retain Cycles in CloudKit Sync

When using CloudKit, avoid capturing self in closures:

// ❌ Retain cycle with CloudKit sync
actor TrackManager {
    func startSync() {
        Task {
            for await notification in NotificationCenter.default
                .notifications(named: NSNotification.Name("CloudKitSyncDidComplete")) {
                self.refreshUI()  // Potential retain cycle
            }
        }
    }
}

// ✅ Proper weak capture
actor TrackManager {
    func startSync() {
        Task { [weak self] in
            guard let self else { return }
            for await notification in NotificationCenter.default
                .notifications(named: NSNotification.Name("CloudKitSyncDidComplete")) {
                await self.refreshUI()
            }
        }
    }
}

Common Patterns

Search

struct SearchableTracksView: View {
    @Query var tracks: [Track]
    @State private var searchText = ""

    var filteredTracks: [Track] {
        if searchText.isEmpty {
            return tracks
        }
        return tracks.filter { track in
            track.title.localizedStandardContains(searchText) ||
            track.artist.localizedStandardContains(searchText)
        }
    }

    var body: some View {
        List(filteredTracks) { track in
            Text(track.title)
        }
        .searchable(text: $searchText)
    }
}

Custom Sort

struct TracksView: View {
    @Query var tracks: [Track]
    @State private var sortOrder: SortOrder = .title

    enum SortOrder {
        case title, artist, duration
    }

    var sortedTracks: [Track] {
        switch sortOrder {
        case .title:
            return tracks.sorted { $0.title < $1.title }
        case .artist:
            return tracks.sorted { $0.artist < $1.artist }
        case .duration:
            return tracks.sorted { $0.duration < $1.duration }
        }
    }
}

Undo/Redo

struct ContentView: View {
    @Environment(\.modelContext) private var modelContext
    @Environment(\.undoManager) private var undoManager

    func deleteTrack(_ track: Track) {
        modelContext.delete(track)

        // Undo is automatic with modelContext
        // Use Cmd+Z to undo
    }
}

Migration Strategies: From Realm & Core Data

Migrating from Realm

Realm Pattern → SwiftData Equivalent

// REALM
class RealmTrack: Object {
    @Persisted(primaryKey: true) var id: String
    @Persisted var title: String
    @Persisted var artist: String
    @Persisted var duration: TimeInterval
}

// SWIFTDATA
@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = ""
    var title: String = ""
    var artist: String = ""
    var duration: TimeInterval = 0

    init(id: String, title: String, artist: String, duration: TimeInterval) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
        self.artist = artist
        self.duration = duration
    }
}

Thread Safety Migration (Realm → SwiftData)

// REALM: Required explicit threading model
class RealmDataManager {
    func fetchTracksOnBackground() {
        DispatchQueue.global().async {
            let realm = try! Realm()  // Must get Realm on each thread
            let tracks = realm.objects(RealmTrack.self)
            DispatchQueue.main.async {
                self.updateUI(tracks: Array(tracks))
            }
        }
    }
}

// SWIFTDATA: Actor-based safety (Swift 6)
actor SwiftDataManager {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func fetchTracks() async -> [Track] {
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)
        let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
        return try! context.fetch(descriptor)
    }
}

// Usage (no manual threading needed)
@MainActor
class ViewController: UIViewController {
    @State private var tracks: [Track] = []

    func loadTracks() async {
        tracks = await dataManager.fetchTracks()
    }
}

Relationship Migration (Realm → SwiftData)

// REALM: Explicit linking
class RealmAlbum: Object {
    @Persisted(primaryKey: true) var id: String
    @Persisted var title: String
    @Persisted var tracks: RealmSwiftCollection<RealmTrack>  // Explicit collection
}

// SWIFTDATA: Inverse relationships automatic
@Model
final class Album {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = ""
    var title: String = ""

    @Relationship(deleteRule: .cascade, inverse: \Track.album)
    var tracks: [Track] = []
}

@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = ""
    var title: String = ""
    var album: Album?  // Inverse automatically maintained
}

Migration Scenario: Small App (< 10,000 records)

actor RealmToSwiftDataMigration {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func migrateFromRealm(_ realmPath: String) async throws {
        // 1. Read from Realm database file
        let realmConfig = Realm.Configuration(fileURL: URL(fileURLWithPath: realmPath))
        let realm = try await Realm(configuration: realmConfig)

        // 2. Create SwiftData models
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)

        try realm.objects(RealmTrack.self).forEach { realmTrack in
            let track = Track(
                id: realmTrack.id,
                title: realmTrack.title,
                artist: realmTrack.artist,
                duration: realmTrack.duration
            )
            context.insert(track)
        }

        // 3. Save to SwiftData
        try context.save()

        // 4. Verify migration
        let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
        let tracks = try context.fetch(descriptor)
        print("Migrated \(tracks.count) tracks")
    }
}

Migrating from Core Data

Core Data Pattern → SwiftData Equivalent

// CORE DATA
@NSManaged class CDTrack: NSManagedObject {
    @NSManaged var id: String
    @NSManaged var title: String
    @NSManaged var duration: TimeInterval
    @NSManaged var album: CDAlbum?
}

// SWIFTDATA
@Model
final class Track {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = ""
    var title: String = ""
    var duration: TimeInterval = 0
    var album: Album?
}

Thread Confinement Migration (Core Data → SwiftData)

// CORE DATA: Manual thread handling
class CoreDataManager {
    var persistentContainer: NSPersistentContainer

    func fetchTracks(completion: @escaping ([CDTrack]) -> Void) {
        let context = persistentContainer.newBackgroundContext()
        context.perform {
            let request = NSFetchRequest<CDTrack>(entityName: "Track")
            let results = try! context.fetch(request)

            DispatchQueue.main.async {
                completion(results)  // ❌ Can't cross thread boundary with NSManagedObject
            }
        }
    }
}

// SWIFTDATA: Safe async/await
class SwiftDataManager {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func fetchTracks() async -> [Track] {
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)
        let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
        return (try? context.fetch(descriptor)) ?? []
    }
}

Batch Operations Migration (Core Data → SwiftData)

// CORE DATA: Complex batch delete
class CoreDataBatchDelete {
    var persistentContainer: NSPersistentContainer

    func deleteOldTracks(olderThan date: Date) {
        let context = persistentContainer.newBackgroundContext()
        let request = NSFetchRequest<CDTrack>(entityName: "Track")
        request.predicate = NSPredicate(format: "createdAt < %@", date as NSDate)

        let deleteRequest = NSBatchDeleteRequest(fetchRequest: request)
        deleteRequest.resultType = .resultTypeCount

        do {
            let result = try context.execute(deleteRequest) as? NSBatchDeleteResult
            print("Deleted \(result?.result ?? 0) tracks")
        } catch {
            print("Delete failed: \(error)")
        }
    }
}

// SWIFTDATA: Simple and safe
actor SwiftDataBatchDelete {
    let modelContainer: ModelContainer

    func deleteOldTracks(olderThan date: Date) async throws {
        let context = ModelContext(modelContainer)
        try context.delete(model: Track.self, where: #Predicate { track in
            track.createdAt < date
        })
    }
}

Migration Scenario: Enterprise App (Gradual Migration)

// Phase 1: Parallel persistence (Core Data + SwiftData)
class DualStackDataManager {
    let coreDataStack: CoreDataStack
    let swiftDataContainer: ModelContainer

    func migrateRecord(coreDataTrack: CDTrack) async throws {
        // 1. Read from Core Data
        let id = coreDataTrack.id
        let title = coreDataTrack.title
        let artist = coreDataTrack.artist
        let duration = coreDataTrack.duration

        // 2. Write to SwiftData
        let context = ModelContext(swiftDataContainer)
        let track = Track(
            id: id,
            title: title,
            artist: artist,
            duration: duration
        )
        context.insert(track)
        try context.save()

        // 3. Mark as migrated in Core Data
        coreDataTrack.isMigratedToSwiftData = true
    }

    // Phase 2: Cutover (mark Core Data as deprecated)
    func completeMigration() {
        print("Migration complete — Core Data can be removed")
    }
}

CloudKit Sync Migration (Realm → SwiftData)

// Realm uses Realm Sync (now deprecated)
// SwiftData uses CloudKit directly

@Model
final class SyncedTrack {
    @Attribute(.unique) var id: String = UUID().uuidString
    var title: String = ""
    var syncedAt: Date = Date()

    init(id: String = UUID().uuidString, title: String) {
        self.id = id
        self.title = title
    }
}

// Enable CloudKit sync in ModelConfiguration
let schema = Schema([SyncedTrack.self])
let config = ModelConfiguration(
    schema: schema,
    cloudKitDatabase: .private("iCloud.com.example.MusicApp")
)

let container = try ModelContainer(for: schema, configurations: config)

Testing

Test Setup

import XCTest
import SwiftData
@testable import MusicApp

final class TrackTests: XCTestCase {
    var modelContext: ModelContext!

    override func setUp() async throws {
        let schema = Schema([Track.self])
        let config = ModelConfiguration(isStoredInMemoryOnly: true)
        let container = try ModelContainer(for: schema, configurations: config)
        modelContext = ModelContext(container)
    }

    func testInsertTrack() throws {
        let track = Track(id: "1", title: "Test", artist: "Artist", duration: 240)
        modelContext.insert(track)

        let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<Track>()
        let tracks = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)

        XCTAssertEqual(tracks.count, 1)
        XCTAssertEqual(tracks.first?.title, "Test")
    }
}

Comparison: SwiftData vs SQLiteData

Feature	SwiftData	SQLiteData
Type	Reference (class)	Value (struct)
Macro	@Model	@Table
Queries	@Query in SwiftUI	@FetchAll / @FetchOne
Relationships	@Relationship macro	Explicit foreign keys
CloudKit	Automatic sync	Manual SyncEngine + sharing
Backend	Core Data	GRDB + SQLite
Learning Curve	Easy (native)	Moderate
Performance	Good	Excellent (raw SQL)

Quick Reference

Common Operations

// Insert
let track = Track(id: "1", title: "Song", artist: "Artist", duration: 240)
modelContext.insert(track)

// Fetch all
@Query var tracks: [Track]

// Fetch filtered
@Query(filter: #Predicate { $0.genre == "Rock" }) var rockTracks: [Track]

// Fetch sorted
@Query(sort: \.title) var sortedTracks: [Track]

// Update
track.title = "Updated"

// Delete
modelContext.delete(track)

// Save
try modelContext.save()

Resources

Docs: /swiftdata

Skills: axiom-swiftdata-migration, axiom-swiftdata-migration-diag, axiom-database-migration, axiom-sqlitedata, axiom-grdb, axiom-swift-concurrency

Common Mistakes

❌ Forgetting explicit init

@Model
final class Track {
    var id: String
    var title: String
    // No init - won't compile
}

Fix Always provide init for @Model classes

❌ Using structs

@Model
struct Track { }  // Won't work - must be class

Fix Use final class not struct

❌ Background operations on main context

@Environment(\.modelContext) var context  // Main actor only

Task {
    // ❌ Crash - crossing actor boundaries
    context.insert(track)
}

Fix Use ModelContext(modelContainer) for background work

❌ Not saving when needed

modelContext.insert(track)
// Might not persist immediately

Fix Call try modelContext.save() for immediate persistence

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Created 2025-11-28 Targets iOS 17+ (focus on iOS 26+ features) Framework SwiftData (Apple) Swift 5.9+ (Swift 6 concurrency patterns)