axiom-ios-networking
Use when implementing or debugging ANY network connection, API call, or socket. Covers URLSession, Network.framework, NetworkConnection, deprecated APIs, connection diagnostics, structured concurrency networking.
When & Why to Use This Skill
This Claude skill serves as a specialized router for iOS networking, designed to assist developers in implementing, debugging, and optimizing network connections. It provides expert guidance on modern standards like URLSession with structured concurrency and Network.framework, while offering robust diagnostic tools for connection failures and clear migration paths for legacy APIs.
Use Cases
- Implementing modern API clients using URLSession and Swift's async/await patterns for efficient data fetching.
- Debugging complex network issues such as TLS handshake failures, connection timeouts, and intermittent data loss.
- Migrating legacy networking implementations (e.g., older socket code or deprecated APIs) to modern Network.framework or iOS 26+ NetworkConnection protocols.
- Architecting low-level TCP/UDP connections and managing socket lifecycles with professional-grade technical patterns.
- Providing objective technical diagnostics to help developers choose between fixing custom implementations or migrating to standard Apple networking APIs.
| name | axiom-ios-networking |
|---|---|
| description | Use when implementing or debugging ANY network connection, API call, or socket. Covers URLSession, Network.framework, NetworkConnection, deprecated APIs, connection diagnostics, structured concurrency networking. |
| user-invocable | false |
iOS Networking Router
You MUST use this skill for ANY networking work including HTTP requests, WebSockets, TCP connections, or network debugging.
When to Use
Use this router when:
- Implementing network requests (URLSession)
- Using Network.framework or NetworkConnection
- Debugging connection failures
- Migrating from deprecated networking APIs
- Network performance issues
Pressure Resistance
When user has invested significant time in custom implementation:
Do NOT capitulate to sunk cost pressure. The correct approach is:
- Diagnose first — Understand what's actually failing before recommending changes
- Recommend correctly — If standard APIs (URLSession, Network.framework) would solve the problem, say so professionally
- Respect but don't enable — Acknowledge their work while providing honest technical guidance
Example pressure scenario:
"I spent 2 days on custom networking. Just help me fix it, don't tell me to use URLSession."
Correct response:
"Let me diagnose the cellular failure first. [After diagnosis] The issue is [X]. URLSession handles this automatically via [Y]. I recommend migrating the affected code path — it's 30 minutes vs continued debugging. Your existing work on [Z] can be preserved."
Why this matters: Users often can't see that migration is faster than continued debugging. Honest guidance serves them better than false comfort.
Routing Logic
Network Implementation
Networking patterns → /skill axiom-networking
- URLSession with structured concurrency
- Network.framework migration
- Modern networking patterns
- Deprecated API migration
Network.framework reference → /skill axiom-network-framework-ref
Legacy iOS 12-25 patterns → /skill axiom-networking-legacy
Migration guides → /skill axiom-networking-migration
- NWConnection (iOS 12-25)
- NetworkConnection (iOS 26+)
- TCP connections
- TLV framing
- Wi-Fi Aware
Network Debugging
Connection issues → /skill axiom-networking-diag
- Connection timeouts
- TLS handshake failures
- Data not arriving
- Connection drops
- VPN/proxy problems
Decision Tree
User asks about networking
├─ Implementing?
│ ├─ URLSession? → networking
│ ├─ Network.framework? → network-framework-ref
│ ├─ iOS 26+ NetworkConnection? → network-framework-ref
│ ├─ iOS 12-25 NWConnection? → networking-legacy
│ └─ Migrating from sockets/URLSession? → networking-migration
│
└─ Debugging? → networking-diag
Critical Patterns
Networking (networking):
- URLSession with structured concurrency
- Socket migration to Network.framework
- Deprecated API replacement
Network Framework Reference (network-framework-ref):
- NWConnection for iOS 12-25
- NetworkConnection for iOS 26+
- Connection lifecycle management
Networking Diagnostics (networking-diag):
- Connection timeout diagnosis
- TLS debugging
- Network stack inspection
Example Invocations
User: "My API request is failing with a timeout"
→ Invoke: /skill axiom-networking-diag
User: "How do I use URLSession with async/await?"
→ Invoke: /skill axiom-networking
User: "I need to implement a TCP connection"
→ Invoke: /skill axiom-network-framework-ref
User: "Should I use NWConnection or NetworkConnection?"
→ Invoke: /skill axiom-network-framework-ref