App Composition

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• Structuring your @main entry point and root view
• Managing authentication state (login → onboarding → main)
• Switching between app-level states without flicker
• Handling scene lifecycle events (scenePhase)
• Restoring app state after termination
• Deciding when to split into feature modules
• Coordinating between multiple windows (iPad, axiom-visionOS)

Example Prompts

Quick Decision Tree

What app-level architecture question are you solving?
│
├─ How do I manage app states (loading, auth, main)?
│  └─ Part 1: App-Level State Machines
│     - Enum-based state with validated transitions
│     - AppStateController pattern
│     - Prevents "boolean soup" anti-pattern
│
├─ How do I structure @main and root view switching?
│  └─ Part 2: Root View Switching Patterns
│     - Delegate to AppStateController (no logic in @main)
│     - Flicker prevention with animation
│     - Coordinator integration
│
├─ How do I handle scene lifecycle?
│  └─ Part 3: Scene Lifecycle Integration
│     - scenePhase for session validation
│     - SceneStorage for restoration
│     - Multi-window coordination
│
├─ When should I modularize?
│  └─ Part 4: Feature Module Basics
│     - Decision tree by size/team
│     - Module boundaries and DI
│     - Navigation coordination
│
└─ What mistakes should I avoid?
   └─ Part 5: Anti-Patterns + Part 6: Pressure Scenarios
      - Boolean-based state
      - Logic in @main
      - Missing restoration validation

Part 1: App-Level State Machines

Core Principle

"Apps have discrete states. Model them explicitly with enums, not scattered booleans."

Every non-trivial app has distinct states: loading, unauthenticated, onboarding, authenticated, error recovery. These states should be:

1. Explicit — An enum, not multiple booleans
2. Validated — Transitions are checked and logged
3. Centralized — One source of truth
4. Observable — Views react to state changes

The Boolean Soup Problem

// ❌ Boolean soup — impossible to validate, prone to invalid states
class AppState {
    var isLoading = true
    var isLoggedIn = false
    var hasCompletedOnboarding = false
    var hasError = false
    var user: User?

    // What if isLoading && isLoggedIn && hasError are all true?
    // Invalid state, but nothing prevents it
}

Problems

• No compile-time guarantee of valid states
• Easy to forget to update one boolean
• Testing requires checking all combinations
• Race conditions create impossible states

The AppStateController Pattern

Step 1: Define Explicit States

enum AppState: Equatable {
    case loading
    case unauthenticated
    case onboarding(OnboardingStep)
    case authenticated(User)
    case error(AppError)
}

enum OnboardingStep: Equatable {
    case welcome
    case permissions
    case profileSetup
    case complete
}

enum AppError: Equatable {
    case networkUnavailable
    case sessionExpired
    case maintenanceMode
}

Step 2: Create the Controller

@Observable
@MainActor
class AppStateController {
    private(set) var state: AppState = .loading

    // MARK: - State Transitions

    func transition(to newState: AppState) {
        guard isValidTransition(from: state, to: newState) else {
            assertionFailure("Invalid transition: \(state) → \(newState)")
            logInvalidTransition(from: state, to: newState)
            return
        }

        let oldState = state
        state = newState
        logTransition(from: oldState, to: newState)
    }

    // MARK: - Validation

    private func isValidTransition(from: AppState, to: AppState) -> Bool {
        switch (from, to) {
        // From loading
        case (.loading, .unauthenticated): return true
        case (.loading, .authenticated): return true
        case (.loading, .error): return true

        // From unauthenticated
        case (.unauthenticated, .onboarding): return true
        case (.unauthenticated, .authenticated): return true
        case (.unauthenticated, .error): return true

        // From onboarding
        case (.onboarding, .onboarding): return true  // Step changes
        case (.onboarding, .authenticated): return true
        case (.onboarding, .unauthenticated): return true  // Cancelled

        // From authenticated
        case (.authenticated, .unauthenticated): return true  // Logout
        case (.authenticated, .error): return true

        // From error
        case (.error, .loading): return true  // Retry
        case (.error, .unauthenticated): return true

        default: return false
        }
    }

    // MARK: - Logging

    private func logTransition(from: AppState, to: AppState) {
        #if DEBUG
        print("AppState: \(from) → \(to)")
        #endif
    }

    private func logInvalidTransition(from: AppState, to: AppState) {
        // Log to analytics for debugging
        Analytics.log("InvalidStateTransition", properties: [
            "from": String(describing: from),
            "to": String(describing: to)
        ])
    }
}

Step 3: Initialize from Storage