axiom-ios-networking

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.
license	MIT

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:

1. Diagnose first — Understand what's actually failing before recommending changes
2. Recommend correctly — If standard APIs (URLSession, Network.framework) would solve the problem, say so professionally
3. 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

App Store Compliance

ATS / HTTP security → /skill axiom-networking-diag

• App Transport Security (ATS) configuration
• HTTP → HTTPS migration
• App Store rejection for insecure connections
• NSAllowsArbitraryLoads exceptions

Deprecated API rejection → Launch networking-auditor agent

• UIWebView → WKWebView migration
• SCNetworkReachability → NWPathMonitor
• CFSocket → Network.framework

Network Debugging

Connection issues → /skill axiom-networking-diag

• Connection timeouts
• TLS handshake failures
• Data not arriving
• Connection drops
• VPN/proxy problems

Automated Scanning

Networking audit → Launch networking-auditor agent or /axiom:audit networking (deprecated APIs like SCNetworkReachability, CFSocket, NSStream; anti-patterns like reachability checks, hardcoded IPs, missing error handling)

Decision Tree

1. URLSession with structured concurrency? → networking
2. Network.framework / NetworkConnection (iOS 26+)? → network-framework-ref
3. NWConnection (iOS 12-25)? → networking-legacy
4. Migrating from sockets/URLSession? → networking-migration
5. Connection issues / debugging? → networking-diag
6. ATS / HTTP / App Store rejection for networking? → networking-diag + networking-auditor
7. UIWebView or deprecated API rejection? → networking-auditor (Agent)
8. Want deprecated API / anti-pattern scan? → networking-auditor (Agent)

Anti-Rationalization

Thought	Reality
"URLSession is simple, I don't need a skill"	URLSession with structured concurrency has async/cancellation patterns. networking skill covers them.
"I'll debug the connection timeout myself"	Connection failures have 8 causes (DNS, TLS, proxy, cellular). networking-diag diagnoses systematically.
"I just need a basic HTTP request"	Even basic requests need error handling, retry, and cancellation patterns. networking has them.
"My custom networking layer works fine"	Custom layers miss cellular/proxy edge cases. Standard APIs handle them automatically.

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

User: "My app was rejected for using HTTP connections" → Invoke: /skill axiom-networking-diag (ATS compliance)

User: "App Store says I'm using UIWebView" → Invoke: networking-auditor agent (deprecated API scan)

User: "Check my networking code for deprecated APIs" → Invoke: networking-auditor agent