What’s new with Core Data?

At WWDC 2024, Apple introduced several new features and improvements related to Core Data through the new SwiftData framework. Here are the key updates:

1. Introduction of SwiftData: SwiftData is a new framework that allows you to model and persist your app's data in Swift across all of Apple's platforms. It provides a lightweight API for defining schemas, managing graphs, synchronizing with CloudKit, and more. What’s new in SwiftData.

2. Custom Data Stores: SwiftData now supports custom data stores, allowing you to use alternative backends like SQLite, remote web services, or even JSON files. This flexibility enables you to use SwiftData's API with various storage formats. Create a custom data store with SwiftData.

3. Index and Unique Macros: New macros have been introduced to improve performance and data integrity. The index macro makes queries more efficient by optimizing how data is stored and retrieved, while the unique macro ensures that certain properties have no duplicate entries. What’s new in SwiftData.

4. History API: SwiftData now includes a history API that tracks changes to your app's models. This is useful for inspecting recent changes and syncing local changes to a remote web service. Track model changes with SwiftData history.

5. Schema Customization: You can now customize your model container even further, including setting up custom URLs for data storage and using custom data stores. What’s new in SwiftData.

6. Previewable Macro: The new previewable macro makes it easier to work with queries while iterating on views, enhancing the development experience. Platforms State of the Union.

Relevant Sessions

• What’s new in SwiftData
• Create a custom data store with SwiftData
• Track model changes with SwiftData history
• Platforms State of the Union

These updates make it easier to build, manage, and optimize your app's data layer using modern Swift features.