What is the estimated timeline for Apple to implement Wi-Fi Aware Release 5 (R5) support?

Dear Apple：I am developing an app and I would like to use Apple's AccessorySetupKit to complete the binding with an accessory. My accessory supports both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Aware. I want to use AccessorySetupKit to complete both the Bluetooth pairing and the Wi-Fi Aware pairing with the accessory in one go. For Bluetooth, we also need to use the ANCS service, so the Bluetooth pairing requires a PIN code pop-up. However, we would like to skip this Bluetooth PIN code pairing, or combine it with the Wi-Fi Aware PIN code pairing into a single step. Is this possible under the current AccessorySetupKit framework? Because having the user confirm the PIN code twice does not seem like a great user experience. I would appreciate your help in answering this. Thank you.

Dear Apple: We are currently developing and debugging WiFi NAN (Neighbor Awareness Networking) connectivity for Android and Apple devices. We have encountered a multi-device connection issue. Specifically, we have one Android device (Device A), and two Apple devices (Device B and Device C). Both Apple devices run the same application, which allows them to enter the publish state. Assuming Android Device A has already paired with both Apple devices, when we next want to connect specifically to Apple Device B, and both Apple devices happen to be in the publish state at the same time, how can we distinguish between the two devices during service discovery and connection? Because the apps on the two Apple devices are identical, the service names they publish are also the same.

Hello Apple Developer Technical Support / Engineering Team, We are currently developing an iOS application that utilizes Wi-Fi Aware (NAN) for peer-to-peer data transfer between iOS devices. We are in the process of optimizing our data transmission performance and are evaluating the different data path configurations available. Specifically, we would like to understand the performance characteristics and throughput differences between the Real-Time mode and the Bulk mode in the iOS Wi-Fi Aware implementation. Could you please provide clarification on the following points? Maximum Throughput: Between Real-Time mode and Bulk mode, which one is designed to provide a higher maximum throughput for continuous data transfer?

Dear Apple: 1、We want to create a socket application using the C language interface on the WiFi Aware channel, utilizing native socket APIs such as socket, connect, bind, etc., to transmit data through the established WiFi Aware channel. However, we wrote a demo and tested it. On the iOS side, when initiating a socket connect, we received error code 65. We also used the IPv6 protocol. We would like to ask for help: Is it impossible to use native socket APIs for programming on the WiFi Aware channel? 2、If native sockets are not available, which interfaces are recommended for WiFi Aware communication on iOS? Thanks.

1、I want to use AccessorySetupKit for Wi-Fi Aware pairing and connection, but on iOS 26.5, it prompts that this device does not support Wi-Fi Aware. However, it works normally after upgrading to iOS 27. I would like to confirm whether using Wi-Fi Aware with AccessorySetupKit requires iOS 27 or later? 2、When using AccessorySetupKit to perform PIN code pairing with an accessory via Wi-Fi Aware, is the PIN code only required for the first pairing, and not needed for subsequent connections? Does this PIN code have an expiration time?

When entering the following command in macOS 27 beta: lvbojie@Mac ~ % netstat -I nan0 1 Name Mtu Network Address Ipkts Ierrs Opkts Oerrs Coll nan0* 1500 <Link#25> 66:31:00:4c:3c:b5 0 0 41 0 0 nan0* 1500 fe80::6431: fe80:19::6431:ff: 0 - 41 - - liushicong@Mac ~ % netstat -I nan0 1 The nan0 network interface is displayed. Does this indicate that macOS will support Wi-Fi Aware in the near future?

As shown in the image, Apple's Wi-Fi Aware framework mentions support for Mac 26.0+

Apple supports Wi‑Fi Aware, but it’s not clear what channel bandwidth Apple’s Wi‑Fi Aware uses. Is it 80 MHz or 40 MHz? Also, what is the channel bandwidth used by AirDrop?

I am an individual developer, and I want to create a demo. Do I need to develop an app for both iOS and Android to accomplish this? Has Apple provided a simple demo or not?

The app “Wi-Fi Aware Sample” on Bojie的iPhone quit unexpectedly. Domain: IDEDebugSessionErrorDomain Code: 20 Failure Reason: Message from debugger: The LLDB RPC server has crashed. You may need to manually terminate your process. The crash log is located in ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports and has a prefix 'lldb-rpc-server'. Please file a bug and attach the most recent crash log. User Info: { DVTErrorCreationDateKey = "2025-09-17 10:26:56 +0000"; IDEDebugSessionErrorUserInfoUnavailabilityError = "Error Domain=com.apple.dt.deviceprep Code=-10 "Fetching debug symbols for Bojie\U7684iPhone" UserInfo={NSLocalizedRecoverySuggestion=Xcode will continue when the operation completes., NSLocalizedDescription=Fetching debug symbols for Bojie\U7684iPhone}"; IDERunOperationFailingWorker = DBGLLDBLauncher; } Event Metadata: com.apple.dt.IDERunOperationWorkerFinished : { "device_identifier" = "00008101-001E29E01E63003A"; "device_isCoreDevice" = 1; "device_model" = "iPhone13,3"; "device_osBuild" = "26.0 (23A341)"; "device_osBuild_monotonic" = 2300034100; "device_os_variant" = 1; "device_platform" = "com.apple.platform.iphoneos"; "device_platform_family" = 2; "device_reality" = 1; "device_thinningType" = "iPhone13,3"; "device_transport" = 1; "dvt_coredevice_version" = "477.23"; "dvt_coredevice_version_monotonic" = 477023000000000; "dvt_coresimulator_version" = 1043; "dvt_coresimulator_version_monotonic" = 1043000000000000; "dvt_mobiledevice_version" = "1818.0.1"; "dvt_mobiledevice_version_monotonic" = 1818000001000000; "launchSession_schemeCommand" = Run; "launchSession_schemeCommand_enum" = 1; "launchSession_targetArch" = arm64; "launchSession_targetArch_enum" = 6; "operation_duration_ms" = 1922640; "operation_errorCode" = 20; "operation_errorDomain" = IDEDebugSessionErrorDomain; "operation_errorWorker" = DBGLLDBLauncher; "operation_error_reportable" = 1; "operation_name" = IDERunOperationWorkerGroup; "operation_unavailabilityErrorCode" = "-10"; "operation_unavailabilityErrorDomain" = "com.apple.dt.deviceprep"; "param_consoleMode" = 1; "param_debugger_attachToExtensions" = 0; "param_debugger_attachToXPC" = 1; "param_debugger_type" = 3; "param_destination_isProxy" = 0; "param_destination_platform" = "com.apple.platform.iphoneos"; "param_diag_MainThreadChecker_stopOnIssue" = 0; "param_diag_MallocStackLogging_enableDuringAttach" = 0; "param_diag_MallocStackLogging_enableForXPC" = 1; "param_diag_allowLocationSimulation" = 1; "param_diag_checker_mtc_enable" = 1; "param_diag_checker_tpc_enable" = 1; "param_diag_gpu_frameCapture_enable" = 0; "param_diag_gpu_shaderValidation_enable" = 0; "param_diag_gpu_validation_enable" = 0; "param_diag_guardMalloc_enable" = 0; "param_diag_memoryGraphOnResourceException" = 0; "param_diag_queueDebugging_enable" = 1; "param_diag_runtimeProfile_generate" = 0; "param_diag_sanitizer_asan_enable" = 0; "param_diag_sanitizer_tsan_enable" = 0; "param_diag_sanitizer_tsan_stopOnIssue" = 0; "param_diag_sanitizer_ubsan_enable" = 0; "param_diag_sanitizer_ubsan_stopOnIssue" = 0; "param_diag_showNonLocalizedStrings" = 0; "param_diag_viewDebugging_enabled" = 1; "param_diag_viewDebugging_insertDylibOnLaunch" = 1; "param_install_style" = 2; "param_launcher_UID" = 2; "param_launcher_allowDeviceSensorReplayData" = 0; "param_launcher_kind" = 0; "param_launcher_style" = 99; "param_launcher_substyle" = 0; "param_lldbVersion_component_idx_1" = 0; "param_lldbVersion_monotonic" = 170300230950; "param_runnable_appExtensionHostRunMode" = 0; "param_runnable_productType" = "com.apple.product-type.application"; "param_testing_launchedForTesting" = 0; "param_testing_suppressSimulatorApp" = 0; "param_testing_usingCLI" = 0; "sdk_canonicalName" = "iphoneos26.0"; "sdk_osVersion" = "26.0"; "sdk_platformID" = 2; "sdk_variant" = iphoneos; "sdk_version_monotonic" = 2300527605; } System Information macOS Version 15.5 (Build 24F74) Xcode 26.0 (24141.31) (Build 17A5241o) Timestamp: 2025-09-17T18:26:56+08:00

But the NMI and NDI of Samsung's Wi Fi Aware are not the same MAC address. May I ask Apple engineers why they are different from Samsung？

The Wi‑Fi Alliance’s Wi‑Fi Aware data communication uses IPv6. However, in Chapter 53 “Wi‑Fi Aware” of the Accessory Design Guidelines for Apple Devices, Release R26, it is stated that “The Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NDP) for IPv6 address resolution is not supported.” This has caused confusion among developers: Does Apple’s Wi‑Fi Aware data communication actually use IPv6? What is the impact of “The Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NDP) for IPv6 address resolution is not supported” in Apple’s implementation?

Is Apple's Wi-Fi Aware certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance? Is there any non-compliance of Apple's Wi-Fi Aware with the Wi-Fi Alliance standards? Does Apple have a roadmap to switch AWDL to Wi-Fi Aware? Does Apple have plans to adopt Wi-Fi Aware in Mac computers?

Samsung's Quick Share uses Wi-Fi Aware to achieve one-to-many concurrent sharing. Can Apple's Wi-Fi Aware achieve one-to-many concurrent sharing? Apple's AirDrop does support one-to-many concurrent sharing.