Expand a Signed .xip Archive with xip -x
Unpack Apple's .xip packages (Xcode and friends) from the Terminal.
Run xip -x followed by the .xip path to verify its signature and extract its contents into the current directory.
01Command
Command
$ xip -x ~/Downloads/Xcode_15.xip02What it does
An .xip is a compressed, signed archive: xip checks the signature chain against Apple's certificate before unpacking, so a corrupt or tampered download fails loudly instead of producing a broken app. There is no output-directory flag — cd to the folder where you want the result first, then run it.
03Risk
!Warning: xip only extracts to the current directory — cd somewhere sensible (like /Applications) before running it for Xcode.
04Undo
✓No undo needed — this command does not change persistent state.
05Sources
- xip(1) – OS X manual pageEvidence: xip -x expands a signed .xip archive into the current directory; the signature is verified against Apple's certificate before extraction completes.
Last verified: 2026-09-18 · Category: Developer