iOS App Distribution

As you saw in the last episode, we have everything ready in App Store Connect, except for the most important thing, an actual build of our app to publish!

To do this, you’ll need to make sure you have a Distribution - not Developer - provisioning profile all setup. This profile is required when publishing and can only be used by key members of your team.

Then you build your app, and go through the Archive process. This packages the app in a special way that the App Store can accept and process.

Once the app is uploaded, you’ll need to submit it for App Store review in App Store Connect. Then you patiently wait….

But before all that happens, let’s look at these steps in a demo.

To get started open up your app. First thing you need to do is build your app. Throughout development you’ve been building for a simulator or a device. This time, you’ll be packaging the app for distribution. From the product menu, click Archive. Note that before Xcode 15, you had to select Generic iOS Device from the device dropdown. This is no longer necessary, as Xcode will automatically prepare your app for any supported iOS device when you choose archive.

Once the app is archived, it will open the organizer. Select your build. To check for any obvious issues, click the validate button. This will catch issues such as trying to submit an app with a development profile. Then click, upload to App Store.

Starting with Xcode 15, the distribution process has been greatly simplified. You simply choose the distribution method you want, and click upload. Xcode uses a set of default options to complete the process.

If you want to customize the upload, you can choose “Custom” and configure the upload to your choosing.

Click distribute to send your app to the App Store.

It’ll take a moment and then you should see an upload complete message.

But you aren’t done yet!

Head on over to App Store Connect and select your app. In the details, select an uploaded build. If you don’t see one yet, give it a little time, sometimes it take a bit to process an upload.

Once you’re done, click the Add for Review button.

We’ve got some issues - first, I neglected to add some screenshots - I’ll add those off screen. Most importantly, App Store Connect isn’t ready to accept builds made with the beta version of Xcode, so I’ll go back and add a version built with Xcode 14.3.1. Note how you have to choose the generic device when archiving, and the upload process is not as streamlined.

Once the new build is available in App Store Connect, select it, and answer the export compliance information - for us the answer is “None”. Then, save and click add for review again.

Finally, Click the submit button and you’re done! For this example app, we’re not submitting since it isn’t ready yet, but here is where you would do it.

Once you submit your app for review, it will get sent to Apple, where a reviewer will look it over.

What exactly goes on there? You’ll learn more about that later in the course.

But before that happens, there’s more to learn about what you can do with your app before you submit it for review, which will happen in the next part of the course.

Before that though, let’s recap what you’ve learned in this part of the course.