Hello, I have a few questions regarding URL Filter (iOS 26) and Content Filter Providers. URL Filter According to the WWDC26 video, URL Filter appears to be available for both consumer and enterprise deployments. This seems consistent with the classic Network Extension Provider Deployment documentation (TN3134 – August 2025), where no specific deployment restriction is mentioned. However, a more recent document (Apple Platform Deployment, September 2025) indicates the following for URL Filter: “Requires supervision on iPhone, iPad and Mac” (with a green checkmark). 👉 My question: Is URL Filter actually available for consumer use on non-supervised iPhones (deployed on Testflight and AppStore), or is supervision now required? Content Filter Providers From past experience, I remember that Content Filter Providers were only available on supervised devices. Based on the current documentation, I am questioning their usability in a consumer context, i.e. on non-supervised iPhones. In the Network Extension Provider Deployment documentation, it is stated that this is a Network Extension and that, since iOS 16, it is a “per-app on managed device” restriction. In the more recent Apple Platform Deployment document, it states for iPhone and iPad: “App needs to be installed on the user’s iOS and iPadOS device and deletion can be prevented if the device is supervised.” 👉 My understanding: Supervised device: The Content Filter Provider is installed via a host application that controls enabling/disabling the filter, and the host app can be prevented from being removed thanks to supervision. Non-supervised device: The Content Filter Provider is also installed via a host application that controls enabling/disabling the filter, but the app can be removed by the user, which would remove the filter. 👉 My question: Can Content Filter Providers be used in a consumer context on non-supervised iPhones (deployed on Testflight and AppStore), accepting that the user can uninstall the host app (and therefore remove the filter)? Thank you in advance for your feedback. Sources: TN3134 => TN3134: Network Extension provider deployment | Apple Developer Documentation Apple Platform Deployment / Filter content for Apple devices => https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/deployment/dep1129ff8d2/1/web/1.0

General: Forums subtopic: App & System Services > Networking TN3151 Choosing the right networking API Networking Overview document — Despite the fact that this is in the archive, this is still really useful. TLS for App Developers forums post Choosing a Network Debugging Tool documentation WWDC 2019 Session 712 Advances in Networking, Part 1 — This explains the concept of constrained networking, which is Apple’s preferred solution to questions like How do I check whether I’m on Wi-Fi? TN3135 Low-level networking on watchOS TN3179 Understanding local network privacy Adapt to changing network conditions tech talk Understanding Also-Ran Connections forums post Extra-ordinary Networking forums post Foundation networking: Forums tags: Foundation, CFNetwork URL Loading System documentation — NSURLSession, or URLSession in Swift, is the recommended API for HTTP[S] on Apple platforms. Moving to Fewer, Larger Transfers forums post Testing Background Session Code forums post Network framework: Forums tag: Network Network framework documentation — Network framework is the recommended API for TCP, UDP, and QUIC on Apple platforms. Building a custom peer-to-peer protocol sample code (aka TicTacToe) Implementing netcat with Network Framework sample code (aka nwcat) Configuring a Wi-Fi accessory to join a network sample code Moving from Multipeer Connectivity to Network Framework forums post NWEndpoint History and Advice forums post Wi-Fi (general): How to modernize your captive network developer news post Wi-Fi Fundamentals forums post Filing a Wi-Fi Bug Report forums post Working with a Wi-Fi Accessory forums post — This is part of the Extra-ordinary Networking series. Wi-Fi (iOS): TN3111 iOS Wi-Fi API overview technote Wi-Fi Aware framework documentation WirelessInsights framework documentation iOS Network Signal Strength forums post Network Extension Resources Wi-Fi on macOS: Forums tag: Core WLAN Core WLAN framework documentation Secure networking: Forums tags: Security Apple Platform Security support document Preventing Insecure Network Connections documentation — This is all about App Transport Security (ATS). WWDC 2017 Session 701 Your Apps and Evolving Network Security Standards [1] — This is generally interesting, but the section starting at 17:40 is, AFAIK, the best information from Apple about how certificate revocation works on modern systems. Available trusted root certificates for Apple operating systems support article Requirements for trusted certificates in iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 support article About upcoming limits on trusted certificates support article Apple’s Certificate Transparency policy support article What’s new for enterprise in iOS 18 support article — This discusses new key usage requirements. Technote 2232 HTTPS Server Trust Evaluation Technote 2326 Creating Certificates for TLS Testing QA1948 HTTPS and Test Servers Miscellaneous: More network-related forums tags: 5G, QUIC, Bonjour On FTP forums post Using the Multicast Networking Additional Capability forums post Investigating Network Latency Problems forums post Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com" [1] This video is no longer available from Apple, but the URL should help you locate other sources of this info.

Hi, I observed some unexpected behavior and hope that someone can enlighten me as to what this is about: mDNSResponder prepends IP / network based default search domains that are checked before any other search domain. E.g. 0.1.168.192.in-addr.arpa. would be used for an interface with an address in the the 192.168.1.0/24 subnet. This is done for any configured non-link-local IP address. I tried to find any mention of an approach like this in RFCs but couldn't spot anything. Please note that this is indeed a search domain and different from reverse-DNS lookups. Example output of tcpdump for ping devtest: 10:02:13.850802 IP (tos 0x0, ttl 64, id 43461, offset 0, flags [none], proto UDP (17), length 92) 192.168.1.2.52319 > 192.168.1.1.53: 54890+ [1au] A? devtest.0.1.168.192.in-addr.arpa. (64) I was able to identify the code that adds those default IP subnet based search domains but failed to spot any indication as to what this is about: https://github.com/apple-oss-distributions/mDNSResponder/blob/d5029b5/mDNSMacOSX/mDNSMacOSX.c#L4171-L4211 Does anyone here have an ideas as to what this might be about?

I need to know the https address of a certain page within my app. This is going to be used as a redirect URL. I don't think it is a good idea to use deep links because it has to be an https address. I don't think Universal Links will work because it is not my website that I will be communicating with.

My personal project is a bit further along however after not being able to get this to work in my app I fell back to a much simpler/proven implementation out there. There is this project on GitHub with a guide that implements a barebones app extension with packet tunneling. I figure this can give us common ground. After changing the bundle and group identifiers to all end with -Caleb and or match up I tried running the app. The app extension does not work whatsoever and seemingly for reasons that are similar to my personal project. If I pull up the console and filter for the subsystem (com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel) I see the following. First you see installd installing it 0x16ba5f000 -[MIUninstaller _uninstallBundleWithIdentity:linkedToChildren:waitForDeletion:uninstallReason:temporaryReference:deleteDataContainers:wasLastReference:error:]: Destroying container com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel with persona 54D15361-A614-4E0D-931A-0953CDB50CE8 at /private/var/mobile/Containers/Data/PluginKitPlugin/2D0AE485-BB56-4E3E-B59E-48424CD4FD65 And then installd says this (No idea what it means) 0x16b9d3000 -[MIInstallationJournalEntry _refreshUUIDForContainer:withError:]: Data container for com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel is now at /private/var/mobile/Containers/Data/PluginKitPlugin/2D0AE485-BB56-4E3E-B59E-48424CD4FD65 Concerningly runningboardd seems to immediately try and stop it? Executing termination request for: <RBSProcessPredicate <RBSProcessBundleIdentifiersPredicate| {( "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb", "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel" )}>> [app<com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb(54D15361-A614-4E0D-931A-0953CDB50CE8)>:1054] Terminating with context: <RBSTerminateContext| explanation:installcoordinationd app:[com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb/54D15361-A614-4E0D-931A-0953CDB50CE8] uuid:963149FA-F712-460B-9B5C-5CE1C309B2FC isPlaceholder:Y reportType:None maxTerminationResistance:Absolute attrs:[ <RBSPreventLaunchLimitation| <RBSProcessPredicate <RBSProcessBundleIdentifiersPredicate| {( "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb", "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel" )}>> allow:(null)> ]> Then runningboardd leaves a cryptic message Acquiring assertion targeting system from originator [osservice<com.apple.installcoordinationd>:244] with description <RBSAssertionDescriptor| "installcoordinationd app:[com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb/54D15361-A614-4E0D-931A-0953CDB50CE8] uuid:963149FA-F712-460B-9B5C-5CE1C309B2FC isPlaceholder:Y" ID:33-244-5222 target:system attributes:[ <RBSPreventLaunchLimitation| <RBSProcessPredicate <RBSProcessBundleIdentifiersPredicate| {( "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb", "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb.vpn-tunnel" )}>> allow:(null)> ]> And that seems to be all I have to go off of.... If I widen my search a bit I can see backboardd saying things like Connection removed: IOHIDEventSystemConnection uuid:57E97E5D-8CDE-467B-81CA-36A93C7684AD pid:1054 process:vpn-client type:Passive entitlements:0x0 caller:BackBoardServices: <redacted> + 280 attributes:{ HighFrequency = 1; bundleID = "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb"; pid = 1054; } state:0x1 events:119 mask:0x800 dropped:0 dropStatus:0 droppedMask:0x0 lastDroppedTime:NONE Or Removing client connection <BKHIDClientConnection: 0xbf9828cd0; IOHIDEventSystemConnectionRef: 0xbf96d9600; vpid: 1054(vAF7); taskPort: 0x5D777; bundleID: com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb> for client: IOHIDEventSystemConnection uuid:57E97E5D-8CDE-467B-81CA-36A93C7684AD pid:1054 process:vpn-client type:Passive entitlements:0x0 caller:BackBoardServices: <redacted> + 280 attributes:{ HighFrequency = 1; bundleID = "com.github.kean.vpn-client-caleb"; pid = 1054; } state:0x1 events:119 mask:0x800 dropped:0 dropStatus:0 droppedMask:0x0 lastDroppedTime:NONE source:HID There's really nothing in the sysdiagnose either. No crash no nothing. I am stumped. Any idea what might be going wrong for me here? Has something about the way app extensions or sandbox rules work changed in later OSes?

On iOS 18.3, I noted that partition "HTTPCookiePropertyKey: StoragePartition" is not observed to be set for cookies returned from the wkwebview cookie store. Now on 18.4 beta 4 we are now seeing those same cookies are populated with a partition property. Is there documentation for this change? Is it intended to be suddenly populated in 18.4? Now that partition property is set, HTTPCookieStorage.shared.cookies(for: serverUri) doesn't seem to return the expected cookies correctly. For context, we are using the cookies extracted from wkwebview, setting them in HTTPCookieStorage.shared and using URLSession to make network calls outside the webivew. Works fine once I forcefully set partition on the cookie to nil. More details on what the cookie looks like here: https://feedbackassistant.apple.com/feedback/16906526 Hopefully this is on your radar?

Hello, I’m developing a macOS application signed with a Developer ID (outside the App Store) that includes a Network Extension. The app has been successfully notarized, and the network filter is registered, but the Network Extension itself remains inactive — it does not install or run properly. It seems that the issue might be related to the entitlements configuration between the container app and the Network Extension target. Could you please provide a detailed checklist for: 1.The required entitlements and configurations for the container app, and 2.The required entitlements and configurations for the Network Extension target? Additionally, are there any specific Xcode settings that are mandatory for the Network Extension to be properly installed and activated on macOS when distributed via Developer ID? Thank you in advance for your help.

We’re implementing VPN application using the WireGuard protocol and aiming to support both split-tunnel and per-app VPN configurations. Each mode works correctly on its own: per-app VPN functions well when configured with a full tunnel and split-tunnel works as expected when per-app is disabled. However, combining both configurations leads to issues. Specifically, the routing table is not set up properly, resulting in traffic that should not be routed through the tunnel is routed through the tunnel. Detailed description: Through our backend, we are pushing these two plist files to the iPad one after the other: VPN config with allowed IPs 1.1.1.1/32 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple Inc//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd> <plist version="1.0"> <dict> <key>PayloadUUID</key> <string>3fd861df-c917-4716-97e5-f5e96452436a</string> <key>PayloadVersion</key> <integer>1</integer> <key>PayloadOrganization</key> <string>someorganization</string> <key>PayloadIdentifier</key> <string>config.11ff5059-369f-4a71-afea-d5fdbfa99c91</string> <key>PayloadType</key> <string>Configuration</string> <key>PayloadDisplayName</key> <string> test</string> <key>PayloadDescription</key> <string>(Version 13) </string> <key>PayloadRemovalDisallowed</key> <true /> <key>PayloadContent</key> <array> <dict> <key>VPN</key> <dict> <key>AuthenticationMethod</key> <string>Password</string> <key>ProviderType</key> <string>packet-tunnel</string> <key>OnDemandUserOverrideDisabled</key> <integer>1</integer> <key>RemoteAddress</key> <string>172.17.28.1:51820</string> <key>OnDemandEnabled</key> <integer>1</integer> <key>OnDemandRules</key> <array> <dict> <key>Action</key> <string>Connect</string> </dict> </array> <key>ProviderBundleIdentifier</key> <string>some.bundle.id.network-extension</string> </dict> <key>VPNSubType</key> <string>some.bundle.id</string> <key>VPNType</key> <string>VPN</string> <key>VPNUUID</key> <string>d2773557-b535-414f-968a-5447d9c02d52</string> <key>OnDemandMatchAppEnabled</key> <true /> <key>VendorConfig</key> <dict> <key>VPNConfig</key> <string> Some custom configuration here </string> </dict> <key>UserDefinedName</key> <string>TestVPNServerrra</string> <key>PayloadType</key> <string>com.apple.vpn.managed.applayer</string> <key>PayloadVersion</key> <integer>1</integer> <key>PayloadIdentifier</key> <string>vpn.5e6b56be-a4bb-41a5-949e-4e8195a83f0f</string> <key>PayloadUUID</key> <string>9bebe6e2-dbef-4849-a1fb-3cca37221116</string> <key>PayloadDisplayName</key> <string>Vpn</string> <key>PayloadDescription</key> <string>Configures VPN settings</string> <key>PayloadOrganization</key> <string>someorganization</string> </dict> </array> </dict> </plist> Command to set up per-app with Chrome browser <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple Inc//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd> <plist version="1.0"> <dict> <key>Command</key> <dict> <key>Settings</key> <array> <dict> <key>Identifier</key> <string>com.google.chrome.ios</string> <key>Attributes</key> <dict> <key>VPNUUID</key> <string>d2773557-b535-414f-968a-5447d9c02d52</string> <key>TapToPayScreenLock</key> <false /> <key>Removable</key> <true /> </dict> <key>Item</key> <string>ApplicationAttributes</string> </dict> </array> <key>RequestType</key> <string>Settings</string> </dict> <key>CommandUUID</key> <string>17ce3e19-35ef-4dbc-83d9-4ca2735ac430</string> </dict> </plist> From the log we see that our VPN application set up allowed IP 1.1.1.1 via NEIPv4Settings.includedRoutes but system routing all of the Chrome browser traffic through our application. Is this expected Apple iOS behavior, or are we misconfiguring the profiles?

I have a question. I work for a mobile operator, and when you insert the SIM, the default APN is automatically configured. However, afterward, using the internal Device Manager platform, we send the corresponding APN of an MVNO to that MSISDN. However, the iPhone device (any model, recent iOS versions) receives the notification of the APN change, but it doesn't reflect the change in the APN settings menu. Do you know how we could make the iPhone device reflect the APN change?

Hi all, I’m developing a companion iOS app that connects to a device-created Wi-Fi hotspot to transfer videos or other files WebSocket. The challenge is: once the iPhone connects to this hotspot, it loses internet access because iOS routes all traffic through Wi-Fi. However, I’d like to keep the iPhone’s cellular data active and usable while staying connected to the local hotspot — so the app can access cloud APIs, or the user can continue using other apps that require internet access. I understand that iOS prioritizes Wi-Fi over cellular, but are there any supported workarounds or patterns (e.g., MFi programs, local-only Wi-Fi access, NEHotspotConfiguration behavior, etc.) that : • Using Wi-Fi only for local communication; • cellular to remain active for internet access. Any insights or Apple-recommended best practices would be greatly appreciated — especially any official references regarding MFi Accessory setup or NEHotspotConfiguration behavior in this context. Thanks in !

我的完整报错信息： Task &lt;0568A3A0-A40C-42A8-9491-2FC52D71EFFF&gt;.&lt;4&gt; finished with error [-1009] Error Domain=NSURLErrorDomain Code=-1009 "似乎已断开与互联网的连接。" UserInfo={_kCFStreamErrorCodeKey=50, NSUnderlyingError=0x107db5590 {Error Domain=kCFErrorDomainCFNetwork Code=-1009 "(null)" UserInfo={_kCFStreamErrorDomainKey=1, _kCFStreamErrorCodeKey=50, _NSURLErrorNWResolutionReportKey=Resolved 0 endpoints in 1ms using unknown from cache, _NSURLErrorNWPathKey=unsatisfied (Denied over Wi-Fi interface), interface: en0[802.11], ipv4, dns, uses wifi}}, _NSURLErrorFailingURLSessionTaskErrorKey=LocalDataTask &lt;0568A3A0-A40C-42A8-9491-2FC52D71EFFF&gt;.&lt;4&gt;, _NSURLErrorRelatedURLSessionTaskErrorKey=( "LocalDataTask &lt;0568A3A0-A40C-42A8-9491-2FC52D71EFFF&gt;.&lt;4&gt;" ), NSLocalizedDescription=似乎已断开与互联网的连接。, NSErrorFailingURLStringKey=https://sharkserver.dypc.top/shark_user/login, NSErrorFailingURLKey=https://sharkserver.dypc.top/shark_user/login, _kCFStreamErrorDomainKey=1} 请求失败：似乎已断开与互联网的连接。 以下是问题的具体描述 我的A手机（15pro max 版本18,6,1） 使用xcode直接在A手机上运行我的程序 尝试发起post请求的时候得到了该报错。 我做了以下尝试 1.检查了A手机网络，一切正常，浏览器和其他app均可正常访问网络 2.检查了A手机上我的app权限，确认我因为为我的程序打开了无线网络和蜂窝流量 3.重启A手机，还原A手机网络设置，还原A手机所有设置，重启mac电脑 以上做法均无效，依旧报上面的错误 4.然后我尝试使用B手机(iPhone13 版本18.5)安装该程序 ，B手机可以正常运行并成功发起post请求，证明我的代码没有问题 5.我将代码上传至testfight 然后使用A手机下载testfight里的该程序 ，程序可以成功发起post请求没有任何错误，我再次使用xcode运行该程序到真机，又得到了Code=-1009错误 无法发起post请求

I'm looking for help with a network extension filtering issue. Specifically, we have a subclass of NEFilterDataProvider that is used to filter flows based upon a set of rules, including source IP and destination IP. We've run into an issue where the source IP is frequently 0.0.0.0 (or the IPv6 equivalent) on outgoing flows. This has made it so rules based upon source IP don't work. This is also an issue as we report these connections, but we're lacking critical data. We were able to work around the issue somewhat by keeping a list of flows that we allow that we periodically check to see if the source IP is available, and then report after it becomes available. We also considered doing a "peekBytes" to allow a bit of data to flow and then recheck the flow, but we don't want to allow data leakage on connections that should be blocked because of the source IP. Is there a way to force the operating system or network extension frameworks to determine the source IP for an outbound flow without allowing any bytes to flow to the network? STEPS TO REPRODUCE Create a network filtering extension for filtering flows using NEFilterDataProvider See that when handleNewFlow: is called, the outgoing flow lacks the source IP (is 0.0.0.0) in most cases There is this post that is discussing a similar question, though for a slightly different reason. I imagine the answer to this and the other post will be related, at least as far as NEFilterDataProvider:handleNewFlow not having source IP is considered. Thanks!

Could anyone teach me how to ask iOS 18 to have a prompt during set-up process of a new APP if user accidentally turns off Local Network ?

Hello, I am developing a macOS application that uses the Network Extension framework and I'm planning to distribute it outside the Mac App Store using a Developer ID certificate. I am running into a persistent provisioning error when I try to manually assign my profile in Xcode: "Provisioning profile "NetFilterCmd" doesn't match the entitlements file's value for the com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension entitlement." Here is the process I followed: 1.I added the "Network Extensions" capability in Xcode's "Signing & Capabilities" tab. This automatically created a new App ID in my Apple Developer account. 2.I went to the developer portal, confirmed the App ID had "Network Extensions" enabled, and then generated a "Developer ID" Provisioning Profile associated with this App ID. 3.I downloaded and installed this new profile ("NetFilterCmd.provisionprofile"). 4.Back in Xcode, I unchecked "Automatically manage signing" for my app target. 5.When I select the downloaded "NetFilterCmd" profile from the dropdown, the error message immediately appears. I suspect my issue might be related to the "System Extension" requirement for macOS Network Extensions, or perhaps a mismatch between the specific NE values (e.g., content-filter-provider) in the entitlements file and the App ID configuration. What is the correct, step-by-step sequence to configure a macOS app (main app + network system extension) for Developer ID distribution?

Hello Apple Developer Community, We are developing a full-tunnel VPN app for macOS that utilizes a packet tunnel network system extension (via NEPacketTunnelProvider). We're committed to using a system extension for this purpose, as it aligns with our requirements for system-wide tunneling. The app is sandboxed and intended for distribution on the Mac App Store. Here's the workflow: The app (running in user context) downloads a VPN profile from our server. It generates private keys, appends them to the profile, and attempts to save this enhanced profile securely in the keychain. The packet tunnel system extension (running in root context) needs to access this profile, including the private keys, to establish the VPN connection. We've encountered challenges in securely sharing this data across the user-root boundary due to sandbox restrictions and keychain access limitations. Here's what we've tried so far, along with the issues: Writing from the App to the System Keychain: Attempted to store the profile in the system keychain for root access. This fails because the sandboxed app lacks permissions to write to the system keychain. (We're avoiding non-sandboxed approaches for App Store compliance.) Extension Reading Directly from the User Login Keychain: Tried having the extension access the user's login keychain by its path. We manually added the network extension (located in /Library/SystemExtensions//bundle.systemextension) to the keychain item's Access Control List (ACL) via Keychain Access.app for testing. This results in "item not found" errors, likely due to the root context not seamlessly accessing user-keychain items without additional setup. Using Persistent References in NETunnelProviderProtocol: The app stores the profile in the user keychain and saves a persistent reference (as Data) in the NETunnelProviderProtocol's identityReference or similar fields. The extension then attempts to retrieve the item using this reference. We manually added the network extension (located in /Library/SystemExtensions//bundle.systemextension) to the keychain item's Access Control List (ACL) via Keychain Access.app for testing. However, this leads to error -25308 (errSecInteractionNotAllowed) when the extension tries to access it, possibly because of the root-user context mismatch or interaction requirements. Programmatically Adding the Extension to the ACL: Explored using SecAccess and SecACL APIs to add the extension as a trusted application. This requires SecTrustedApplicationCreateFromPath to create a SecTrustedApplicationRef from the extension's path. Issue 1: The sandboxed app can't reliably obtain the installed extension's path (e.g., via scanning /Library/SystemExtensions or systemextensionsctl), as sandbox restrictions block access. Issue 2: SecTrustedApplicationCreateFromPath is deprecated since macOS 10.15, and we're hesitant to rely on it for future compatibility. We've reviewed documentation on keychain sharing, access groups (including com.apple.managed.vpn.shared, but we're not using managed profiles/MDM) as the profiles are download from a server, and alternatives like XPC for on-demand communication, but we're unsure if XPC is suitable for sensitive data like private keys during tunnel creation. And if this is recommended what is going to be the approach here. What is the recommended, modern approach for this scenario? Is there a non-deprecated way to handle ACLs or share persistent references across contexts? Should we pursue a special entitlement for a custom access group, or is there a better pattern using NetworkExtension APIs? Any insights, code snippets, or references to similar implementations would be greatly appreciated. We're targeting macOS 15+. Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone, Last year I built an application for tvOS and iPadOS that enables device-to-device communication. I based it on Apple’s sample code, available here: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/Network/building-a-custom-peer-to-peer-protocol At that time, everything worked flawlessly. However, this year I had to revisit the project to add new features, and now it no longer works as expected. The first time the app runs it connects fine, but if we relaunch it (on either the iPad, the Apple TV, or both), the connection fails. Most importantly, this is not an issue with my own code — I tested it directly with the original Apple sample code, and the exact same problem occurs there too. Here’s what I see in the logs: nw_endpoint_flow_setup_channel [C1 TicTacToe,65E91B02-890E-4D30-88B8-CE2AB9677BF9 in_progress channel-flow (satisfied (Path is satisfied), viable, interface: utun0, scoped, ipv6)] nexus assignment error Connection refused nw_endpoint_flow_failed_with_error [C1 TicTacToe,65E91B02-890E-4D30-88B8-CE2AB9677BF9 in_progress channel-flow (satisfied (Path is satisfied), viable, interface: utun0, scoped, ipv6)] already failing, returning code-block This happens right after I select the iPad from the device list and try to connect. What’s strange is that the interface being used is utun0. I don’t have a VPN or iCloud Private Relay enabled. I also tried running the app through the iPad’s personal hotspot, but I get the same error. The only workaround I’ve found so far is to restart the Apple TV. Has anyone else run into this problem? Is there any known solution or workaround? Tested on tvOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.3.2 / 18.6.

I'm trying to distribute a sandboxed macOS app with a PacketTunnelProvider (system extension) via direct distribution (outside of AppStore). The app and the extension both use the same app group, using the new group.com.XXXX.YYYY format detailed here for 10.15+ https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/721701 I've also followed the instructions below to get around the quirk of not being able to directly process it via XCode: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/737894 I've re-signed with Developer ID certificate, all that is smooth and successfully notarized. However upon running the app I get: "My.app" would like to access data from other apps. Checking ~/Library/Containers ~/Library/Group Containers I see the correct files folders have been created before I select Don't Allow and Allow. My app does not access any files or folders outside of the sandboxed directories. How can I prevent this from happening? In order to diagnose further, how to diagnose exactly which files/folder the app is trying to access that is causing this problem?

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?

We have a Java application built for macOS. On the first launch, the application prompts the user to allow local network access. We've correctly added the NSLocalNetworkUsageDescription key to the Info.plist, and the provided description appears in the system prompt. After the user grants permission, the application can successfully connect to a local server using its hostname. However, the issue arises after the system is rebooted. When the application is launched again, macOS does not prompt for local network access a second time—which is expected, as the permission was already granted. Despite this, the application is unable to connect to the local server. It appears the previously granted permission is being ignored after a reboot. A temporary workaround is to manually toggle the Local Network permission off and back on via System Settings > Privacy & Security, which restores connectivity—until the next reboot. This behavior is highly disruptive, both for us and for a significant number of our users. We can reproduce this on multiple systems... The issues started from macOS Sequoia 15.0 By opening the application bundle using "Show Package Contents," we can launch the application via "JavaAppLauncher" without any issues. Once started, the application is able to connect to our server over the local network. This seems to bypass the granted permissions? "JavaAppLauncher" is also been used in our Info.plist file Removing the following plist in Recovery Mode seems to resolve the issue rm "/Volumes/Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/com.apple.networkextension.plist" Is this safe to do?

Hi there, I am working on an app that configures a PacketTunnelProvider to establish a VPN connection. Unfortunately, while a VPN connection is established, I am unable to update the app via testflight. Downloading other app updates works fine. I noticed that after I receive the alert that updating failed, the vpn badge appears at the top of my screen (the same ux that occurs when the connection is first established). So it's almost like it tried to close the tunnel, and seeing that the app update failed it restablishes the tunnel. I am unsure of why I would not be able to update my app. Maybe stopTunnel is not being called with NEProviderStopReason.appUpdate?