Demystify code signing and its importance in app development. Get help troubleshooting code signing issues and ensure your app is properly signed for distribution.

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Issue with iOS group entitlements being recognized
I am making an iOS step counting app and I have included a widget in the design. I would like to get the widget to pull data from the main app to display step count etc so I created a bundle id for the widget and have been trying to use a group id to link them together. The group capabilities for both seem to be set up/enabled properly with the same App Groups id, but I've been getting an error in xcode which says, " 'Provisioning Profile: "BUNDLE_ID" doesn't include the com.apple.developer.security.application-groups entitlement.' Try Again But the identifiers do have the App Group id enabled. I have tried automatic signing, manual signing with generated profiles, unchecking and rechecking auto-signing, removing and re-adding the group capability. Creating a new bundle id from scratch, creating a new group id from scratch. Always I get the error. I've really pulled my hair out troubleshooting this and would appreciate support. I'm happy to answer and questions or share details. Thank you.
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240
Dec ’25
Notarization stuck on “In Progress” for hours
Hi everyone, I’m trying to notarize a macOS app for direct distribution in Xcode. The upload finished, but the notarization has been stuck on “In Progress” for hours. I’m not getting any emails or errors, and the status log in Organizer only shows the same “In Progress” message without any extra details. I tried reopening Organizer and creating a new archive, but it always ends up in the same state. Is this normal, or is there something I should check on my side? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
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131
Nov ’25
The specified iOS provisioning profile '' could not be found.
I have developed multiple applications in the past using windows Visual studio 2022 and have never had any issues during development. However this time I am receiving the same error The specified iOS provisioning profile '{profile}' could not be found. Please enable Automatic Provisioning from the iOS Bundle Signing page. Everytime I try to deploy even though I can see that all the appropriate entries are in my apple developer portal, and I can see the profiles have been automatically downloaded to my computer. (The App identifier also matches the one establisehd in the apple developer portal and is linked to the profile). The only thing I can think of, is that my renewal of my developer account got rejected by my bank at first, but on another attempt (about 2 weeks ago) it all went through fine.
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258
Aug ’25
Notarization time
Hi Team, i'm running into same issue with notarization time. I create new, small app for a customer but however the notarization is running since this morning, so almost a few hours. This isn't normal or ? Is there anything what i can do ? Best regard, Lars
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427
Nov ’25
Handling Permissions After Transferring macOS App to a New Developer ID
I have a macOS application that was previously distributed under my personal Apple Developer account using a Developer ID certificate. We’ve recently transitioned distribution to our company’s Apple Developer account. The app’s bundle identifier has been successfully transferred, and I’ve signed a new build of the app using the company’s Developer ID certificate. The app installs and runs correctly under the new signature. However, I’ve encountered a problem: the app is no longer able to access previously granted permissions (e.g., Screen Recording, System Audio Recording, and Input Monitoring). Furthermore, it cannot re-prompt for these permissions because they appear as already granted in System Settings. From what I understand, this issue is due to the change in the code signing identity. Specifically, the designated requirements used by macOS to identify an app have changed, so the system no longer associates the new version of the app with the previously granted permissions (as outlined in Apple's Technical Note TN3127). The only workaround I’ve found so far is to manually reset the app's permissions using Terminal commands (e.g., tccutil reset), but this is not something we can reasonably ask end users to do. Question: Is there a recommended or supported approach to either preserve permissions when changing Developer ID identities, or programmatically trigger a permissions reset for existing users? We're looking for a seamless solution that doesn't degrade user experience.
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86
May ’25
screen recording entitlements for MacOS
My app records the screen to use the audio for audio analysis for a music visualization. The app works perfectly in production but when uploaded to Transporter is rejected as below. What is the correct entitlement to use as the entitlement I am using seems deprecated. Validation failed (409) Invalid Code Signing Entitlements. Your application bundle's signature contains code signing entitlements that are not supported on macOS. Specifically, key 'com.apple.security.screen-capture' in 'com.boxedpandora.pulse.pkg/Payload/PuLsE.app/Contents/MacOS/PuLsE' is not supported. (ID: a1a436f5-925d-43bc-908d-0761064d589b) Many thanks for any input provided!
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173
Mar ’25
MacOS crash, UnityPlayer.dylib
I’ve been having problems with MacOS builds. I’m making a release Appstore build and uploading it to Testflight. However when running it instantly crashes, and report screen shows the following: Current flow: I sign all files in PlugIns/ (we have a number of .bundle), and I’ve tried combinations of signing with/without --entitlements, as well as with/without --deep. After this I sign Frameworks/GameAssembly.dylib and Frameworks/UnityPlayer.dylib. Again, I’ve tried combinations of with/without --entitlements and --deep, also not signing them at all. After signing PlugIns and frameworks, I sign the .app, also tried this with/without --deep (always with --entitlements). Finally I make a .pkg and upload to Testflight. It’s not the game, as I can make an enterprise version that runs fine. We have some restricted entitlements, such as Apple Arcade. Building from an M1 mac, and architecture is Universal (Intel + ARM). Unity documentation says to use --deep, but Apple documentation highly recommend against it. So basically, my question is, how and in what order should I sign the files? Much obliged!
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229
Mar ’25
Xcode not recognizing approved User Assigned Device Name capability in provisioning profile
Hi, I am experiencing an issue where Xcode displays a "Provisioning profile doesn't support the capability" error for the User Assigned Device Name capability, despite it being approved by Apple and visible in our provisioning profile on the Developer Portal. Background We have completed and submitted the required capability request form to Apple for the User Assigned Device Name capability and received approval. The capability appears correctly in our provisioning profile on the Apple Developer Portal and shows among the enabled capabilities alongside other standard capabilities like In-App Purchase and Push Notifications. Issue However, Xcode consistently displays the error message when trying to enable the User Assigned Device Name capability in our project settings, preventing successful builds with this functionality. Troubleshooting Steps Attempted We have tried multiple troubleshooting steps including: Regenerating provisioning profiles Performing clean builds Clearing DerivedData Manually installing profiles Adding the com.apple.developer.device-information.user-assigned-device-name entitlement manually to our entitlements file Toggling automatic signing on and off Environment Details Xcode Version: 16.4 (16F6) iOS Deployment Target: iOS 13 Profile Type: Distribution provisioning profile Capability: User Assigned Device Name Despite the capability being approved by Apple and visible in our provisioning profile, Xcode does not recognize it. This appears to be a synchronization issue between the Apple Developer Portal and Xcode's capability validation system. Has anyone encountered similar issues with recently approved capabilities, specifically the User Assigned Device Name capability? Could you please provide guidance on how to resolve this capability recognition issue? Any suggestions for resolving this discrepancy between the Developer Portal and Xcode would be greatly appreciated.
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558
Sep ’25
Electron app sigin in
Command failed: codesign --sign 142DA07B8371F5C9BCE0FFEC6B23CDEB84F48E52 --force --timestamp --options runtime --entitlements /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/node_modules/app-builder-lib/node_modules/@electron/osx-sign/entitlements/default.darwin.plist /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/dist/mas-arm64/electron.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/electron Login Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/electron Login Helper /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/dist/mas-arm64/electron.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/electron Login Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/electron Login Helper: replacing existing signature /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/dist/mas-arm64/electron.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/electron Login Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/electron Login Helper: resource fork, Finder information, or similar detritus not allowed failedTask=build stackTrace=Error: Command failed: codesign --sign 142DA07B8371F5C9BCE0FFEC6B23CDEB84F48E52 --force --timestamp --options runtime --entitlements /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/node_modules/app-builder-lib/node_modules/@electron/osx-sign/entitlements/default.darwin.plist /Users/mymac/Desktop/ElectronApp/dist/mas-arm64/electron.app/ I'm not entirely sure what's causing this issue. Has anyone else encountered this error while signing their macOS app? I’d really appreciate any guidance or solutions you can share.
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102
Jun ’25
Mismatch of TeamID while creating development certificate
Hi Team, I have created multiple certificates for macOS application. Below are the certificates created- Apple Development Certificate DeveloperID Installer Certificate Apple Distribution Certificate others certificates Later, I have imported the all these above certificates in keychain-access. Now, I tried to compile the code through Xcode. I am getting error for code signing certificate. Warning: unable to build chain to self-signed root for signer "Apple Development: Amit (M2WMF2YERI)” .... Command CodeSign failed with a nonzero exit code When I checked the TeamID of User(Amit) I can see that his current TeamID is [P8ZW3W9R2Q]. There is mismatch of teamID in apple development certificate generation. Note- All certificates are generated with current TeamID[P8ZW3W9R2Q] of user (Amit) except Apple Development certificate which has been generated with TeamID [M2WMF2YERI] which is generated with old TeamID of user (Amit). I attempted to generate the apple development certificate multiple times but it is getting generated with old TeamID TeamID[M2WMF2YERI] of user(Amit)
 Summary- While creating a developer certificate using apple developer account and mapping it in keychain, the certificate is being generated with old apple account details (Inactive) instead of the current one. This is causing issues when using the certificate in keychain. If anyone has encountered this issue, how it was resolved?
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471
Feb ’25
Need help with code signing.
My app designer cannot sign his code changes. He says the only way he can sign his code is for me to give him my Admin privileges. I have revoked and recreated my certificate, hoping to get a private passkey, but there was no private passkey issued with the certificate. Help, please?
Topic: Code Signing SubTopic: General
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73
Apr ’25
Unable to sign .app file with Developer ID installer certificate
I am using matlab to create an application (.app) using matlab application compiler. Along with that, I use matlab to create an installer for that. Unfortunately, the installer is in (.app) format. So do some custom things to install the dependencies and copying my application to Applications folder. I am able to sign the original application with Developer ID application certificate. But I am not able to sign the installer in .app format with Developer ID installer certificate. Is there any flag in any signing executable that allows me to use Developer ID installer certificate to sign .app file instead of typical (.pkg/.dmg)? Any help would be much appreciated.
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436
Feb ’25
App Groups Entitlement Mismatch Between Provisioning Profile and Xcode Requirements for iOS App Extension
Hello Apple Developer Community, I'm experiencing a persistent issue with App Groups configuration for an iOS app extension that I can't resolve despite trying multiple approaches. I hope someone can help identify what I'm missing. Problem Description I'm getting this error when trying to build my iOS App Extension: Provisioning profile "iOS Team Provisioning Profile: com.idlrapp.Spleeft.SpleeftDataSaver" doesn't include the com.apple.developer.app-groups entitlement. My Setup Main App Bundle ID: com.idlrapp.Spleeft Extension Bundle ID: com.idlrapp.Spleeft.SpleeftDataSaver App Group ID: group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared Extension Type: Action Extension (Share Sheet) What I've Verified App Group Creation ✅ Created App Group group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared in Apple Developer Portal ✅ App Group shows as "Active" in the portal App ID Configuration ✅ Both App IDs (com.idlrapp.Spleeft and com.idlrapp.Spleeft.SpleeftDataSaver) have "App Groups" capability enabled ✅ Both App IDs are configured with the same App Group: group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared Entitlements Files Main App (Spleeft.entitlements): <key>com.apple.developer.app-groups</key> <array> <string>group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared</string> </array> Extension (SpleeftDataSaver.entitlements): <key>com.apple.developer.app-groups</key> <array> <string>group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared</string> </array> Xcode Configuration ✅ Both targets use "Automatically manage signing" ✅ Same Apple Developer Team selected for both ✅ App Groups capability shows correctly in Signing & Capabilities for both targets The Issue When I examine the downloaded .mobileprovision file, I can see it contains: <dict> <key>com.apple.security.application-groups</key> <array> <string>group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared</string> </array> <!-- Other entitlements... --> </dict> However, Xcode expects to find: <array> <string>group.com.idlrapp.spleeft.shared</string> </array> What I've Tried Multiple regenerations of provisioning profiles: Deleted all local provisioning profiles Toggled "Automatically manage signing" off/on Downloaded manual profiles from Developer Portal Verified App Group configuration: Double-checked App Group exists and is active Confirmed both App IDs have App Groups capability enabled Verified App Group assignment in both App IDs Entitlements cleanup: Ensured consistent App Group IDs across all files Removed duplicate/conflicting entries Clean builds and cache clearing: Product → Clean Build Folder Derived Data deletion Xcode restart Key Observation The provisioning profile contains com.apple.security.application-groups (which appears to be macOS-style) but Xcode expects com.apple.developer.app-groups (iOS-style) for the App Extension. Questions Is there a known issue with App Groups entitlement generation for iOS App Extensions? Should the provisioning profile contain com.apple.developer.app-groups instead of com.apple.security.application-groups? Is there a way to force regeneration of provisioning profiles with the correct entitlements? Are there additional steps required for App Extensions that differ from main apps? Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. This is blocking our App Extension development and we've exhausted our troubleshooting options. Thank you for your time and assistance.
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288
Jul ’25
Developer ID Notary Service - Outage
I’m unable to notarize the executable and the .app — the status has been showing “In Progress” for over an hour. Upon checking the xcrun logs, it indicates that the submission ID was not received. I also noticed there’s an Apple Developer Service outage reported since October 8, 2025. Could you please let me know when this outage is expected to be resolved? It would be very helpful.
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320
Oct ’25
Maximum Development Certificates?
I recently had to update my certificates for a project. I deleted a few old ones, and I currently have one Development certificate. I needed to create another Development certificate specifically, it's saying "Maximum number of certificates generated." I thought the maximum was two Development certificates? Has anyone else had this issue? Thinking it could be a stuck workflow or something like that.
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164
Jul ’25
Cannot launch an app sucessfully stapled and validated
Hey, when I try to launch my app it prompts me with a "Apple could not verify" popup. The thing is the app has been signed and stapled. xcrun stapler validate .app for my app returns "The validate action worked!" If I also run syspolicy_check distribution .app it returns: "App passed all pre-distribution checks and is ready for distribution" Any idea?
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220
Aug ’25
Exporting valid certificate as .p12
I have a valid Developer ID Certificate, I've used it to sign an app locally and send the app to other machines of my colleagues to make sure it works and does not get triggered by GateKeeper Now I want to automate the process of signing and notarization on github actions and so I want to export my certificate and upload it there. Initially I tried uploading both the Developer ID Certificate and the G2 CA both as .cer files encoded in base64. But apparently I need my certificate to be in .p12 format When I try to export it from keychain access the option to export as .p12 is disabled. So how can I do it ?
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173
Jul ’25
Inquiry Regarding Gatekeeper Behavior During Application Upgrade
Can you please help us with the scenario below, including details and Apple’s recommendations? I've already read through the Notarization and Gatekeeper documentation. The installed version of our application is 1.2.3, located in /Applications/XYZSecurity.app. We created an upgrade package for version 1.2.4. As part of the pre-install script in the 1.2.4 installer, we explicitly deleted some obsolete .dylib files from /Applications/XYZSecurity.app/Contents/Frameworks and some executable files from /Applications/XYZSecurity.app/Contents/MacOS that were no longer needed in version 1.2.4. The installation of version 1.2.4 completed successfully, but we see the below error logs in installer.log: PackageKit: Failed to unlinkat file reference /Applications/XYZSecurity.app/Contents/Frameworks/libhelper.dylib PackageKit: Failed to unlinkat file reference /Applications/XYZSecurity.app/Contents/MacOS/helper-tool Our Key Questions: Is it the right practice to remove obsolete files in the pre-install script during an upgrade? Is this approach recommended by Apple? Can this cause any issues with Apple Gatekeeper? Is there a possibility of my application getting blocked by Gatekeeper as a result?
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406
Sep ’25
App Rejected – Binary Invalid Despite Correct Code Signing Setup (Flutter + WebView App)
Hello everyone, I'm currently experiencing repeated "Invalid Binary" rejections when submitting my Flutter-based iOS app ("Master Tere") through App Store Connect. I've followed all the expected steps and guidelines, but the rejection contains no additional explanation beyond the "Invalid Binary" status. Here’s my current setup: Built using Flutter and Xcode 15.3 WebView-based app loading a professional portfolio site Runner target is signed automatically using Xcode Managed Profiles Certificates: Apple Development and Apple Distribution (auto-managed) Bundle ID: com.actuain.mastertere1 Version: 1.0.0, Build: 6 Deployment target: iOS 18.0 Device family: iPhone only All signing identities and provisioning profiles match for Debug and Release In my Info.plist, I’ve cleaned up legacy keys that might cause conflicts: ✅ Removed <key>UIMainStoryboardFile</key> (no storyboard is used) ✅ Removed <key>CFBundleSignature</key> as it was set to ???? ✅ Display name and Bundle ID align with Xcode project settings Despite all this, every time I upload through Xcode Organizer, I get an "Invalid Binary" error after processing. No issues are shown during archive validation. I suspect the issue may be related to: Flutter WebView integration with latest iOS SDKs Residual metadata in the archive from unused iOS storyboard references Possibly missing entitlements or capabilities not flagged by Xcode Questions: Are there any known issues affecting Flutter WebView apps recently (especially around Xcode 15.3 or iOS 18 SDK)? Is it mandatory to remove Main.storyboard from the project bundle even if it's not used? Could this issue be related to background modes, UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities, or entitlements even if not directly flagged? I’d appreciate any insights or experiences from others who’ve faced this issue recently. Thanks in advance! Luis Antonio Pinto Acosta
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177
Apr ’25
Provisioning profile "..." doesn't include the com.apple.developer.deviceactivity entitlement
I'm working on an app that needs access to device activity. When I add device activity entitlement, I'm getting Provisioning profile "..." doesn't include the com.apple.developer.deviceactivity entitlement. This is failing for both, the main app and the extension, and both have entitlements added. It is not clear how to add it to the profile, the provisioning profile is created/managed by XCode. When I remove the entitlement, I can build my app but it won't be able to use device activity data I reached out to Developer Support, and they sent me here. What is the right way to add device activity entitlement? I'm also seeing another issue with XCode Cloud builds. When I remove device activity entitlement. I can build my app w/o any issue, and I can also install it directly on my iPhone. However, XCode Cloud builds fail wit Run command: 'xcodebuild -exportArchive -archivePath /Volumes/workspace/tmp/d41fc2f1-4f39-4906-8941-112488e75f6c.xcarchive -exportPath /Volumes/workspace/adhocexport -exportOptionsPlist /Volumes/workspace/ci/ad-hoc-exportoptions.plist '-DVTPortalRequest.Endpoint=http://172.16.68.193:8089' -DVTProvisioningIsManaged=YES -IDEDistributionLogDirectory=/Volumes/workspace/tmp/ad-hoc-export-archive-logs -DVTSkipCertificateValidityCheck=YES -DVTServicesLogLevel=3' I suspect that it could be related to my app having DeviceActivityExtension but no device activity entitlement is present. Thanks, Peter.
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151
Aug ’25