In Apple Numbers and similar apps, a user can save a document to iCloud Drive, and collaborate with other users. From what I can gather, it seems to use two mechanisms: the document as a whole is synced via iCloud Drive, but when a collaboration is started, it seems to use CloudKit records to do live updates. I am working on a similar app, that saves documents to iCloud Drive (on Mac, iPad, and iPhone). Currently it only syncs via iCloud Drive, re-reading the entire (often large) document when a remote change occurs. This can lead to a delay of several seconds (up to a minute) for the document to be saved, synced to the server, synced from the server, and re-read. I'm working on adding a "live sync", i.e. the ability to see changes in as near to real-time as feasible, like in Apple's apps. The document as a whole will remain syncing via iCloud Drive. My thought is to add a CloudKit CKRecord-based sync when two or more users are collaborating on a document, recording only the diffs for quick updates. The app would no longer re-read the entire document when iCloud Drive updates it while in use, and would instead read the CloudKit records and apply those changes. This should be much faster. Is my understanding of how Apple does it correct? Does my proposed approach seem sensible? Has anyone else implemented something like this, with iCloud Drive-based documents and a CloudKit live sync? In terms of technologies, I see that Apple now has a Shared with You framework, with the ability to use a NSItemProvider to start the collaboration. Which raises the question, should I use the iCloud Drive document for the collaboration (as I do now), or the CloudKit CKShare diff? I think I'd have to use the document as a whole, both so it works with the Send Copy option, and so a user that doesn't have the document gets it when using Collaborate. Once the collaboration is underway, I'd want to start the CloudKit channel. So I guess I'd save the CKShare to the server, get its URL, and save that in the document, so another user can read that URL as part of their initial load of the document from iCloud Drive? Once two (or more) users have the document via iCloud Drive, and the CKShare via the embedded URL, I should be able to do further live-sync updates via CloudKit. If a user closes the document and re-opens it, they'd get the updates via iCloud Drive, so no need to apply any updates from before the document was opened. Does all this sound reasonable, or am I overlooking some gotcha? I'd appreciate any advice from people who have experience with this kind of syncing.

I implemented the cloudkit function, where users can connect with each other. The problem is, that if User A is doing a friend request and User B is accepting the request. The friend entry is correct visible for User B but not for User A. I can see in cloud kit that after the accepted request, the friend connection is set up correctly, also with the correct userID, but it not showing up for User A (the one that send the request)

if it set com.apple.CoreData.ConcurrencyDebug 1 as launch arg the app always crashes and i cant proceed into the app. is there a way to only raise a warning for these issues so that i can go into the app and check every place in one session for coredata errors?

I have been trying to get this to work since it was announced a few years ago but with no joy. I'm struggling to get Apple's example code to behave itself too. Seems overly complex and buggy. So I set out to create a simplified version myself. I have got the database to sync with CloudKit and I can see my records in the developer dashboard. I'm trying to use container.record(for: object.objectID) to get the CKRecord for it, but this always fails. The next step would be to add the participant. I try to add the participant based on this code: Button { let record = fetchRecord(for: items[0]) //hack just to use the first record for dev testing let share = CKShare(rootRecord: record) let persistenceController = PersistenceController.shared persistenceController.addParticipant( emailAddress: "andrew@ambrit.com", permission: .readWrite, share: share) { share, error in if let error = error { print("Error: \(error.localizedDescription)") } else if let share = share { print("Share updated successfully: \(share)") } } } label: { Label("Participants", systemImage: "person") } and extension PersistenceController { func addParticipant(emailAddress: String, permission: CKShare.ParticipantPermission = .readWrite, share: CKShare, completionHandler: ((_ share: CKShare?, _ error: Error?) -> Void)?) { let container = PersistenceController.shared.container let lookupInfo = CKUserIdentity.LookupInfo(emailAddress: emailAddress) let persistentStore = privatePersistentStore //share.persistentStore! container.fetchParticipants(matching: [lookupInfo], into: persistentStore) { (results, error) in guard let participants = results, let participant = participants.first, error == nil else { completionHandler?(share, error) return } participant.permission = permission participant.role = .privateUser share.addParticipant(participant) container.persistUpdatedShare(share, in: persistentStore) { (share, error) in if let error = error { print("\(#function): Failed to persist updated share: \(error)") } completionHandler?(share, error) } } } } My immediate problem is that when I call fetchRecord it doesn't find anything despite the record being available in the CloudKit dashboard. func fetchRecord(for object: NSManagedObject) -> CKRecord { let container = PersistenceController.shared.container print ("Fetching record \(object.objectID)") if let record = container.record(for: object.objectID) { print("CKRecord ID: \(record.recordID)") print("Record Name: \(record.recordID.recordName)") return record } else { fatalError("Record not found") } }

I have an app that uses CKShare to allow users to share CloudKit data with other users. With the first build of the iOS 26, I'm seeing a few issues: I'm not able to add myself as a participant anymore when I have the link to a document. Some participants names no longer show up in the app. Looking at the release notes for iOS & iPadOS 26 Beta, there is a CloudKit section with two bullets: CloudKit sharing URLs do not launch third-party apps. (151778655) The request access APIs, such as CKShareRequestAccessOperation, are available in the SDK but are currently nonfunctional. (151878020) It sounds like the first issue is addressed by the first bullet, although the error message makes me wonder if I need to make changes to my iCloud account permissions or something in order to open it. It works fine in iOS 18.5. This is the error I get when I try to open a link to a shared document (I blocked out my email address, which is what was in quotes): As far as the second issue, I am really confused about what is going on. Some names still show up, while others do not. I can't find a pattern, and the missing users are not on the iOS 26 beta. The release notes mention CKShareRequestAccessOperation being nonfunctional, which is new in the beta and has some minor documentation, but I can't find information about how it's supposed to be used yet. In previous years there have been WWDC sessions about what's new in CloudKit, but I haven't found anything that talks about these changes to document sharing. Is there a guide or session somewhere that I'm missing? Does anyone know what's going on with these changes to CloudKit?

Some users of my app are reporting total loss of data while using the app. This is happening specifically when they enable iCloud sync. I am doing following private func setupContainer(enableICloud: Bool) { container = NSPersistentCloudKitContainer(name: "") container.viewContext.automaticallyMergesChangesFromParent = true container.viewContext.mergePolicy = NSMergeByPropertyObjectTrumpMergePolicy guard let description: NSPersistentStoreDescription = container.persistentStoreDescriptions.first else { fatalError() } description.setOption(true as NSNumber, forKey: NSPersistentHistoryTrackingKey) description.setOption(true as NSNumber, forKey: NSPersistentStoreRemoteChangeNotificationPostOptionKey) if enableICloud == false { description.cloudKitContainerOptions = nil } container.loadPersistentStores { description, error in if let error { // Handle error } } } When user clicks on Toggle to enable/disable iCloud sync I just set the description.cloudKitContainerOptions to nil and then user is asked to restart the app. Apart from that I periodically run the clear history func deleteTransactionHistory() { let sevenDaysAgo = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .day, value: -7, to: Date())! let purgeHistoryRequest = NSPersistentHistoryChangeRequest.deleteHistory(before: sevenDaysAgo) let backgroundContext = container.newBackgroundContext() backgroundContext.performAndWait { try! backgroundContext.execute(purgeHistoryRequest) } }

I am using cloudkit to save users high scores in a public database. The preference over using Game Center is because of simplicity and works really well for what I want to achieve. I simply want to let users know their global position. Because of data privacy laws the app asks the user for their permission to submit their score each time they get a new high score. However, I have noticed that CKRecords under 'created' and 'modified' in addition to UTC time and date also contain creatorUserRecordID. Could this be a privacy issue? Can you extract any personal information from this? Can this be used to track back to the user? Is it linked to CKUserIdentity which I understand does contain personal information, although as I understand you need users consent to get this information. Under creatorUserRecordID it says... "Every user of the app has a unique user record that is empty by default. Apps can add data to the user record on behalf of the user, but don’t store sensitive data in it" Currently I simply ask the user if they are happy to submit their score. But do I need to point out that it also stores a creatorUserRecordID? Obviously I don't want to do this if it is not needed as the user will 1) Probably not understand what a creatorUserRecordID is and 2) It makes the question complicated and will likely make most people refuse to submit their score. If it is a privacy issue, is there anyway to stop a CKRecord creating this ID and simply save a score? All I need is a list of scores so the app can determine their current position. If creatorUserRecordID does not contain any personal details and cannot be tracked back to the user please let me know, so I can be reassured that my current set up is fine and I am not causing any privacy issues! This post did seem to indicate you may possibly be able to fetch personal details?? https://stackoverflow.com/questions/55782166/how-do-i-fetch-any-info-about-user-that-modified-ckrecord

While experimenting with CloudKit dashboard, I accidentally turned off a iCloud container. Now in the Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles section of developer portal, this iCloud container identifier is listed under "hidden" not "active" I can edit its name but there is not way to unhide or active it again. What am I missing?

Hello ! I am using this iCloud key value pair mechanism to save small app configuration between iOS and tvOS. I would say it is working. But when I go back and forth between debug and release (TestFlight) modes, it is like both apps are not connected anymore. I spend a lot of time restarting all devices, rebuilding, activating / deactivating iCloud capabilities in the Xcode project. It is like the app is mixing debug and release data. Is there an easy way to check what is happening exactly ? I know there's nothing on CloudKit console, so .... Thank you Frederic

I have been trying to find out the app limits to my app when released into the app store, I understand that in the public database the app worldwide can use 200g of bandwidth free per month. What happens after that? is it throttled? is there a pricing structure for overages? thanks

anyone getting the following error with CloudKit+CoreData on iOS16 RC? delete/resintall app, delete user CloudKit data and reset of environment don't fix. [error] error: CoreData+CloudKit: -[NSCloudKitMirroringDelegate _requestAbortedNotInitialized:](2044): <NSCloudKitMirroringDelegate: 0x2816f89a0> - Never successfully initialized and cannot execute request '<NSCloudKitMirroringImportRequest: 0x283abfa00> 41E6B8D6-08C7-4C73-A718-71291DFA67E4' due to error: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=4864 "*** -[NSKeyedUnarchiver _initForReadingFromData:error:throwLegacyExceptions:]: incomprehensible archive (0x53, 0x6f, 0x6d, 0x65, 0x20, 0x65, 0x78, 0x61)" UserInfo={NSDebugDescription=*** -[NSKeyedUnarchiver _initForReadingFromData:error:throwLegacyExceptions:]: incomprehensible archive (0x53, 0x6f, 0x6d, 0x65, 0x20, 0x65, 0x78, 0x61)}

Hi everyone! I have an app on the App Store that uses Core Data as its data store. (It's called Count on Me: Tally Counter. Feel free to check it out.) One of the app's core feature is an interactive widget with a simple button. When the button is tapped, it's supposed to update the entity in the store. My requirement is that the changes are then reflected with minimal latency in the main app and – ideally – also on other devices of the same iCloud user. And vice-versa: When an entity is updated in the app (or on another device where the same iCloud user is logged in), the widget that shows this entity should also refresh to reflect the changes. I have read multiple articles, downloaded sample projects, searched Stackoverflow and the Apple developer forums, and tried to squeeze a solution out of AI, but couldn't figure out how to make this work reliably. So I tried to reduce the core problem to a minimal example project. It has two issues that I cannot resolve: When I update an entity in the app, the widget is immediately updated as intended (due to a call to WidgetCenter's reloadAllTimelines method). However, when I update the same entity from the interactive widget using the same app intent, the changes are not reflected in the main app. For the widget and the app to use the same local data store, I need to enable App Groups in both targets and set a custom location for the store within the shared app group. So I specify a custom URL for the NSPersistentStoreDescription when setting up the Core Data stack. The moment I do this, iCloud sync breaks. Issue no. 1 is far more important to me as I haven't officially enabled iCloud sync yet in my real app that's already on the App Store. But it would be wonderful to resolve issue no. 2 as well. Surely, there must be a way to synchronize changes to the source of truth triggered by interactive widget with other devices of the same iCloud user. Otherwise, the feature to talk to the main app and the feature to synchronize with iCloud would be mutually exclusive. Some other developers I talked to have suggested that the widget should only communicate proposed changes to the main app and once the main app is opened, it processes these changes and writes them to the NSPersistentCloudKitContainer which then synchronizes across devices. This is not an option for me as it would result in a stale state and potential data conflicts with different devices. For example, when a user has the same widget on their iPhone and their iPad, taps a button on the iPhone widget, that change would not be reflected on the iPad widget until the user decides to open the app on the iPhone. At the same time, the user could tap the button multiple times on their iPad widget, resulting in a conflicting state on both devices. Thus, this approach is not a viable solution. An answer to this question will be greatly appreciated. The whole code including the setup of the Core Data stack is included in the repository reference above. Thank you!

It takes a few seconds, sometimes a few minutes for records to be downloaded back from CloudKit when the user reinstalls the app, which leads users to thinking their data was lost. I would like to know if there’s any way to provide a visual feedback about the current CloudKit sync status so I can let users know their data is being in fact downloaded back to their devices.

LSUB always returns all the subscribed folders. For example lsub "" "test/*" returns a list of all the folders and not just subscribed folders that are subfolders of test. I.e, it returns the same folder list as lsub "" "*". For more details please see https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1817707#c15

Hey guys, I'm developing a Swift app, using iCloud to store some data in Containers, and the new Containers I created are iCloud.com.xxx.dev . Therefore, there is a storage called dev in Settings -> icloud -> Manage Account Storage. Currently, the app is still under development and has not been released to the Appstore. My question: Settings -> icloud -> Manage Account Storage does not display my app name and icon, but only the suffix of the Containers id. Will this change after it is released to the Appstore? Are there any other control methods? Thank you

Is it possible to track history using the new HistoryDescriptor feature in SwiftData? Or can I only get the current most recent data? Or is it possible to output the changed data itself, along with timestamps? I am hoping that it is possible to track by a standard feature like NSPersistentHistoryTransaction in CoreData. Do we still have to use a method in SwiftData that creates more tracking data itself?

Is there a way to move user data from UserDefaults to SwiftData when the app is in production so that people don’t lose their data. Currently my audio journals in my journal app has everything in the UserDefaults. Now this is bad for obvious reasons but I was thinking if there was a way. It’s only been 1 week since published and I have already had17 people download it.

Hi Developer Community, I'm experiencing a critical issue with CloudKit schema deployment that's blocking my app release. I've been trying to resolve this for several days and would appreciate any assistance from the community or Apple engineers. Issue Description I'm unable to deploy my CloudKit schema from development to production environment. When attempting to deploy through the CloudKit Dashboard, I either get an "Internal Error" message or the deployment button is disabled. Environment Details App: Reef Trak (Reef aquarium tracking app) CloudKit Container: ************ Development Environment: Schema fully defined and working correctly Production Environment: No schema deployed (confirmed in dashboard) What I've Tried Using the "Deploy Schema to Production" button in CloudKit Dashboard (results in "Internal Error") Exporting schema from development and importing to production (fails) Using CloudKit CLI tools with API token (results in "invalid-scope" errors) Waiting 24-48 hours between attempts in case of propagation delays Current Status App works perfectly in development environment (when run from Xcode) In TestFlight/sideloaded builds (production environment), the app attempts to fetch records but fails with "Did not find record type: Tank" errors Log snippet showing the issue: [2025-03-21] [CloudKit] Schema creation failed: Error saving record <CKRecordID: 0x******; recordName=SchemaSetup_Tank_-**---****, zoneID=_defaultZone:defaultOwner> to server: Cannot create new type Tank in production schema [2025-03-21] [CloudKit] Failed to create schema for Tank after 3 attempts [2025-03-21] [CloudKit] Error creating schema for Tank: Error saving record <CKRecordID: 0x****; recordName=SchemaSetup_Tank_---**-**********, zoneID=_defaultZone:defaultOwner> to server: Cannot create new type Tank in production schema App Architecture & Critical Impact My app "Reef Trak" is built around a core data model where the "Tank" entity serves as the foundational element of the entire application architecture. The Tank entity is not just another data type - it's the primary container that establishes the hierarchical relationship for all other entities: All parameter measurements (pH, temperature, salinity, etc.) are associated with specific tanks All maintenance tasks and schedules are tank-specific All livestock (fish, corals, invertebrates) exist within the context of a tank All user achievements and progress tracking depend on tank-related activities Without the Tank schema being properly deployed to production, users experience what appears to be a completely empty application, despite successful authentication and CloudKit connection. The app shows "Successfully retrieved iCloud data" but displays no content because: The Tank record type doesn't exist in production Without Tanks, all child entities (even if their schemas existed) have no parent to associate with This creates a cascading failure where no data can be displayed or saved This issue effectively renders the entire application non-functional in production, despite working flawlessly in development. Users are left with an empty shell of an app that cannot fulfill its core purpose of reef tank management and monitoring. The inability to deploy the Tank schema to production is therefore not just a minor inconvenience but a complete blocker for the app's release and functionality. Questions Is there an alternative method to deploy schema to production that I'm missing? Could there be an issue with my account permissions or container configuration? Are there known issues with the CloudKit Dashboard deployment functionality? What's the recommended approach when the dashboard deployment fails? I've also submitted a Technical Support Incident, but I'm hoping to get this resolved quickly as it's blocking my App Store release. Thank you for any assistance!

I'm trying to convert some data, then save it back to Core Data. Sometimes this works fine without an issue, but occasionally I'll get an error Thread 1: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (code=1, address=0x0) It seems to occur when saving the core data context. I'm having trouble trying to debug it as it doesn't happen on the same object each time and can't reliably recreate the error Full view code can be found https://pastebin.com/d974V5Si but main functions below var body: some View { VStack { // Visual code here } .onAppear() { DispatchQueue.global(qos: .background).async { while (getHowManyProjectsToUpdate() > 0) { leftToUpdate = getHowManyProjectsToUpdate() updateLocal() } if getHowManyProjectsToUpdate() == 0 { while (getNumberOfFilesInDocumentsDirectory() > 0) { deleteImagesFromDocumentsDirectory() } if getNumberOfFilesInDocumentsDirectory() == 0 { DispatchQueue.main.asyncAfter(deadline: .now()) { withAnimation { self.isActive = true } } } } } } } update local function func updateLocal() { autoreleasepool { let fetchRequest: NSFetchRequest<Project> = Project.fetchRequest() fetchRequest.predicate = NSPredicate(format: "converted = %d", false) fetchRequest.fetchLimit = 1 fetchRequest.sortDescriptors = [NSSortDescriptor(keyPath: \Project.name, ascending: true), NSSortDescriptor(keyPath: \Project.name, ascending: true)] do { let projects = try viewContext.fetch(fetchRequest) for project in projects { currentPicNumber = 0 currentProjectName = project.name ?? "Error loading project" if let projectMain = project.mainPicture { currentProjectImage = getUIImage(picture: projectMain) } if let pictures = project.pictures { projectPicNumber = pictures.count // Get main image if let projectMain = project.mainPicture { if let imgThumbData = convertImageThumb(picture: projectMain) { project.mainPictureData = imgThumbData } } while (getTotalImagesToConvertForProject(project: project ) > 0) { convertImageBatch(project: project) } project.converted = true saveContext() viewContext.refreshAllObjects() } } } catch { print("Fetch Failed") } } } convertImageBatch function func convertImageBatch(project: Project) { autoreleasepool { let fetchRequestPic: NSFetchRequest<Picture> = Picture.fetchRequest() let projectPredicate = NSPredicate(format: "project = %@", project) let dataPredicate = NSPredicate(format: "pictureData == NULL") fetchRequestPic.predicate = NSCompoundPredicate(andPredicateWithSubpredicates: [projectPredicate, dataPredicate]) fetchRequestPic.fetchLimit = 5 fetchRequestPic.sortDescriptors = [NSSortDescriptor(keyPath: \Picture.dateTaken, ascending: true)] do { let pictures = try viewContext.fetch(fetchRequestPic) for picture in pictures { currentPicNumber = currentPicNumber + 1 if let imgData = convertImage(picture: picture), let imgThumbData = convertImageThumb(picture: picture) { // Save Converted picture.pictureData = imgData picture.pictureThumbnailData = imgThumbData // Save Image saveContext() viewContext.refreshAllObjects() } else { viewContext.delete(picture) saveContext() viewContext.refreshAllObjects() } } } catch { print("Fetch Failed") } } } And finally saving func saveContext() { do { try viewContext.save() } catch { let nsError = error as NSError fatalError("Unresolved error \(nsError), \(nsError.userInfo)") } }

I am trying to read and write a text file from an App written in Swift in XCode directly to the "iCloud Drive" folder in Files on the iPhone. The app worked readlly reading and writing to the Documents folder in the App container, and then readily to the "On My iPhone" folder in Files after adding 2 lines to the plist that I found in a search online. But I have been unable to get to the iCloud Drive folder. I found an item called "Enabling Document Storage in iCloud Drive" in "iCloud Design Guide" with additional plist entries that states "These settings allow iCloud Drive to provide public access to the files stored in your app’s container": NSUbiquitousContainers iCloud.com.example.MyApp NSUbiquitousContainerIsDocumentScopePublic NSUbiquitousContainerSupportedFolderLevels Any NSUbiquitousContainerName MyApp I think I changed the MyApp items appropriately. I have enabled iCloud in my App and the XCode General, and Signing entries. But this does not work. There are no error messages and no "Steps" shown in the "Capabilities" entry in Xcode. A little help? :-)