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

All subtopics
Posts under Code Signing topic

Post

Replies

Boosts

Views

Activity

FamilyControls App Blocking Not Working for External TestFlight Testers
Hi everyone, I'm following up on this post I made earlier about an issue I'm having with FamilyControls and the DeviceActivityMonitor extension not working for external TestFlight testers. To briefly recap: I have official Apple approval for the com.apple.developer.family-controls entitlement (distribution) The entitlement is added to both my main app and the DeviceActivityMonitor extension The App Group is correctly configured for both targets On internal TestFlight builds, everything works as expected: app blocking works, the extension runs, and selected apps are shielded. On external TestFlight builds, users get the Screen Time permission prompt, can select apps to block, but nothing is blocked. Since that post, I submitted a Code Level Support request, and Apple asked me to file a bug report via Feedback Assistant. I did that almost a month ago. The only reply I’ve received since is that they can’t give a timeframe or guarantee it will be resolved. I'm stuck in limbo with no updates and no fix. This feature is critical to my app and I cannot launch without it. I’ve reached out to other developers who use app blocking, and none of them have run into this issue. My setup seems correct, and Apple has not said otherwise. If anyone has experienced something similar, found a workaround, or knows how to get real movement on a bug report like this, I would really appreciate any help. It’s been weeks, and I just want to launch my app. Thanks so much.
3
0
212
May ’25
Launching an app from Finder
Hi everyone. Sorry if this is not an appropriate forum section for this question. I'm making a game engine and it doesn't launch on my colleague's MacBook, although it does launch on mine. There's an application file, let's say, Sample.app. And along with it in the same folder there's Engine.dylib. If we look at the app-file structure, the executable file's path is Contents/MacOS/Sample. So for the executable file the library is located at the path ../../../Engine.dylib. But when my colleague runs the Sample.app file, he gets an error "Library not loaded: @executable_path/../../../Engine.dylib". Although the path is correct and on my MacBook it works. Are there any ideas how to fix it?
Topic: Code Signing SubTopic: General
2
0
349
Feb ’25
Gatekeeper and unsatisfied entitlements
We are developing a macOS application for distribution outside the Mac App Store. This application requires additional entitlements, including Keychain access groups, Network Extension, App Groups, and Sandbox. Both the app and the network extension import a custom framework. After creating the .app via Xcode, I ensured that a new Developer ID Application provisioning profile was generated. These profiles were then injected into the Contents folder of the .app and Plugins/.netappex as embedded.provisionprofile. Next, .entitlements files were created with the necessary "-systemextension" entitlement for the network extension and used for code signing. When inspecting the extracted entitlements from the .provisioningprofile as described in TN3125, everything appears correct. Code signing flow: codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <team>" <.app>/Contents/Frameworks/<sdk>.framework/ codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <team>" <.app>/Contents/PlugIns/vpn.appex/Contents/Frameworks/<sdk>.framework/Versions/A/<sdk> codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements <vpn-plist>.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <team>" <.app>/Contents/PlugIns/vpn.appex/ codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements <app-plist>.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <team>" <.app> The .app is then zipped with ditto -c -k --keepParent and set off for notarization, which is succesful and the .app is stapled. After that, a .dmg or .pkg is created, which is then sent for notarization and subsequently stapled. The problem occurs when the app is distributed to the client. Opening the extracted .app fails, as Gatekeeper refuses to launch it with the following error message: 661 debug staticCode syspolicyd Security 0x88d68d818 done serializing <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "https://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd"><plist version="1.0"><dict><key>com.apple.application-identifier</key><string><teamid.bundleid></string><key>com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension</key><array><string>packet-tunnel-provider-systemextension</string></array><key>com.apple.developer.team-identifier</key><string>team-id</string><key>com.apple.security.app-sandbox</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.application-groups</key><array><string>teamid.group.appgroup</string></array><key>com.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-write</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.network.client</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.network.server</key><true/><key>keychain-access-groups</key><array><string>teamid.group.appgroup</string></array></dict></plist> com.apple.securityd 22207 debug ProvisioningProfiles taskgated-helper ConfigurationProfiles entitlements: { "com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension" = ( "packet-tunnel-provider-systemextension" ); "com.apple.developer.team-identifier" = team-id; "keychain-access-groups" = ( “teamid.group.appgroup” ); } com.apple.ManagedClient 22207 error ProvisioningProfiles taskgated-helper ConfigurationProfiles <bundle-id>: Unsatisfied entitlements: com.apple.developer.team-identifier, com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension, keychain-access-groups com.apple.ManagedClient After encountering this problem every time, we tried using a different development team with a new bundle ID, app groups, developer ID, developer ID certificate, and provisioning profiles. The .entitlements file remained the same (with different IDs), as did the capabilities for the App IDs in App Store Connect. With this new development team, we were successful, and the gatekeeper did not block the launch job. From a configuration standpoint, everything appears identical. Updating the App Store Connect App ID capabilities and generating new provisioning profiles for the first development team did not resolve the issue. Thank you for your help.
2
0
142
Mar ’25
Upon trying to archive I got funny errors preventing it
When I try to archive an app in order to submit it to the App Store I receive the following errors I do not know how to fix: error: Framework /Users/fbartolom/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/Virtual_Tags-apzduassdiglhcapscsllvzbfgid/Build/Intermediates.noindex/ArchiveIntermediates/Virtual Tags/InstallationBuildProductsLocation/Applications/VirtualTags.app/Frameworks/StoreKit.framework did not contain an Info.plist (in target 'VirtualTags' from project 'Virtual Tags') error: Framework /Users/fbartolom/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/Virtual_Tags-apzduassdiglhcapscsllvzbfgid/Build/Intermediates.noindex/ArchiveIntermediates/Virtual Tags/InstallationBuildProductsLocation/Applications/VirtualTags.app/Frameworks/Security.framework did not contain an Info.plist (in target 'VirtualTags' from project 'Virtual Tags') error: Framework /Users/fbartolom/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/Virtual_Tags-apzduassdiglhcapscsllvzbfgid/Build/Intermediates.noindex/ArchiveIntermediates/Virtual Tags/InstallationBuildProductsLocation/Applications/VirtualTags.app/Frameworks/CloudKit.framework did not contain an Info.plist (in target 'VirtualTags' from project 'Virtual Tags') MacBook Pro M5, Tahoe 26.1, Xcode 26.1.1
2
0
126
Dec ’25
Cant add family controls
The capability associated with "FAMILY_CONTROLS" could not be determined. Please file a bug report at https://feedbackassistant.apple.com and include the Update Signing report from the Report navigator.
1
0
191
Aug ’25
Notarization via notarytool stuck “In Progress”
Hello everyone, I’m trying to notarize my macOS app (DockIt.zip) using the new notarytool CLI, but every submission remains in In Progress status forever, it never moves to Accepted or Rejected. I’ve tried multiple rebuilds, credential resets, and even the Xcode GUI method, but the result is the same. Environment • macOS 14.x • Xcode 15.x / Command-Line Tools 15.x • Apple ID: afonsocruz.dev@icloud.com (Team ID: 264Z9XKCT6) • Keychain profile: DockItCreds Steps taken 1. zip -r DockIt.zip DockIt.app 2. xcrun notarytool store-credentials DockItCreds --apple-id ... --team-id 264Z9XKCT6 3. xcrun notarytool submit DockIt.zip --keychain-profile DockItCreds --wait 4. xcrun notarytool history --keychain-profile DockItCreds History snapshot 167a9600-5c7c-4bc4-b984-dd967d30e161 (2025-05-19T11:37:59Z) – In Progress 7167f7c8-d448-4b35-9817-055009f2730a (2025-05-19T04:59:34Z) – In Progress 6ef0610a-595f-4c57-b0f2-f5fe783e8679 (2025-05-18T22:04:10Z) – In Progress bddde388-a34a-42c4-afb8-f06f2b0fe8fa (2025-05-17T10:24:07Z) – In Progress Questions Is it normal to stay “In Progress” for so long? Any recent service changes or outages? How can I get more detailed logs? Also, I'm still learning about macOS development and these steps! If there's something obvious and I was not able to see, please, take into consideration! Thanks!
5
0
161
Jun ’25
Binary Signing Error
I will post my app xyz.app uses XY swift package this swift package is a wrapper for XYSDK.xcframework XYSDK.xcframework written in c++ and app running on arm64 macos and iphones succesfully. I got this error when i want to distribute it. Currently i sign .framework for ios with Apple Distribution Certificate and same certificate for macos framework there is no other signing step for swift package or xcframework other than that when i want to archive it validates succesfully. Exporting step shows that app has signed, has provisining profile. but .framework is only signed has no provisioning profile. Also one point i see: i have one target named xyz and its Frameworks, Lİbraries and Embedded Context has only XY package but Embed part has no option like embed and sign etc. Blank. I need more info about what am i doing wrong in which step ? I am stuck and can not move any further like weeks Error Detail: Invalid Signature. The binary with bundle identifier XYSDK at path “xyz.app/Frameworks/XYSDK.framework” contains an invalid signature. Make sure you have signed your application with a distribution certificate, not an ad hoc certificate or a development certificate. Verify that the code signing settings in Xcode are correct at the target level (which override any values at the project level). Additionally, make sure the bundle you are uploading was built using a Release target in Xcode, not a Simulator target. If you are certain your code signing settings are correct, choose “Clean All” in Xcode, delete the “build” directory in the Finder, and rebuild your release target. For more information, please consult https://developer.apple.com/support/code-signing. (90035)
1
0
133
May ’25
Unable to upload macOS app to AppStore Connect
Hi, We've created a new version of our macOS version of our app, but when I now try to upload the generated .pkg to App Store Connect via Xcode or Transporter we get this error message: ITMS-90286: Invalid code signing entitlements - Your application bundle’s signature contains code signing entitlements that aren’t supported on macOS. Specifically, the “AppIDPrefix.my.bundle.name” value for the com.apple.application-identifier key in “my.bundlename.pkg/Payload/appname.app/Contents/MacOS/appname” isn’t supported. This value should be a string that starts with your Team ID, followed by a dot (“.”), followed by the bundle ID. Setting the code signing to automatic or does not make a difference. Our app has a different App ID Prefix as our Team ID and when I try to upload the app to App Store Connect I get this error message, does anyone know how we can fix this issue? We used to be able to upload the apps without issues.
2
0
89
May ’25
Code signing error.
There is something wrong with my keychain. Can someone point me in the right direction? codesign --force --sign "Developer ID Application: Denis Putnam (2368694WQF)" --options runtime "/Users/denisputnam/git/expense_tracker/dist/ExpenseTracker.app" /Users/denisputnam/git/expense_tracker/dist/ExpenseTracker.app: replacing existing signature Warning: unable to build chain to self-signed root for signer "Developer ID Application: Denis Putnam (2368694WQF)" /Users/denisputnam/git/expense_tracker/dist/ExpenseTracker.app: errSecInternalComponent Deniss-MacBook-Pro:expense_tracker denisputnam$ security find-certificate -c "Developer ID Certification Authority" -p /Library/Keychains/System.keychain | openssl x509 -noout -dates notBefore=Sep 22 18:55:10 2021 GMT notAfter=Sep 17 00:00:00 2031 GMT Deniss-MacBook-Pro:expense_tracker denisputnam$
1
0
98
Mar ’25
Notarization.
Hi, I've code-signed my app and notarized it, and created a DMG, and when I slacked it or airdropped it to someone for testing the FIRST time they open it, they get a warning that it was Slacked or airdropped to them and do they want to open it. if they say yes everything is fine. So looking through here someone said I need to sign the app and then make a dmg and sign the dmg and then send that for notorization and then staple that. So I did, and I still get a warning the first tie someone try's to run it. What am I doing wrong? I know I can buy software and not get a warning from apple. so how do I get my app to work correctly like that?
3
0
153
Mar ’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.
1
0
406
Feb ’25
Problems with new Developer ID certificate
My Developer ID certificate will expire in few days, so I downloaded and installed new certificate in login keychain. However my key is still linked to my old certificate. I have my .p12 but even if I delete the old certificate from login keychain and reinstall the .12 file, my old certificate reappears in the login keychain. I tried to select the new certificate in the login keychain and choose Files > Export Items (in Keychain Access) but in the Save dialog under File Format the "Personal Information Exchange (.p12)" option is grayed out. How can I generate a key/.p12 file that will be linked to my new certificate?
1
0
137
Mar ’25
Not able to notarize my application tried both .pkg and .dmg formats, Notarization Fails everytime
I have local LLM application, the backend is in python and frontend is in electron.js , all complied in a .pkg file or .dmg file I have created the valid certifcates for notarization But it fails everytime, I have attached the logs steps I followed Created a certificate all steps related to getting it setup, ran productsign command on pkg file ran codesign for dmg xcruntool submit command If anyone has any idea on how proceed codesigningdmg (2).txt code-singingpkg.txt
1
0
95
Mar ’25
Apple Notarization: Long running notarization jobs / day limitation
Dear Apple support, Since the last couple of days, we have some (very) long running notarization requests. Similar requests were done normally under 1 minute. This behavior is unexpected to us, and we did not see it before. The issue occurs for a small CLI tool submitted as a ZIP archive. Checking the documentation, I come across the section about "Avoid long notarization response times and size limits" (https://developer.apple.com/documentation/security/customizing-the-notarization-workflow#Avoid-long-notarization-response-times-and-size-limits). One fact is mentioned “Limit notarizations to 75 per day.” What is behavior if that limitation is reached? Is that limitation per Apple ID or per team ID? Are there some known issues about Notarization Service? Best regards, Stefan
8
0
252
May ’25
Notarised app crashing, build app not crashing
I have an app that only crashes once it's been notarised. I read a few posts that essentially said before trying to identify issues by reviewing the crash report I should ensure signing and notarisation has happened correctly. I've worked through the document "Resolving common notarization issues" spctl -vvv --assess --type exec: gives no errors and correctly returns my developer id. codesign -dvv: returns a timestamp My app uses a hardened runtime. My app shows up in Xcode as a macOS Archive (e.g not a Generic Xcode Archive) Here is the crash report. Translated Report (Full Report Below) Process: Scene Finder [44479] Path: /Users/USER/Downloads/Scene Finder.app/Contents/MacOS/Scene Finder Identifier: Version: 0.9 (20250206.1) Code Type: ARM-64 (Native) Parent Process: launchd [1] User ID: 501 Date/Time: 2025-02-11 13:09:03.7786 +1000 OS Version: macOS 15.3 (24D60) Report Version: 12 Anonymous UUID: EE8B1269-0A8A-3AB6-516B-C752E8A18B5A Sleep/Wake UUID: 436CD7CF-7B13-4A9C-9425-7EF94CC007A9 Time Awake Since Boot: 98000 seconds Time Since Wake: 9524 seconds System Integrity Protection: enabled Crashed Thread: 0 Dispatch queue: com.apple.main-thread Exception Type: EXC_CRASH (SIGABRT) Exception Codes: 0x0000000000000000, 0x0000000000000000 Termination Reason: Namespace SIGNAL, Code 6 Abort trap: 6 Terminating Process: Scene Finder [44479]
2
0
447
Feb ’25
MacOS PKG Notarization status is Rejected with status code 7000
I developed a macOS application and have already signed the pkg package. However, when I submitted it for notarization using the following command: xcrun notarytool submit --signed.pkg --apple-id "**@gmail.com" --team-id "2*******M" --password "this is password" --wait I received a "Rejected" status. The log provided the following details: "logFormatVersion": 1, "jobId": "f5f3751d-b449-4a2f-b905-32d38ab5963b", "status": "Rejected", "statusSummary": "Team is not yet configured for notarization. Please contact Developer Programs Support at developer.apple.com under the topic Development and Technical / Other Development or Technical Questions.", "statusCode": 7000, "archiveFilename": "*********.pkg", "uploadDate": "2025-03-20T03:16:43.651Z", "sha256": "3ca39700c531a66571721424a6c00668748011174b4ae20bbbec5c2d3a8a41f9", "ticketContents": null, "issues": null``` Can you help me, thank you.
1
0
81
Mar ’25
Persistent “com.apple.security.get-task-allow” entitlement after signing¬arizing
After signing and notarizing our application, the entitlement “com.apple.security.get-task-allow” is removed. However, we want this entitlement to remain and we want to be able to create a corefile when needed. Is it possible to make the “com.apple.security.get-task-allow” entitlement persistent after signing and notarizing, so that our application can create a corefile?
3
0
174
Mar ’25