Generating or Uploading Apple Certificates

Manually create or upload Apple certificates through the Appcircle interface. This ensures that your applications are properly signed for development, testing, or distribution.

Example: A developer needs an Apple Distribution Certificate for App Store submission. Using Appcircle, they generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR) directly within the platform, create the certificate on the Apple Developer Portal, and upload it back to Appcircle. This process eliminates the need for a Mac and simplifies certificate management.

Creating Provisioning Profiles

Provisioning profiles link your app's Bundle ID with your certificates and devices, enabling your app to run on specified devices. Appcircle allows you to create new provisioning profiles or fetch existing ones from the Apple Developer Portal.

Example: A QA engineer needs to distribute the app to beta testers. They use Appcircle to create an Ad Hoc provisioning profile, select the app's Bundle ID, associate the necessary certificates, and include the registered devices' UDIDs. This provisioning profile is then used to sign the app for distribution to the testers.

Automatic and Manual Signing

Appcircle supports both automatic and manual signing methods, providing flexibility in your app signing process.

Automatic Signing: Appcircle handles provisioning profile management and app signing automatically during the build process.

Example: A development team enables automatic signing in their build configuration. Appcircle automatically manages certificates and provisioning profiles, streamlining the build process without manual intervention.

Manual Signing: For precise control over the signing process, you can manually select certificates and provisioning profiles.

Example: For an app with multiple targets and specific signing requirements, a developer opts for manual signing. They manually select the appropriate provisioning profiles and certificates for each target in Appcircle's build configuration, ensuring the app is signed correctly for enterprise distribution.

Renewing Certificates and Provisioning Profiles

Regularly renewing certificates and provisioning profiles prevents disruptions in app development and distribution. Appcircle simplifies the renewal process, allowing you to manage expirations efficiently.

Example: An existing provisioning profile is nearing expiration. The developer uses Appcircle to renew the profile, which updates it on the Apple Developer Portal. The renewed profile is automatically used in future builds, ensuring continuous app deployment without interruption.

Resigning Binaries with Updated Profiles

After updating provisioning profiles, applications must be resigned to reflect the changes. Appcircle automates the resigning process, ensuring your app can be installed on devices registered after the initial build.

Example: A new test device is added to the provisioning profile. The developer uses Appcircle automates the resigning process to automatically resign the app binary with the updated profile. The app is then distributed to all registered testers, including those with newly added devices.