We had external testers testing our app through test flight. Then we sent it off for Apple to approve. Testers are not getting notified that the app is published (I'm assuming this is right since they already have the latest version). If they go into test flight, it says the app will expire in 18 days. Do we need to tell them to do anything about the expiring app, or is TestFlight reporting something that isn't true? Will they have problems after their testing period expires?
Well, basically it's as follow: after 90 days the Test Flight App will be disabled. They'll not be able to download it anymore, as it will expire. However if you've published your app to the App Store, they can easily download the newest version from there, that does not have an expiration date. They'll however not be notified that the app was released in the App Store as those are two separate processes. What you can do is when you have a new build, upload the new version to test flight and send them the new version for beta testing, which again will be available for 30 days before expiring.
Builds remain active for 90 days after upload.
Your TestFlight app users should not be able to launch the app 90 days after you release
Hope that helps,
Julian
You have 2 options. 1) Tell the testers to download it from the app store or 2) push a new build to test flight which they can update to.
After 30 days the app goes Kaput! We had this error where I was trying to track down a mysterious crash on somebody's phone when we realized they were still running a defunct test flight build.
Related
I am trying to transfer an app. However, despite removing all builds and testers from TestFlight, when trying to transfer, I still get the message:
TestFlight Beta Testing:
You must remove all builds and testers from the app you want transferred and clear each information field below Test Information.
Here is what worked for me:
Make sure all the test flight info has been cleared (description, only one language)
Make sure there are no TestFlight testers associated with the app (I removed all users other than the entity's admin user)
Create a new build
Expire it
Leave it for 48 hours
Before you log in, clear the browser's cache, cookies etc. (I used an alternative browser instead)
That's it.
I would highlight that the waiting time (step #5) was critical. I created and expired a build on the Wednesday, still had the issue Wednesday and Thursday, but on Friday morning I was able to transfer the app.
Hope the above helps.
I am trying to release an invite-only iOS App. I don't particularly want this app on the App Store, and using TestFlight causes a lot of problems (having to constantly update binaries, limited users... Apple IDs).
At the same time I'd rather not have to resort to a third party distribution to get this kind of an alert.
Is it possible to release a secret invite-only App on the App Store?
Consider enrolling for an Apple Developer Enterprise Program
This will cost more but then you can distribute using your server . You can use MDM also no need to upload or use test flight.
I am not sure the last time you used Test Flight, but it has changed a lot in the last year. There can still be headaches with it, but since it was bought by Apple you now distribute your App through iTunes Connect which is the same way you would do it for releasing in the App store. You have a number of beta testers (up to 1000) that all you need is their email address. You can also have internal testers (up to 25 I think) which will get every build you upload automatically (however they do have some access to the information about your app through their iTunes accounts).
So in summary it takes the same amount of work and the same process to have beta testers that it does to release it through the App Store except that you don't have to wait the 5+ days for the App review. Do note that the beta version will expire after 30 days at which point you just need to upload a new one.
You cannot release a secret App on the App Store, as it violated Apple's App Store Review Guidelines
2.22 Apps that arbitrarily restrict which users may use the App, such as by location or carrier, may be rejected
We are looking at running a test campaign for our iOS mobile app with a few hundreds users, using TestFlight.
(We cannot use an Apple Enterprise account)
The test will last 50 days and there is a 30-day limitation for test flight builds.
the documentation says:
To continue testing after the 30-day period expires, upload another
build. Internal testers automatically receive an update notification
when the new build is available. To distribute the new build to
external testers, you resubmit it to Beta App Review. As soon as it is
approved, you can send the external testers an update email by
clicking Send Invites from the External Testers column on Builds,
https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/LanguagesUtilities/Conceptual/iTunesConnect_Guide/Chapters/BetaTestingTheApp.html
So, in theory, we could test version 0.9.0 for a month, then build and distribute 0.9.1 and have people update (yes a little clunky).
The question is does it really work and what happens to local app data when updating? things like coreData and NSUserDefault?
It would be great to have some sort of absolute confirmation than those are fine.
I cannot fully test that because update behaviour might be different before and after passing that 30 days limit.
Thanks in advance.
Yes, posting two version works. The app data should not be affected. Make sure your testers are aware of this limitation and do update before the deadline.
Note, If you update the build number instead of the version, Testflight groups it together and automatically sends the update. When you change the version you have to log in to iTunes Connect and enable Testflight on the new version.
If you want to skip the 30 day limit, you can use other services for distribution, such as Fabric's Beta. This requires registering each device though, and you're limited to 100 devices on the developer portal. If you need more, you could create multiple developer accounts. There shouldn't be a fee anymore if you're just testing on a device.
And your app data will not be affected by the update (unless you make a change to your app). I have done this (hit 30 day limit and then sent update) before without any problems.
In Apple's iTunes Connect Developer Guide, Apple has stated:
When a build has Active status, the number of days remaining for testing is shown.
After the 30 day testing period has ended, the build status changes to Expired.
Builds not currently being tested will have the status Inactive.
Can anyone please tell me what does this means?
Whether the TestFlight Beta is not available for new testers to install the app
When the testing period ends, testers that already have builds installed will not be affected
My test beta app is expired. Can my testers continue testing the build that's already installed on their devices, or should I upload a new build?
I looked at this previous SO post, but it didn't help.
Thank you!
I found the solution here:
This is a general limitation when using TestFlight. Apple probably wants to prevent that TestFlight can be used to distribute Apps to users outside of the App Store, so they enforce a strict expiry policy. The App runs for 30 days and will then stop working. You can update your beta within this 30 day period, so beta testers can update and then get again 30 days. The 30-day limit is documented by Apple and also the TestFlight App will tell the user about this limit. If you think this is not enough, you should tell your beta testers about it as well.
The alternative would be to go the "old way" by distributing your App via iTunes with AdHoc provisioning profiles. This way you need to register the UDIDs for each device yourself, you are limited to 100 devices in total, but the beta will run until the provisioning profile expires (AFAIK these profiles needs to be renewed every year).
EDIT: The beta period used to be 30 days, but has been increased to 90 days.
Your TestFlight app users should not be able to launch the app 90 days after you release it due to provisioning limitations.
If you want your test versions to last beyond 90 days, you can use good old fashioned ADHOC builds (but you'll be limited to 100 users versus the 10,000 you can use via TestFlight).
If you have a tag/access to the code of the build that has expired, a simple bump of the version number and a reissue to iTunes Connect makes the build immediately available for another 60 days.
I had this problem this morning but needed to keep the groups and try to get a build out as cleanly as possible and so that worked a treat.
now i am using test flight for testing my application.Testflight said from next month onwards standard test flight is not available.SO i have some doubt on this please clarify
-Standard test flight is available for already existing apps or not?If available can i release new build?
-How can i test the ios 7 apps with test flight beta testing.
-Apple saying,each prerelease version expires after 30 days.So after 30 days can i test downloaded app?
-Suppose i released build A and installed in some devices and after 10 days again i released build B and installed on some other devices.Both are working or only latest Build B is working?
-Each internal tester can test the app in 10 devices,So how we can register that devices.
-Each version we have to wait for beta app review for external testers?
If any information is useful for me please post except these questions.
-Standard test flight is available for already existing apps or not?If available can i release new build?
The original TestFlight is being shut down. Apple's TestFlight is the new TestFlight and you can use it with existing apps.
-How can i test the ios 7 apps with test flight beta testing.
You can't. TestFlight is iOS 8 only.
-Apple saying,each prerelease version expires after 30 days.So after 30 days can i test downloaded app?
This means that the build expires in 30 days. You have to keep submitting new builds for your testers.
I find this good way to keep your testers really up to date and up to the task. In contrast, if build didn't expire, the beta testers could stick to the old versions and eventually become a burden (irrelevant bug reports, etc.).
-Suppose i released build A and installed in some devices and after 10 days again i released build B and installed on some other devices.Both are working or only latest Build B is working?
I think the old build A will continue working for the aforementioned 30 days when you submit the new build. You simply can't revert back to it. I'm not absolutely sure though, but there is a transition time for beta testers to update to the new version.
-Each internal tester can test the app in 10 devices,So how we can register that devices.
I haven't had any internal testers but my guess is that the usual way: add the devices from the developer portal.
-Each version we have to wait for beta app review for external testers?
Yes. However, if the new builds have no major modifications they might not need to wait for the review process. This is being asked when you submit consecutive builds.
I think there is a chance of review even with small updates, but I haven't seen any. I've had new builds ready to distribute within the same hour every time I submit a minor update.
Recently, the All-New TestFlight Beta Testing service was launched inside of iTunes Connect.
Here's What's New:
Invite up to 1,000 external testers using just their email address
Easy to use TestFlight iOS app available on the App Store
No need to keep track of UDIDs or provisioning profiles
Beta testing directly inside of iTunes Connect without the need of the TestFlight SDK
Learn more ยป
With the new version of the TestFlight service available inside of iTunes Connect, we are also informing you that TestFlightapp.com will no longer be available as of 2/26/2015.
To prepare for the TestFlightapp.com closure, we recommend that you export all of your current testers so you can import them directly into the new TestFlight Beta Testing service.
How to export testers from TestFlightapp.com
Sign in to the TestFlight Dashboard at testflightapp.com
Navigate to the "People" tab
Check mark the teammates you would like to export
Open the "Actions" menu on the right side of the teammates list
Select "Export Contact Info" to download the exported CSV file
How to import testers into the new TestFlight Beta Testing
Sign in to iTunes Connect at itunesconnect.apple.com
Click "My Apps"
Select the app you want to enable for beta testing
Enter the "Prerelease" tab and select "External Testers"
Click the plus sign to add new external testers
Use the "Import File" from the "Add New External Testers" page to upload the exported CSV file
Hope this information helps you.
-Standard test flight is available for already existing apps or not?If available can i release new build?
Standard Test flight app is completely shut down. You cannot use it anymore.
-How can i test the ios 7 apps with test flight beta testing.
Testflight beta testing is not available for iOS 7 apps.
-Apple saying,each prerelease version expires after 30 days.So after 30 days can i test downloaded app?
Yes, you can continue testing already downloaded app. 30 days is the active period for downloading app.
-Suppose i released build A and installed in some devices and after 10 days again i released build B and installed on some other devices.Both are working or only latest Build B is working?
Both will continue to work but after uploading release B, build A will be deactivated for downloading. Only latest uploaded builds will be active.
-Each internal tester can test the app in 10 devices,So how we can register that devices.
When you accept the invitation from any device, the device gets registered.
-Each version we have to wait for beta app review for external testers?
Yes, you need to wait for approval then only you can distribute app to external testers.