Publishing a Dala app to the App Store / TestFlight

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iOS publishing is driven by dala_dev. This page is a quick orientation; the detailed step-by-step (with screenshots, troubleshooting, and all the Apple-portal gotchas) lives in dala_dev:

Full guide: Publishing to TestFlight (iOS)

TL;DR

iOS publishing is two phases — a one-time setup, then a three-command release loop you'll do for every build.

One-time setup (per app)

  • Pick a real bundle ID — com.example.* won't fly with Apple
  • Update ios/Info.plist — bundle ID, display name, semver version
  • Update android/app/build.gradle — applicationId to match
  • Keep usage strings in Info.plist — counterintuitive but important. Don't strip NSCameraUsageDescription etc. just because your app doesn't use them. The framework's NIFs reference those APIs and Apple's secondary scanner will reject the build. (why)
  • Register the App ID at developer.apple.com — manual web-portal step
  • Create an Apple Distribution certificate — Xcode → Settings → Accounts → Manage Certificates → +
  • Create an App Store provisioning profile — at developer.apple.com — bind cert + App ID
  • Install the profile — double-click the downloaded .dalaileprovision
  • Run mix dala.provision --distribution — verifies cert + profile, generates the signing project
  • Create the App Store Connect app record — at appstoreconnect.apple.com — pick your bundle ID from the dropdown
  • Generate an App Store Connect API key — Team Keys, App Manager role, download .p8 (one-time only)
  • Configure dala.exs with the API key (see detailed guide for the exact block)

Per-release flow

One command:

mix dala.republish --ios   # bumps CFBundleVersion, dala.release, dala.publish --ios

That wraps three steps that you can also run individually:

  • Bump build number — CFBundleVersion (integer) must be unique per upload; CFBundleShortVersionString (semver, the public version) stays put.
  • mix dala.release — builds _build/dala_release/<App>.ipa.
  • mix dala.publish --ios — uploads via xcrun altool to App Store Connect.

After upload Apple processes the build for 5–15 min before it shows in the TestFlight tab. Add testers there.

mix dala.provision --distribution is annual (when your App Store profile expires) — dala.republish doesn't re-run it.

Platform flag is required on publish and republish. Dala is intentionally platform-agnostic; pass --ios (works today) or --android (errors with "not yet implemented" — Android publish pipeline is on the roadmap).

Common surprises

  • Bundle ID can't be com.example.* — Apple validates the prefix
  • App ID registration is manual — mix dala.provision can't auto-create it (Apple's API limitations under xcodebuild). One-time web step.
  • Distribution cert is separate from your dev cert — Xcode Settings creates it
  • Profile names don't matter — dala_dev discovers profiles by UUID, so name them however you like
  • The .p8 API key downloads once — Apple doesn't store the private half
  • mix dala.publish goes silent for several minutes — altool is uploading. Use --verbose to see progress.
  • Bump CFBundleVersion before every upload — Apple rejects re-uploads with the same build number. mix dala.republish --ios does this for you.
  • "Upload accepted" ≠ "build is in TestFlight" — Apple runs a secondary scan after upload. Check email if the build doesn't appear in TestFlight after ~20 min (why)
  • publish and republish require explicit --ios or --android — Dala doesn't default to either platform. Pick on every command; future-you will thank current-you when the same app ships to both stores.

Status

The release pipeline produces App Store-validated builds end-to-end. First proven by Air Cart Maximizer landing in TestFlight on 2026-05-02. Tested with dala 0.5.12 + dala_dev 0.3.30 on Xcode 26.

If you're on older versions and getting validator rejections, upgrade both — the App Store-clearing fixes were spread across dala 0.5.12 (test harness compile-out) and dala_dev 0.3.27 → 0.3.30 (provisioning, bundle stripping, full DT* / UIDeviceFamily / CFBundleSupportedPlatforms plist keys, ditto packaging).

For everything else — exact button clicks at developer.apple.com, the specific Apple errors and how to read them, what to do when a step fails — see the detailed dala_dev guide.