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Building for iOS

If you use GitHub to host your code then you can use GitHub Actions to build your app for iOS. This is the first step in automating the deployment of your app to the App Store.

The following tutorial shows you how you can create a workflow file which will be run when you commit code.

  1. Create a .github/workflows directory in your project's root.
  2. Create a file called app-ios.yml with the following content:

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name: Build iOS
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on:
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push:
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branches: [ "main" ]
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pull_request:
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branches: [ "main" ]
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jobs:
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build:
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runs-on: macos-13
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name: Build iOS app
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steps:
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- name: Checkout source
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uses: actions/checkout@v4
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- name: Install the Apple certificate and provisioning profile
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env:
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BUILD_CERTIFICATE_BASE64: ${{ secrets.BUILD_CERTIFICATE_BASE64 }}
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P12_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.P12_PASSWORD }}
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BUILD_PROVISION_PROFILE_BASE64: ${{ secrets.BUILD_PROVISION_PROFILE_BASE64 }}
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KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD }}
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run: |
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# create variables
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CERTIFICATE_PATH=$RUNNER_TEMP/build_certificate.p12
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PP_PATH=$RUNNER_TEMP/build_pp.mobileprovision
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KEYCHAIN_PATH=$RUNNER_TEMP/app-signing.keychain-db
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# import certificate and provisioning profile from secrets
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echo -n "$BUILD_CERTIFICATE_BASE64" | base64 --decode -o $CERTIFICATE_PATH
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echo -n "$BUILD_PROVISION_PROFILE_BASE64" | base64 --decode -o $PP_PATH
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# create temporary keychain
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security create-keychain -p "$KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD" $KEYCHAIN_PATH
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security set-keychain-settings -lut 21600 $KEYCHAIN_PATH
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security unlock-keychain -p "$KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD" $KEYCHAIN_PATH
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# import certificate to keychain
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security import $CERTIFICATE_PATH -P "$P12_PASSWORD" -A -t cert -f pkcs12 -k $KEYCHAIN_PATH
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security list-keychain -d user -s $KEYCHAIN_PATH
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# apply provisioning profile
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mkdir -p ~/Library/MobileDevice/Provisioning\ Profiles
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cp $PP_PATH ~/Library/MobileDevice/Provisioning\ Profiles
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- name: Set up XCode
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uses: maxim-lobanov/setup-xcode@v1
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with:
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xcode-version: latest
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- name: Setup Node.js
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uses: actions/setup-node@v4
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with:
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node-version: 20.x
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- name: Install app dependencies
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run: npm install
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- name: Build project app
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run: npm run build
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- name: Capacitor sync
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run: npx cap sync
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- name: Build project
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run: xcodebuild -workspace './ios/App/App.xcworkspace' -scheme App -destination generic/platform=iOS -archivePath App.xcarchive archive
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- name: Create binary (.ipa)
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run: xcodebuild archive -archivePath App.xcarchive -exportArchive -exportOptionsPlist ./ios/archive.plist -exportPath output -allowProvisioningUpdates

This workflow has several variables that you need to setup in your repository secrets. In your GitHub repo go to Settings > Secrets & Variables > Actions > New repository secret:

Export the Certificate​

  1. In Xcode, go the Xcode menu > Settings... > Accounts > Manage Certificates... button.
  2. Right click the Distribution certificate and select Export Certificate.
  3. Save the .p12 file as app.p12 and enter a password.
  4. The P12_PASSWORD secret is the password you used to export the certificate.

To create the BUILD_CERTIFICATE_BASE64 secret run the following command:


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base64 -i app.p12 | pbcopy

The contents of the p12 are now in the clipboard and you can paste it into the BUILD_CERTIFICATE_BASE64 secret.

Create the Provisioning Profile​

Sign into the Apple Developer Portal

  • Go to Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles > Profiles.
  • Click the + button
  • Choose the App Store Connect distribution option and click Continue.
  • Select your app and click Continue.
  • Select the distribution certificate and click Continue.
  • Give the profile a name and click Generate.
  • Save the profile as profile.mobileprovision..

To create the BUILD_PROVISION_PROFILE_BASE64 secret run the following command:


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base64 -i profile.mobileprovision | pbcopy

The contents of the provisioning profile are now in the clipboard and you can paste it into the BUILD_PROVISION_PROFILE_BASE64 secret.

Create a Keychain Password​

Create a random password and save it as KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD in your repository secrets.

Create an archive.plist​

You will need to create a file called archive.plist in your ios folder with the following content:


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<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
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<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
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<plist version="1.0">
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<dict>
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<key>method</key>
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<string>app-store</string>
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<key>provisioningProfiles</key>
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<dict>
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<key>[your-bundle-id]</key>
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<string>[provisioning-profile-name]</string>
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</dict>
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</dict>
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</plist>

You must replace [your-bundle-id] with your bundle id. Replace [provisioning-profile-name] with the name of the provisioning profile you created.

The xcodebuild archive command uses this file to create the .ipa file.

Summary​

The build process with GitHub Actions should now have all the required variables to build your app.

Note: Review the build steps for your app. For example, the step to build the app is running npm run build but you may want to alter this step to create a production build.

The next tutorial shows how you can expand on this workflow to send the build to TestFlight.

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