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app-store-connect-cli

Deployment & operations

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Updated 10-15 22:32

About this skill

App Store Connect CLI (asc)

Skill by ara.so — Devtools Skills collection.

Fast, scriptable CLI for the App Store Connect API. Automate TestFlight, builds, submissions, signing, analytics, screenshots, subscriptions, and more. JSON-first, no interactive prompts - perfect for CI/CD and automation.

Installation

# Homebrew (macOS/Linux)
brew install asc

# Install script
curl -fsSL https://asccli.sh/install | bash

# Verify installation
asc version
asc --help

For Windows, download signed binaries from the releases page.

Authentication

Generate API Keys

  1. Visit https://appstoreconnect.apple.com/access/integrations/api
  2. Create a new API key with appropriate role (Admin for full access)
  3. Download the .p8 private key file
  4. Note the Key ID and Issuer ID

Configure Authentication

Interactive environments (with keychain):

asc auth login \
  --name "MyApp" \
  --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
  --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
  --private-key /path/to/AuthKey.p8 \
  --network

CI/CD or headless environments:

asc auth login \
  --bypass-keychain \
  --name "MyCIKey" \
  --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
  --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
  --private-key /path/to/AuthKey.p8

Repo-local credentials:

asc auth login \
  --local \
  --bypass-keychain \
  --name "LocalKey" \
  --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
  --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
  --private-key /path/to/AuthKey.p8

Validate Authentication

# Check auth status
asc auth status --validate

# Run diagnostics
asc auth doctor

# List active profile
asc auth list

Core Commands

Apps Management

# List all apps
asc apps list --output table
asc apps list --output json --pretty

# Get specific app info
asc apps info view --app "1234567890" --output json

# Search apps
asc apps list --output json | jq '.data[] | select(.attributes.name | contains("MyApp"))'

Builds

# Upload IPA to App Store Connect
asc builds upload --app "1234567890" --ipa /path/to/MyApp.ipa

# List builds
asc builds list --app "1234567890" --output table
asc builds list --app "1234567890" --limit 10 --sort -uploadedDate

# Get next build number
asc builds next-build-number --app "1234567890" --version "1.2.3"

# Get build details
asc builds get --id "BUILD_ID" --output json

TestFlight

# Publish to TestFlight
asc publish testflight \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --ipa /path/to/MyApp.ipa \
  --group "Internal Testers" \
  --wait

# List TestFlight groups
asc testflight groups list --app "1234567890" --output table

# Add testers to group
asc testflight testers add \
  --group "GROUP_ID" \
  --email user@example.com

# List feedback
asc testflight feedback list \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --paginate \
  --output json

# List crashes
asc testflight crashes list \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --sort -createdDate \
  --limit 10

# Get crash logs
asc testflight crashes log --submission-id "SUBMISSION_ID"

App Store Submissions

# Full publish workflow (upload + attach + submit)
asc publish appstore \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --ipa /path/to/MyApp.ipa \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --submit \
  --confirm

# Stage release (without submitting)
asc release stage \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --build "BUILD_ID" \
  --copy-metadata-from "1.2.2" \
  --dry-run

# Validate readiness
asc validate --app "1234567890" --version "1.2.3"

# Check submission status
asc submit status --version-id "VERSION_ID"

# Monitor status with auto-refresh
asc status --app "1234567890" --watch

# Cancel submission
asc submit cancel --version-id "VERSION_ID" --confirm

Versions

# List versions
asc versions list --app "1234567890" --output table

# Create new version
asc versions create \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.3.0" \
  --platform "IOS"

# Get version details
asc versions get --id "VERSION_ID" --output json

Metadata & Localization

# List localizations
asc localizations list \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --type app-info \
  --output table

# Initialize metadata directory structure
asc metadata init \
  --dir ./metadata \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --locale "en-US"

# Apply metadata from directory
asc metadata apply \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --dir ./metadata \
  --dry-run

# Audit keywords (ASO checks)
asc metadata keywords audit \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --blocked-terms-file ./blocked-terms.txt

# Sync metadata between versions
asc metadata sync \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --from-version "1.2.2" \
  --to-version "1.2.3" \
  --locale "en-US"

Screenshots

# Plan screenshot layout
asc screenshots plan \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --review-output-dir ./screenshots/review

# Apply screenshots
asc screenshots apply \
  --app "1234567890" \
  --version "1.2.3" \
  --review-output-dir ./screenshots/review \
  --confirm

# Upload screenshots for specific locale
# First, get version localization ID
asc localizations list \
  --version "VERSION_ID" \
  --output json \
  --locale "en-US" | jq '.data[0].id'

# Then upload
asc screenshots upload \
  --version-localization "VERSION_LOCALIZATION_ID" \
  --path ./screenshots/en-US \
  --device-type "IPHONE_65" \
  --replace

# List existing screenshots
asc screenshots list \
  --version-localization "VERSION_LOCALIZATION_ID" \
  --output table

Review Status

# Check review status
asc review status --app "1234567890"

# Run review diagnostics
asc review doctor --app "1234567890"

Signing & Certificates

# List certificates
asc certificates list --output table

# List provisioning profiles
asc profiles list --output table

# List bundle IDs
asc bundle-ids list --output table

# Register new bundle ID
asc bundle-ids create \
  --identifier "com.example.myapp" \
  --name "My App" \
  --platform "IOS"

Xcode Integration

# Archive project
asc xcode archive \
  --project MyApp.xcodeproj \
  --scheme "MyApp" \
  --archive-path ./build/MyApp.xcarchive

# Export IPA
asc xcode export \
  --archive-path ./build/MyApp.xcarchive \
  --export-options-plist ./ExportOptions.plist \
  --export-path ./build/output

Xcode Cloud

# List workflows
asc xcode-cloud workflows list --output table

# Trigger workflow from PR
asc xcode-cloud run \
  --workflow-id "WORKFLOW_ID" \
  --pull-request-id "123"

# Rerun existing build
asc xcode-cloud run \
  --source-run-id "BUILD_RUN_ID" \
  --clean

# Get build run details
asc xcode-cloud build-runs get --id "BUILD_RUN_ID" --output json

Workflows

Workflow Configuration

Create .asc/workflow.json for reusable workflows:

{
  "workflows": {
    "testflight_beta": {
      "description": "Build and deploy to TestFlight",
      "steps": [
        {
          "name": "get_next_build",
          "command": "builds next-build-number",
          "args": {
            "app": "1234567890",
            "version": "{{VERSION}}"
          },
          "capture": "BUILD_NUMBER"
        },
        {
          "name": "archive",
          "command": "xcode archive",
          "args": {
            "project": "MyApp.xcodeproj",
            "scheme": "MyApp",
            "archive-path": "./build/MyApp.xcarchive"
          }
        },
        {
          "name": "export",
          "command": "xcode export",
          "args": {
            "archive-path": "./build/MyApp.xcarchive",
            "export-options-plist": "./ExportOptions.plist",
            "export-path": "./build/output"
          }
        },
        {
          "name": "publish",
          "command": "publish testflight",
          "args": {
            "app": "1234567890",
            "ipa": "./build/output/MyApp.ipa",
            "group": "Internal Testers",
            "wait": true
          }
        }
      ]
    },
    "appstore_release": {
      "description": "Submit to App Store",
      "steps": [
        {
          "name": "validate",
          "command": "validate",
          "args": {
            "app": "1234567890",
            "version": "{{VERSION}}"
          }
        },
        {
          "name": "publish",
          "command": "publish appstore",
          "args": {
            "app": "1234567890",
            "ipa": "./build/output/MyApp.ipa",
            "version": "{{VERSION}}",
            "submit": true,
            "confirm": true
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Run Workflows

# Validate workflow
asc workflow validate

# Dry run
asc workflow run --dry-run testflight_beta VERSION:1.2.3

# Execute workflow
asc workflow run testflight_beta VERSION:1.2.3

# Execute App Store release
asc workflow run appstore_release VERSION:1.2.3

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

name: TestFlight Deploy

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      
      - name: Install asc
        run: brew install asc
      
      - name: Configure Auth
        run: |
          echo "${{ secrets.ASC_PRIVATE_KEY }}" > AuthKey.p8
          asc auth login \
            --bypass-keychain \
            --name "CI" \
            --key-id "${{ secrets.ASC_KEY_ID }}" \
            --issuer-id "${{ secrets.ASC_ISSUER_ID }}" \
            --private-key ./AuthKey.p8
      
      - name: Build and Deploy
        run: |
          asc workflow run testflight_beta VERSION:1.2.3
        env:
          ASC_BYPASS_KEYCHAIN: "1"

GitLab CI

deploy_testflight:
  stage: deploy
  tags:
    - macos
  script:
    - brew install asc
    - echo "$ASC_PRIVATE_KEY" > AuthKey.p8
    - |
      asc auth login \
        --bypass-keychain \
        --name "GitLab CI" \
        --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
        --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
        --private-key ./AuthKey.p8
    - asc publish testflight --app "$APP_ID" --ipa ./MyApp.ipa --group "Internal" --wait
  variables:
    ASC_BYPASS_KEYCHAIN: "1"
  only:
    - main

CircleCI

version: 2.1

jobs:
  deploy:
    macos:
      xcode: 15.0.0
    steps:
      - checkout
      - run:
          name: Install asc
          command: brew install asc
      - run:
          name: Configure Auth
          command: |
            echo "$ASC_PRIVATE_KEY" > AuthKey.p8
            asc auth login \
              --bypass-keychain \
              --name "CircleCI" \
              --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
              --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
              --private-key ./AuthKey.p8
      - run:
          name: Deploy
          command: asc workflow run testflight_beta VERSION:${CIRCLE_TAG}
          environment:
            ASC_BYPASS_KEYCHAIN: "1"

Output Formats

The CLI auto-detects output format based on context:

  • TTY (interactive): table format
  • Non-TTY (pipes/CI): json format

Explicit Format Control

# Table output
asc apps list --output table

# JSON output
asc apps list --output json

# Pretty JSON (human-readable)
asc apps list --output json --pretty

# Markdown output
asc apps list --output markdown

# Set default via environment
export ASC_DEFAULT_OUTPUT=json

Parsing JSON Output

# Extract app IDs
asc apps list --output json | jq -r '.data[].id'

# Filter by name
asc apps list --output json | jq '.data[] | select(.attributes.name == "MyApp")'

# Get build count
asc builds list --app "1234567890" --output json | jq '.data | length'

# Extract version strings
asc versions list --app "1234567890" --output json | jq -r '.data[].attributes.versionString'

Common Patterns

Complete Release Workflow

#!/bin/bash
set -e

APP_ID="1234567890"
VERSION="1.2.3"
IPA_PATH="./build/output/MyApp.ipa"

# 1. Get next build number
BUILD_NUMBER=$(asc builds next-build-number --app "$APP_ID" --version "$VERSION" --output json | jq -r '.buildNumber')
echo "Next build number: $BUILD_NUMBER"

# 2. Build (external Xcode process)
# xcodebuild archive ...
# xcodebuild -exportArchive ...

# 3. Upload and publish to TestFlight
asc publish testflight \
  --app "$APP_ID" \
  --ipa "$IPA_PATH" \
  --group "Internal Testers" \
  --wait

# 4. Wait for processing
sleep 60

# 5. Validate for App Store
asc validate --app "$APP_ID" --version "$VERSION"

# 6. Submit to App Store
asc publish appstore \
  --app "$APP_ID" \
  --version "$VERSION" \
  --build "BUILD_ID" \
  --submit \
  --confirm

# 7. Monitor status
asc status --app "$APP_ID" --watch

Metadata Sync Between Versions

#!/bin/bash

APP_ID="1234567890"
FROM_VERSION="1.2.2"
TO_VERSION="1.2.3"
LOCALES=("en-US" "es-ES" "fr-FR" "de-DE")

for locale in "${LOCALES[@]}"; do
  echo "Syncing $locale..."
  asc metadata sync \
    --app "$APP_ID" \
    --from-version "$FROM_VERSION" \
    --to-version "$TO_VERSION" \
    --locale "$locale"
done

Screenshot Upload Pipeline

#!/bin/bash

APP_ID="1234567890"
VERSION_ID="VERSION_ID"
SCREENSHOTS_DIR="./screenshots"

# Get version localizations
LOCALIZATIONS=$(asc localizations list \
  --version "$VERSION_ID" \
  --output json | jq -r '.data[] | "\(.attributes.locale)|\(.id)"')

while IFS='|' read -r locale loc_id; do
  echo "Uploading screenshots for $locale..."
  
  # Upload for each device type
  for device in "IPHONE_65" "IPHONE_67" "IPAD_PRO_129"; do
    if [ -d "$SCREENSHOTS_DIR/$locale/$device" ]; then
      asc screenshots upload \
        --version-localization "$loc_id" \
        --path "$SCREENSHOTS_DIR/$locale/$device" \
        --device-type "$device" \
        --replace
    fi
  done
done <<< "$LOCALIZATIONS"

Crash Log Collection

#!/bin/bash

APP_ID="1234567890"
OUTPUT_DIR="./crash_logs"

mkdir -p "$OUTPUT_DIR"

# Get recent crashes
CRASHES=$(asc testflight crashes list \
  --app "$APP_ID" \
  --sort -createdDate \
  --limit 20 \
  --output json)

# Download logs for each crash
echo "$CRASHES" | jq -r '.data[].id' | while read -r submission_id; do
  echo "Downloading crash log: $submission_id"
  asc testflight crashes log \
    --submission-id "$submission_id" > "$OUTPUT_DIR/$submission_id.log"
done

Automated TestFlight Feedback Reports

#!/bin/bash

APP_ID="1234567890"
REPORT_FILE="testflight_feedback_$(date +%Y%m%d).json"

# Collect all feedback
asc testflight feedback list \
  --app "$APP_ID" \
  --paginate \
  --output json > "$REPORT_FILE"

# Generate summary
echo "Feedback Summary:"
jq '.data | group_by(.attributes.rating) | map({rating: .[0].attributes.rating, count: length})' "$REPORT_FILE"

Environment Variables

# Authentication
export ASC_KEY_ID="ABC123"
export ASC_ISSUER_ID="DEF456"
export ASC_PRIVATE_KEY_PATH="/path/to/AuthKey.p8"

# Bypass keychain (CI/CD)
export ASC_BYPASS_KEYCHAIN="1"

# Default output format
export ASC_DEFAULT_OUTPUT="json"

# API debugging
export ASC_DEBUG="api"

# Config file location
export ASC_CONFIG_PATH="/custom/path/config.json"

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

# Check keychain access
asc auth doctor

# Retry with bypass (if keychain blocked)
ASC_BYPASS_KEYCHAIN=1 asc auth status --validate

# Validate active profile
asc auth status --validate

# Re-login with bypass
asc auth login \
  --bypass-keychain \
  --name "Retry" \
  --key-id "$ASC_KEY_ID" \
  --issuer-id "$ASC_ISSUER_ID" \
  --private-key /path/to/AuthKey.p8

API Debugging

# Enable API debugging
ASC_DEBUG=api asc apps list

# Or use flag
asc --api-debug apps list

# Capture detailed logs
asc --api-debug apps list 2>&1 | tee debug.log

Build Upload Failures

# Verify IPA integrity
unzip -t MyApp.ipa

# Check app ID matches
asc apps list --output json | jq '.data[] | select(.id == "1234567890")'

# Retry with explicit app ID
asc builds upload --app "1234567890" --ipa ./MyApp.ipa --verbose

Version Conflicts

# List existing versions
asc versions list --app "1234567890" --output table

# Check version state
asc versions get --id "VERSION_ID" --output json | jq '.data.attributes.appStoreState'

# Delete draft version (if needed)
asc versions delete --id "VERSION_ID" --confirm

Screenshot Upload Issues

# Verify device type compatibility
asc screenshots plan --app "1234567890" --version "1.2.3" --review-output-dir ./review

# Check localization ID
asc localizations list --version "VERSION_ID" --output json

# Use correct device type codes:
# IPHONE_65, IPHONE_67, IPHONE_61, IPAD_PRO_129, IPAD_PRO_3GEN_129

Best Practices

  1. Always validate before submission:

    asc validate --app "APP_ID" --version "VERSION"

  2. Use --dry-run for destructive operations:

    asc metadata apply --dry-run --app "APP_ID" --version "VERSION" --dir ./metadata

  3. Monitor submissions with --watch:

    asc status --app "APP_ID" --watch

  4. Store credentials securely in CI:

    • Use GitHub Secrets, GitLab Variables, etc.
    • Never commit .p8 files
    • Use --bypass-keychain in CI

  5. Parse JSON programmatically:

    asc apps list --output json | jq -r '.data[].id'

  6. Use workflows for complex pipelines:

    • Define in .asc/workflow.json
    • Version control your workflows
    • Test with --dry-run

  7. Leverage --wait for synchronous operations:

    asc publish testflight --wait --app "APP_ID" --ipa ./app.ipa

Additional Resources