Reviewing an app before live webservice is published

You'll have to have the app fully working before it can be approved.

Thanks for the speedy reply.

The problem is that the app may not go-live until maybe a week after the rest of the system due to the review process - which is a bit problematic in itself.

My biggest concern is that a problem arises as part of the app review. We'll have been testing that version for months and UAT will have been signed off by the client. Any last minute changes forcing further testing and further delays to the rollout will be very hard to explain!

I can't believe we're the only organisation with this issue - what do other people do?

"The problem is that the app may not go-live until maybe a week after the rest of the system due to the review process - which is a bit problematic in itself."

What review process? Your internal review or App Store?

What is a UAT?

What I'm saying is, if the rest of the site is published on 1st of Jan for example, that's the earliest day that I can submit the app. That means a delay of maybe 7 days due to apples review process.

The client will sign of a version of the app for User Acceptance Testing when they're happy with it. Changing things after UAT is a probelm.

There's no way to get around it.

If Apple says you must correct something in your app, you have no choice.

Apple isn't concerned (nor should it be) about your UAT.

You'll have to tell your client that you cannot guarantee that changes won't be required after Apple Review.

That's pretty much what I thought but thanks for the confirmation!

You can try giving Apple a test account on your test server for your web-service (in the Review notes, and as long as using the test server doesn't significantly change the behavior of the app when using the Live version of the service.)

You could structure a pre-going-live-website so that the website responds to the app sufficient for app review. It is unclear how many functions app review actually tests before approving an app. It may be only a cursory test of functional elements. You have nothing to lose by trying.

Thanks for the reply - I'd been considering submitting an app pointing at a test instance of the service but wondered if the Apple reviewers would dismiss it out of hand as soon as they saw 'test' in the URL?

They couldn't approve it as such beacuse it's pointing at a test instance.