Hello all,
A client has requested that I take on the development of their app, which is distributed internally. The app was peviously developed by an agency, with whom I have no connection. So, I'm just trying to understand the scope of the issue and my options - here are my current thoughts....
I don't have access to the certificates/profiles that have been used to build the app, therefore I would need to change the bundle ID and create a new App ID. The app has push notifications enabled so changing the bundle ID would have consequences (ie. as soon as I change the bundle ID, and by extension the App ID, any new builds will be incompatible with pre-existing installations of the app). Therefore, the process would involve creating a new App ID and provisioning profile, creating new SSL certificates for the APNS integration, installing all of the new certificates and rebuilding the application.
As I noted above, as soon as we start using the new SSL certificates, any pre-existing installations will stop responding to push notifications. So the client would need to determine a specific time in which they would remove any previous installations and install the new app on to all the devices. They would also need to install the SSL certificates on to their server at this time to ensure a smooth transition. The app is 'mission critical' so a gradual transition is not an option.
Do I have any other options in this situation? Is there any way to transfer the old App ID, profiles and SSL certificates to my account? I'm aware that App ID transfer is possible with iTunes Connect but this isn't relevant in an enterprise context. Alternatively, is it possible for the agency to delete their App ID and certificates, allowing me to set up a new App ID using the pre-exisiting bundle ID?
Any help will be much appreciated.