Hello Apple Developer Support,
I’m writing with a mix of enthusiasm and frustration after more than six months of full‑time development on my macOS window‑manager TilesWM (a feature‑rich competitor to Magnet, Divvy, BetterSnapTool, etc.).
I have completed the Application, the product page, a knowledge-base with 90+ entries, an in-app onboarding flow, preparing the feedback-hub for submissions, all required marketing assets and finally; signing up for the $99 Developer Program...
I am now blocked at App Store Connect validation.
What I’m trying to submit
- App name:
TilesWM - Bundle ID:
dev.steinhorst.tileswm - Core functionality:
Detect window movement & resize windows, optional global hot‑keys, persistent user settings are stored in a SQLite-DB located at: ~/Library/Application Support/<bundle‑identifier> - Privacy:
No analytics, no data collection, no runtime downloads. - Tested on:
macOS 15.6.1 (Apple Silicon M1) & macOS 26.0.1 (M3‑Max).
The app works exactly like the existing mainstream window managers: it runs non‑sandboxed and requests Accessibility (AX) permissions on demand to control other windows dimensions and positioning.
Validation errors
Validation failed
Invalid Code Signing Entitlements. Your application bundle's signature contains code signing entitlements that are not supported on macOS. Specifically, key 'com.apple.security.accessibility' in 'dev.steinhorst.tileswm.pkg/Payload/TilesWM.app/Contents/MacOS/TilesWM' is not supported. (ID: 13b13813-edd6-4be6-b392-9db5bddd39a0)
Validation failed
App sandbox not enabled. The following executables must include the "com.apple.security.app-sandbox" entitlement with a Boolean value of true in the entitlements property list: [( "dev.steinhorst.tileswm.pkg/Payload/TilesWM.app/Contents/MacOS/TilesWM" )] Refer to App Sandbox page at https://developer.apple.com/documentation/security/app_sandbox for more information on sandboxing your app. (ID: 28aa17e8-e7b2-4f3f-8def-15922c68ec8a)
.
In short, App Store Connect refuses to accept an app that uses the Accessibility API and is not sandboxed. Yet the same capability is openly used by Magnet, Divvy, BetterSnapTool and other competitors that are currently on the Mac App Store.
Why this matters to me
I am a full‑stack engineer with 15+ years of enterprise experience; side projects keep my skills sharp and give back to the macOS community. This would be my entry to the software-side of MacOS, the next product-ideas are scribbled already.
Over the last six months I have designed, coded, documented, created marketing assets, purchased a domain, paid for hosting, and funded the Apple Developer Program, all in good faith that the app could be submitted.
What I need help with
Clarification – Is the com.apple.security.accessibility entitlement truly unsupported for macOS distribution, how can Magnet and other competitors exist in that case, shouldn't they be able to receive competition?
Guidance – If sandboxing is mandatory (even though the competition doesn't use it either, looking at their entitlements with codesign -d --entitlements :-<path>). What is the recommended way to retain full window‑management functionality while remaining within Apple’s policies, I tried sandboxing it, but the only app I was able to "resize" was TilesWM (my App) itself.
Additional resources
- A "basic"-demo video, feature comparisons, FAQ & knowledge-base as well as the feedback hub: https://www.tileswm.app
I appreciate any insight you can provide. My goal is to bring a polished, useful tool to the Mac App Store while fully respecting Apple’s security requirements, without having to discard months of work or resort to an external distribution model.
Thank you for your time and assistance.
Best regards,
Denis Steinhorst
Full‑Stack Engineer – macOS enthusiast
Bundle ID: dev.steinhorst.tileswm
I don’t have any good news for you here )-:
First up, we need to split this into a policy side and a technical side. The policy side is the domain of App Review. I don’t work for that team, so I can’t speak for them definitively. However, the published App Review Guidelines are pretty clear here:
2.4.5 Apps distributed via the Mac App Store have some additional requirements to keep in mind:
(i) They must be appropriately sandboxed …
Note Not all Mac App Store apps are sandboxed. Sandboxing became a requirement in the macOS 10.7.3-ish timeframework. If an app was first published before then, it might not be sandboxed.
Which brings us to the technical side of this. It’s not possible to use the Accessibility APIs from a sandboxed app.
The Review functionality that is incompatible with App Sandbox section of Protecting user data with App Sandbox is quite clear about this:
Certain activities are forbidden by the operating system when an app runs in a sandbox … The restricted activities are:
…
- Use of accessibility APIs in assistive apps.
Oh, and ssmith_c’s concern about com.apple.security.accessibility is valid. It isn’t a thing. I’ve updated Determining if an entitlement is real accordingly.
AFAICT your only path forward here is to directly distribute your app using Developer ID signing.
Share and Enjoy
—
Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"
