TN3134 clarification: DNS Proxy Provider unusable without MDM on iOS?

Hi,

I’m looking for clarification on TN3134: Network Extension provider deployment, specifically iOS deployment requirements for:

  • packet tunnel provider
  • DNS proxy provider

From the documentation:

Packet Tunnel Provider

  • App extension (min iOS 9.0): per-app mode requires a managed device

DNS Proxy Provider

  • App extension (min iOS 11.0): supervised devices only
  • App extension (min iOS 11.0): per-app mode requires managed devices

Issue

I implemented a DNS proxy using NEDNSProxyManager.

  • Works as expected in debug builds on a local device
  • Fails to configure when distributed via TestFlight

Console Output (TestFlight build)

error	10:05:39.872258-0500	nehelper	The production version of *** is not allowed to create DNS proxy configurations. Use MDM to create DNS Proxy configurations for the production version of ***.


Question

Is it possible to distribute a DNS proxy provider for use on non-MDM / non-supervised devices?

If not:

  • Is the limitation strictly enforced at distribution/runtime?
  • Is a packet tunnel provider the only viable alternative for App Store distribution?

There is a lot of different VPN apps on the App Store that appear to work out of the box without MDM or supervision, which suggests they are using a different deployment model.

Thank you for any clarification or guidance!

TN3134 clarification: DNS Proxy Provider unusable without MDM on iOS?
 
 
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