General: Forums topic: Code Signing Forums subtopics: Code Signing > General, Code Signing > Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, Code Signing > Notarization, Code Signing > Entitlements Forums tags: Code Signing, Signing Certificates, Provisioning Profiles, Entitlements Developer Account Help — This document is good in general but, in particular, the Reference section is chock-full of useful information, including the names and purposes of all certificate types issued by Apple Developer web site, tables of which capabilities are supported by which distribution models on iOS and macOS, and information on how to use managed capabilities. Developer > Support > Certificates covers some important policy issues Bundle Resources > Entitlements documentation TN3125 Inside Code Signing: Provisioning Profiles — This includes links to the other technotes in the Inside Code Signing series. WWDC 2021 Session 10204 Distribute apps in Xcode with cloud signing Certificate Signing Requests Explained forums post --deep Considered Harmful forums post Don’t Run App Store Distribution-Signed Code forums post Resolving errSecInternalComponent errors during code signing forums post Finding a Capability’s Distribution Restrictions forums post Signing code with a hardware-based code-signing identity forums post New Capabilities Request Tab in Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles forums post Isolating Code Signing Problems from Build Problems forums post Investigating Third-Party IDE Code-Signing Problems forums post Determining if an entitlement is real forums post Mac code signing: Forums tag: Developer ID Creating distribution-signed code for macOS documentation Packaging Mac software for distribution documentation Placing Content in a Bundle documentation Embedding nonstandard code structures in a bundle documentation Embedding a command-line tool in a sandboxed app documentation Signing a daemon with a restricted entitlement documentation Defining launch environment and library constraints documentation WWDC 2023 Session 10266 Protect your Mac app with environment constraints TN2206 macOS Code Signing In Depth archived technote — This doc has mostly been replaced by the other resources linked to here but it still contains a few unique tidbits and it’s a great historical reference. Manual Code Signing Example forums post The Care and Feeding of Developer ID forums post TestFlight, Provisioning Profiles, and the Mac App Store forums post For problems with notarisation, see Notarisation Resources. For problems with the trusted execution system, including Gatekeeper, see Trusted Execution Resources. Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

I am experiencing a persistent issue when trying to sign my application, PhotoKiosk.app, using codesign. The process consistently fails with the error errSecInternalComponent, and my troubleshooting indicates the problem is with how the system accesses or validates my certificate's trust chain, rather than the certificate itself. Error Details and Configuration: codesign command executed: codesign --force --verbose --options=runtime --entitlements /Users/sergiomordente/Documents/ProjetosPhotocolor/PhotoKiosk-4M/entitlements.plist --sign "Developer ID Application: Sérgio Mordente (G75SJ6S9NC)" /Users/sergiomordente/Documents/ProjetosPhotocolor/PhotoKiosk-4M/dist/PhotoKiosk.app Error message received: Warning: unable to build chain to self-signed root for signer "(null)" /Users/sergiomordente/Documents/ProjetosPhotocolor/PhotoKiosk-4M/dist/PhotoKiosk.app: errSecInternalComponent Diagnostic Tests and Verifications Performed: Code Signing Identity Validation: I ran the command security find-identity -v -p codesigning, which successfully confirmed the presence and validity of my certificate in the Keychain. The command output correctly lists my identity: D8FB11D4C14FEC9BF17E699E833B23980AF7E64F "Developer ID Application: Sérgio Mordente (G75SJ6S9NC)" This suggests that the certificate and its associated private key are present and functional for the system. Keychain Certificate Verification: The "Apple Root CA - G3 Root" certificate is present in the System Roots keychain. The "Apple Worldwide Developer Relations Certification Authority (G6)" certificate is present and shown as valid. The trust setting for my "Developer ID Application" certificate is set to "Use System Defaults". Attempted Certificate Export via security: To further diagnose the problem, I attempted to export the certificate using the security find-certificate command with the exact name of my identity. Command executed (using double quotes): security find-certificate -c -p "Developer ID Application: Sérgio Mordente (G75SJ6S9NC)" > mycert.pem Error message: security: SecKeychainSearchCopyNext: The specified item could not be found in the keychain. The same error occurred when I tried with single quotes. This result is contradictory to the output of find-identity, which successfully located the certificate. This suggests an internal inconsistency in the Keychain database, where the certificate is recognized as a valid signing identity but cannot be located via a simple certificate search. Additional Troubleshooting Attempts: I have already recreated the "Developer ID Application" certificate 4 times (I am at the limit of 5), and the issue persists with all of them. The application has been rebuilt, and the codesign command was run on a clean binary. Conclusion: The problem appears to be an internal macOS failure to build the trust chain for the certificate, as indicated by the errSecInternalComponent error. Although the certificate is present and recognized as a valid signing identity by find-identity, the codesign tool cannot complete the signature. The failure to find the certificate with find-certificate further supports the suspicion of an inconsistency within the keychain system that goes beyond a simple certificate configuration issue. I would appreciate any guidance on how to resolve this, especially given that I am at my developer certificate limit and cannot simply generate a new one.

We have an application which keeps throwing the error "application is damaged and cannot be opened. You should move it to Trash" I have already referred to the documentation: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/706379 and https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/706442 I have checked the following possible root causes: Codesign of the application using the codesign command Notarization of the application using the spctl command Executable permissions Checked for the presence of "com.apple.quarantine" flag for the application using xattr -l <path to executables" Checked the bundle structure None of the above listed items seemed to be a problem and are as expected. Can you please help us understand what could cause this issue and how to resolve this without recommending an uninstall/reinstall of the application?

To validate incoming XPC connections from other executables, we perform SecCode checks for the dynamic signature of the connection (kSecCSDynamicInformation). Reading the setCodeSigningRequirement(_:) function documentation it appears to perform only static signing checks, is that so? If we use setCodeSigningRequirement(:) function in our listener(:, shouldAcceptNewConnection:) do we still need to check the dynamic information to be properly secure?

Your development team has reached the maximum number of registered iPhone devices. I am use the free provisioning file. So how can I delete old device and use my new iPhone to develop my app. only way is use a paid account? or register a new Apple ID?

Hello Apple Developer Support Community, I am encountering a persistent issue while trying to code sign my macOS application (PromptVault.app) using a valid Developer ID Application certificate. The signing process fails with the following warning and error for every native .so file inside the app bundle: `Warning: unable to build chain to self-signed root for signer "(null)" <file-path>: errSecInternalComponent` What I have tried so far: Verified that my Developer ID Application certificate and the associated private key exist correctly in the login keychain. Confirmed that the intermediate certificate "Apple Worldwide Developer Relations - G6" is installed and valid in the System keychain. Added Terminal to Full Disk Access in Security & Privacy to ensure signing tools have required permissions. Executed security set-key-partition-list to explicitly allow code signing tools to access the private key. Reinstalled both developer and Apple intermediate certificates. Used codesign to individually sign .so files and then sign the entire bundle. Ensured macOS and Xcode Command Line Tools are up to date. Created a clean Python virtual environment and rebuilt all dependencies. Tested code signing in multiple ways and with verbose logging. Current status: Despite all these efforts, the same warning and error persist during the signing process of every .so file. This prevents successful code signing and notarization, blocking distribution. Request for assistance: Could anyone confirm if my certificate and keychain setup sounds correct? Are there known issues or extra steps necessary to properly build the trust chain for Developer ID certificates on macOS 15.6.1 (Sequoia)? Any suggestions for resolving the errSecInternalComponent during signing native libraries? Guidance on ensuring the entire certificates chain is trusted and usable by codesign tools? I can provide debug logs, screenshots of my keychain and security settings, or any other diagnostic information if needed. Thanks in advance for your help!

I was working in Xcode with a free personal Team ID. I upgraded to the Dev Program and now have a paid Team ID. I used the same Apple ID for both. The paid Team ID shows up in developer.apple.com as associated with my Apple ID. However, Xcode is not using the paid Team ID in signing, it's stuck on my old personal Team ID. In addition, I'm getting provisioning errors (0xe8008015) when we try to run our app on an iPhone. Anyone have any thoughts? I've scoured the forums and ChatGPT'd, Cursor'd, etc...all of the suggested fixes do not work. This almost seems like Apple needs to make my Apple ID associated with the paid Team ID or something, to start. Thanks all.

Hi guys, Is there any good up-to-date tutorial about publishing a Python based app on Apple Store? Now, I have developed a standalone Python app from PyCharm, and it's using Pyside6 for UI and some major Python libraries. It's a productivity app with a little A.I. features. I used PyInstaller to prepare the app. Currently, I am stuck at the stage of codesign and Apple Review process, because I am manually doing codesign and building the package from command-line. Without using Xcode, things can get messy or miss easily. It would be nice to follow a up-to-date tutorial about how to complete the codesign and Apple Review process for a Python based app. For example, what to do, how to do, what to be careful during the Apple Review process, etc. Thanks!

We have an app which is hybrid using React Native and Native features. We released our app recently which showed issues related to missing packages/corrupt package but xCode didn't gave any error and we were able to Archive and submit app successfully.

I added a watchkit extension to an existing app. I get this error when uploading to App Store Connect. Building the archive itself is fine: Prepared archive for uploading Upload failed error: Validation failed Missing Info.plist value. A value for the key “WKApplication”, or “WKWatchKitApp” if your project has a WatchKit App Extension target, is required in “Runner.app/Watch/watch_Watch_App.app” bundle. For details, see: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/watchkit/creating_independent_watchos_apps/setting_up_a_watchos_project have the exact same issue when bundling. I added the flag manually in a additional plist fields entry with WKApplication=1 because my Info.Plist is generated and it didn't help. I wrote a custom Run Script Phase that added the flag and that didn't help as well. I need a reply from someone from Apple here. This needs to be fixed.

I regularly see questions from folks who’ve run into code-signing problems with their third-party IDE. There’s a limit to how much I can help you with such problems. This post explains a simple test you can run to determine what side of that limit you’re on. If you have any questions or comments, please put them in a new thread here on DevForums. Put it in Code Signing > General topic area and apply whatever tags make sense for your specific situation. Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com" Investigating Third-Party IDE Code-Signing Problems DTS doesn’t support third-party tools. If you’re using third-party tooling and encounter a code-signing problem, run this test to determine whether you should seek help from Apple or from your tool’s vendor. IMPORTANT Some third-party tools create Xcode projects that you then build and run in Xcode. While that approach is understandable, it’s not something that DTS supports. So, the steps below make sense even if you’re already using Xcode. To check that code-signing is working in general: Launch Xcode. In Xcode > Settings > Accounts, make sure you’re signed in with your developer account. Create a new project from the app project template for your target platform. For example, if you’re targeting iOS, use the iOS > App project template. When creating the project: Select the appropriate team in the Team popup. Choose a bundle ID that’s not the same as your main app’s bundle ID. Choose whatever language and interface you want. Your language and interface choices are irrelevant to code signing. Choose None for your testing system and storage model. This simplifies your project setup. In the Signing & Capabilities editor, make sure that: "Automatically manage signing” is checked. The Team popup and Bundle Identifier fields match the value you chose in the previous step. Select a simulator as the run destination. Choose Product > Build. This should always work because the simulator doesn’t use code signing [1]. However, doing this step is important because it confirms that your project is working general. Select your target device as the run destination. Choose Product > Build. Then Product > Run. If you continue to have problems, that’s something that Apple folks can help you with. If this works, there’s a second diagnostic test: Repeat steps 1 through 10 above, except this time, in step 4, choose a bundle ID that is the same as your main app’s bundle ID. If this works then your issue is not on the Apple side of the fence, and you should escalate it via the support channel for the third-party tools you’re using. On the other hand, if this fails, that’s something we can help you with. I recommend that you first try to fix the issue yourself. For links to relevant resources, see Code Signing Resources. You should also search the forums, because we’ve helped a lot of folks with a lot of code-signing issues over the years. If you’re unable to resolve the issue yourself, feel free to start a thread here in the forums. Put it in Code Signing > General topic area and apply whatever tags make sense for your specific situation.

This is a lengthy one. I have basically compiled a Rust binary into a dylib and packaged into a .xcframework that contains per arch .frameworks. This loads correctly when run from Xcode into a real iOS device. However, when deployed to TestFlight the app crashes. Here is what is a bit different, the dylib is not fully self-contained. It tries to reach in an use C functions I have exposed in my library code. Calling functions that are just within the dylib and just return works fine, but the moment it tries to call one of the exposed functions it crashes. A full in-depth step by step of how I packaged the binaries can be found in my website: https://ospfranco.com/complete-guide-to-dylibs-in-ios-and-android When I look at the TestFlight crash report there are no symbols but the termination cause via WatchDog is: Termination Reason: CODESIGNING 2 Invalid Page I have declared my functions as such: OBJC_EXTERN void ios_prepare_request(const char *url) #define EXPORT __attribute__((visibility("default"), used, retain)) extern "C" { EXPORT void ios_prepare_request(const char *url) { NSString *urlString = [NSString stringWithUTF8String:url]; request = [NSMutableURLRequest requestWithURL:[NSURL URLWithString:urlString]]; } } // Function used to prevent optimization void force_symbol_registration() { // Force these symbols to be included in the binary by referencing them volatile void *ptrs[] = {(void *)ios_prepare_request,}; // Prevent compiler from optimizing away the array (void)ptrs; } And I load my framework as: opacity::force_symbol_registration(); // NSBundle *dylib_bundle = // [NSBundle bundleWithIdentifier:@"com.opacitylabs.sdk"]; // NSString *dylib_path = [dylib_bundle pathForResource:@"sdk" ofType:@""]; // // Load the dynamic library // void *handle = dlopen([dylib_path UTF8String], RTLD_NOW | RTLD_GLOBAL); // if (!handle) { // NSString *errorMessage = [NSString stringWithUTF8String:dlerror()]; // *error = // [NSError errorWithDomain:@"OpacitySDKDylibError" // code:1002 // userInfo:@{NSLocalizedDescriptionKey : // errorMessage}]; // return -1; // or appropriate error code // } // Make sure the main executable's symbols are available dlopen(NULL, RTLD_NOW | RTLD_GLOBAL); NSBundle *frameworkBundle = [NSBundle bundleWithIdentifier:@"com.opacitylabs.sdk"]; if (![frameworkBundle isLoaded]) { BOOL success = [frameworkBundle load]; if (!success) { NSString *errorMessage = @"Failed to load framework"; *error = [NSError errorWithDomain:@"OpacitySDKDylibError" code:1002 userInfo:@{NSLocalizedDescriptionKey : errorMessage}]; return -1; } } As you can see, I have also tried dlopen both work when run from Xcode but crash when deployed on testflight. I have tried re-signing the xcframework/frameworks on a pre build step but it doesn't work As stated, I can call the functions inside the dylib, but once they try to call my exposed code it crashes Is this achievable at all or just a limitation of the iOS sandbox?

Hello, I have a macOS app built with Flutter’s macOS target (native Xcode project). The app is unsigned (no Developer ID code signing / notarization). The .app bundle looks valid: CFBundlePackageType = APPL Unique CFBundleIdentifier No LSUIElement or LSBackgroundOnly Executable exists and is runnable Placed at /Applications/MyApp.app (top-level), runs fine from Finder However, it does not show up in Launchpad. What I tried: Remove quarantine: xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/MyApp.app" Force Launch Services registration: /System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Frameworks/LaunchServices.framework/Support/lsregister -f "/Applications/MyApp.app" Rebuild LS caches: /System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Frameworks/LaunchServices.framework/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user Reset Launchpad DB and restart Dock: defaults write com.apple.dock ResetLaunchPad -bool true && killall Dock Verified bundle structure/type: mdls -name kMDItemContentType -name kMDItemKind "/Applications/MyApp.app" → shows com.apple.application-bundle / Application Questions Is code signing/notarization required for an app to appear in Launchpad (even if it runs from Finder)? What additional conditions cause Launchpad to skip an otherwise valid, unsigned .app in /Applications? Are there deeper Launch Services or Dock database checks I can run to diagnose why this specific app is excluded?

I made a macOS application using Swift Package and distributed it in dmg format through Apple Notary service. However, we received a report from a user that it can be launched from a disk image mounted from dmg, but when copied to /Applications, the app is broken and does not start. I looked into why this happened, I noticed that the codesign command returned different results when copying the application bundle and /Applications on the volume mounted dmg with Finder. Mounted dmg: OK ❯ codesign --verify --deep --verbose /Volumes/azoo-key-skkserv/azoo-key-skkserv.app /Volumes/azoo-key-skkserv/azoo-key-skkserv.app: valid on disk /Volumes/azoo-key-skkserv/azoo-key-skkserv.app: satisfies its Designated Requirement Copied by Finder: Bad codesign reports that there are 148 added/missing files. ❯ codesign --verify --deep --verbose /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app: a sealed resource is missing or invalid file added: /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app/Contents/Resources/AzooKeyKanakanjiConverter_KanaKanjiConverterModuleWithDefaultDictionary.bundle/Contents/Resources/Dictionary/louds/グ1.loudstxt3 (skip...) file missing: /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app/Contents/Resources/AzooKeyKanakanjiConverter_KanaKanjiConverterModuleWithDefaultDictionary.bundle/Contents/Resources/Dictionary/louds/グ1.loudstxt3 (skip...) Copied by ditto: OK ❯ ditto /Volumes/azoo-key-skkserv/azoo-key-skkserv.app /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app ❯ codesign --verify --deep --verbose /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app: valid on disk /Applications/azoo-key-skkserv.app: satisfies its Designated Requirement I made a simple macOS application to explain this problem in an easy-to-understand way. You can download dmg in github releases, mount dmg, copy it in the Finder, and check if there is a problem by running the codesign command. https://github.com/mtgto/example-utf8-mac-notarization As a result, I learned the following two things. Occurs only with resources with file names whose values change due to NFC/NFD normalization No problems occur with the resources of the application itself. Generated by the Swift Package resources that the application depends on I think this is a problem with Finder or Gatekeeper.

I'm currently befuddled by the entire signing and certificate process. I don't understand what I need, what the team admin needs to do, or how to go about doing it so that I can build the project. We've managed to have this working in the past but I guess the system has changed somewhat. Here's what we have going: A Unity project which hasn't changed from a few years ago. I build the project in unity, open the Xcode project and this: There's an issue with the Signing and Capabilities. If I choose automatic setup it shows an error saying that it requires a development team. I had the account admin add my Apple ID to the team so I'm not sure why that's an issue still. Do I need to pay the 99$ to be able to building Xcode? If I try to do it manually I select the provisioning profile that the account admin sent me and it auto selects the team associated with the provisioning profile I guess but then there's no singing certificate. The error says: There is no signing certificate "iOS Development" found. No "iOS Development" signing certificate matching team ID "V7D5YBZRMV" with a private key was found. So, if someone could explain to me like I'm 5 the entire signing and certificate process is and let me know what we're doing wrong with the team/provisioning profile/certificate setup I would be very much appreciative.

In Swift I'm using unzip by launching a Process to unzip a file. I added a launchRequirement to the process in order to make sure the executable is code signed by Apple and the identifier is com.apple.unzip. After testing out my code on another machines (both physical and virtual), I found out that in some the identifier is actually com.apple.zipinfo, which broke the SigningIdentifier requirement. It's safe to assume that /usr/bin/unzip can be trusted since it's in a System Integrity Protection (SIP) location, but I'm wondering why this executable has different identifiers?

Our app .dmg file was successfully code signed. We then revised the app and created a new .dmg. Running codesign gave an "app is already signed" message. Then running codesign -dv said "code object is not signed at all" Older solutions said to use -f to force signing, but that is no longer an option.

I am responsible for the mobile app and thus also of the apple developer and app store connect accounts of a company. An external freelancer developed a software package for us which we aim to offer for installation and use on macOS systems of our customers; distributed exclusively outside of the Apple App Store. The software package has nothing to do with the mobile app. MacOS' Gatekeeper currently warns or even prevents our customers regarding the installation of the package on their device; pretty much as described here: https://developer.apple.com/developer-id/. According to a previous talk with Apple's Support, the software package (.app) the Freelancer developed must be signed with one of our own certificates. As we cannot grant selective app store connect access to third persons (only for the concerned certificates), we prefer to not provide access to our entire apple developer account to the freelancer, for the sole reason of the certificate & signing process. According to previous attempts with Apples' support regarding the most feasible solution in this case, they recommended me to manage the signing of the package of the freelancer, and simply request the package from the freelancer. I've thus generated an according Developer ID Certificate, but regarding the signing process, I'm confused. I know how signing works with mobile apps in XCode, but regarding software that is not distributed throughout the App Store on macOS, I'm unsure about the process. Also, as far as I know, the entitlements of the application are involved in the signing process. So my concern is that simply having the software package (.app) from the freelancer is not really enough to complete the signing + notarization process? Won't I need further information about the app's entitlements etc.? I would like to have a clear solution about the procedure that is required in these cases, as online documentations and / or forums as well as previous talks with your non-technical support from Apple did not resolve the issue.

I help a lot of developers with macOS trusted execution problems. For example, they might have an app being blocked by Gatekeeper, or an app that crashes on launch with a code signing error. If you encounter a problem that’s not explained here, start a new thread with the details. Put it in the Code Signing > General subtopic and tag it with relevant tags like Gatekeeper, Code Signing, and Notarization — so that I see it. Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com" Resolving Trusted Execution Problems macOS supports three software distribution channels: The user downloads an app from the App Store. The user gets a Developer ID-signed program directly from its developer. The user builds programs locally using Apple or third-party developer tools. The trusted execution system aims to protect users from malicious code. It’s comprised of a number of different subsystems. For example, Gatekeeper strives to ensure that only trusted software runs on a user’s Mac, while XProtect is the platform’s built-in anti-malware technology. Note To learn more about these technologies, see Apple Platform Security. If you’re developing software for macOS your goal is to avoid trusted execution entanglements. You want users to install and use your product without taking any special steps. If, for example, you ship an app that’s blocked by Gatekeeper, you’re likely to lose a lot of customers, and your users’ hard-won trust. Trusted execution problems are rare with Mac App Store apps because the Mac App Store validation process tends to catch things early. This post is primarily focused on Developer ID-signed programs. Developers who use Xcode encounter fewer trusted execution problems because Xcode takes care of many code signing and packaging chores. If you’re not using Xcode, consider making the switch. If you can’t, consult the following for information on how to structure, sign, and package your code: Placing content in a bundle Embedding nonstandard code structures in a bundle Embedding a command-line tool in a sandboxed app Creating distribution-signed code for macOS Packaging Mac software for distribution Gatekeeper Basics User-level apps on macOS implement a quarantine system for new downloads. For example, if Safari downloads a zip archive, it quarantines that archive. This involves setting the com.apple.quarantine extended attribute on the file. Note The com.apple.quarantine extended attribute is not documented as API. If you need to add, check, or remove quarantine from a file programmatically, use the quarantinePropertiesKey property. User-level unarchiving tools preserve quarantine. To continue the above example, if you double click the quarantined zip archive in the Finder, Archive Utility will unpack the archive and quarantine the resulting files. If you launch a quarantined app, the system invokes Gatekeeper. Gatekeeper checks the app for problems. If it finds no problems, it asks the user to confirm the launch, just to be sure. If it finds a problem, it displays an alert to the user and prevents them from launching it. The exact wording of this alert varies depending on the specific problem, and from release to release of macOS, but it generally looks like the ones shown in Apple > Support > Safely open apps on your Mac. The system may run Gatekeeper at other times as well. The exact circumstances under which it runs Gatekeeper is not documented and changes over time. However, running a quarantined app always invokes Gatekeeper. Unix-y networking tools, like curl and scp, don’t quarantine the files they download. Unix-y unarchiving tools, like tar and unzip, don’t propagate quarantine to the unarchived files. Confirm the Problem Trusted execution problems can be tricky to reproduce: You may encounter false negatives, that is, you have a trusted execution problem but you don’t see it during development. You may also encounter false positives, that is, things fail on one specific Mac but otherwise work. To avoid chasing your own tail, test your product on a fresh Mac, one that’s never seen your product before. The best way to do this is using a VM, restoring to a snapshot between runs. For a concrete example of this, see Testing a Notarised Product. The most common cause of problems is a Gatekeeper alert saying that it’s blocked your product from running. However, that’s not the only possibility. Before going further, confirm that Gatekeeper is the problem by running your product without quarantine. That is, repeat the steps in Testing a Notarised Product except, in step 2, download your product in a way that doesn’t set quarantine. Then try launching your app. If that launch fails then Gatekeeper is not the problem, or it’s not the only problem! Note The easiest way to download your app to your test environment without setting quarantine is curl or scp. Alternatively, use xattr to remove the com.apple.quarantine extended attribute from the download before you unpack it. For more information about the xattr tool, see the xattr man page. Trusted execution problems come in all shapes and sizes. Later sections of this post address the most common ones. But first, let’s see if there’s an easy answer. Run a System Policy Check macOS has a syspolicy_check tool that can diagnose many common trusted execution issues. To check an app, run the distribution subcommand against it: % syspolicy_check distribution MyApp.app App passed all pre-distribution checks and is ready for distribution. If there’s a problem, the tool prints information about that problem. For example, here’s what you’ll see if you run it against an app that’s notarised but not stapled: % syspolicy_check distribution MyApp.app App has failed one or more pre-distribution checks. --------------------------------------------------------------- Notary Ticket Missing File: MyApp.app Severity: Fatal Full Error: A Notarization ticket is not stapled to this application. Type: Distribution Error … Note In reality, stapling isn’t always required, so this error isn’t really Fatal (r. 151446728 ). For more about that, see The Pros and Cons of Stapling forums. And here’s what you’ll see if there’s a problem with the app’s code signature: % syspolicy_check distribution MyApp.app App has failed one or more pre-distribution checks. --------------------------------------------------------------- Codesign Error File: MyApp.app/Contents/Resources/added.txt Severity: Fatal Full Error: File added after outer app bundle was codesigned. Type: Notary Error … The syspolicy_check isn’t perfect. There are a few issues it can’t diagnose (r. 136954554, 151446550). However, it should always be your first step because, if it does work, it’ll save you a lot of time. Note syspolicy_check was introduced in macOS 14. If you’re seeing a problem on an older system, first check your app with syspolicy_check on macOS 14 or later. If you can’t run the syspolicy_check tool, or it doesn’t report anything actionable, continue your investigation using the instructions in the following sections. App Blocked by Gatekeeper If your product is an app and it works correctly when not quarantined but is blocked by Gatekeeper when it is, you have a Gatekeeper problem. For advice on how to investigate such issues, see Resolving Gatekeeper Problems. App Can’t Be Opened Not all failures to launch are Gatekeeper errors. In some cases the app is just broken. For example: The app’s executable might be missing the x bit set in its file permissions. The app’s executable might be subtly incompatible with the current system. A classic example of this is trying to run a third-party app that contains arm64e code on systems prior to macOS 26 beta. macOS 26 beta supports arm64e apps directly. Prior to that, third-party products (except kernel extensions) were limited to arm64, except for the purposes of testing. The app’s executable might claim restricted entitlements that aren’t authorised by a provisioning profile. Or the app might have some other code signing problem. Note For more information about provisioning profiles, see TN3125 Inside Code Signing: Provisioning Profiles. In such cases the system displays an alert saying: The application “NoExec” can’t be opened. [[OK]] Note In macOS 11 this alert was: You do not have permission to open the application “NoExec”. Contact your computer or network administrator for assistance. [[OK]] which was much more confusing. A good diagnostic here is to run the app’s executable from Terminal. For example, an app with a missing x bit will fail to run like so: % NoExec.app/Contents/MacOS/NoExec zsh: permission denied: NoExec.app/Contents/MacOS/NoExec And an app with unauthorised entitlements will be killed by the trusted execution system: % OverClaim.app/Contents/MacOS/OverClaim zsh: killed OverClaim.app/Contents/MacOS/OverClaim In some cases running the executable from Terminal will reveal useful diagnostics. For example, if the app references a library that’s not available, the dynamic linker will print a helpful diagnostic: % MissingLibrary.app/Contents/MacOS/MissingLibrary dyld[88394]: Library not loaded: @rpath/CoreWaffleVarnishing.framework/Versions/A/CoreWaffleVarnishing … zsh: abort MissingLibrary.app/Contents/MacOS/MissingLibrary Code Signing Crashes on Launch A code signing crash has the following exception information: Exception Type: EXC_CRASH (SIGKILL (Code Signature Invalid)) The most common such crash is a crash on launch. To confirm that, look at the thread backtraces: Backtrace not available For steps to debug this, see Resolving Code Signing Crashes on Launch. One common cause of this problem is running App Store distribution-signed code. Don’t do that! For details on why that’s a bad idea, see Don’t Run App Store Distribution-Signed Code. Code Signing Crashes After Launch If your program crashes due to a code signing problem after launch, you might have encountered the issue discussed in Updating Mac Software. Non-Code Signing Failures After Launch The hardened runtime enables a number of security checks within a process. Some coding techniques are incompatible with the hardened runtime. If you suspect that your code is incompatible with the hardened runtime, see Resolving Hardened Runtime Incompatibilities. App Sandbox Inheritance If you’re creating a product with the App Sandbox enabled and it crashes with a trap within _libsecinit_appsandbox, it’s likely that you’re having App Sandbox inheritance problems. For the details, see Resolving App Sandbox Inheritance Problems. Library Loading Problem Most library loading problems have an obvious cause. For example, the library might not be where you expect it, or it might be built with the wrong platform or architecture. However, some library loading problems are caused by the trusted execution system. For the details, see Resolving Library Loading Problems. Explore the System Log If none of the above resolves your issue, look in the system log for clues as to what’s gone wrong. Some good keywords to search for include: gk, for Gatekeeper xprotect syspolicy, per the syspolicyd man page cmd, for Mach-O load command oddities amfi, for Apple mobile file integrity, per the amfid man page taskgated, see its taskgated man page yara, discussed in Apple Platform Security ProvisioningProfiles You may be able to get more useful logging with this command: % sudo sysctl -w security.mac.amfi.verbose_logging=1 Here’s a log command that I often use when I’m investigating a trusted execution problem and I don’t know here to start: % log stream --predicate "sender == 'AppleMobileFileIntegrity' or sender == 'AppleSystemPolicy' or process == 'amfid' or process == 'taskgated-helper' or process == 'syspolicyd'" For general information the system log, see Your Friend the System Log. Revision History 2025-08-06 Added the Run a System Policy Check section, which talks about the syspolicy_check tool (finally!). Clarified the discussion of arm64e. Made other editorial changes. 2024-10-11 Added info about the security.mac.amfi.verbose_logging option. Updated some links to point to official documentation that replaces some older DevForums posts. 2024-01-12 Added a specific command to the Explore the System Log section. Change the syspolicy_check callout to reflect that macOS 14 is no longer in beta. Made minor editorial changes. 2023-06-14 Added a quick call-out to the new syspolicy_check tool. 2022-06-09 Added the Non-Code Signing Failures After Launch section. 2022-06-03 Added a link to Don’t Run App Store Distribution-Signed Code. Fixed the link to TN3125. 2022-05-20 First posted.

In the LightweightCodeRequirements framework, there is a LaunchCodeRequirement object which can be used as a requirement object for a Process for example. What I don't understand (I admit my macOS low-level knowledge is limited) is that how can this be used in a secure way that doesn't fall victim of a Time-of-Check/Time-of-Use issue. e.g. I specify a LaunchCodeRequirement via Process.launchRequirement for my process, let's say /usr/local/bin/mycommandlinetool. The LaunchCodeRequirement specifies my development team and a developer ID certificate. The process must be started in some form, before a SecCode/SecTask object can be created, rather than a SecStaticCode object (which only guarantees its validity checks to be intact as long as the file is not modified). But if the process was started, then I have no tools in my set to prevent it from executing its initialization code or similar. Then, by the time I'm able to check via SecCode/SecTask functions the LaunchCodeRequirement, I might have already ran malicious code - if mycommandlinetool was maliciously replaced. Or does the operating system use a daemon to copy the executable specified for Process to a secure location, then creates the SecStaticCode object, assesses the LaunchCodeRequirement and if passed, launches the executable from that trusted location (which would make sure it is immutable for replacement by malicious actors)? I have a hard time understanding how this works under the hood - if I remember correctly these are private APIs.