How to create an App Store record for a Mac Catalyst app

Basic functionality of my iOS app now runs under Mac Catalyst. I can build and run on my local Mac, and create an archive for upload. When I first tried to validate this archive, the App Store automatically created a Mac certificate for me, and then created a package and signed it. So far so good.


Trying to validate or upload the app, however I get an App Store Connect Operation Error: No suitable application records were found. Verify your bundle identifier 'maccatalyst.com.mycompany.myapp' is correct.


In App Store Connect I cannot add a macOS version to my iOS app as would be logical, so I try to add a New macOS App, as suggested at WWDC 2019. modulo some terminology changes. There I get the error popup: You have no eligible Bundle IDs for macOS apps. Register one here.


Trying to register the bundle ID. I get the error message: An attribute in the provided entity has invalid value. An App ID with Identifier 'maccatalyst.com.mycompany.myapp' is not available. Please enter a different string.


What is a valid value for the bundle ID for a Mac Catalyst app to register in App Store Connect?


Yes, of course I use my real company name and real app name instead of the generics above. I use exactly the bundle name that Xcode created for me when I checked the Mac checkbox in Deployment Info in Xcode.

Replies

same problem here. did you make any progress on this? the catalyst conversion of the code to run on mac seemed to go really well, but

code signing / uploading = confusing as usual when they change things.

After many further tries I finally managed to create a new macOS app for my catalyst version. I cannot tell what made the difference, and I don't know if I could redo it for another app. I can validate and update app archives now, under the bundle id starting with maccatalyst. I have not submitted the catalyst version of my app yet, so I can't tell yet whether that's enough. I would still appreciate to hear what I am supposed to do, rather than trying until something magically proceeds.

interesting, i was able to find a way to get past that particular error after a lot of trial and error.

when i have time to trace what i did, i will post it. but maybe i wont until i can get the app fully uploaded to avoid misleading people. hints seem to involve using Apple Distribution certificate (not MacOS distrib cert) for both the macOS provisiong profile and also the iOS provisioning profile (the same certificate), and, creating a "mac installer certificate" and downloading it to my mac and using that in the archive upload process. i didnt know about the mac installer cert requirement, that seems new.


now... i cannot create a new mac app store entry, so not out of the woods yet. others are having this problem:


https://forums.developer.apple.com/thread/127608


update: creating a mac app store entry has been fixed earlier in the week (problem on apple side)

Renewing some certificates was certainly among the things I tried between by original post and the time I managed to create a Mac app store entry. Certificate management is so intransparent that I cannot tell whether that affected the outcome or not.