IOS app on MacOS 15 local network access

Question

Created Oct ’24

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Our app is developed for iOS, but some users also run it on macOS (as an iOS app via Apple Silicon). The app requires local network permission, which works perfectly on iOS. Previously, the connection also worked fine on macOS, but since the recent macOS update, the app can no longer connect to our device.

Additionally, our app on macOS doesn't prompt for local network permission at all, whereas it does on iOS. Is this a known issue with iOS apps running on macOS? Has anyone else experienced this problem, or is there a workaround?

Any help would be appreciated!

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Answer 1

DTS Engineer OP

Apple

Oct ’24

This is an interesting edge case. I’d expect this to work, so I’m curious how you’re testing this. Do you see this when you download the app from the App Store? Or when you run development builds on your Mac? Or both?

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Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

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Answer 2

Stefan123 OP

Oct ’24

I've tested the app after downloading it directly from the App Store. On my MacBook running macOS 14, it worked without any issues. However, after updating to macOS 15, it stopped working. I checked the settings on my MacBook, but I couldn't find an option to grant local network access for the app.

When I download the app on an iOS device running iOS 18, it immediately prompts me to allow local network access. It seems like the request for this permission isn't appearing on macOS 15, and I've noticed the same behavior reported by other users worldwide.

I plan to test it with a development build on my Mac in the next few days.

Is there a quick fix or workaround to enable local network access for the app, even if it doesn’t prompt for permission?

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Answer 3

DTS Engineer OP

Apple

4w

Sorry it’s taken a while to get back to you. I wanted to makes sure I tested this properly, and that took a lot longer than I’d hoped [1].

My understanding is that local network privacy on macOS should apply to iOS Apps on Mac. To try this out I did the following:

On macOS 14.7, I create a VM running macOS 15.0.
I added the VM’s UDID to my account, so I’m able to run my iOS apps on it.
Still on macOS 14.7, I used Xcode 16.0 to create a small iOS app that triggers the Local Network alert.
I did a Product > Archive.
From the Xcode organiser, I exported an Ad Hoc signed build using Distribute App > Release Testing.
I copied the .ipa to the macOS 15.0 VM.
In the VM, I double clicked the .ipa in the Finder, which installed the app in the Applications folder.
I then launched the app from the Applications folder.
And clicked the button to trigger the Local Network alert.
The alert showed up as expected.

Now, that’s not to say that there isn’t a bug here. For example:

It’s possible that this might only reproduce when you install from the App Store.
Or that there’s some existing state on the Mac that ‘broke’ this. That’s why I use a VM to test this stuff, so I’m always starting from a ‘fresh’ Mac.

But it’s also possible that this is a bug in your code. For example, you might be suffering from a variant of the issue discussed in LNP FAQ-16.

However, I think the above confrims that this should work in general.

I plan to test it with a development build on my Mac in the next few days.

Cool. I think that’s the best next step.

Share and Enjoy
—
Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

[1] There were so many missteps )-:

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