Store Release

---
name: store-release
description: Build, sign, upload and ship a mobile app or game to Google Play and the App Store — upload keystores and Play App Signing, AAB vs APK, versionCode and versionName rules, internal/closed/open/production tracks, staged rollout, iOS certificates and provisioning profiles, Xcode archives, TestFlight, App Store Connect submission, CI automation with fastlane or the publishing APIs, secret handling, and what to do when review rejects the build. Use when preparing a release build, setting up signing, creating a testing track, automating uploads, or recovering from a store rejection.
license: MIT
metadata:
  version: "1.0.0"
  specs-verified: "2026-09-24"
---

# Store Release

Getting the binary into the store. For the product page itself, see `store-listing`.

## The one-way doors

Decide these correctly the first time; all three are expensive or impossible to undo.

| Decision | Why it is permanent |
|---|---|
| **Application ID / bundle ID** | cannot be changed after the first upload. A new ID is a new app with zero ratings and zero installs. Use a domain you control, reversed: `com.yourstudio.yourgame`. |
| **Upload keystore** | losing it locks you out of updating the app. Play App Signing lets Google re-issue an upload key if you lose it, which is the main reason to enrol. Without it, a lost key ends the app. |
| **Product IDs for IAP** | never reusable on either store (see `game-iap`). |

Back the keystore up **outside the repository** before the first upload, along with its password
and the certificate fingerprints. A keystore in git is a compromised keystore.

## Android

Full procedure: `references/android-release-pipeline.md`. The essentials:

- **AAB for Play** (required for new apps), APK only for direct distribution and testing.
- **Enrol in Play App Signing.** You keep an *upload* key; Google holds the signing key. This is
  the only recovery path from a lost key.
- **`versionCode` must strictly increase** with every upload, per track, forever. A rejected
  upload still burns the number. Automate it from CI rather than editing by hand.
- **Keep signing secrets out of the project files.** Pass them through environment variables so
  the exported config in your repo contains no password.
- **Verify the signature** before uploading — `jarsigner -verify -verbose` or
  `apksigner verify --print-certs`. "jar verified" before you spend the versionCode.
- Track order: internal → closed → open → production. Internal propagates in minutes; closed can
  take hours; production review can take days for a first submission.

## iOS

Full procedure: `references/ios-release-pipeline.md`. The essentials:

- Distribution certificate + App Store provisioning profile, or automatic signing with a
  fastlane `match` repo if more than one person builds.
- Archive → validate → upload via Xcode Organizer, `xcrun altool`/`notarytool`, or
  `fastlane pilot`.
- **`CFBundleVersion` (build number) must increase** per upload; `CFBundleShortVersionString`
  (marketing version) is what users see.
- TestFlight builds go through a lighter review; the first external-tester build still needs one.
- Export compliance: if you use only standard HTTPS, set
  `ITSAppUsesNonExemptEncryption = false` in `Info.plist` and stop answering the question at every
  upload.

## Automation

Manual releases are fine for the first few and a liability by the tenth. What to automate, in
order of payoff:

1. version bump from CI
2. build + sign with secrets from the CI secret store
3. upload to internal testing / TestFlight on every merge to the release branch
4. listing text and screenshot upload
5. staged rollout promotion

Tooling and secret handling: `references/release-automation.md`

## Rollout discipline

- **Staged rollout on Play**: 1% → 5% → 20% → 50% → 100%, watching crash rate and ANR between
  steps. You can halt a rollout; you cannot un-ship 100%.
- **Phased release on App Store**: 7 days by default, and you can pause it.
- Never ship on a Friday, and never ship the day before you are unreachable.
- Keep the previous build's artifacts and its exact commit; a rollback means uploading a *new*
  higher version built from the old code, since you cannot re-activate an old version.

## When review rejects you

Do not resubmit the same build with a different note. Read the guideline number, reproduce the
reviewer's path, fix the actual cause, and reply in Resolution Center with what changed.
Common causes and their fixes: `references/review-rejection-playbook.md`

## Pre-upload checklist

- [ ] Version bumped; `versionCode`/build number higher than anything ever uploaded
- [ ] Release build, not debug: no debuggable flag, no dev tools, no test endpoints, logging off
- [ ] Signed with the release key and **signature verified locally**
- [ ] Keystore/certificates backed up outside the repo; passwords in a secret store
- [ ] No secret in the repo: scan the diff for keys, tokens, service-account JSON, `.p8`
- [ ] Target SDK / minimum OS meets the store's current requirement for new uploads
- [ ] Tested on a real device of the lowest-end class you claim to support
- [ ] IAP products exist, are active, and one real purchase was completed on a device
- [ ] Listing, ratings, data safety and privacy declarations match this build
- [ ] Reviewer notes include demo credentials and how to pass any gate