General AppSync Unified, iOS 9 & Xcode 7

Rook · October 14, 2015

angelXwind, one of the developers of AppSync Unified had this to say on a Reddit post regarding the development of AppSync Unified.

"Hi, I'm Karen — or angelXwind, as you may know. Basically, I'm the only active developer of AppSync Unified at this time, that tweak that allows you to install fakesigned iOS apps.

I'm currently writing this post because of one reason — I want your input on what I should do with AppSync Unified now that Xcode 7 exists.

I'll explain.

The history and goal of AppSync Unified

AppSync Unified was created a few years ago, back during the iOS 7 jailbreak. As you may or may not know, at the time, a very notorious "AppSync"-like package was being developed by 25pp — called PPSync.

PPSync caused all sorts of terrible issues, notably device instability, crashing system apps, and just general terribleness. I even wrote a small article on why PPSync is terrible.

Now, onto the topic of piracy. I don't care if you pirate. I know some pirates have actual reasons why they do it — often because they're too young to have any money spendable online. I also know that many — if not most pirates don't really have a good reason as to why they do it, as they're perfectly capable of affording it.

But in the end, I don't care. I can't make you do anything, I don't want to either. What you want to do is your own decision, and yours alone.

But I don't want to support piracy, or look like I support piracy. AppSync Unified was created with the intention of allowing developers to sideload fakesigned legitimate apps — self-developed or not — to their own iOS device.

It was not created with the intention of allowing iOS pirates to pirate iOS apps. But I cannot prevent that from happening. Maybe it is possible to prevent that from happening, but I do not know how.

AppSync Unified user demographics

There are 3 main types of people who use AppSync Unified that I can assume exist.

iOS users/developers who use ASU to push their own apps, or apps developed by others via Xcode to their own devices.
iOS users who download and install IPAs, but are not pirates. Some examples of these people are people who install emulators (such as GBA4iOS) in IPA form, or downgrade / "clone" their apps.
iOS pirates.

Why I feel that I should stop the development of AppSync Unified

As you may or may not be aware, Xcode 7 has been out for a while now, and comes with a highly-anticipated feature — the feature to sideload apps onto your iOS device, regardless of Apple ID status.

This means that anyone with a Mac/Hackintosh with Xcode 7 installed can push apps with their Apple ID to any iOS device, jailbroken or not.

Now, I'll get more into the technical aspect of this feature — yes, this matters.

Xcode 7's new sideloading feature works by requesting a provisioning profile from Apple, complete with an iPhone Developer certificate. I believe it's missing a few entitlements, but that doesn't really matter.

What this means is that not only can an user use Xcode 7's sideloading feature for apps that they have the source code to and can compile, but they can also use it to re-sign binaries (contained within IPAs) to install on their own devices. (And potentially, iOS pirates can use this to pirate iOS apps on non-jailbroken devices, too.)

Arguments for the continuation of AppSync Unified's development

People who do not have access to OS X (either via a Mac or a Hackintosh) — These are people who just want to install legal IPAs floating around on the internet, or downgrade / clone their installed apps. They are not pirates. Without AppSync Unified, they can't do that.
Forcing the installation of apps that the original author had deemed "incompatible," such as the installation of WhatsApp (an iPhone exclusive) on iPads and iPod touches. — suggested by /u/Richardswb
Sideloaded apps using the free developer certificate have a 90-day limit, which is bothersome — suggested by/u/ReddestDream
"For the greater good" — without AppSync Unified, less stable AppSync-esque packages (such as PPSync) will begin to gain popularity again, and these users' iOS devices could become less stable — both for non-pirates and pirates. After all, pirates will still pirate, whether or not ASU continues being developed.

And that's all I can think of.

Basically, I feel that with the existence of Xcode 7's sideloading feature, the sole purpose for which AppSync Unified had been created no longer exists.

It feels like it would become more of a piracy tool than anything else.

It feels like continuing development of AppSync Unified would then begin to make it seem as if I supported piracy of iOS apps, because I fear that because of Xcode 7's sideloading feature, the ratio of "legitimate" users will drastically drop, making iOS pirates, say, 95% of the user base.

So help me here, /r/jailbreak — if you truly love AppSync Unified and want to see it supported on iOS 9, then come up with more reasons as to why it should exist.

Thanks for reading.

-Karen rolls off into one of her various hiding holes-"