Distributing in-progress iOS apps is tedious enough: setting up signing certs, creating provisioning profiles, adding device IDs, etc. I wanted at least the end-user install step to be friendlier than syncing with iTunes and remembering the .mobileprovision file. That is, I wanted to provide the same simple install for my iOS apps as I do for Android apps, with a web page that folks can visit from their phone browser and simply click a link to download and install.

Fortunately, I came across the itms-services protocol: Apple’s solution for wireless app installs. All it takes is the distribution IPA (with embedded mobileprovision file), plist, and a web page with the link. It’s not widely known, but there are a couple of good tutorials on the web, such as Apple’s instructions and Aaron Perecki’s walkthrough. No more tangles, no more wires!