Xcode iPhone project open source files to distribute

Question

I've written an iPhone application and I'm planning to open source it. I'm concerned about distributing the source and making sure I get only the required files distributed. I'm also concerned that since I've signed my app for distribution on the AppStore that open sourcing the project would possibly expose some part of the singing certificates.

Is there an accepted practice for what to distribute? I was going to exclude the build directory but wanted to included what was required for anyone to easily open and build the project. I tried this as a test by copying all but the build folder and was able to open and build the project from the copy which didn't contain the build folder so that seems fine.

I guess the bottom line is can I safely distribute the entire project minus the build directory or are there things embedded in the project files I'd want to exclude beyond the build directory?

Thanks for any responses I'm pretty new to xcode

Answer 1

The Code Signing Identity setting (of either your project and/or target) sometimes contains your name (or your organization's name).

So I'd clear out that setting (in all configurations) from the project file.

All the really sensitive items (e.g., your private key) are kept in the OS X keychain, not in any project files.

Inside ProjectName.xcodeproj, you'll find project.pbxproj and some other files. You only want to distribute project.pbxproj, the other files are specific settings for you/your computer. Also, project.pbxproj is just a text file. You can take a look inside and see what you're giving out.