14 DAY TRIAL // By following a link to the recently-updated iTunes Connect Developer Guide, those enrolled with Apple’s developer programs learn that Apple may choose to list crash reports from “unreleased versions of the iOS,” in addition to the crash reports for iOS versions 3.1, 3.12, 3.13 and 3.2, and 4.0.
In a recent post to the News and Announcements section of Apple’s Developer web site, iOS coders are being reminded that iTunes Connect boasts the ability to display crash logs for existing applications.
“iTunes Connect allows you to view your application crash logs on demand and see the latest crash reports for the most recently approved version of your app on the App Store,” Apple explains.
The Mac maker adds, “Read the Fetching New Crash Reports section of the iTunes Connect Developer Guide for more details on viewing crash logs.”
According to the wording in the Crash Reports module of the PDF guide, developers can request crash logs on demand by clicking Refresh Now to retrieve any new available logs.
“You will also be able to see the last requested date of your crash reports and whether the logs are current or not,” Apple notes, following with a screenshot depicting the feature in action.
According to the guide, the reports will show developers the crash logs for the most recently approved version of their application.
Developers are also able to view reports broken down by iOS version via tabs for each OS release that has an available report.
Apple outlines that such reports will always be available for the most recent shipping iOS release.
Then, it adds (emphasis ours):
“Currently, crash reports for iOS versions 3.1, 3.12, 3.13 and 3.2, and 4.0 are supported in iTunes Connect. From time to time, at Apple’s discretion, developer seed builds from unreleased versions of the iOS may also be shown.”
Apple fails to specify whether these “unreleased” iOS builds are the ones actively being tested internally by the company’s own developers.
In any case, this reference is made in anticipation of forthcoming seeds that third-party devs will have to test their apps against, in order to ensure compatibility with planned iOS releases.
Apple ends with an important note for developers looking to fix the reported bugs, affirming that “Once crash reports are updated, the previous report will no longer be visible.”
As such, the company advises programmers to make sure they always save a copy of their logs.
Since the iTunes Connect Developer guide is now open to Mac App developers as well, Apple felt it was appropriate to also note that “crash logs are not available for Mac OS X apps at this time.”