how to create .ipa file for iPhone apps

Here is the process of creating ipa file from .app file.

Step 1: Create a folder named Payload anywhere in your computer.

Step 2: Build your app using AdHoc profile and then put .app file in this folder.

Step 3: Then compress the Payload folder in Zip format.

Step 4: Now you have to rename the .zip file into .ipa file.

Your .ipa file is ready. You can send the file along with AdHoc profile for testing.

Using xcconfig, abandoning the Build Panel in XCode

XCode provides a better solution called xcconfig files. Everything you can do in the build panel can be done in xcconfig files, and you can actually read them and make comments. So let’s make some.

1. Create a new Window-Based iPhone Application. (Everything we do here works exactly the same for Mac.)
2. Add a new group to your Groups & Files called “Build Configuration”.
3. Add a new file to the group. Under “Other” select “Configuration Settings File.” Call it “Shared.xcconfig”.
4. Create three more xcconfig files called Debug, Release and Application.
5. Double-click the Project to open the Project Info panel, and select Build.
6. Select Configuration: “Debug” and Show: “Settings Defined at This Level.”
7. Select all the settings (you can use Cmd-A here).
8. Copy them with Cmd-C.
9. Go back to Debug.xcconfig and paste with Cmd-V. You now know how to find out the xcconfig syntax for any Build Panel setting you’re uncertain of.
10. Go back to the Build Panel and hit Delete to set all settings to default. Select “Show: All Settings” so you can see your settings again.
11. In the lower-right of the panel, for “Based On:” select “Debug.” You should see your old settings show back up, but not bold this time.
12. Repeat for Configuration: “Release”. Copy them to Release.xcconfig and delete them from the Build Panel.
13. Double-click on the Target, and repeat the process, moving both its Debug and Release settings to Application. Put in a comment to indicate which are the Debug settings and which are the Release settings. We’ll clean them up shortly. Select “Configuration: All Configurations” and “Based On: Application.”

We’ve now moved everything from the build panel to the xcconfig files, and the system should build. Debug and Release are slightly confused because we mixed the settings in Application, but we’ll fix that now.

Look in Application.xcconfig, and move anything that’s in Debug but not in Release to Debug.xcconfig, and anything in Release but not Debug to Release.xcconfig. Anything that’s in both, delete the second copy of.

Anything that is in both Release and Debug, move to Shared, and put #include "Shared.xcconfig" at the top of the Release and Debug configs.

If you’ve followed all the instructions, you should have four files that look like this (assuming your product’s name is “Test”):

Shared.xcconfig

ARCHS = $(ARCHS_STANDARD_32_BIT) SDKROOT = iphoneos2.2.1 CODE_SIGN_IDENTITY =  CODE_SIGN_IDENTITY[sdk=iphoneos*] = iPhone Developer PREBINDING = NO GCC_C_LANGUAGE_STANDARD = c99 GCC_WARN_ABOUT_RETURN_TYPE = YES GCC_WARN_UNUSED_VARIABLE = YES 

Release.xcconfig

include "Shared.xcconfig"
  
COPY_PHASE_STRIP = YES 

Debug.xcconfig

include "Shared.xcconfig"
  
ONLY_ACTIVE_ARCH = YES COPY_PHASE_STRIP = NO GCC_DYNAMIC_NO_PIC = NO GCC_OPTIMIZATION_LEVEL = 0 

Application.xcconfig

INFOPLIST_FILE = Info.plist PRODUCT_NAME = Test ALWAYS_SEARCH_USER_PATHS = NO GCC_PRECOMPILE_PREFIX_HEADER = YES GCC_PREFIX_HEADER = Test_Prefix.pch 

If you Build&Run now, everything should work. It’s not a great build configuration, but it’s Apple’s default in a form that we can start understanding and improving.

http://robnapier.net/blog/build-system-1-build-panel-360#more-360