13

I am newbie in Xcode and Mac. I can make programs working well on simulators but cant make dmg files . Somewhere I heard I need an Apple Developer account ( 99$) for that but I dont want to publish my file on App store. I just need to install it on 1 or 2 other Macs.

petert
  • 6,552
  • 3
  • 34
  • 45
user1616720
  • 151
  • 1
  • 1
  • 4
  • 2
    Getting a Developer Account won't help you create a `.dmg` file... http://digital-sushi.org/entry/how-to-create-a-disk-image-installer-for-apple-mac-os-x/ – trojanfoe Aug 22 '12 at 11:56
  • 3
    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because [we are not customer support for your favorite company](//meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/255745/). – gunr2171 Apr 17 '17 at 19:30

6 Answers6

21

With Xcode 7 you are no longer required to have a developer account in order to test your apps on your Mac and/or iOS device:

enter image description here

Check it out here.

Please notice that this is the officially supported by Apple, but you'll have to use Xcode 7 or later and your iCloud account.

Roberto
  • 10,365
  • 14
  • 49
  • 63
  • Xcode Versions <7.0 doesn't allow us to test ios apps on devices without a developer account. Am I right? – Selva Dec 15 '15 at 07:21
9

Before going on - You CAN develop iOS apps and deploy to device from Xcode without developer account, but as far as I know it can be done only on jailbroken devices.

Check this link for more info.

UPDATE

sorry, I thought you meant developing for mobile. check this video about Creation of .dmg files for more information.

ORIGINAL ANSWER

Have a look at the apple developers page to see the different account types. Specifically, the free account:

If you're not ready to join one of our developer programs, you can register as an Apple Developer for free. As a registered Apple Developer you gain access to development tools, resources and information to assist you in creating apps for iOS and OS X. Learn more With the free account you could run your app on any mac OS as well as on an iPhone connected to the mac OS.

With the paid account you could install the app on any provisioning device and submit the app to the store.

Kuf
  • 15,678
  • 4
  • 61
  • 85
  • 4
    There is no free individual development program for iOS platform which allow you to deploy or debug your application on device (except University): https://developer.apple.com/programs/start/university/ – Tutankhamen Aug 22 '12 at 12:05
  • @Tutankhamen https://developer.apple.com/programs/register/ – Kuf Aug 22 '12 at 12:06
  • 3
    There is no free individual development program for iOS platform ***which allow you to deploy or debug your application on device*** – Tutankhamen Aug 22 '12 at 12:11
  • @Tutankhamen What do you mean by device? mobile? – Kuf Aug 22 '12 at 12:14
  • I mean that with free account you can only deploy and debug application on emulator, but you can't deploy and debug it on your iPad/iPod/iPhone device. – Tutankhamen Aug 22 '12 at 12:17
  • @Tutankhamen Actually you can run it on a connected device for debug, and there are ways to [deploy apps without being a member of the developer program](http://246tnt.com/iPhone/#xcode) – Kuf Aug 22 '12 at 12:21
  • Actually, this is not "official" way and it will work only on jailbroken devices, what isn't, actually, legal. – Tutankhamen Aug 22 '12 at 12:30
  • @Tutankhamen i know, i've developed app for the appstore in the past. as i said, it is possible to run an app on a device connected by usb to mac os running xcode, totally legal and directly from xcode. to deploy without the usb connectivity one needs the provisional account. – Kuf Aug 22 '12 at 12:40
  • 5
    I've developed for iOS and for other platforms for several years, and I never heard that you can start and debug application on device without paying 99$. Can you give the URL to reference or something. – Tutankhamen Aug 22 '12 at 13:05
  • @Kuf I would be interested too. – NilsB Mar 28 '13 at 07:23
  • check this out: [Provisioning Your iOS Device for Generic Development](http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#recipes/xcode_help-devices_organizer/articles/provision_device_for_development-generic.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40010392-CH1-SW1) – Kuf Apr 03 '13 at 13:03
  • Ok, here is the answer: **You CAN develope ios apps and deploy to device from Xcode without developer account** – Medet Tleukabiluly Mar 30 '15 at 11:25
  • @evc I've added that to the top of the answer so other will see it clearly. Cheers! – Kuf Mar 30 '15 at 14:02
8

If you are developing for the mac and you are not going to publish on mac app store, you do not need a developer account.

You do need an account for any of the following:

  • Install an app on an iOS device (even your own one for debugging)
  • Publish an app on any of the app stores (either iOS or Mac)

Edit: note that if you do not have an account, your Os X applications will be unsigned. They'll work, but each of your users will get a warning and will need to lower the security settings of his Mac in order to be able to run the application (or, at least, he'll have to approve each application specifically).

Analog File
  • 5,149
  • 18
  • 23
  • The comments on [Kuf's answer](http://stackoverflow.com/a/12072593/1269037) suggest it might be possible to deploy an app to a connected iOS device without a Developer Account. Do you have a source that can confirm or deny this? – Dan Dascalescu Apr 17 '15 at 06:32
  • According to those comments it's only possible for jaibroken devices. Apple does not provide a way to do it. – Analog File Apr 19 '15 at 16:52
2

You need Developer account for developing and debugging application on device. Of course, there are several ways to do that without this account... Have a look:

http://www.alexwhittemore.com/developing-jailbroken-iphone-ios-401/

Tutankhamen
  • 3,362
  • 1
  • 27
  • 34
0

You don't need an Apple developer account to make apps, but if you want to put them on the App Store, gain access to developer beta release software and forums, then yes you do.

petert
  • 6,552
  • 3
  • 34
  • 45
0

You can develop Mac applications without a membership, but if you want to develop iOS applications, you need a membership to run your app on any device.

If you want to run your iOS app in the iOS Simulator, though, you don't need a membership. You can install Xcode and the iOS Simulator on any Mac running 10.7 Lion or later.

Maybe you want to use the Simulator binaries on other Macs without having to compile the app on the other Macs, then you should have a look at that tool: https://github.com/landonf/simlaunch

Fabian Kreiser
  • 8,219
  • 1
  • 32
  • 60