Complete iOS Developer Onboarding Guide for EAS Build

Phase 1: Company Admin Setup (You Do This First)

1. Add Developer to Apple Developer Account

  • Go to https://developer.apple.com
  • Click “Users and Access”
  • Click “+” button
  • Enter developer’s email
  • Select “Admin” or “Developer” role
  • Click “Invite”

2. Add Developer to App Store Connect

3. Add Developer to Expo Organization

  • Go to https://expo.dev
  • Navigate to Settings → Members
  • Click “Invite Member”
  • Enter developer’s email
  • Select “Developer” or “Admin” role
  • Send invitation

4. Get Developer’s Device UDID

  • Ask developer to go to: Settings → General → About
  • Tap and hold “Serial Number” until “UDID” appears
  • Have them send you the UDID string

5. Register Device in Apple Developer Portal

  • Go to https://developer.apple.com
  • Navigate to “Devices” section
  • Click “+” to add device
  • Enter name (e.g., “John’s iPhone 14”)
  • Enter the UDID
  • Save

6. Share Repository Access

  • Add developer to GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket
  • Grant appropriate permissions
  • Share repository URL

Phase 2: Developer Account Setup (Developer Does This)

7. Accept Apple Developer Invitation

  • Check email for Apple invitation
  • Click accept link
  • Sign in with personal Apple ID (or create one)
  • Accept terms and conditions

8. Accept App Store Connect Invitation

  • Check email for App Store Connect invitation
  • Click accept link
  • Sign in with same Apple ID
  • Accept terms

9. Create and Setup Expo Account

  • Go to https://expo.dev
  • Create account with same email
  • Verify email address
  • Accept organization invitation from email

10. Setup Development Environment

  • Install Node.js (v16 or higher)
  • Install Git
  • Install VS Code or preferred editor
  • Open terminal/command prompt

11. Install Required CLI Tools

npm install -g expo-cli
npm install -g eas-cli

12. Login to Expo/EAS

eas login
# Enter personal Expo credentials (not company's)

13. Clone and Setup Project

git clone [repository-url]
cd [project-name]
npm install

Phase 3: First Development Build

14. Verify EAS Configuration

# Check that eas.json exists and has development profile
cat eas.json

15. Create Development Build

eas build --profile development --platform ios
  • EAS automatically uses company’s stored credentials
  • Wait for build to complete (10-20 minutes)
  • Build appears in Expo dashboard

Phase 4: Device Setup (Developer’s iPhone)

16. Enable Developer Mode (iOS 16+)

  • Settings → Privacy & Security
  • Scroll to “Developer Mode” (won’t appear until step 17 fails first)
  • Toggle ON
  • Device will restart
  • After restart: confirm “Turn On Developer Mode”
  • Enter device passcode

17. Install Development Build

  • Open EAS dashboard in Safari on iPhone
  • Or get direct link from terminal after build completes
  • Tap “Install” on the build
  • If Developer Mode not enabled, it will fail (go back to step 16)

18. Trust Developer Certificate

  • Go to Settings → General → VPN & Device Management
  • Find profile under “Developer App”
  • Tap company name profile
  • Tap “Trust [Company Name]”
  • Confirm trust

19. Launch App

  • App icon appears on home screen
  • Tap to open
  • App should run successfully

Phase 5: Daily Development Workflow

20. Start Development Server

# In project directory
npx expo start --dev-client

21. Connect Device to Development Server

  • Ensure iPhone and computer on same WiFi
  • Open installed app on iPhone
  • App connects to Metro bundler
  • See live updates as you code

22. Creating New Builds

# Development build (for testing)
eas build --profile development --platform ios

# Preview build (for internal testing)
eas build --profile preview --platform ios

# Production build (for App Store)
eas build --profile production --platform ios

23. Submitting to TestFlight

# After production build completes
eas submit -p ios

Phase 6: Troubleshooting Checklist

24. If Build Won’t Install

  • ✓ Check UDID is registered in Apple Developer
  • ✓ Check Developer Mode is enabled
  • ✓ Check device management trust settings
  • ✓ Rebuild with --clear-cache flag

25. If Can’t Access Expo Project

  • ✓ Verify logged into correct Expo account
  • ✓ Check organization membership accepted
  • ✓ Run eas whoami to verify identity

26. If Build Fails

  • ✓ Check Apple Developer access is active
  • ✓ Verify eas.json configuration
  • ✓ Check bundle ID matches Apple settings
  • ✓ Review build logs in EAS dashboard

Required Information Summary

Developer Needs From You:

  • Repository URL
  • Project name
  • Which branch to use
  • Any ENV variables or secrets

You Need From Developer:

  • Email address
  • iPhone UDID
  • Confirmation when invitations accepted

Automatic via EAS:

  • All certificates
  • Provisioning profiles
  • Code signing
  • Bundle ID configuration

No Mac Required! Everything works on Windows/Linux through EAS Build cloud service.

This post was created via email by emin@nuri.com