Fastlane Deployment Skill

Automate iOS and Android app building, code signing, and distribution.

When to Apply

Reference this skill when:

Setting up Fastlane for a new project
Configuring code signing with Match
Building lanes for TestFlight or App Store distribution
Setting up Android Play Store deployment
Debugging code signing or build failures
Configuring CI/CD pipelines for mobile apps
Integrating Fastlane with Tauri v2 projects

Quick Start

Minimal Fastfile Structure

ruby

default_platform(:ios)

platform :ios do
  desc "Build and upload to TestFlight"
  lane :beta do
    match(type: "appstore", readonly: true)
    build_app(scheme: "MyApp")
    upload_to_testflight
  end
end

platform :android do
  desc "Build and upload to Play Store beta"
  lane :beta do
    gradle(task: "bundle", build_type: "Release")
    upload_to_play_store(track: "beta")
  end
end

Tool Aliases

Fastlane provides shorter aliases for common actions:

Alias	Action	Purpose
`gym`	`build_app`	Build and sign iOS/macOS apps
`pilot`	`upload_to_testflight`	Upload to TestFlight
`deliver`	`upload_to_app_store`	Submit to App Store
`supply`	`upload_to_play_store`	Upload to Google Play
`match`	`sync_code_signing`	Sync certificates and profiles
`cert`	`get_certificates`	Download signing certificates
`sigh`	`get_provisioning_profile`	Download provisioning profiles
`scan`	`run_tests`	Run unit and UI tests
`snapshot`	`capture_screenshots`	Automated App Store screenshots
`frameit`	`frame_screenshots`	Add device frames to screenshots
`produce`	`create_app_online`	Create app in App Store Connect
`pem`	`get_push_certificate`	Download push notification certs
`precheck`	`check_app_store_metadata`	Validate metadata before submission

iOS Workflows

TestFlight Deployment

ruby

lane :beta do
  # Sync code signing
  match(type: "appstore", readonly: true)

  # Increment build number
  increment_build_number(
    build_number: Time.now.utc.strftime("%y%m%d%H%M")
  )

  # Build the app
  build_app(
    scheme: "MyApp",
    export_method: "app-store",
    output_directory: "./build"
  )

  # Upload to TestFlight
  upload_to_testflight(
    skip_waiting_for_build_processing: true,
    uses_non_exempt_encryption: false
  )
end

App Store Release

ruby

lane :release do
  match(type: "appstore", readonly: true)

  build_app(
    scheme: "MyApp",
    export_method: "app-store"
  )

  upload_to_app_store(
    skip_screenshots: true,
    skip_metadata: true,
    submit_for_review: false
  )
end

App Store Connect API Key

ruby

def api_key
  app_store_connect_api_key(
    key_id: ENV['APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY_ID'],
    issuer_id: ENV['APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_ISSUER_ID'],
    key_content: ENV['APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY'],
    is_key_content_base64: true
  )
end

lane :beta do
  upload_to_testflight(api_key: api_key)
end

Android Workflows

Play Store Beta

ruby

platform :android do
  lane :beta do
    gradle(
      task: "bundle",
      build_type: "Release",
      project_dir: "./android"
    )

    upload_to_play_store(
      track: "beta",
      aab: "./android/app/build/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab",
      skip_upload_metadata: true,
      skip_upload_images: true
    )
  end
end

Play Store Production

ruby

lane :release do
  gradle(task: "bundle", build_type: "Release")

  upload_to_play_store(
    track: "production",
    aab: "./android/app/build/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab"
  )
end

Code Signing with Match

Initial Setup

bash

# Initialize Match configuration
fastlane match init

# Generate certificates (run once per team)
fastlane match appstore
fastlane match development

Matchfile Configuration

ruby

# fastlane/Matchfile
git_url("git@github.com:your-org/certificates.git")
storage_mode("git")
type("appstore")
app_identifier("com.example.app")
team_id("TEAM_ID")

S3/MinIO Storage (Alternative to Git)

ruby

# Matchfile for S3-compatible storage
storage_mode("s3")
s3_region("us-east-1")
s3_bucket("certificates")
s3_access_key(ENV['AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID'])
s3_secret_access_key(ENV['AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY'])

# For MinIO, set endpoint
# ENV['AWS_ENDPOINT_URL'] = "https://minio.example.com"

Using Match in Lanes

ruby

lane :beta do
  match(
    type: "appstore",
    readonly: true,  # Don't create new certs
    keychain_name: ENV['CI'] ? "fastlane_ci" : nil,
    keychain_password: ENV['CI'] ? "fastlane_ci_password" : nil
  )
end

CI/CD Integration

Keychain Setup for CI

ruby

CI_KEYCHAIN_NAME = "fastlane_ci"
CI_KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD = "fastlane_ci_password"

def setup_ci_keychain
  if ENV['CI']
    create_keychain(
      name: CI_KEYCHAIN_NAME,
      password: CI_KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD,
      default_keychain: true,
      unlock: true,
      timeout: 3600,
      lock_when_sleeps: false,
      add_to_search_list: true
    )
  end
end

def cleanup_ci_keychain
  if ENV['CI']
    delete_keychain(name: CI_KEYCHAIN_NAME)
  end
end

lane :beta do
  setup_ci_keychain
  match(
    type: "appstore",
    keychain_name: CI_KEYCHAIN_NAME,
    keychain_password: CI_KEYCHAIN_PASSWORD
  )
  # ... build and upload
  cleanup_ci_keychain
end

GitHub Actions Example

yaml

# .github/workflows/ios.yml
name: iOS Build
on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Install Fastlane
        run: brew install fastlane

      - name: Build and Deploy
        env:
          MATCH_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.MATCH_PASSWORD }}
          MATCH_GIT_URL: ${{ secrets.MATCH_GIT_URL }}
          APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY_ID: ${{ secrets.ASC_KEY_ID }}
          APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_ISSUER_ID: ${{ secrets.ASC_ISSUER_ID }}
          APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY: ${{ secrets.ASC_KEY_CONTENT }}
          CI: true
        run: fastlane ios beta

Environment Variables

iOS (App Store Connect)

Variable	Description
`APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY_ID`	API Key ID from App Store Connect
`APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_ISSUER_ID`	Issuer ID from App Store Connect
`APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_KEY`	Base64-encoded .p8 key content
`MATCH_PASSWORD`	Encryption password for Match
`MATCH_GIT_URL`	Git repository URL for certificates

Android (Google Play)

Variable	Description
`SUPPLY_JSON_KEY_DATA`	Google Play service account JSON (base64)
`SUPPLY_JSON_KEY`	Path to service account JSON file

Encoding API Keys

bash

# Encode .p8 file to base64
base64 -i AuthKey_XXXXXXXXXX.p8 | tr -d '\n'

# Encode Google Play JSON
base64 -i play-store-key.json | tr -d '\n'

App Store Requirements

Metadata Character Limits

Field	Limit
App Name	30 characters
Subtitle	30 characters
Keywords	100 characters
Description	4000 characters
Release Notes	4000 characters
Promotional Text	170 characters

Screenshot Requirements (2024)

Device	Size	Required
iPhone 6.7"	1290 x 2796	Yes (primary)
iPhone 6.5"	1284 x 2778	Alternative
iPhone 5.5"	1242 x 2208	Optional
iPad Pro 12.9"	2048 x 2732	If iPad supported
iPad Pro 11"	1668 x 2388	Alternative

Known Issues Prevention

Issue	Root Cause	Solution
"Multiple commands produce"	Duplicate files in build	Remove duplicates from sources
Code signing fails in CI	No keychain access	Use `create_keychain` + Match
Build number rejected	Duplicate build number	Use timestamp: `Time.now.utc.strftime("%y%m%d%H%M")`
Profile not found	Wrong Match type	Use `appstore` for TestFlight/App Store
Invalid PEM format	Wrong key encoding	Ensure base64 with `is_key_content_base64: true`
"Missing compliance"	Encryption declaration	Set `uses_non_exempt_encryption: false`
Gradle build fails	Missing SDK/NDK	Set `ANDROID_HOME` and `ANDROID_NDK_HOME`

Tauri Integration

Version from Cargo.toml

ruby

ROOT_DIR = File.expand_path("..", __dir__)

def get_app_version
  cargo_toml = File.read("#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/Cargo.toml")
  if cargo_toml =~ /^version\s*=\s*"([^"]+)"/
    $1
  else
    "1.0.0"
  end
end

def get_next_build_number
  Time.now.utc.strftime("%y%m%d%H%M").to_i
end

Update tauri.conf.json

ruby

def update_tauri_config_version
  app_version = get_app_version
  build_number = get_next_build_number

  tauri_conf_path = "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json"
  tauri_conf = JSON.parse(File.read(tauri_conf_path))
  tauri_conf["version"] = app_version
  tauri_conf["bundle"] ||= {}
  tauri_conf["bundle"]["iOS"] ||= {}
  tauri_conf["bundle"]["iOS"]["bundleVersion"] = build_number.to_s

  File.write(tauri_conf_path, JSON.pretty_generate(tauri_conf))
end

Fix Tauri project.yml (Duplicate libapp.a)

ruby

def fix_tauri_project_yml
  project_yml_path = "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/gen/apple/project.yml"
  return unless File.exist?(project_yml_path)

  content = File.read(project_yml_path)

  # Remove "- path: Externals" to prevent duplicate libapp.a
  if content.include?("- path: Externals")
    content.gsub!(/^\s*- path: Externals\n/, "")
    File.write(project_yml_path, content)
    sh("cd #{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/gen/apple && xcodegen generate")
  end
end

Tauri iOS Build Lane

ruby

lane :beta do
  match(type: "appstore", readonly: true)

  update_tauri_config_version
  fix_tauri_project_yml

  # Configure signing
  update_code_signing_settings(
    use_automatic_signing: false,
    path: "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/gen/apple/MyApp.xcodeproj",
    team_id: TEAM_ID,
    bundle_identifier: APP_IDENTIFIER,
    profile_name: "match AppStore #{APP_IDENTIFIER}",
    code_sign_identity: "Apple Distribution"
  )

  # Build with Tauri
  sh("cd #{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri && npx tauri ios build --export-method app-store-connect")

  upload_to_testflight(
    ipa: "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/gen/apple/build/arm64/MyApp.ipa",
    skip_waiting_for_build_processing: true
  )
end

Tauri Android Build Lane

ruby

platform :android do
  lane :beta do
    ENV['ANDROID_HOME'] = "/opt/homebrew/share/android-commandlinetools"
    ENV['ANDROID_NDK_HOME'] = "#{ENV['ANDROID_HOME']}/ndk/28.2.13676358"

    # Update version in tauri.conf.json
    app_version = get_app_version
    build_number = get_next_build_number

    tauri_conf_path = "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json"
    tauri_conf = JSON.parse(File.read(tauri_conf_path))
    tauri_conf["version"] = app_version
    tauri_conf["bundle"]["android"] ||= {}
    tauri_conf["bundle"]["android"]["versionCode"] = build_number
    File.write(tauri_conf_path, JSON.pretty_generate(tauri_conf))

    # Build with Tauri
    sh("cd #{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri && npx tauri android build")

    upload_to_play_store(
      track: "beta",
      aab: "#{ROOT_DIR}/src-tauri/gen/android/app/build/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab"
    )
  end
end

Essential Commands

bash

# Initialize Fastlane
fastlane init

# List available actions
fastlane actions

# Run a specific lane
fastlane ios beta
fastlane android release

# Debug with verbose output
fastlane ios beta --verbose

# Run Match commands
fastlane match appstore
fastlane match development
fastlane match nuke distribution  # Reset all distribution certs

Search AI Tools

fastlane

Install this agent skill to your Project

SKILL.md

Fastlane Deployment Skill

When to Apply

Quick Start

Minimal Fastfile Structure

Tool Aliases

iOS Workflows

TestFlight Deployment

App Store Release

App Store Connect API Key

Android Workflows

Play Store Beta

Play Store Production

Code Signing with Match

Initial Setup

Matchfile Configuration

S3/MinIO Storage (Alternative to Git)

Using Match in Lanes

CI/CD Integration

Keychain Setup for CI

GitHub Actions Example

Environment Variables

iOS (App Store Connect)

Android (Google Play)

Encoding API Keys

App Store Requirements

Metadata Character Limits

Screenshot Requirements (2024)

Known Issues Prevention

Tauri Integration

Version from Cargo.toml

Update tauri.conf.json

Fix Tauri project.yml (Duplicate libapp.a)

Tauri iOS Build Lane

Tauri Android Build Lane

Essential Commands

Sources