axiom-app-store-connect-ref

name	axiom-app-store-connect-ref
description	Reference for App Store Connect crash analysis, TestFlight feedback, metrics dashboards, and data export workflows
license	MIT
metadata	{"version":"1.0.0"}

App Store Connect Reference

Overview

App Store Connect (ASC) provides crash reports, TestFlight feedback, and performance metrics for your apps. This reference covers how to navigate ASC to find and export crash data for analysis.

When to use ASC vs Xcode Organizer:

Task	Best Tool
Quick crash triage during development	Xcode Organizer
Team-wide crash visibility	App Store Connect
TestFlight feedback with screenshots	App Store Connect
Historical metrics and trends	App Store Connect
Downloading crash logs for analysis	Either (ASC has better export)
Symbolication	Xcode Organizer

---

Navigating to Crash Data

Path to Crashes

App Store Connect
└── My Apps
    └── [Your App]
        └── Analytics
            └── Crashes

Direct URL pattern: https://appstoreconnect.apple.com/analytics/app/[APP_ID]/crashes

Crashes Dashboard Layout

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ [Filters: Platform ▼] [Version ▼] [Date Range ▼] [Compare ▼]           │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                         │
│  Crash-Free Users Graph                                                 │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │  99.5% ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────    │   │
│  │  99.0% ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────    │   │
│  │  98.5% ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────    │   │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                                                         │
│  Crash Count by Version                                                 │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │ v2.1.0  ████████████ 1,234 crashes                                │ │
│  │ v2.0.5  ████████ 892 crashes                                      │ │
│  │ v2.0.4  ███ 156 crashes                                           │ │
│  └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│                                                                         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Top Crash Signatures                                                   │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │ 1. EXC_BAD_ACCESS in UserManager.currentUser.getter    45% share  │ │
│  │ 2. EXC_CRASH in NetworkService.fetchData()             23% share  │ │
│  │ 3. EXC_BREAKPOINT in Array subscript                   12% share  │ │
│  └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Key Metrics Explained

Metric	What It Means
Crash-Free Users	Percentage of daily active users who didn't experience a crash
Crash Count	Total number of crash reports received
Crash Rate	Crashes per 1,000 sessions
Affected Devices	Number of unique devices that crashed
Crash Signature	Grouped crashes with same stack trace

Filtering Options

Filter	Use Case
Platform	iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS
Version	Drill into specific app versions
Date Range	Last 7/30/90 days or custom range
Compare	Compare crash rates between versions
Device	Filter by iPhone model, iPad, etc.
OS Version	Find OS-specific crashes

---

Viewing Individual Crash Reports

Crash Signature Detail View

Click a crash signature to see:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ EXC_BAD_ACCESS in UserManager.currentUser.getter                        │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Affected: 234 devices • 45% of crashes • First seen: Jan 10            │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                         │
│ Exception Information                                                   │
│ ───────────────────                                                     │
│ Type: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (SIGSEGV)                                         │
│ Codes: KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS at 0x0000000000000010                       │
│                                                                         │
│ Crashed Thread (0)                                                      │
│ ─────────────────                                                       │
│ 0  MyApp         UserManager.currentUser.getter + 45                    │
│ 1  MyApp         ProfileViewController.viewDidLoad() + 123              │
│ 2  UIKitCore     -[UIViewController loadView] + 89                      │
│ 3  UIKitCore     -[UIViewController view] + 27                          │
│                                                                         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Distribution                                                            │
│ ───────────────                                                         │
│ iOS 17.2: ████████ 65%                                                  │
│ iOS 17.1: ████ 25%                                                      │
│ iOS 16.4: ██ 10%                                                        │
│                                                                         │
│ iPhone 15 Pro: ████████ 45%                                             │
│ iPhone 14:     ████ 30%                                                 │
│ iPhone 13:     ██ 15%                                                   │
│ Other:         █ 10%                                                    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Downloading Crash Logs

1. Click on a crash signature
2. Look for Download Logs button (top right)
3. Select format:
   • .ips (JSON format, iOS 15+)
   • .crash (text format, legacy)
4. Use crash-analyzer agent to parse: /axiom:analyze-crash

---

TestFlight Feedback

Path to Feedback

App Store Connect
└── My Apps
    └── [Your App]
        └── TestFlight
            └── Feedback

Feedback Entry Contents

Each feedback submission includes:

Field	Description
Screenshot	What the tester saw (often most valuable)
Comment	Tester's description of the issue
App Version	Exact TestFlight build number
Device Model	iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad Air, etc.
OS Version	iOS 17.2.1, etc.
Battery Level	Low battery can affect behavior
Available Disk	Low disk can cause write failures
Network Type	WiFi vs Cellular
Locale	Language and region settings
Timestamp	When submitted

Feedback Filtering

Filter	Use Case
Build	Focus on specific TestFlight builds
Date	Recent feedback first
Has Screenshot	Find visual issues quickly

Limitation: No Reply

TestFlight feedback is one-way. You cannot respond to testers through ASC. For follow-up:

• Contact through TestFlight group email
• Add in-app feedback mechanism
• Include your email in TestFlight notes

---

Metrics Dashboard

Path to Metrics

App Store Connect
└── My Apps
    └── [Your App]
        └── Analytics
            └── Metrics

Available Metrics Categories

Category	What It Shows
Crashes	Crash-free users, crash count, top signatures
Hang Rate	Main thread hangs > 250ms
Disk Writes	Excessive disk I/O patterns
Launch Time	App startup performance
Memory	Peak memory usage, terminations
Battery	Energy usage during foreground/background
Scrolling	Scroll hitch rate

Terminations (Non-Crash Kills)

The Metrics dashboard shows terminations that don't produce crash reports:

Termination Type	Cause
Memory Limit	Jetsam killed app for memory pressure
CPU Limit (Background)	Exceeded background CPU quota
Launch Timeout	App took too long to launch
Background Task Timeout	Background task exceeded time limit

Comparing Versions

Use the Compare filter to see:

• Did crash rate improve or regress?
• Which version introduced a spike?
• Performance trends over releases

---

Exporting Data

Manual Export

1. Navigate to Crashes or Metrics
2. Use date range filter to select period
3. Click Export (if available) or download individual crash logs

App Store Connect API

For automated export, use the App Store Connect API:

# Get crash diagnostic insights
GET /v1/apps/{id}/perfPowerMetrics

# Authentication requires API key from ASC
# Users and Access → Keys → App Store Connect API

API capabilities:

Endpoint	Data
perfPowerMetrics	Performance and power metrics
diagnosticSignatures	Crash signature aggregates
diagnosticLogs	Individual crash logs
betaTesters	TestFlight tester info
betaFeedback	TestFlight feedback entries

Xcode Cloud Integration

If using Xcode Cloud, crash data integrates with CI/CD:

• View crashes per workflow run
• Compare crash rates between branches
• Automated alerts on crash spikes

---

Best Practices

Daily Monitoring

1. Check crash-free users percentage
2. Review any new crash signatures
3. Monitor for version-to-version regressions

Crash Triage Priority

Priority	Criteria
P0 - Critical	>1% of users affected, data loss risk
P1 - High	>0.5% affected, user-facing impact
P2 - Medium	<0.5% affected, workaround exists
P3 - Low	Rare, edge case, no impact

Correlating with Releases

After each release:

1. Wait 24-48 hours for crash data to populate
2. Compare crash-free rate to previous version
3. Investigate any new top crash signatures
4. Check TestFlight feedback for user reports

---

Common Questions

Why don't I see crashes in ASC?

Cause	Fix
Too recent	Wait 24 hours for processing
No users yet	Need active installs to report
User opted out	Requires device analytics sharing
Build not distributed	Must be TestFlight or App Store

Why are crashes unsymbolicated?

ASC crashes should auto-symbolicate if you uploaded dSYMs during distribution. dSYM files contain the debug symbols that map memory addresses back to function names and line numbers.

Verify dSYMs were uploaded:

1. Xcode → Window → Organizer → Archives → select build
2. Right-click → "Show in Finder" → right-click .xcarchive → "Show Package Contents"
3. Check dSYMs/ folder contains .dSYM bundles

Manual symbolication workflow:

# 1. Download .ips file from ASC (Crashes → signature → Download Logs)

# 2. Find the binary UUID from the crash report
grep --after-context=2 "Binary Images" crash.ips
# Look for: 0x100000000 - 0x100ffffff MyApp arm64 <UUID>

# 3. Locate matching dSYM on your machine
mdfind "com_apple_xcode_dsym_uuids == <UUID>"

# 4. Symbolicate an address
atos -arch arm64 -o MyApp.app.dSYM/Contents/Resources/DWARF/MyApp \
     -l 0x100000000 0x100045abc
# Output: -[UserManager currentUser] (UserManager.m:42)

Common symbolication failures:

Symptom	Cause	Fix
All addresses unsymbolicated	dSYMs not uploaded	Re-upload from Xcode Organizer
Only your code unsymbolicated	dSYM UUID mismatch	Rebuild from same commit
System frameworks unsymbolicated	Normal for device-specific	Use atos with device support files
Bitcode builds unsymbolicated	Apple recompiled binary	Download dSYMs from ASC: Xcode → Organizer → Download Debug Symbols

See crash-analyzer agent for automated parsing: /axiom:analyze-crash

ASC vs Organizer: Which stack trace is better?

Both show the same data, but:

• Organizer integrates with Xcode projects (click to jump to code)
• ASC better for team-wide visibility and historical trends

---

Field Diagnostics with MetricKit

ASC dashboards show aggregated data. For granular, device-level diagnostics, use MetricKit to collect crash reports and performance data programmatically.

Setup

import MetricKit

class MetricsManager: NSObject, MXMetricManagerSubscriber {
    static let shared = MetricsManager()

    func start() {
        MXMetricManager.shared.add(self)
    }

    // Called ~once per day with accumulated metrics
    func didReceive(_ payloads: [MXMetricPayload]) {
        for payload in payloads {
            // Performance metrics
            if let launchTime = payload.applicationLaunchMetrics {
                print("Median launch: \(launchTime.histogrammedTimeToFirstDraw)")
            }
            if let hangRate = payload.applicationResponsivenessMetrics {
                print("Hang rate: \(hangRate.histogrammedApplicationHangTime)")
            }
        }
    }

    // Crash and hang diagnostics (iOS 14+)
    func didReceive(_ payloads: [MXDiagnosticPayload]) {
        for payload in payloads {
            // Crash diagnostics with full stack traces
            if let crashes = payload.crashDiagnostics {
                for crash in crashes {
                    print("Crash: \(crash.callStackTree)")
                    print("Signal: \(crash.signal)")
                    print("Exception: \(crash.exceptionType)")
                }
            }
            // Hang diagnostics (iOS 16+)
            if let hangs = payload.hangDiagnostics {
                for hang in hangs {
                    print("Hang: \(hang.hangDuration) — \(hang.callStackTree)")
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

What MetricKit Provides Beyond ASC

Data	ASC Dashboard	MetricKit
Crash stack traces	Aggregated signatures	Per-device, full call stacks
Hang diagnostics	Hang rate percentage	Individual hang call stacks with duration
CPU/memory metrics	Aggregated histograms	Per-device histograms
Disk write exceptions	Total write count	Individual write spike call stacks
Custom data correlation	No	Combine with your own telemetry
Delivery timing	24-48 hour delay	~once daily on device

When to Use MetricKit vs ASC

• ASC: Team visibility, historical trends, version comparison, triage
• MetricKit: Device-specific debugging, correlating crashes with app state, custom dashboards, field diagnostics for non-reproducible issues

---

Related

Skills: axiom-testflight-triage (Xcode Organizer workflows)

Agents: crash-analyzer (automated crash log parsing)

Commands: /axiom:analyze-crash

---

Resources

WWDC: 2020-10076, 2020-10078, 2021-10203, 2021-10258

Docs: /app-store-connect/api, /xcode/diagnosing-issues-using-crash-reports-and-device-logs