MAS app rejected because "uses non-public APIs: Symbols: _getsectiondata"

Targets macOS
21

You are selling your app on your own site? If not, now is the time to seriously look into it.

Yes it can be patched, but it would help if Xojo can explain what functions call this API, otherwise you can test it and it never fires, but it causes the application to crash on customer machines.[quote=497802:@Tim Parnell]Cute, sounds like no Xojo built app can be submitted.
QuickTimeGate again.[/quote]
Well it is merging into the iOS App Store soon, so maybe they don’t want Mac Apps there anymore?

If Xojo can tell me how this is used (maybe it’s not even used), so we can all know what to expect, I could patch it in a App Wrapper update.

22

Feedback case status became “Fixed & verified” but still attached to Xojo 2020r1 release…
As 2020r1 release date is unknown I’m afraid it will take some time.

23

No one uploaded a 2019r3.1 application in the App Store since Jan 23, 2020 !

Incredible…

24

It may be good if the Xojo guys tell us whether the function is called and whether we could patch ourselves or a 2019r3.3 would come.

25

The same app was uploaded a few days before, rejected, but not because of _getsectiondata. I presume Apple just banished this API very recently.

26

That’s what I did, initially.

I requested the case to be re-opened, moved to 2019r3.2 (and made public) and suggested a quick 2019r3.3.
It was ignored or discarded, but who am I to ask …

1 Like
27

Maybe a topic for tonight for the Hangout?

1 Like
28

Please!

29

seems similar to the sudden refusal to permit Quicktime so many years ago which Xojo responded to very quickly with a patched version

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30

Was spelunking in the Mach-O files yesterday, and found a section labelled “__XOJO” in one of the segments. I don’t yet know what’s in it.

If Xojo would like Xojo code to read Mach-O files (without using API) let me know.

31

Actually I did submit an app update using 2019r3.2 two days prior to this rejection and it cleared with no issue.

32

There are a pile of sections in the header
Most visible of you just drop the Xojo binary onto a good hex editor

Only Xojo knows whats in that, why they use that private API instead of a sanctioned one etc

But the feedback case about it is marked fixed

would be nice if they could put it in a 2019r3.3 for this sudden change from Apple since I doubt anyone realized they were using a private API by building an app with Xojo

1 Like
33

Screen Shot 2020-07-28 at 10.19.58 AM
Screen Shot 2020-07-28 at 10.19.58 AM1234×1180 141 KB

I’ve found 3 in total…

34

I hope that they do a 2019r3.3 release as I get the feeling that 2020r1 is quite a way away and they did do a r3.2 release for Big Sur.

1 Like
35

and Big Sur or Apple Silicon are not public yet while submission to the App Store is a very actual issue.

I ran a search in iOS app build and it also contains the offending _getsectiondata.
I’ve open a new forum thread in iOS channel to see if people there have the same problem.

2 Likes
36

The only answer you’ll get if from Geoff is telling you that you’re prohibited from patching their code, no matter what. Happened before, more than once

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

1 Like
37

iClip got updated, using 2019r3.2, on July 20.

38

See here: https://github.com/microsoft/appcenter-sdk-apple/issues/2135

Two others having this issue got it accepted after they appealed, probably claiming it’s not a a private function and there’s no docs from Apple saying it’s prohibited. Possibly include a URL showing the header: https://opensource.apple.com/source/cctools/cctools-949.0.1/include/mach-o/getsect.h.auto.html

2 Likes
39

Thanks for sharing the link, I have no idea why I didn’t think to check the authenticity of this rejection. My gut told me it was wrong.

40

If the issue being discussed here comes from Apple having “suddenly” marked an API as no longer accepted for submission, then I would not expect nor blame Xojo to not make a new fast build each time Apple make some whim…