17.4 · CloudKit, StoreKit 2 and PassKit

These three connect your app to Apple’s services: storing and sharing user data in iCloud, selling things, and putting payments and passes in Wallet. Each has a server-side half that is easy to forget.

Mental model. Apple’s services are the source of truth for identity, money and entitlements. The app asks, verifies and records, but the decision lives with Apple (and your server).

iCloud

CloudKit databases, records, subscriptions and sharing.

  1. How does CloudKit work: containers, databases, zones, records, subscriptions, CKShare and sync? 17.4.1 · L5
    CloudKit is Apple’s backend-as-a-service tied to the user’s iCloud account. A container (CKContainer, an identifier like iCloud.com.example.app, created in the…

Money and Wallet

StoreKit 2 transactions and PassKit payments and passes.

  1. How does StoreKit 2 work: products, purchases, transaction verification, entitlements, refunds, and what must a server do? 17.4.2 · L5
    StoreKit 2 replaces the old receipt-based flow with a Swift-concurrency API and signed JWS transactions. You define products in App Store Connect (or a local…
  2. How do Apple Pay and Wallet passes work with PassKit: payment requests, merchant capabilities, tokens and passes? 17.4.3 · L3
    PassKit covers two different things. Apple Pay lets customers pay for physical goods and services with cards stored in Wallet. You build a PKPaymentRequest…

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