How to detect an iOS App installed or upgraded?

Question

I am developing an application and i need to know whether user installed the app for the first time or upgraded it from the App Store.

How can i detect whether app is installed for the first time or upgraded or re-installed?

Thanks for your answers in advance.

score 39 · Accepted Answer · answered Mar 01 '14 at 19:41

39

You can differentiate between the first start after installing the App, the first start after an update and other starts quite easily via saving the latest known version to standardUserDefaults. But as far as I know it is not possible do detect a re-install of the App as all App-related data are also removed when the App is deleted from the device.

- (BOOL)application:(UIApplication *)application didFinishLaunchingWithOptions:(NSDictionary *)launchOptions {
    NSString* currentVersion = [[NSBundle mainBundle] objectForInfoDictionaryKey:@"CFBundleVersion"];
    NSString* versionOfLastRun = [[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] objectForKey:@"VersionOfLastRun"];

    if (versionOfLastRun == nil) {
        // First start after installing the app
    } else if (![versionOfLastRun isEqual:currentVersion]) {
        // App was updated since last run
    } else {
        // nothing changed 
    }

    [[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] setObject:currentVersion forKey:@"VersionOfLastRun"];
    [[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] synchronize];
}

answered Mar 01 '14 at 19:41

Nero

1,295
1
16
23

Maybe storing the version number to keychain will work? I think the data in the keychain is not deleted after the app is uninstalled. – Sweeper Jul 06 '16 at 07:48
when do you update the previous version? – Gerald Sep 29 '16 at 19:30
@Nero This is working when I change the Build number, but not the version number. Any Ideas? – Sethmr Dec 13 '16 at 22:42
1

@Sethmr Oh yes, you're right. Thanks for noting this. `CFBundleVersion` actually returns what Xcode calls the Build number, but there's another key `CFBundleShortVersionString` which returns the Version number you enter in the Project Editor. – Nero Dec 14 '16 at 20:23
The standardized format for Version/Build numbers needs to be actually documented instead of allowing complete and total freedom of use! It was only after seeing those two variables that I realized the Build is basically meant to be an extension onto the Version. I was previously treating it as just an Int with no "." to identify which version. – Sethmr Dec 15 '16 at 19:58
Do not use `objectForInfoDictionaryKey` to compare versions! See http://stackoverflow.com/a/42552076/1033581 – Cœur Mar 02 '17 at 10:01

Saggy · Answer 2 · 2017-02-10T07:14:18.583

20

Checkout Swift 3.0 version of code.
Note: Use CFBundleShortVersionString, for checking actual App version checking.

func checkAppUpgrade() {
    let currentVersion = Bundle.main.object(forInfoDictionaryKey:     "CFBundleShortVersionString") as? String
    let versionOfLastRun = UserDefaults.standard.object(forKey: "VersionOfLastRun") as? String

    if versionOfLastRun == nil {
        // First start after installing the app

    } else if versionOfLastRun != currentVersion {
        // App was updated since last run

    } else {
        // nothing changed

    }

    UserDefaults.standard.set(currentVersion, forKey: "VersionOfLastRun")
    UserDefaults.standard.synchronize()
}

edited Feb 10 '17 at 07:14

answered Feb 10 '17 at 06:16

Saggy

465
5
18

Thanks Mate :) works like a charm – Ankit Kumar Gupta Mar 08 '17 at 06:58
2

This would have required me to set this up from the first version, no? What if there is a version out there and I want to test new install vs update in an upcoming update? @Saggy – Jay Mutzafi Aug 12 '17 at 06:22
This will fail if you already have a version released without this code and you want to detect the upgrade. – Rajashekar Mar 15 '18 at 23:56
@Rajashekar : Yes, of course. this code will not work on release on which you don't have this. – Saggy Apr 02 '18 at 15:49

score 4 · Answer 3 · answered Jul 11 '17 at 11:42

For Swift 3

 let currentVersion : String = Bundle.main.object(forInfoDictionaryKey: "CFBundleShortVersionString") as! String

let versionOfLastRun: String? = UserDefaults.standard.object(forKey: "VersionOfLastRun") as? String

if versionOfLastRun == nil {
     // First start after installing the app
} else if  !(versionOfLastRun?.isEqual(currentVersion))! {
      // App is updated
}

UserDefaults.standard.set(currentVersion, forKey: "VersionOfLastRun")
UserDefaults.standard.synchronize()

score 0 · Answer 4 · answered Apr 01 '17 at 05:16

0

Just for note:

To obtain localized value of any key you should use CFBundleGetValueForInfoDictionaryKey(CFBundleGetMainBundle(), "CFBundleShortVersionString" as CFString)

answered Apr 01 '17 at 05:16

akaDuality

384
5
6

score 0 · Answer 5 · answered Jun 20 '17 at 12:27

Please store a version in NSUserDefaults (per @Nero's answer) for checking (possible) fresh installs and subsequent updates.

For checking reinstalls (in the case where stored version == nil), exploit iOS 11's introduction of DeviceCheck API which exposes two bits of device specific data which can be set and retrieved by the app, but maintained by Apple and persisted across an uninstall/reinstalls.

How to detect an iOS App installed or upgraded?

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