SUMMARY
In this chapter, you have seen the various steps required to build an iOS application that utilizes the Apple Push Notification service. Take some time to go through the steps to obtain your development certificates and provisioning profile, for they commonly trip up a developer. Once you get the service working, however, the effort is well worth it!
EXERCISES
- Name the two certificates that you need to generate in order to use the Apple Push Notification service.
- Why is it recommended that you back up the development certificate in the Keychain Access application?
- Name the method used for registering for push notifications.
- What is the use of the device token?
- Name the event used to obtain the notification pushed to your device.
Answers to the exercises can be found in Appendix D.
WHAT YOU LEARNED IN THIS CHAPTER
| TOPIC | KEY CONCEPTS |
| Steps to using APNs |
Generate a certificate request. Generate a development certificate. Create an App ID. Configure the App ID for Push Notification. Create a provisioning profile. Provision a device. Create the iOS application. Deploy the application onto a device. Create the Push Notification Provider application. |
| Development certificate | The certificate you download from Apple contains only the public key; the private key is saved in Keychain Access when you generate the certificate request.
It is recommended that you back up the development certificate. |
| Provisioning profile | Specifies which devices can be allowed to deploy your applications |
| Registering for push notification | Use the registerForRemoteNotificationTypes: method of the UIApplication class. |
| Obtaining the device token | Obtainable from the application:didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken: event |
| Obtaining the push notification sent to the device | Obtainable from the application:didReceiveRemoteNotification: event |