App sandbox - iTunes, can we do it?

Scripting Forums AppleScriptObjC and Xcode
#1

Is it possible to enable the app sandbox, and still use applescript to get to iTunes?

I’m trying a few different keys (com.apple.iTunes, the temporary exception one), and nothing is allowing my application to talk to iTunes with app sandboxing on.

Any pointers on which values to add for the entitlements?

#2

Well,

I am finding that they are now discouraging any apple events to other apps. The ones you can check off like Contacts and Calendar are part of the plan gong forward but I had to remove all my entitlements for apple events to Text Edit and for iPhoto use the special open dialog via iPhoto - you are no longer allowed to access selections in iPhoto via apple events. The future is pretty bleak for sandbox and working with other apps. I have an image editor that works with Photoshop and I don’t think I can now make any updates at the Store.

Essentially anything requiring “temporary” entitlements is now off the board. As for iTunes I am sure there is a lot of google talk about that since it is such a popular scripting target.

Rob

#3

Yikes. Well, my app was approved and is now up on the app store. But who knows for how long…

I used the temporary entitlement for com.apple.iTunes.

#4

I suspect you’ll be OK where the dictionary defines access-group identifiers, but I’m not sure many apps do. (Mail does.)

#5

Oh Yes I forgot about that.

https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/documentation/Miscellaneous/Reference/EntitlementKeyReference/Chapters/EnablingAppSandbox.html

If your app needs to control another scriptable app, your app can use the scripting targets entitlement to request access to one or more of the scriptable app's scripting access groups.

Note: Before you can use this entitlement, the scriptable app must provide scripting access groups. If it does not, you can still control the app, but you must use a temporary exception, as described in "Apple Event Temporary Exception."

The part about using a temporary exception is no longer true, at least that is what the reviewers told me.

So the old way was to use entitlements as you have in iTunes. Now the app must have these access groups and most of them are very limited as to a few commands or properties. They say " file a request for the addition of groups you need for an app" but I doubt how far they will go with that.

iTunes doe shave some though so maybe you are in luck:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/16420120/itunes-scripting-with-scripting-bridge-sandboxing

As for third party apps like photoshop, who knows. I was fortunate that my main app could retain 80% of it’s functionality after the shake down.

Rob

#6

Finder, and System Events? How about Shell? That’d be tough to work around.
It seems the greatly limited scriptability in the latest iWork really is pointing out Apple’s way of the future.

#7

Yeah I actually tried those “read” “write” attributes, and it wasn’t working for me. I ended up just submitting it with the exception, and it was approved.

#8

The two are unrelated, though – the former is about apps talking to other apps, the latter about apps being spoken to.

Given the App Store philosophy, I’m not sure any of this can be much of a surprise. They were presumably called “temporary” entitlements from the start with good reason.

(I’d love to see a second category of app in the app store, with less rigorous requirements, but it won’t happen. Without it, though, I think what they’re doing makes a certain amount of sense.)