Switchboard (App Store)

From The Apple Wiki
Switchboard
Original author(s)Apple Inc.
Developer(s)Apple Inc.
Final release
8.4.6
(final iOS version)
'1'
(latest known version for macOS)
Operating systemiOS, macOS
Available inEnglish
LicenseClosed source

Switchboard, not to be confused with SwitchBoard, was an internal app that functioned as an app store for Apple employees, allowing them to download and update other internal apps all in one place. Switchboard's icon is very reminiscent of the official App Store icon, except it is green and has an "S" instead of an "A". Inside Switchboard, there are a variety of apps available for download, including Concierge, Directory, Radar, and UniBox, just to name a few. The apps available for download within Switchboard may vary from employee to employee depending upon one's AppleConnect permissions. Enrollment is done through various different websites. To begin enrollment, employees would visit sb.apple.com. After signing in with their AppleConnect credentials, they would be redirected here to finish enrollment and install all the necessary MDM profiles on their device. After launching the app, Switchboard checks to see if you're running the latest version. If you're using an outdated version, Switchboard will not load its content and will ask you to update the app. Switchboard began to be phased out with the release of iOS 13, and was partially replaced by a more modern alternative called App Shack, which was originally thought to serve as an eventual replacement. However, on 29 January 2021, Apple shut down Switchboard, making 8.4.6 the last version to ever be released. Self Service, which Apple has used for a number of years, was chosen as the official Switchboard replacement.

A macOS version of the app also exists. The only known version[needs verification] has a copyright date of 2019 and has a Catalina-style icon, implying that this app first came out relatively close to the end of Switchboard's life, compared to the iOS version. Unfortunately the app informs that it requires an AppleConnect account set up through an 'AppleConnect installer' first before crashing (not just exiting- the macOS crash reporter appears). Clicking the "Download Now" button in this popup just ends up leading you to the AppleConnect login page at idmasc.apple.com [Archived 2021-12-28 at the Wayback Machine] (though it appears that you need that redirect from Switchboard for the page to load, which is likely just appleconnect.apple.com as that produces the same end results). Interestingly, there is no way to access "About Switchboard" when this popup is showing, the item is completely missing from the Menu Bar. This unfortunately means I can only find the version number found in Quick Look and the info pane, which is just simply '1', like many other internal apps.

iOS Version History

This list is incomplete.

  • 2.4 (presumed to exist)
  • 2.6
  • 3.0 (presumed to exist, mentioned in 2.6)
  • 3.1
  • 4.1.1
  • 4.2
  • 4.3.1
  • 5.1
  • 5.1.1
  • 5.2 (latest version for devices running iOS 5.0 - iOS 6.1.4)
  • 6.0
  • 6.0.1
  • 6.0.2
  • 6.3.2
  • 7.0
  • 7.1 (introduces support for iOS 7 and up)
  • 8.0.8
  • 8.2
  • 8.4.6 (last version ever to be released)

macOS Version History

This list is very incomplete.

  • '1' (Only known version, copyright date of 2019)

Screenshots

See Also