iOS installing apps from HTML

Question

yesterday night I was using my iPad and opened the app: FQ Genius, it prompted me that there's an update so when I clicked update, it redirected me to a safari webpage. There I can click download and iOS prompts me to install the app. At the end it did success install and I can run the native app (Note that it is not a web app). I wonder how do they do it? Many thanks!

Attaching this link to the webpage:

Answer 1

You can achive this using Distribute Enterprise applications Over The Air (OTA) help you see the following step by step

iOS supports over-the-air installation of enterprise apps, letting you distribute in-house software to your users without using iTunes or iPhone Configuration Utility.

Here are the steps by which you can create OTA distribution for your Enterprise apps.

Step 1: Archive your project as usual and open Organizer.

Step 2: Select the file you want to distribute and press the Share button.

Step 3: Select “iOS App Store Package (.ipa) and press next.

Step 4: A new window will which will ask you to enter the name of the ipa file. There is a check box at the bottom of the screen “Save for Enterprise Distribution”, select this check box.

Step 5: The window will expand to look something like this.

It will ask you few information on where you want to host the file, its icons and title.

Make sure you enter the application URL to the complete url of the file you would host on your server. Then enter title, subtitle, large icon url (512×512) and small icon url (57×57). Once you select the “ok” a .ipa file and .plist file will save in your select folder.

Step 6: Now we need to create a html file which will have the link of the plist file. Here is the sample file -

Credit goes to this bellow link

http://www.makebetterthings.com/iphone/distribute-enterprise-applications-over-the-air-ota/