Can we upgrade from iOS 6 to iOS 7 OTA? Used Data wiped?

Question

We are updating our app to be iOS 7 compatible. One of the most important things to test is user data persistence through the iOS 7 upgrade.

In other words, will upgrading from iOS 6 to iOS 7 OTA wipe user data / core data / app data?

Is there any way to test this prior to official release?

I know I can test upgrading from iOS 7 beta 5 to beta 6 OTA, but can this be done from iOS 6 to iOS 7 beta? I've already tested and confirmed that iOS 7 firmware / restore upgrade will wipe all data. I can restore from backup but that's not the point.

Answer 1

It won't delete any app data, upgrading the OS does not touch the application's data at all. You can test this yourself, if you have iOS 6 installed, you can install the iOS 7 beta by Option clicking the "Check for Update" button, and select the ipsw. Whilst Apple don't suggest you do this, as it is still in beta, it's possible and demonstrates the upgrade path that users will take. I know OTA is slightly different, but the end result is the same.

Think about it, if wiping did occur, a lot of people would be extremely angry that their documents and game progress were lost due to an OS upgrade.