Validation error 3117: We were unable to unpack the APPX package

Question

I was trying to submit my first Windows Phone 8.1 app to the Windows Phone Dev Center which was build in Visual Studio 2013 Update 2 and it is a WP8.1 project. There is nothing complicated about my app, no dependencies on databases etc. as it's mostly a web app with native controls.

I followed these steps to building my APPX package:

1. In App Manifest I sign the Assembly with a key file I created (even if I don't sign it I still get the same issue)
2. I then click on Project > Store > Associate App with Store and this runs fine.
3. I click on Build > Rebuild Solution just to make sure
4. Once done I click on Project > Store > Create App Packages
5. I select my App Name which I reserved a day or so ago
6. I set my version number (doesn't matter what version number I use for this either - same issue exists no matter what)
7. I select Neutral as the Architecture (tried with just ARM as well but no luck)
8. Select the tickbox to include Public symbol files (doesn't matter if this is selected or not I still get error)
9. Click Create button and all goes successfully and my Package is created
10. I then click Launch Windows App Certification Kit (version 3.3) and my app passes all the validation tests
11. I click on Project > Store > Upload App Packages which takes me direct to the my app in Windows Phone Dev Center
12. I Click on Complete and then on Add New when in the Upload and describe your package web page
13. Upload goes perfect but just after upload is 100%, when it says Loading info for your packages it bombs out and returns the 3117 error.

Is this a bug or am I missing something here?

Answer 1

It turns out that there is an issue with selecting the package application during the actual packaging process. Between steps 6 and 7 above I needed to add another step whereby I had to select Never Generate app bundle and then it was able to upload the app and unpack it in Windows Phone Dev Center.

Previously I had only selected If needed or Always from the drop down list but by simply selecting Never it resolved my issue in trying to upload the package to Microsoft.

In the screenshot below I've highlighted (in a red box) the setting where the Generate app bundle had to be set to Never.

Hope this helps someone else because there was nothing anywhere on the web or SO around this error from MS.