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Missing code-signing certificate when uploading MacOS installer to AppStore
Hi there! I have an issue with uploading a PKG installer to the MacOS AppStore. Uploading with: xcrun altool --upload-app -t macos -f $PKGPATH -u $DEVELOPER_ID -p $APP_SPECIFIC_PWD results in error: *** Error: Validation failed Invalid Provisioning Profile. The provisioning profile included in the bundle com.frogblue.frogCom [com.frogblue.frogCom.pkg/Payload/frogSIP.app] is invalid. [Missing code-signing certificate.] For more information, visit the macOS Developer Portal. (ID: fc4e5488-6d09-4ab2-b1f7-017a33c69723) (409) Application seems to be correctly code signed with „3rd Party Mac Developer Application“ certificate. codesign -dv --verbose=4 /Users/dietmar.finkler/Desktop/frogSIP/deploy/frogSIP.app Identifier=com.frogblue.frogCom Format=app bundle with Mach-O universal (x86_64 arm64) CodeDirectory v=20500 size=266432 flags=0x10000(runtime) hashes=8315+7 location=embedded VersionPlatform=1 VersionMin=720896 VersionSDK=918784 Hash type=sha256 size=32 CandidateCDHash sha256=923de799a54616706b76050b50b7ee6d59f8355a CandidateCDHashFull sha256=923de799a54616706b76050b50b7ee6d59f8355a65aa7cce03e34bb2033da1e9 Hash choices=sha256 CMSDigest=923de799a54616706b76050b50b7ee6d59f8355a65aa7cce03e34bb2033da1e9 CMSDigestType=2 Executable Segment base=0 Executable Segment limit=31604736 Executable Segment flags=0x1 Page size=4096 CDHash=923de799a54616706b76050b50b7ee6d59f8355a Signature size=9109 Authority=3rd Party Mac Developer Application: frogblue TECHNOLOGY GmbH (UG2P6T5LNH) Authority=Apple Worldwide Developer Relations Certification Authority Authority=Apple Root CA Timestamp=26.02.2025 at 10:07:08 Info.plist entries=31 TeamIdentifier=UG2P6T5LNH Runtime Version=14.5.0 Sealed Resources version=2 rules=13 files=1124 Internal requirements count=1 size=212 The PKG build with productbuild seems also be correctly code signed with„3rd Party Mac Developer Installer“ certificate. pkgutil --check-signature /Users/dietmar.finkler/Desktop/frogSIP/frogSIP-1.2a2.pkg Status: signed by a developer certificate issued by Apple (Development) Certificate Chain: 1. 3rd Party Mac Developer Installer: frogblue TECHNOLOGY GmbH (UG2P6T5LNH) Expires: 2026-02-25 17:17:54 +0000 SHA256 Fingerprint: D1 9E AC 27 C7 26 F3 2E 1E F5 50 2C 7A 1B 1D FB 54 D6 17 C1 1C 58 C1 7E F8 87 B6 44 D1 49 17 DC ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2. Apple Worldwide Developer Relations Certification Authority Expires: 2030-02-20 00:00:00 +0000 SHA256 Fingerprint: DC F2 18 78 C7 7F 41 98 E4 B4 61 4F 03 D6 96 D8 9C 66 C6 60 08 D4 24 4E 1B 99 16 1A AC 91 60 1F ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3. Apple Root CA Expires: 2035-02-09 21:40:36 +0000 SHA256 Fingerprint: B0 B1 73 0E CB C7 FF 45 05 14 2C 49 F1 29 5E 6E DA 6B CA ED 7E 2C 68 C5 BE 91 B5 A1 10 01 F0 24 KeyChain login items show both "3rd Party Mac Developer Application" and "3rd Party Mac Developer Installer“ certificates. But checking with security find-identity -v -p codesigning shows only the "3rd Party Mac Developer Application“ certificate. "3rd Party Mac Developer Installer“ is missing. I check also the entitlement in the app package, which looks ok for me. codesign -d --entitlements :- /Users/dietmar.finkler/Desktop/frogSIP/deploy/frogSIP.app <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "https://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd"><plist version="1.0"><dict><key>com.apple.application-identifier</key><string>UG2P6T5LNH.com.frogblue.frogCom</string><key>com.apple.developer.aps-environment</key><string>production</string><key>com.apple.developer.associated-domains</key><array><string>applinks:go.dev.frogblue.cloud</string><string>applinks:go.test.frogblue.cloud</string><string>applinks:go.prod.frogblue.cloud</string></array><key>com.apple.developer.team-identifier</key><string>UG2P6T5LNH</string><key>com.apple.security.app-sandbox</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.cs.disable-library-validation</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.device.audio-input</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.device.camera</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.network.client</key><true/><key>com.apple.security.network.server</key><true/></dict></plist> What I am missing? Thanx for any hint! Regards Dietmar Finkler
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647
Apr ’25
Notarization Taking 20 Hours (and still counting)
I'm developing an app using Electron Builder for a potential port to Windows in the future. I've had a heck of a time getting credentials to work and felt like I was in some sort of time loop doing the same things over and over again to no avail. I finally was able to sign my app, sign the .dmg and start the notarization process. That was last night and it still says "In Progress". If anyone is able to push it through, that would be awesome! (id: 2520e724-7069-408a-9ea4-60b23e8435a7) I saw another thread on here where people stated it was taking forever, I'm not sure if this is just because its my first time, but I was hoping to get a beta out to testers this weekend. I just need a version that doesn't get flagged as "Malware" by Gatekeeper. This is just for a standalone macOS application, not the App Store. Is there a reason that this process takes an absurd amount of time? Will it always be like this or is this just a fluke and it was a bad time to try?
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473
Mar ’25
Developer ID Notary Service
Yesterday there were reported outages on the Developer ID Notary Service, but it was reported pretty late and we were able to notice the outages in real time. It says resolved now, however an error still persists: Error: HTTP status code: 403. A required agreement is missing or has expired. This request requires an in-effect agreement that has not been signed or has expired. Ensure your team has signed the necessary legal agreements and that they are not expired. Is there an ongoing outage at this moment that is not being reported again? Our pipelines have been working flawlessly for months without intervention nor changes until the most recent outages
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272
Jun ’25
add /usr/bin/codesign to acl for private key
Displaying attribute for a private key I see a number of applications that are allowed to access it without needing a password e.g. racoon; Keychain Access.app; Certificate Assitant.app etc.. I want to add /usr/bin/codesign to the list but the gui window that pops up when I click on + doesn't seem to allow me to do that :( How do I do it please
Topic: Code Signing SubTopic: General
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70
Apr ’25
Notarization stuck for days
It's been over 24h and it's still in progress. Is there a timeout for a failed notarization? or do we just wait for days.. weeks.. moths? Successfully received submission info createdDate: 2025-06-25T09:52:03.153Z id: 2ae713a5-c2e3-432f-84ee-e5d3d4aed621 name: slideshow-city-1.1.0-arm64.dmg status: In Progress
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228
Jun ’25
Gatekeeper disallowing directly distributed app
This is a continuation of my own old post that became inactive to regain traction. I am trying to resolve issues that arise when distributing a macOS app with a SysExt Network Extension (Packet Tunnel) outside the App Store using a Developer ID Certificate. To directly distribute the app, I start with exporting the .app via Archive in Xcode. After that, I create a new Developer ID provisioning profile for both the app and sysext and replace the embedded ones in the .app package. After I have replaced the provisioning profiles and the have the entitlements files ready, I start signing the frameworks, sysext and parent app. codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>"<app>.app/Contents/Library/SystemExtensions/<sysext>.systemextension/Contents/Frameworks/<fw>.framework/Versions/A/<fw> codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app/Contents/Frameworks/<fw>.framework/ codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements dist-vpn.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app/Contents/Library/SystemExtensions/<sysext>.systemextension/Contents/MacOS/<sysext> codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements dist.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app After validation is successful with codesign --verify --deep --strict --verbose=4 <app>.app I zip the package, notarize and staple it ditto -c -k --keepParent "<app>.app" "<app>..zip" xcrun notarytool submit <app>.zip --keychain-profile “”<credents> --wait xcrun stapler staple <app>.app After that I finish creating signed and notarized .dmg/.pkg. hdiutil create -volname “<app>” -srcfolder “<app>.app/" -ov -format UDZO ./<app>.dmg codesign --force --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.dmg xcrun notarytool submit <app>.dmg --keychain-profile "<credentials>" --wait xcrun stapler staple <app>.dmg Then when I move the .dmg to a clean system, open the .dmg, move the .app to the Applications folder, the attempt to run it fails with “The application “” can’t be opened.”. When I look into the console, the gatekeeper disallows the launch job with the message:
 86127 debug ProvisioningProfiles taskgated-helper ConfigurationProfiles entitlements: { "com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension" = ( "packet-tunnel-provider-systemextension" ); "com.apple.developer.system-extension.install" = 1; "com.apple.developer.team-identifier" = <teamid>; "keychain-access-groups" = ( “<teamid>.<app>.AppGroup" ); } com.apple.ManagedClient
<app>: Unsatisfied entitlements: com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension, keychain-access-groups, com.apple.developer.system-extension.install, com.apple.developer.team-identifier LAUNCH: Runningboard launch of <app> <private> returned RBSRequestErrorFailed, error Error Domain=RBSRequestErrorDomain Code=5 "Launch failed." UserInfo={NSLocalizedFailureReason=Launch failed., NSUnderlyingError=0x600001a25830 {Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=153 "Unknown error: 153" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Launchd job spawn failed}}}, so returning -10810

 I went through all possible formats (macOS-Style and iOS-Style App Group IDs) and combinations of appgroups according to the post “App Groups: macOS vs iOS: Working Towards Harmony”. But none of those work for me. The weird part is that when I try the same steps on different developer account, I am able to get the app running. What can be wrong?
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305
Jul ’25
Binary is improperly signed but only on macOS 11
Hi all, I’ve run into a signing/entitlements problem that shows up only on Big Sur (11.x). The very same .app launches perfectly on Monterey (12), Ventura (13), Sonoma (14 / 14.5) and Sequoia (15). Failure on macOS 11 com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (application.app.myapp.exams.566312.566318[1602]): removing service since it exited with consistent failure – OS_REASON_CODESIGNING | When validating …/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app/Contents/MacOS/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1: Code has restricted entitlements, but the validation of its code signature failed. Unsatisfied Entitlements: Binary is improperly signed. Launching from Terminal: open -a "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" kLSNoLaunchPermissionErr (-10826) | Launchd job spawn failed with error: 153 What I’ve already checked # signature itself codesign -dvvv "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" # => valid, Authority = Developer ID Application, runtime enabled # full deep/strict verification codesign --verify --deep --strict -vvv "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" # => “satisfies its Designated Requirement” # Gatekeeper assessment spctl --assess --type execute --verbose=4 "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" # => accepted (override security disabled) # embedded provisioning profile matches bundle ID codesign -d --entitlements :- "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" | plutil -p - security cms -D -i "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app/Contents/embedded.provisionprofile" \ | plutil -extract Entitlements xml1 -o - # => both show the AAC entitlement and everything looks in order # notarization ticket stapler validate "/Users/admin/Downloads/MyAppNameBlurred 3.13.1.app" # => “The validate action worked!” Deployment target: MACOSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET = 11.0 Entitlement added: com.apple.developer.automatic-assessment-configuration = true Provisioning profile: generated this year via Developer ID, includes the assessment entitlement and nothing else unusual. Runtime code: we call AEAssessmentSession's network configuration part only on 12 + (guarded with @available(macOS 12.0, *)). Has anyone hit this mismatch on 11.x? Could Big Sur be expecting something older or idk? Any pointers appreciated! Thanks!
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336
Jul ’25
Clarification and help with the certificate.
I am a complete novice and I find that I cannot restore or delete the “Apple Development” certificate (I only use it for signing). From what I understand, you need to be in a program to manage certificates, but I have no intention of distributing any applications and, from my point of view, it makes no sense to pay. Am I wrong or am I doing something wrong? Notes: This happened after I installed Tahoe on a new installation. I was able to restore it using a copy of the keychains folder I had from Sequoia. Xcode (Apple Accounts - Manage Certificates) now shows me two certificates, indicating that one is not in the keychain and cannot be deleted.
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395
Sep ’25
Problem adding Call Directory capability
I added a extension called Call Directory to an IOS app as we want to call blocking and caller id. I was able to add App Groups to both runner and CallDirectory. I cannot see of add Call Directory capability. Am I missing something. I added the extension through the Call Directory Target template. If I try to add this to CallDirectory.enitlements manually com.apple.developer.callkit.call-directory call-blocking caller-identification i recieve this signing error. Provisioning profile "iOS Team Provisioning Profile: "" doesn't include the com.apple.developer.callkit.call-directory entitlement. I cannot add Call Directory to an identifier in Apple Developer either.
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577
Aug ’25
Gatekeeper stops directly distributed MacOS app with Network Extension
Is it possible to directly distribute a macOS app with a Developer ID Certificate that belongs to a different team? I am trying to resolve issues that arise when distributing a macOS app with a Network Extension (Packet Tunnel) outside the App Store using a Developer ID Certificate from a different team than the app’s provisioning profiles and entitlements. I started by attempting Direct Distribution in Xcode with automatic signing. However, it fails with the following message: Provisioning profile "Mac Team Direct Provisioning Profile: ” failed qualification checks: Profile doesn't match the entitlements file's value for the com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension entitlement. I suspect the issue is that the provisioning profile allows "packet-tunnel-provider-systemextension", whereas the entitlements generated by Xcode contain "packet-tunnel-provider". When I manually modify the .entitlements file to include the -systemextension suffix, the project fails to build because Xcode does not recognize the modified entitlement. If there is a workaround for this issue, please let me know. Due to these issues, I resorted to manually creating a signed and notarized app. My process is as follows: Export the .app from the Xcode archive. Since the exported .app does not contain the necessary entitlements or provisioning profile for direct distribution, I replace Contents/embedded.provisioningprofile in both the .app and the .appex network extension. Sign the app and its components in the following order: codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app/Contents/Frameworks/<fw>.framework/ codesign --force --options runtime --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>"<app>.app/Contents/PlugIns/<netext>.appex/Contents/Frameworks/<fw>.framework/Versions/A/<fw> codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements dist-vpn.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app/Contents/PlugIns/<netext>.appex/ codesign --force --options runtime --entitlements dist.entitlements --timestamp --sign "Developer ID Application: <name>" <app>.app Verify the code signature: codesign --verify --deep --strict --verbose=4 <app>.app - <app>.app: valid on disk - <app>.app: satisfies its Designated Requirement Create a ZIP archive using: ditto -c -k --sequesterRsrc --keepParent <app>.app <app>.zip Notarize the app with notarytool and staple it. The notarization completes successfully with errors: nil. Package the notarized app into a DMG, notarize, and staple the DMG. The app runs successfully on the development machine. However, when moved to another machine and placed in /Applications, it fails to open. Inspecting Console.app reveals Gatekeeper is blocking the launch:
 taskgated-helper <bundleid>: Unsatisfied entitlements: com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension, com.apple.developer.team-identifier taskgated-helper entitlements: { "com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension" = ("packet-tunnel-provider-systemextension"); "com.apple.developer.team-identifier" = <teamid>; } As mentioned earlier, the Developer ID Certificate used for signing belongs to a different team. We are a third-party developer and do not have access to the Developer ID Certificate of the team assigned as the team-identifier. When I changed the bundle identifier (app ID), team, entitlements, and provisioning profiles to match the team associated with the Developer ID Certificate, the app worked. My question is:
 Is this failure caused by using a Developer ID Certificate from a different team, or should it still work if the provisioning profiles and entitlements are correctly set? Could there be an issue elsewhere in the provisioning profiles or entitlements for the original app ID?
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575
Jun ’25
Can't fix "Provisioning profile doesn't include com.apple.InAppPurchase entitlement" even after resetting everything
Hi everyone, I’ve been struggling for days with a recurring issue in my iOS app build. The build fails with the following error: Provisioning profile "iOS Team Provisioning Profile: com.myapp.bundleid" doesn't include the com.apple.InAppPurchase entitlement. Here’s what I’ve already tried: Created a new Bundle ID with correct capabilities (In-App Purchase, Push Notifications, Sign in with Apple). Created a new provisioning profile manually from Apple Developer Console. Used EAS CLI (Expo) and Xcode to regenerate all certificates and provisioning profiles. Ensured that the In-App Purchase capability is enabled in the App ID (it's greyed out but enabled). Made sure all subscriptions and products in App Store Connect are “Ready to Submit”. Followed all steps from RevenueCat and Apple documentation. Cleaned entitlements in .entitlements file and tried both and variations. Tried building both locally and with EAS – same error every time. Sent multiple tickets to Apple Developer Support, but no helpful reply yet. Extra Notes: I'm using react-native-purchases and RevenueCat, already integrated and working before this started. The error began randomly; before that, I was able to build successfully with in-app purchases. Even creating a completely fresh app from scratch results in the same entitlement missing error. Has anyone faced this exact problem where the provisioning profile fails to include com.apple.InAppPurchase, even though everything is correctly set up? Any help or insights would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
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409
Jul ’25
Local DriverKit development blocked by provisioning profile requirement
Hi, I am working on a personal HIDDriverKit project. The documentation suggests that you do not need the entitlements from Apple to do local development - that all you need to do is turn of SIP, enable developer mode, and turn signing to "Sign to Run Locally". However, I have followed all of these steps, and am still running into the error that to build, I need to have a provisioning profile with the DriverKit (development) feature (MacOS 15.2 Xcode 16.2). Am I missing something here regarding the steps for local development? Does one need to request a development version of the entitlements even for local development? Do I need a paid developer account to do this? Thank-you in advance.
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622
Mar ’25
Notarising two builds of the same app
I have built my application for arm and x64 so I have two files called DeepSkyStacker.app in different directories. I have followed the instructions to notarise the arm version of the app, but an concerned about what I should do to notarise the other one - do I just zip that up and then run: xcrun notarytool submit "DeepSkyStacker.zip" --keychain-profile "Notary Profile for DeepSkyStacker" --wait xcrun stapler staple DeepSkyStacker.app again or will that mess everything up? Related to that can I use the Notary Profile I created for DeepSkyStacker to notarise other apps that are part of the same product (DeepSkyStackerLive and DeepSkyStackerCL)?? Thanks David
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156
Apr ’25
Legacy Team ID prevents adding AppClip
My iOS app was created with a legacy Team ID in 2011. When I try to add an AppClip to the app, the Team ID on the AppClip is the new Team ID. Xcode prevents the build from completing. The com.apple.developer.parent-application-identifiers entitlement (null) of an App Clip must match the application-identifier entitlement ('TYXXXXXP2.com.it-guy.MyApp') of its containing parent app. How can this be resolved? Can the AppClip Team ID be changed in "Identifiers" on the developer.apple.com?
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222
Jan ’26
Notarization status always stuck on "In Progress..."
Today, I used xcrun notarytool submit to upload my packaged Electron app for macOS—once as a .zip file and once as a .dmg—for Apple notarization. However, both submissions have been stuck at "Current status: In Progress" for several hours now. I’ve also checked the status using xcrun notarytool info, and it keeps returning status: In Progress. Could someone please help me understand what might be going wrong? This is quite urgent—if a technical support engineer or anyone from the team could take a look, I’d be glad to provide the UUIDs of my notarization requests.
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615
Dec ’25
Gatekeeper "bundle_id: NOT_A_BUNDLE" rejection
Context: large platform-agnostic CLI tool built as a handcrafted bundle (not via an Xcode project) that has been successfully codesigned, stapled, and zipped; macOS 14.7.5 syspolicy_check reports App passed all pre-distribution checks and is ready for distribution. However, running the executable in the Terminal produces a "cannot be opened because the developer cannot be verified" popup. The executable does succeed after manually clearing its quarantine attribute. Having worked through Resolving Gatekeeper Problems, the only detail logged in the Console is Adding Gatekeeper denial breadcrumb (direct): ... bundle_id: NOT_A_BUNDLE. Experimental observations: a minimized trivial CLI executable with a similar bundle layout and name successfully executes without being rejected, and oddly, renaming the original bundle from "name" to "name.suffix" allows it to be successfully executed. It's unclear why the bundle name would affect Gatekeeper only in some circumstances, and we'd greatly prefer not to rename the bundle for compatibility reasons, so it would be good if there were some way to get further diagnostic detail leading to a workaround - thank you.
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185
Apr ’25
App Groups Entitlement: ad hoc signing
On MacOS, I know that App Groups (com.apple.security.application-groups) do not require a provisioning profile. I was wondering if it's possible to sign them "ad hoc" and have it work? So maybe use a random TEAMID prefix and have it work? I would only need the app to work locally (for testing), not be distributed in that fashion, of course.
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491
Mar ’25
Notarization Time
Hi, I'm currently at 19 hours waiting for notarization. My dev account is new and this is the first time I'm submitting anything to be notarized. I've gathered from my research that this is normal (unfortunately). I figure the only thing I can do is wait, but is there any way for me to know if I'm waiting for a human to manually review it? I was going to file a support request, but I saw that they won't be responding to any support requests until after their Thanksgiving break, and I assume nobody is manually reviewing notary submissions for the next week+. I attached the submission below, thanks! createdDate: 2025-11-21T21:17:10.082Z id: c9746d42-1dc7-4641-aec1-62c6cedff1a2 name: ***********.zip status: In Progress
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366
Nov ’25