I sidled a reddit client on my iPhone. I will never do it again

I have a confession to do: I am a disproportionate reddit roller. But my viewing experience of choices is not the official Reddit iOS app, but a fantastic third-party client named Apollo.

The only problem is that it is not found in the App Store anymore. Apollo was forcibly closed in June 2023 in what some Redditors considered a bullying attempt from Reddit HQ to force competition to the platform’s official iOS app. Like so many others, I was destroyed when Apollo shut down. With an ad -free interface and a smoother and more stable experience than the official app, not to mention. Lots of quality of life features, such as previews of interconnected images, in-app movements, a variety of customization options-it was the kind of Reddit client that felt like it belonged to an iPhone.

Fortunately, I had another option. Apollo had created such a loyal fanbase of users – closed to one million daily active users at the time it closed – that many people stepped in to make Apollo available long after supporting officially ended. That meant I could side the Apollo on my iPhone and restore it to its past glory.

Or I thought. The problem that I found out is that sideloading can be a monumental pain. I am happy to say that I now have Apollo working on my iPhone again, but the whole process was and is such a continuous trouble and I have a new appreciation of Apple’s fight against sideloading.

A long and difficult installation

The process of sideloke Apollo is long and intricate and involves hacks, solutions and janky workflows. If you are considering doing it yourself, you need a lot of time, perseverance and above all patience. If you want to follow in my footsteps I will guide you through it and there are many guides and Reddit threads full of useful information. But this is definitely not a beginner process and it requires a lot of patience, so strap in because it’s a bumpy trip.

To start, I decided to use an app called ALTSTORE to oversee the sideloading process, and one called side sort to actually install Apollo and keep it updated (for this to work, I would need both apps). In case of Apollo (and I’m sure many other side -loaded apps) you need to update them every seven days to prevent them from expiring. That’s what side sides handling.

So first thing first downloaded and installed altstore on my Mac from the app’s site. I also had to download the side -sized .IPA file – which is an App Store -Package Format used to distribute iOS and iPados apps – and an app called Jitterbugpair (more on this later).

Foundry

I connected my iPhone to my Mac over USB-C and then loaded the side-sized .IPA file on my iPhone using Altstore. This installed side sorts directly on my iPhone, no App Store required. So far, so good.

When all this was done, I was then asked to enter my Apple ID. There are reports that Apple may be locking accounts that side -key apps in this way, so it is recommended that you use a burning Apple ID. This was just the first of many warning signs that this whole process would be far more involved than your daily app installation.

Next, I had to go to the settings app on my iPhone to approve the new “Developer app” that was added to my phone, then enabled developer mode. Then I had to open Jitterbugpair on my Mac, which generated a mating file so that side sack can talk to your device. I uploaded it to iCloud on my Mac. Back on my iPhone I loaded the mating file in the side sort.

Remember, I wasn’t even halfway done at this point. Now I needed a custom VPN. This does not connect to an external server, but essentially lets my device connect to itself over a VPN required for sidalte to update itself and any apps I have sideloaded. Then I opened side sides and signed with my burner Apple ID. Then I had to update the side saver, which took a few minutes – if it did not get stuck, that is, which it often did.

Then I downloaded a .IPA file of the last version of Apollo before it was closed. This is available on GitHub; I downloaded it to my Mac and uploaded it to iCloud. Then I was able to sidewalk it in the side sort that installed Apollo on my phone.

Foundry

Finally, when I was logged into my Reddit account in Apollo, I had to create a custom “app” for Reddit and Imgur to get a client IID that allowed Apollo to talk to Reddit and IMGur APIs. Then I was finally ready to waste the rest of my day rolling.

If you’ve reached it so far, congratulations! You may just have enough patience to sideline an app on your iPhone.

But there is more, because of course there is. This meeting process only got Apollo on my phone in the first place-because of the way this iteration of sideload works-with the Rinky-Dink combination of Burner IDs and an expired app (plus much more)-expires Apollo after seven days.

You can tell side sides to update it, but usually this should be done manually. I don’t have the patience for it, so I created a custom workflow in the shortcut app to automatically update side sides and Apollo every night when I sleep. This works well most of the time, but requires me to have both Wi-Fi and the custom VPN connected.

The fight is real

Even when I successfully sit with Apollo on my phone, there were (and still are) several annoying problems to contend with:

• While Wi-Fi and VPN need to be connected to your apps can update in side sacks will very often side saver will refuse to update even when everything is present and correct.
• Sidestore’s Guide Links to a direct download to Jitterbugpair commanding line process, but my Mac automatically blocked and refused to run it. I had to download the Mother Jitterbug app and generate a mating file in a different way.
• Sidestores required update process was often stuck halfway, which means it would never be able to automatically update itself and had to reinstall.
• Since the process is (clearly) confusing, I would sometimes accidentally sidewalk an app using Altstore instead of side sacking. This meant that the side sort could not update the app, which in turn meant it would expire after a week.
• Updating your iOS device will sometimes – but not always – break side sides, which means you need to do the entire installation process again.

And of course, there is the problem that you download random apps and files from the Internet, none of which has reviewed the App Store review process.

I am such a reddit -dependent that for me this intricate process was ultimately worth it. I have my favorite reddit client back and don’t have to use the official app anymore. But I hope I never have to do it again.

Apple is right

More than anything else, the whole rigmarole has given me a new appreciation of the App Store and a fresh understanding of why Apple is against sidelines. The App Store gets a lot of flak for its rules and rules, but it makes download and running apps remarkably easy. You don’t even have to think about it – you just download an app and there is the one that works perfectly on your device.

SideLoading – at least in my case – was the polar opposite of it. It required all kinds of winding and crisp steps, and even when you follow them to the letter, things can and will go wrong. Granted, it would be different if Apple allowed side load – or “alternative app stores” as it does in the EU – but even where it is allowed, the process is far more intricate than installing an app from the App Store.

Foundry

I can see why Apple hates all this. The company’s products are intended to be simple and easy to use – so simple, in fact, that a grandparent could download an iPhone and install an app. Do you really think that your grandparents or even your parents would have the place to install an expired app using a sidelet process, burn Apple IDs and mating files, and then set up a custom shortcut to make sure everything continues to run without expiring?

Not only does sideloading against Apple’s penchant for simplicity, but it has tremendous potential to frustrate the company’s users. And which user will have a favorable perception of your product if an important part of it – with installing apps – can be so annoying? (And that is not to say anything about the potential of viruses and malware.)

That said, none of it will prevent me from using Apollo. I am prepared to put up with the stinking sideline process as long as it takes. But I can definitely understand why people want to avoid clear – and why Apple has the opposite of it so long.