Spotlight doesn't show my app

KrimsonHart wrote:

Yes sir, it has actually been overnight. I have been trying possible solutions from google from the last couple days. So I am pretty positive that it is not an issue with indexing.

Anyway, reindexing does show a progress bar when you try accessing spotlight, so I am sure that reindexing has ben successful a few times.

Make sure the quarantine flag is not set on the app. Try running the app first, and use that to detect and to clear the quarantine flag, if set here. (see related link, below.)

If not… Download and run EtreCheck, and share the results to the clipboard. Then open a new reply here, and press the additional text button—the button that looks like a printed page—to get a text input box big enough to paste the hardware and software configuration report here, and paste and post that report here.

There’s something seemingly odd with your Mac.

This all assuming it’s not the quarantine flag, and assuming the location you’re building into or are copying into is not simply blocked by Spotlight. And /Applications is not usually blocked.

Related: https://eclecticlight.co/2017/12/11/xattr-com-apple-quarantine-the-quarantine-flag/

MrHoffman wrote:

Also: https://theevilbit.github.io/posts/macos_persistence_spotlight_importers/ (an intro to the same importer stuff, but for different purposes than verification)

That's just the client API for spotlight. I'm working on one right now for my app. The idea is that if someone tries to do a Spotlight search for some developer name listed in the new Ventura "background apps" settings, it will return a document where I've printed out that developer name. Then they can cross-reference the name and see exactly what file they need to look at. Otherwise, those developer names never occur anywhere on the system. My app extracts those using the low-level security API and stores it in a document. The Spotlight importer reads the document (which is just a gzipped XML file), finds the developer names, and sends them to Spotlight to be indexed.

The key part, as far as the OP is concerned, is that part where it reads the document for information to add to Spotlight. In my case, I designed the document so I know how to parse it. It's the same with Apple. But Apple is a big company. The team that wrote the Spotlight importer for apps is different than the team that executes apps. They have a much more narrow concept of what constitutes an "app". But their implementation is not documented anywhere.

The OP could compare a valid, "hello world" app generated with both cmake and Xcode, learn cmake internals, and submit a patch, and probably in the process learn whatever magic cmake setting was missing. Then again, an easier option might be to just use Xcode. As added benefit, the Xcode app isn't going to break on the next OS version update.

This misbehavior is likely not related to app development.

If you’re really still using macOS 11.0 as per the footer, apply the current update macOS 11.7.2, or (if your Mac supports it) the current Monterey or Ventura.

If the footer here is bogus or if the “wrong” Mac was selected when posting, rebuild the Spotlight index:

Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac - Apple Support

Did you also try following the Spotlight rebuild directions I’d provided?

This: Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac - Apple Support

The command-line command shown in your reply is not the command used to rebuild Spotlight.

This is:

sudo mdutil -E /

MrHoffman wrote:

So if you build a “Hello World” app using Swift and Xcode and then place that in Applications, is that found?

The OP has already said that apps make by Xcode work normally.

So what is different about this current app?

OP is using cmake, which apparently can't generate a properly structured app. It may be enough to execute, but the Spotlight importer doesn't recognize it as an app.

etresoft wrote:

OP is using cmake, which apparently can't generate a properly structured app. It may be enough to execute, but the Spotlight importer doesn't recognize it as an app.

Yep. That’ll do it. I don’t know of a lint or analyzer tool for app bundles, either.

Did you wait an hour or so, before testing again? The Spotlight rebuild takes a variable amount of time, based on storage speed and quantity of data involved. It is not, however, instantaneous.

Have you cleared the quarantine by trying to run the spp?

MrHoffman wrote:

I don’t know of a lint or analyzer tool for app bundles, either.

There is Apparency, but it's not really what you are talking about. I don't know of any tool to validate an app for Spotlight.

I used to answer questions on the Developer forums for people who couldn't get Notarization to work. It was always the same thing - some custom build tool and various open-source frameworks. I would try to get people to look at any other app, compare the structure of that app, and compare what they are generating. Total non-starter. They wouldn't even consider that. Curiously, Apple engineers didn't seem to care much. I think they were just trying to get DTS tickets. But Apple is way too lenient about launching apps. That confuses people when the app runs, but then won't notarize, or won't run after notarizing, or won't register with Spotlight.

Then the hackers find some security exploit due to a maliciously constructed app. Apple doesn't care about that either because they can patch the bug and drive more updates. But obviously the Spotlight importer team has a different opinion about what constitutes a searchable app.

KrimsonHart wrote:

All other third-party apps show up properly. Apps that I bootstrap with Xcode also shows up properly. Only this app that we have bootstrapped with cmake isn't showing up.

And what does that say?

Your Spotlight is definitely unhappy with something installed here.

Are you trying to use Docker or MacFUSE within this whole mix?

I’d wipe this ”enterprise” configuration, start over with with a normal install (without Docker, FUSE, Java, the add-on VPN, and UI customization tools), then build up from there and figure out what broke things.