IPA File Extension

What is the .IPA file type?

The .ipa extension is commonly associated with the proprietary iOS App Store Package (IPA) format introduced, developed and maintained by Apple, Inc. for its iOS devices (iPhone, iPod and iPad). An IPA file is a ZIP archive with installation files of an application purchased/downloaded from the Apple's online AppStore.

Software distributed as .ipa files can only be installed on an iOS device and is often copy-protected with the Apple's FairPlay DRM technology. Also, IPA distribution archives usually come signed with a digital signature. This way, any change in the archive's contents would fail the integrity check and invalidate the .ipa archive, making it impossible to install.

In both Windows and MacOS, IPA files are handled by iTunes. There are ways to install a modified .ipa application into an iOS device bypassing iTunes, however, it requires the use of so called 'jail-break' utilities and may be illegal.

Contents of an .ipa archive can be viewed in any ZIP-supporting archive manager, sometimes by a temporary change of the .ipa extension to .zip.

Software to open or convert IPA files

iTunes by Apple Inc.

 

VoiceOver Kit by Apple Inc.

 

iTunes

 

MoboMarket For iOS by Mobo

 

MoboRobo by MoboRobo Inc.

 

Free File Viewer Pro

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