1 – Introduction / Overview
In this article you will learn how to integrate BuddyBoss with LearnDash LMS and publish a course based subscription app on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
To fully integrate BuddyBoss it can be confusing.
First we need to integrate BuddyBoss and LearnDash, then we need to integrate BuddyBoss with BuddyBoss App, and finally integrate BuddyBoss App with Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Confusing, I know!
BuddyBoss’s documentation is a bit confusing and incomplete which is why we’ve decided to make our own to make it easier for you!
2 – Requirements
BuddyBoss Subscription – $228 annually (includes the full BuddyBoss package)
LearnDash – $159 annually
iTunes Developer account – $99 annually
Google Play developer account – $25 one time fee
3 – Integrating LearnDash with BuddyBoss App – Step by Step Guide
Install LearnDash LMS
1 – After purchasing the LearnDash subscription go ahead and download the LearnDash LMS plugin for WordPress.
Related: If you need any LearnDash Custom Development we can help!.
2 – Log in to your WordPress website and access the Admin Dashboard.
3 – Go to Plugins > Add New
4 – Click Upload and attach the zip file that you downloaded from LearnDash
5 – Click Activate
Install BuddyBoss
1 – After purchasing BuddyBoss subscription go ahead and download the BuddyBoss package for WordPress.
2 – Log in to your WordPress website and access the Admin Dashboard
3 – Go to Plugins > Add New
4 – Click Upload and attach the zip file that you downloaded from BuddyBoss website
5 – Click Activate
Integrate LearnDash and BuddyBoss
1 – Fist add the license key that you get after purchasing LearnDash by going to:
LearnDash LMS > Settings > LMS License > License settings.
2 – Assign the correct template to work with BuddyBoss by going to:
LearnDash LMS > General > Design & Content Elements > Active Template
3 – Select LearnDash 3.0
4 – Click Save
5 – Finally, go to LearnDash LMS > Courses > Add New and create a course on your website.
Listing Your App on the Apple App Store
Connecting with the Apple App Store
1 – First, go to BuddyBoss App > Connect and add your BuddyBoss App ID and your BuddyBoss App Key
2 – Go to BuddyBoss App > Configure and enter the App Icon Name and click Save Changes.
3 – Go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > iOS Settings
4 – Login to App Store Connect using the Apple ID you created your Apple Developer account with
5 – Click on Users and Access
6 – Click on the Keys tab
7 – Click on the + symbol next to Active
8 – Enter a Name
This will be used only as a reference inside your Apple Developer account
9 – Select Admin in the Access dropdown
The Admin role is recommended so that the BuddyBoss App plugin has sufficient permissions to perform the actions needed to provide all the features available.
10 – Click on Generate
11 – Click on Download API Key
You’ll only be able to download the key once, so make sure you keep it somewhere safe incase you need to re-enter it again in the future.
12 – Connect Your Apple Developer Account API Key
13 – Upload the API Key you downloaded
14 – Paste your Issuer ID and your Key ID in your BuddyBoss App
15 – Click Connect Account
Your BuddyBoss App will now be connected to your Apple Developer Account.
iOS Configuration
A bundle ID uniquely identifies an app in Apple’s ecosystem.
This means that no two applications can have the same bundle identifier.
To avoid conflicts, Apple encourages developers to use reverse domain name notation, such as “com.domain.appname”.
For example, if your domain is www.fruit.com and your app is called Oranges, you would use com.fruit.oranges as your release app’s Bundle ID.
For your test app’s Bundle ID, you can just add “.test” on the end. For example:
com.fruit.oranges.test
Create Your Bundle IDs
1 – Login to your Apple Developer account using the Apple ID you created you Apple developer account with
2 – Click on Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles
3 – Click on the Identifiers tab
4 – Click on the + symbol next to Identifiers
5 – Create your Release App Bundle ID
6 – Enter a Description, such as “Release App”
7 – Enter your chosen Bundle ID for your Release App
8 – Enable Push Notifications
9 – Enable Sign In with Apple
10 – Click register
11 – Create your Test App Bundle ID(the same way as Bundle ID just add .test in the end)
12 – Enter a Description, such as “Test App”
13 – Enter your chosen Bundle ID for your Test App
14 – Enable Push Notifications
15 – Enable Sign In with Apple
16 – Click Register
*Important: Remember to register your Bundle IDs in your Google Firebase account.
Configure Your App
1 – In your WordPress Admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > iOS Settings
2 – Click the Refresh Bundle IDs button to get all Bundle IDs from your Apple Developer account
3 – Under Release App Bundle ID, select the Bundle ID you created for your Release App from the dropdown
4 – Under Test App Bundle ID, select the Bundle ID you created for your Test App from the dropdown
5 – Under Signing Certificates, check the Generate Certificates box
6 – Under Provisioning Profiles, check the Generate Profiles box
7 – Click Save Changes
App Information
1 – Login to your App Store Connect using the Apple ID you created your Apple Developer account with
2 – Click on My Apps
3 – Click on the + symbol next to Apps
4 – Select New App
5 – Under Platforms, select iOS
6 – Enter a Name for your app
This is how it will appear in the Apple App Store
6 – Enter the Primary Language for your app
7 – Under Bundle ID, select the Release App Bundle ID you created in the previous steps
8 – Enter a SKU for your app
This is a unique ID for your app that is not visible on the App Store
9 – Select the User Access for your app
You only need to select Limited Access if you have apps in App Store Connect that you don’t want certain users to access
10 – Click Create
11 – On the Apps page, click on the app you just created
12 – Under the General section, click on App Information
13 – Under General Information, find and copy the Apple ID for this app
14 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > iOS Settings
15 – In the App Information section, paste your app’s Apple ID into the Apple App ID field.
App Specific Shared Secret
To use in-app products on your iOS app, you need to enter the App-Specific Shared Secret for your release app. This is a unique code to receive receipts for this app’s auto-renewable subscriptions.
1 – Login to your App Store Connect using the Apple ID you created your Apple Developer account with
2 – Click on My Apps
3 – Click on your app
4 – Under the In-App Purchases section, click on Manage
5 – Click on App-Specific Shared Secret
6 – Click on Generate App-Specific Shared Secret
7 – Copy the Shared Secret
8 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > iOS Settings
9 – In the App Information section, paste your app’s Shared Secret into the App Specific Shared Secret field.
Now that your app is configured, you can start generating iOS builds of your BuddyBoss App. In addition, you can now set up In-App Purchases in App Store Connect and sync them with In-App Purchases setup in your BuddyBoss App’s settings.
Connect Google Play Store
Connect Your Google Play App
1 – Login to the Google Play Developer Console using the Google account you created your Google Developer account with.
2 – Click on Create App
3 – Choose a name for your app’s listing
4 – Select the default language your app will use
5 – Select App under the App option
6 – Select whether your app will be Free or Paid
7 – Check the box agreeing to Google’s Developer Program Policies
8 – Check the box agreeing to US export laws
9 – Click Create App
Create your Google Play Developer Service Account Key
10 – In the sidebar, go to Settings > Developers > Api access
11 – Click on Link existing project
12 – In the pop-up, click on the Google Cloud Platform link
13 – Click Create Service Account
14 – Enter a Service account name
15 – Click Create
16 – Under Step2, give the account the Owner role(under Basic)
17 – Click Done
18 – Click the menu icon next to the new service account
19 – Select Manage Keys
20 – From the Add Key drop down, select Create new key
21 – Select JSON
22 – Click Create
23 – Save the Service Account Key to your computer, ready to upload in the BuddyBoss App’s Settings
24 – Go back to the API access page in the Google Play Developer Console
25 – Click the Grant Access link next to the new service account
26 – In the Account Permissions tab, check the following options:
View app information and download bulk reports
View financial data, orders, and cancellation survey responses
Manage orders and subscriptions
Create, edit and delete draft apps
Release to production, exclude devices, and use Play App Signing
Release apps to testing tracks
Manage testing tracks and edit tester lists
Manage store presence
Click the Invite User button
Click the Send Invite Button
27 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > Android Settings
28 – In the Connect Your Google Developer Account Section, upload the Service Account Key you downloaded
29 – Click Connect Account
Your BuddyBoss App will now be connected to your Google Play Developer Account. You can click Disconnect Account to disconnect from this account. For example, if you wanted to change the Service Account Key used or switch to a different account.
Now that you’re connected, you can proceed to complete the App Configuration steps.
Google Play App Store Configuration
1 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > Android Settings
2 – In the App information, enter your chosen Application ID
3 – Click Save Changes
To register your Application ID with Google and prevent other developers from using it, you must create an app in your Google Developer account and upload a build which uses your chosen Application ID.
Important: Remember to register your Application ID in your Google Firebase account.
Before you can generate an Android build of your app which you can use to register your Application ID, you will need to enter your KeyStore Information.
Google requires all developers authenticate their apps with a KeyStore Certificate which will assign your identity to builds of your app.
Generate KeyStore
1 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Tools > Generate KeyStore
2 – Enter a KeyStore password and KeyStore Alias
If you leave these fields blank, these details will be generated for you
3 – Enter the Certificate Information
This is name of the individual or organization signed to this certificate
Only ythe First and Last Name field is required, but it is recommended that you complete all relevant fields
If you are releasing your app as an Organization, you should complete the Organization name
4 – Click Generate
5 – Check the box to confirm you understand you won’t be able to download this KeyStore Certificate again
6 -Click Download
7 – Back-up the ZIP folder with your KeyStore Certificate
Import KeyStore
1 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Configure > Android Settings
2 – Under the KeyStore Information section, click the Import button
3 – Select the zip folder generated by the Generate KeyStore tool
4 – Click Save Changes
With these steps completed, you can generate builds of your Android app.
In order to setup In-App purchases for your Android app, or to publish it to the Google Play Store, you will need to follow the steps below to register your Application ID
Register Application ID
Before you can register your Application ID in your Google Developer account, you will need to have generated a Release App Android build of your app.
Once generated, follow these steps:
1 – Login to your Google Developer account using the Google account you created your Google Developer account with
2 – On the All apps page, click on the app you want to register this Application ID for
3 – Under the Release section, click Production
4 – Click on Create new release
5 – Under App bundles and APKs, click on Upload
6 – Upload the APK file for any build using your chosen Application ID
This must be a release app build
You don’t need to actually submit this release in order to register your Application ID
You can use a different build when you are ready to publish your app
7 – Click Save
Once your Application ID is registered, all future builds of your app must use the same Application ID.
Now that your Application ID is registered, you can now setup In-App Purchases in your Google Developer account and sync them with In-App Purchases setup in your BuddyBoss App’s settings.
Set up Google Firebase(needed for push notifications)
1 – Go to your Google Firebase Console to generate your Firebase Server key required for sending push notifications.
2 – Go to your Google Firebase Console to download the GoogleService-info.plist file for your iOS release app and upload it
3 – Go to your Google Firebase Console to download the GoogleService-Info.plist file for your iOS test app.
4 – Go to your Google Firebase Console to download the GoogleService-Info.json file for your Android release app.
5 – Go to your Google Firebase Console to download the GoogleService-Info.json file for your Android test app.
6 – Click Save Changes.
Build App
1 – Go to BuddyBoss App > Build and click on Request Build.
2 – Select iOS and Android versions.
3 – Select Release App
4 – Click Next Step
5 – Click Send Build Request
Integrate BuddyBoss App with app stores
Apple App Store
1 – In your WP admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Publish > Apple App Store
2 – Complete the Publishing Checklist questionnaire, then click Confirm
Note that you must select Yes to all options to continue as BuddyBoss requires for confirmation in order to do the publishing service request.
3 – Select the Build Version you wish to publish to the Apple App Store then click Confirm build
This build will be uploaded to App Store Connect by the BuddyBoss Publishing Team
4 – Review the App Store Version, then click Confirm VersionSelect the Build Version you wish to publish to the Apple App Store, then click Confirm Build
This build will be uploaded to App Store Connect by the BuddyBoss Publishing Team
You can only publish Release App builds of your iOS app to the Apple App Store
5 – Review the App Store Version, then click Confirm VersionYou need to have fully prepared a new version for release in App Store Connect prior to publishing
If any information if missing from your version, you will need to enter it in App Store Connect and click Check Again
6 – In the Review Options section, select how you want the BuddyBoss Publishing Team to process your publish request:
7 – Do you want BuddyBoss to respond to Apple?
The BuddyBoss Publishing Team can also respond to any requests, questions or rejections from the App Stores until your app is approved. Alternatively, you can respond to Apple yourself.
9 – Finally, click Submit for Review
Google Play Store
1 – In your WordPress admin, go to BuddyBoss App > Publish > Google Play Store
2 – Complete the Publishing Checklist questionnaire, then click Confirm
You must select Yes to all options to continue as all steps in the publishing checklist are required for the BuddyBoss Publishing Team to complete your request
3 – Select the Build Version you wish to publish to the Google Play Store, then click Confirm Build
This build will be uploaded to Google Play Console by the BuddyBoss Publishing Team
You can only publish Release App builds of your Android app to the Google Play Store
In the Google Play Details section:
4 – Enter your Google Developer Account ID
5 – Login to the Google Play Console
6 – In the sidebar, go to Settings > Developer account > Account details
7 – Click Copy ID
8 – Paste it into the Developer ID field
9 – Confirm your Release Name and Release Notes
This will be the latest release in the Production track
10 – Click Confirm Details
