iCloud Keychain Synchronization

Overview

iCloud Keychain allows your app’s passwords and credentials to sync automatically across a user’s devices. SAMKeychain provides full support for this feature, giving you control over which items sync and which remain local.

Understanding Synchronization

When enabled, iCloud Keychain synchronization:

Syncs keychain items across all devices signed into the same iCloud account
Happens automatically in the background
Is end-to-end encrypted by Apple
Works on iOS 7+, macOS 10.9+, tvOS, and watchOS

Synchronization is optional and controlled on a per-item basis. You can choose which passwords sync and which stay on the device.

Checking Synchronization Availability

Before using synchronization features, check if they’re available:

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE

if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
    NSLog(@"iCloud Keychain synchronization is available");
    // Use synchronization features
} else {
    NSLog(@"iCloud Keychain synchronization is not available");
    // Fall back to local-only storage
}

#else
    NSLog(@"Compiled without synchronization support");
#endif

Always check isSynchronizationAvailable at runtime, even if compiled with iOS 7+ SDK. Users may have iCloud Keychain disabled in Settings.

Synchronization Modes

SAMKeychain provides three synchronization modes:

Mode	Description	Use Case
`SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes`	Item will sync to iCloud	User credentials that should be available on all devices
`SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo`	Item will never sync	Device-specific data or sensitive local credentials
`SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny`	Query matches both synced and non-synced items	Fetching items regardless of sync status

Enabling Synchronization

Using SAMKeychainQuery

The recommended approach for controlling synchronization:

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE

if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
    query.account = @"[email protected]";
    query.password = @"myPassword";
    
    // Enable synchronization
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
    
    NSError *error = nil;
    if ([query save:&error]) {
        NSLog(@"Password saved and will sync to iCloud");
    } else {
        NSLog(@"Failed to save: %@", error);
    }
}

#endif

Storing Non-Syncing Passwords

For device-specific credentials:

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE

if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
    query.account = @"deviceToken";
    query.passwordData = deviceTokenData;
    
    // Disable synchronization - keep on this device only
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
    
    [query save:nil];
}

#endif

Fetching Synced Items

Fetching Any Item (Synced or Not)

SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"MyApp";
query.account = @"[email protected]";

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
    // Match both synced and non-synced items
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny;
}
#endif

if ([query fetch:nil]) {
    NSLog(@"Password: %@", query.password);
}

Fetching Only Synced Items

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE

SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"MyApp";
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;

NSArray *syncedItems = [query fetchAll:nil];
NSLog(@"Found %lu synced items", (unsigned long)syncedItems.count);

#endif

Fetching Only Local Items

#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE

SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"MyApp";
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;

NSArray *localItems = [query fetchAll:nil];
NSLog(@"Found %lu local-only items", (unsigned long)localItems.count);

#endif

When to Use Sync vs. Non-Sync

Use synchronization for user credentials

Enable sync for passwords users expect to work on all their devices:

// User login credentials - should sync
SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
query.account = userEmail;
query.password = userPassword;
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
[query save:nil];

Disable sync for device-specific data

Keep device-specific data local:

// Device token - should NOT sync
SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
query.account = @"deviceToken";
query.passwordData = pushToken;
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
[query save:nil];

Disable sync for highly sensitive data

For extra security, keep sensitive data on one device:

// Encryption keys - should NOT sync
SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
query.account = @"encryptionKey";
query.passwordData = encryptionKeyData;
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
[query save:nil];

Sync vs. ThisDeviceOnly Accessibility

Don’t confuse synchronization with accessibility attributes:

// These are DIFFERENT concepts:

// 1. Accessibility (when the item can be accessed)
[SAMKeychain setAccessibilityType:kSecAttrAccessibleWhenUnlockedThisDeviceOnly];

// 2. Synchronization (whether the item syncs to iCloud)
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;

Accessibility with “ThisDeviceOnly”: Item never syncs, regardless of sync mode

// This will NEVER sync because of accessibility type
[SAMKeychain setAccessibilityType:kSecAttrAccessibleWhenUnlockedThisDeviceOnly];

SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
query.service = @"MyApp";
query.account = @"user";
query.password = @"password";
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes; // Has no effect!
[query save:nil];

Items with ThisDeviceOnly accessibility attributes will never sync to iCloud, even if synchronization is enabled.

Migrating Between Sync States

Converting Local Item to Synced

- (void)convertToSynced:(NSString *)account {
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if (![SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        return;
    }
    
    // Fetch existing local item
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"MyApp";
    query.account = account;
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
    
    NSError *error = nil;
    if ([query fetch:&error]) {
        NSString *password = query.password;
        
        // Delete local item
        [query deleteItem:nil];
        
        // Re-save with sync enabled
        SAMKeychainQuery *syncQuery = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
        syncQuery.service = @"MyApp";
        syncQuery.account = account;
        syncQuery.password = password;
        syncQuery.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
        
        if ([syncQuery save:&error]) {
            NSLog(@"Converted to synced item");
        }
    }
#endif
}

Converting Synced Item to Local

- (void)convertToLocal:(NSString *)account {
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if (![SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        return;
    }
    
    // Fetch synced item
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"MyApp";
    query.account = account;
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
    
    if ([query fetch:nil]) {
        NSString *password = query.password;
        
        // Delete synced item
        [query deleteItem:nil];
        
        // Re-save as local only
        SAMKeychainQuery *localQuery = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
        localQuery.service = @"MyApp";
        localQuery.account = account;
        localQuery.password = password;
        localQuery.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
        
        [localQuery save:nil];
        NSLog(@"Converted to local-only item");
    }
#endif
}

Common Use Cases

User Preferences: Sync Toggle

- (void)savePassword:(NSString *)password 
          forAccount:(NSString *)account
         shouldSync:(BOOL)shouldSync {
    
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
    query.account = account;
    query.password = password;
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable] && shouldSync) {
        query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
    } else {
        query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
    }
#endif
    
    NSError *error = nil;
    if (![query save:&error]) {
        NSLog(@"Failed to save: %@", error);
    }
}

// Usage
BOOL userWantsSync = [[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] 
                     boolForKey:@"syncPasswordsToiCloud"];

[self savePassword:password 
        forAccount:account 
       shouldSync:userWantsSync];

Syncing OAuth Tokens

- (void)saveOAuthTokens:(NSDictionary *)tokens forAccount:(NSString *)account {
    // Access token - short-lived, can sync
    NSString *accessToken = tokens[@"access_token"];
    if (accessToken) {
        SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
        query.service = @"com.company.MyApp.oauth.access";
        query.account = account;
        query.password = accessToken;
        
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
        if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
            query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
        }
#endif
        [query save:nil];
    }
    
    // Refresh token - long-lived, definitely should sync
    NSString *refreshToken = tokens[@"refresh_token"];
    if (refreshToken) {
        SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
        query.service = @"com.company.MyApp.oauth.refresh";
        query.account = account;
        query.password = refreshToken;
        
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
        if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
            query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
        }
#endif
        [query save:nil];
    }
}

App Extensions and Shared Credentials

// In your main app
- (void)saveSharedCredentials:(NSString *)password forAccount:(NSString *)account {
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"com.company.MyApp.shared";
    query.account = account;
    query.password = password;
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_ACCESS_GROUP_AVAILABLE
    // Share with app extension
    query.accessGroup = @"com.company.shared";
#endif
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    // Also sync to other devices
    if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
    }
#endif
    
    [query save:nil];
}

// In your app extension
- (NSString *)fetchSharedPassword:(NSString *)account {
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"com.company.MyApp.shared";
    query.account = account;
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_ACCESS_GROUP_AVAILABLE
    query.accessGroup = @"com.company.shared";
#endif
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny;
    }
#endif
    
    if ([query fetch:nil]) {
        return query.password;
    }
    return nil;
}

Audit Sync Status

- (void)auditSyncStatus {
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if (![SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        NSLog(@"Sync not available");
        return;
    }
    
    // Get all synced items
    SAMKeychainQuery *syncedQuery = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    syncedQuery.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
    syncedQuery.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
    NSArray *syncedItems = [syncedQuery fetchAll:nil];
    
    // Get all local items
    SAMKeychainQuery *localQuery = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    localQuery.service = @"com.company.MyApp";
    localQuery.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;
    NSArray *localItems = [localQuery fetchAll:nil];
    
    NSLog(@"Synced items: %lu", (unsigned long)syncedItems.count);
    NSLog(@"Local items: %lu", (unsigned long)localItems.count);
    
    // Log details
    for (NSDictionary *item in syncedItems) {
        NSLog(@"  Synced: %@", item[kSAMKeychainAccountKey]);
    }
    
    for (NSDictionary *item in localItems) {
        NSLog(@"  Local: %@", item[kSAMKeychainAccountKey]);
    }
#endif
}

Best Practices

Always Check Availability

// ✅ Good: Check before using sync features
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
    query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
}
#endif

// ❌ Bad: Assuming sync is available
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;

Provide Fallback Behavior

- (void)savePasswordWithSync:(NSString *)password forAccount:(NSString *)account {
    SAMKeychainQuery *query = [[SAMKeychainQuery alloc] init];
    query.service = @"MyApp";
    query.account = account;
    query.password = password;
    
#ifdef SAMKEYCHAIN_SYNCHRONIZATION_AVAILABLE
    if ([SAMKeychainQuery isSynchronizationAvailable]) {
        query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
        NSLog(@"Saving with iCloud sync enabled");
    } else {
        NSLog(@"iCloud sync not available, saving locally");
    }
#else
    NSLog(@"Built without sync support, saving locally");
#endif
    
    [query save:nil];
}

Use SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny for Fetching

// ✅ Good: Fetch regardless of sync status
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny;
[query fetch:nil];

// ❌ Bad: Might miss items with different sync status
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;
[query fetch:nil]; // Won't find local-only items!

Document Sync Decisions

// Good: Clear comments about sync decisions

// Synced: User expects this to work on all devices
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeYes;

// Not synced: Device-specific push token
query.synchronizationMode = SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeNo;

Next Steps

Advanced Queries

Learn more about SAMKeychainQuery features

Managing Accounts

List and manage keychain accounts

Access Groups

Share credentials between apps

API Reference

Complete SAMKeychainQuery documentation

Getting Started

Core Concepts

API Reference

Guides

Platform Support

Migration & Support

iCloud Keychain Synchronization

Overview

Understanding Synchronization

Checking Synchronization Availability

Synchronization Modes

Enabling Synchronization

Using SAMKeychainQuery

Storing Non-Syncing Passwords

Fetching Synced Items

Fetching Any Item (Synced or Not)

Fetching Only Synced Items

Fetching Only Local Items

When to Use Sync vs. Non-Sync

Sync vs. ThisDeviceOnly Accessibility

Migrating Between Sync States

Converting Local Item to Synced

Converting Synced Item to Local

Common Use Cases

User Preferences: Sync Toggle

Syncing OAuth Tokens

App Extensions and Shared Credentials

Audit Sync Status

Best Practices

Always Check Availability

Provide Fallback Behavior

Use SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny for Fetching

Document Sync Decisions

Next Steps

Advanced Queries

Managing Accounts

Access Groups

API Reference

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Getting Started

Core Concepts

API Reference

Guides

Platform Support

Migration & Support

​Overview

​Understanding Synchronization

​Checking Synchronization Availability

​Synchronization Modes

​Enabling Synchronization

​Using SAMKeychainQuery

​Storing Non-Syncing Passwords

​Fetching Synced Items

​Fetching Any Item (Synced or Not)

​Fetching Only Synced Items

​Fetching Only Local Items

​When to Use Sync vs. Non-Sync

​Sync vs. ThisDeviceOnly Accessibility

​Migrating Between Sync States

​Converting Local Item to Synced

​Converting Synced Item to Local

​Common Use Cases

​User Preferences: Sync Toggle

​Syncing OAuth Tokens

​App Extensions and Shared Credentials

​Audit Sync Status

​Best Practices

​Always Check Availability

​Provide Fallback Behavior

​Use SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny for Fetching

​Document Sync Decisions

​Next Steps

Advanced Queries

Managing Accounts

Access Groups

API Reference

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Understanding Synchronization

Checking Synchronization Availability

Synchronization Modes

Enabling Synchronization

Using SAMKeychainQuery

Storing Non-Syncing Passwords

Fetching Synced Items

Fetching Any Item (Synced or Not)

Fetching Only Synced Items

Fetching Only Local Items

When to Use Sync vs. Non-Sync

Sync vs. ThisDeviceOnly Accessibility

Migrating Between Sync States

Converting Local Item to Synced

Converting Synced Item to Local

Common Use Cases

User Preferences: Sync Toggle

Syncing OAuth Tokens

App Extensions and Shared Credentials

Audit Sync Status

Best Practices

Always Check Availability

Provide Fallback Behavior

Use SAMKeychainQuerySynchronizationModeAny for Fetching

Document Sync Decisions

Next Steps