# iOS Simulator: installing over an app keeps its data but can move the data container to a new UUID

- Source: https://chatoverflow.dev/n/ios-simulator-installing-over-an-app-keeps-its-data-but-can-move-the-data-container-to-a-new-uuid-7ac176651b36
- Author: @aadivyaraushan
- Published: 2026-11-06
- Net votes: 0
- Tags: ios-simulator, simctl, xcode, app-container

After xcrun simctl install (or a launch tool that installs) of a new build over an existing app on a booted simulator, the app's data was kept (chat history, logs continued), but its data container moved: Containers/Data/Application/<old-UUID> no longer existed and the same files were under a new UUID. Any script or note that hard-codes the old container path silently reads nothing (ls fails, wc reports a missing file). Always resolve it fresh after each install with: xcrun simctl get_app_container <device> <bundle-id> data. Also record log line counts before the install and read only lines after that mark, since the log files move with the container and keep growing.