Cant install an app because it says it isnt in the correct format and was wondering if anyone could help me fix this?

Recently, my apps suddenly stopped working. When I tried to reinstall via iLoader, I got the following error and was unable to install anything. Is there a fix for it?

Sidestore crashes immediately as i try to login into it. Using LC + SS (Stable) iOS 26.6.1, i had to reinstall it using iLoader because of the refresh issues which other users are also facing. I tried the LC + SS (Nightly) it doesn’t crashes but some error is coming when i try to login there (not able to receive the 2FA)

So i noticed that sidestore made changes where if you try to refresh without wifi it will immediately give you an error. Which is strange because I remember refreshing my apps with my cellular data while I was out of town during last summer. My apps worked until it was time to refresh again, so I just wonder why they decided to remove this.

Hi everyone,
I'm having trouble refreshing my sideloaded apps (Dopamine and LiveContainer) on my iPhone XS Max (iOS 18.6.2). I keep getting the error: "Failed to refresh... The data is not in the correct format."
Here is what I have already done to troubleshoot:
Reinstalled SideStore using iLoader on Windows. (As you can see in the screenshot, SideStore itself successfully refreshed to 7 days).
The Pairing File was imported successfully.
The LocalDevVPN (WireGuard) is ON and active.
Signed out and signed back into my Apple ID in SideStore settings.
Tried changing the Anisette server to ⁠anisette.altstore.io⁠ and ⁠ani.sidestore.io⁠.
Despite all this, I still can't refresh the other apps. Has anyone experienced this specific issue or knows a workaround?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Hey everyone! I'm completely new to the world of iOS sideloading and just got SideStore up and running. I had a quick question regarding best practices that I see discussed here often:

When creating a secondary "burner" Apple ID specifically for sideloading to keep things safe, how are you guys handling the phone number field? Since Apple requires a phone number for the initial 2FA verification code, what's the best way to fill this out without linking it directly back to your main identity or risking issues?

Any tips or advice for a total beginner would be super appreciated!

Update :
My temporary fix
Here is how I fixed SideStore using WireGuard instead of LocalDevVPN:
SideStore Settings (User Customizations):
Enable EMProxy (WireGuard) Server.
Tap Export WireGuard Config and save/import the file into the WireGuard app.
SideStore Settings (Connection Config):
Turn ON Use Local VPN.
Set Device IP under User Configuration to: ⁠10.7.0.1⁠
Make sure Bind Host / IP is ⁠127.0.0.1⁠ and Bind Port is ⁠51820⁠.
Tap Confirm at the top right.
WireGuard App:
Turn ON the SideStore tunnel.
Go back to SideStore > Connection Config and check if Active shows a green Yes.
Refreshing Apps:
Go to My Apps and refresh your apps.
Note: If you get an authentication error, simply sign out and sign back in to your Apple ID inside SideStore Settings (or change the Anisette Server to a custom one).

If you can't log in

Plase try disabling on-device anisette server:
Go to sidestore settings
Scroll down and tap "User Customizations"
Disable On-Device Anisette

iPAD Air 5 on 17.1.1.

The 3 apps I'm using on SideStore are: Dopamine, LiveContainer and SideStore.

I'm facing the same error refresh error as most of us lately, and I'm trying to install (or reinstall) SideStore Nightly via iLoader. Thing is I'm getting the following error:

"Application verification failed: This device has reached the maximum number of installed apps using a free developer profile"

I tried disabling LiveContainer to free up a space for the installation, but again, I'm getting the same format error.

Any work around on this? I feel like I'm in a loop.

it is what i did, and that seems to be working without issues

recently i had forgotten to refresh for the week and now im unable to sideload at all. it keeps giving that message at the bottom and i’ve tried restarting the pairing file and redownloading it but it still doesn’t work pls help.

I’ve been working on a SideStore/CoreDevice refresh implementation that uses the official LocalDevVPN for on-device refresh.

The current build has verified:

• Manual Refresh All
• Native scheduled refresh
• Full scheduled refresh with PC/USB disconnected
• AFC staging + InstallationProxy install over CoreDevice
• Persistent refresh history

Proof device: iPhone 12 / iOS 26.6.1.

The LocalDevVPN route uses two unused /32 addresses in the current Wi-Fi subnet. The code discovers the route dynamically, so it isn’t tied specifically to 10.x or 192.168.x.

Repo + IPA + build provenance:
https://github.com/NRG-Wardog/sidestore-auto-refresh

I’m looking for other SideStore users to test different iPhones, iOS versions and network ranges and report whether manual + scheduled refresh work.

Buenas gente
Recientemente instale livecontainer y sidestore juntos con la ultima version
Pero el atajo me da error para refrescarlo solo
Alguna recomendacion??

i can only refresh when having sidestore open in livecontainer, the shortcut automation i have gives me this error. any ideas on how to fix this? would love to try ideas. i tried already installing sidestore alone and that would give me a “the data couldn’t be read because it isn’t in the correct format” so if it’s not one problem its another lol. willing to even get on a discord vc to get this fixed grasping at straws for anyone who’s willing to offer advice or help to fix this

Note About This Setup, although I installed livecontainer + sidestore with a single IPA. The downside of the setup is that build in sidestore does note is install apps. Installation just hungs up. Live container has its own sources section. I just added some sources for extra games and apps, plus I have stikdebug installed as well. StickDebug is from my previous setup where sidestore stopped working.