Safari on Desktop

Step-by-step guide to enabling Web Push for Safari web browser on Desktop devices

Safari on Mac before version 13 (Ventura) does not implement the Web Push standard for which all other browsers do. Because of this, in order to set up your website to prompt for notification permissions and deliver notifications to these Safari visitors you must perform additional integration steps.

Introduction

Before you start ensure you have the following:

• Have access to a Mac computer

• Have an Apple Developer Account

The below steps walk you through generating the required Web Push security certificates and uploading them to the platform.

You must create a separate web push certificate for each site/domain that opts in subscribers. Re-using certificates across multiple domains will result in fewer notifications delivered and higher unsubscribe rates.

Step 1: Create a Certificate Request (CSR)

1. On a Mac computer Open the Keychain Access application and click on Certificates under the Category left navigation section.

2. Within the Keychain Access drop down menu, select Keychain Access > Certificate Assistant > Request a Certificate from a Certificate Authority.

3. In the Certificate Information window, enter the following information:

   • In the User Email Address field, enter your email address.

   • In the Common Name field, create a name for your private key (e.g. Company Name Web Push).

   • The CA Email Address field should be left empty.

   • In the Request group, select the Saved to disk option.

4. Click Continue within Keychain Access and save the CSR to disk to complete this step.

Step 2: Add a Website Push ID

If you are renewing an existing certificate you can skip this step and move to Step 3 since the Website Push ID should already exist within your Apple developer account.

1. Login to your company's Apple Developer Console account.

2. Click on Certificates, IDs, and Profiles in the left navigation bar.

3. Choose Identifiers in the left navigation bar.

4. In the top-right dropdown choose Website Push ID and then click the + button next to the Identifiers header.

5. Choose Website Push IDs from the list of options and press the Continue button.

6. Enter a description. Eg: Pushy Web Push

7. Enter an identifier. Eg: web.com.YOUR_COMPANY_NAME.webpush

8. Click the Continue and then Register button.

Step 3: Generate a Web Push Certificate

• Click on Certificates in the left nav and press the + sign next to the Certificates header..

• Choose Website Push ID Certificate from the list of Production certificate options and then click Continue.

• Select the Website Push ID that was created in the previous step and then click Continue.

• Click the Choose File button, browse for the CSR file that we created in the first step, and click Continue.

• The next screen informs you that your certificate is ready. Click Download to store the certificate on your computer.

Step 4: Generate the .p12 Certificate

• Navigate to the certificate you saved on your computer and double click it to install it to the Keychain Access application.

• Open the Keychain Access application and click on Certificates under the Category left navigation section.

• Right click on the installed Website Push ID certificate and choose Export.

• In the save dialog, choose a filename (or leave the default), choose the .p12 file format, and click the Save button.

• You will be prompted to enter a password - leave both boxes empty and click OK.

• Click Allow to save the p12 certificate to your computer.

Step 5: Upload the Certificate via the Platform

• Log in to the platform.

• In the left navigation choose Settings and then Overview.

• Ensure all subdomains that users will be prompted on are in the SDK Allowed Domains list.

• Scroll down to the Send Integrations section and click the Edit button.

• Enable the WEB switch and then enter the Website Push ID you created in Step 2. (Eg: "web.com.example")

• Upload the p12 file from your computer and only enable the Pass Phrase switch if you set a password when creating the certificate.

• Click the Submit button at the bottom of the page to finish setting up Safari Support.

  • Note: These changes may take up to 1 hour to take effect.

NOTE: The Safari Certificate will need to be updated on an annual basis. Your Pushly Account Manager will reach out when the Safari Certificate has expired and needs to be updated.