[🐛] iOS build fails either with Expo 55.0.10 (use 55.0.9?) or if not using required Expo configuration for Expo 84+

[AndreOleari015]

Maintainer edit:

• If you are using Expo 54 or Expo 55, see Solved! Build error on expo 54 / react native 0.81 (working build demonstrator script linked in comments now) #8657 (comment)
• If you are using Expo 55.0.10 specifically, it appears from comments below something is broken. Use 55.0.9 until fixed. See [SDK 55] iOS build from source fails on Xcode 26.4 expo/expo#44229 (comment) - from [🐛] iOS build fails either with Expo 55.0.10 (use 55.0.9?) or if not using required Expo configuration for Expo 84+ #8960 (comment)

Original LLM-generated "try to understand it if you can" output below:

Issue

Building an Expo SDK 55 project with @react-native-firebase v24 fails on iOS with two separate errors depending on the environment (local Xcode build vs EAS Build). Both stem from the interaction between RN 0.83's prebuilt binary distribution (RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE=1) and use_frameworks! :linkage => :static required by Firebase Swift pods.

Error 1 — Local Xcode Build

<unknown>:0: error: module map file
'/path/to/project/ios/Pods/React-Core-prebuilt/React-use-frameworks.modulemap' not found

The React-Core-prebuilt pod (introduced with RN 0.83 prebuilt binaries) references a React-use-frameworks.modulemap file that is never created when use_frameworks: :static is enabled. The modulemap path gets injected into xcconfig files via -fmodule-map-file= flags, but the actual file doesn't exist on disk.

Error 2 — EAS Build

/Users/expo/workingdir/build/node_modules/react-native/scripts/react-native-xcode.sh: line 179:
/Volumes/DiscoD/Projects/rn-projects/expo-testbuild/node_modules/hermes-compiler/hermesc/osx-bin/hermesc:
No such file or directory
Command PhaseScriptExecution failed with a nonzero exit code

During pod install, the HERMES_CLI_PATH build setting is resolved to an absolute path on the local development machine and baked into the xcconfig files. When the project is then built on EAS (or any CI), the path points to a non-existent local filesystem location.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Create a new Expo SDK 55 project with react-native@0.83.4
2. Add @react-native-firebase/app@24 + any Firebase module (e.g., analytics, auth)
3. Add expo-build-properties with ios.useFrameworks: 'static' (required for Firebase Swift pods)
4. Run npx expo prebuild --platform ios
5. Build locally with Xcode → Error 1 (modulemap not found)
6. Build on EAS → Error 2 (HERMES_CLI_PATH absolute path)

Root Cause Analysis

With RN 0.83, the default RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE=1 introduces the React-Core-prebuilt pod that distributes precompiled binaries. This pod:

1. References a React-use-frameworks.modulemap that only makes sense when use_frameworks is not used, but the reference is injected into xcconfig regardless
2. Resolves HERMES_CLI_PATH to an absolute local path during pod install, which breaks any CI/remote build

Since Firebase requires use_frameworks! :linkage => :static for its Swift pods, every project using @react-native-firebase on RN 0.83+ hits this incompatibility.

Workaround — Error 1 SOLVED (local Xcode build)

A custom Expo config plugin (plugins/with-rnfb-fix.js) applies two post_install patches that fully resolve Error 1 for local Release builds:

1. Recreate the modulemap — injects a shell script into the React-Core-prebuilt build phase to generate the missing React-use-frameworks.modulemap after tarball extraction
2. Allow non-modular includes — sets CLANG_ALLOW_NON_MODULAR_INCLUDES_IN_FRAMEWORK_MODULES=YES and -Wno-non-modular-include-in-framework-module for all RNFB pod targets

After removing an earlier HERMES_CLI_PATH patch (which was interfering), the local Xcode Release build succeeds.

Current plugin code (plugins/with-rnfb-fix.js)

const {withDangerousMod, createRunOncePlugin} = require("@expo/config-plugins");
const fs = require("fs");
const path = require("path");

const RNFB_TARGETS = ["RNFBApp", "RNFBAuth", "RNFBAnalytics", "RNFBCrashlytics", "RNFBMessaging", "RNFBRemoteConfig"];

const POST_INSTALL_SNIPPET = `
    # [with-rnfb-fix] Patch React-Core-prebuilt replace script to recreate modulemap
    react_core_target = installer.pods_project.targets.find { |t| t.name == 'React-Core-prebuilt' }
    if react_core_target
      react_core_target.shell_script_build_phases.each do |phase|
        if phase.name&.include?('Replace React Native Core')
          unless phase.shell_script.include?('React-use-frameworks.modulemap')
            phase.shell_script += %q(
# [with-rnfb-fix] Recreate modulemap after tarball extraction
MODULEMAP_PATH="\\${PODS_ROOT}/React-Core-prebuilt/React-use-frameworks.modulemap"
cat > "$MODULEMAP_PATH" << 'MODULEMAP'
module React {
  umbrella header "React.xcframework/Headers/React_Core/React_Core-umbrella.h"
  export *
}
MODULEMAP
echo "[with-rnfb-fix] Created React-use-frameworks.modulemap"
)
          end
        end
      end
    end

    # [with-rnfb-fix] Allow non-modular includes for Firebase pods
    installer.pods_project.targets.each do |t|
      if ${JSON.stringify(RNFB_TARGETS)}.include?(t.name)
        t.build_configurations.each do |config|
          config.build_settings['CLANG_ALLOW_NON_MODULAR_INCLUDES_IN_FRAMEWORK_MODULES'] = 'YES'
          other = config.build_settings['OTHER_CFLAGS'] ||= ['$(inherited)']
          config.build_settings['OTHER_CFLAGS'] = (other + ['-Wno-non-modular-include-in-framework-module']).uniq
        end
      end
    end
`;

function injectSnippets(podfile) {
    if (podfile.includes("[with-rnfb-fix]")) return podfile;
    return podfile.replace(
        /post_install do \|installer\|([\s\S]*?)(\n\s*end\s*$)/m,
        (_match, body, ending) => `post_install do |installer|${body}\n${POST_INSTALL_SNIPPET}${ending}`,
    );
}

const withRNFBFix = (config) =>
    withDangerousMod(config, [
        "ios",
        async (cfg) => {
            const podfilePath = path.join(cfg.modRequest.platformProjectRoot, "Podfile");
            const original = fs.readFileSync(podfilePath, "utf8");
            const updated = injectSnippets(original);
            if (updated !== original) fs.writeFileSync(podfilePath, updated);
            return cfg;
        },
    ]);

module.exports = createRunOncePlugin(withRNFBFix, "with-rnfb-fix", "1.0.0");

Error 2 — STILL FAILING on EAS Build

The EAS build still fails because HERMES_CLI_PATH is baked as an absolute local machine path during pod install. The react-native-xcode.sh script tries to invoke hermesc at a path like /Volumes/DiscoD/Projects/.../hermesc which doesn't exist on the EAS build server.

This is not specific to react-native-firebase — it affects any Expo SDK 55 + RN 0.83 project using use_frameworks: :static on EAS Build. The HERMES_CLI_PATH is resolved to an absolute path by the React Native CocoaPods setup and there is no hook available to override it before the value is written to the xcconfig files that get uploaded to EAS.

A previous attempt to patch HERMES_CLI_PATH in post_install was removed because it interfered with local builds. The absolute path appears to be set somewhere outside the Podfile's control (possibly in the hermes-engine podspec or React Native's react_native_pods.rb script).

Suggested Fix

The RNFB Expo config plugin could:

1. Automatically strip or fix React-use-frameworks.modulemap references when use_frameworks: :static is active
2. Ensure HERMES_CLI_PATH uses a relative/variable-based path ($(PODS_ROOT)/...) instead of an absolute path
3. Or recommend setting RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE=0 as a documented workaround for RN 0.83+

Related Issues

• Solved! Build error on expo 54 / react native 0.81 (working build demonstrator script linked in comments now) #8657 — Central tracking issue for Expo + Firebase build failures
• [🐛] compile errors with react-native pre-compiled iOS distribution default on RN 0.84 - workaround - disable pre-compiled react-native or use Podfile preinstall hook #8883 — RN 0.84 pre-compiled iOS distribution compile errors
• Having trouble with Expo SDK 55 and newArch #8908 — Expo SDK 55 + newArch compatibility

---

Project Files

Javascript

Click To Expand

package.json:

{
    "name": "expo-testbuild",
    "main": "expo-router/entry",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "scripts": {
        "start": "expo start",
        "android": "expo run:android",
        "ios": "expo run:ios"
    },
    "dependencies": {
        "@react-native-firebase/analytics": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-native-firebase/auth": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-native-firebase/crashlytics": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-native-firebase/firestore": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-native-firebase/messaging": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-native-firebase/remote-config": "^24.0.0",
        "@react-navigation/bottom-tabs": "^7.15.5",
        "@react-navigation/elements": "^2.9.10",
        "@react-navigation/native": "^7.1.33",
        "expo": "~55.0.11",
        "expo-build-properties": "~55.0.11",
        "expo-constants": "~55.0.11",
        "expo-dev-client": "~55.0.22",
        "expo-device": "~55.0.12",
        "expo-font": "~55.0.6",
        "expo-glass-effect": "~55.0.10",
        "expo-image": "~55.0.8",
        "expo-linking": "~55.0.11",
        "expo-router": "~55.0.10",
        "expo-splash-screen": "~55.0.15",
        "expo-status-bar": "~55.0.5",
        "expo-symbols": "~55.0.7",
        "expo-system-ui": "~55.0.13",
        "expo-web-browser": "~55.0.12",
        "react": "19.2.0",
        "react-dom": "19.2.0",
        "react-native": "0.83.4",
        "react-native-gesture-handler": "~2.30.0",
        "react-native-google-mobile-ads": "^16.3.1",
        "react-native-reanimated": "4.2.1",
        "react-native-safe-area-context": "~5.6.2",
        "react-native-screens": "~4.23.0",
        "react-native-web": "~0.21.0",
        "react-native-worklets": "0.7.2"
    },
    "devDependencies": {
        "@types/react": "~19.2.2",
        "typescript": "~5.9.2"
    },
    "private": true
}

app.json:

{
    "expo": {
        "name": "expo-testbuild",
        "slug": "expo-testbuild",
        "version": "1.0.0",
        "orientation": "portrait",
        "scheme": "expotestbuild",
        "userInterfaceStyle": "automatic",
        "ios": {
            "googleServicesFile": "./GoogleService-Info.plist",
            "bundleIdentifier": "com.testbuild.usaq",
            "entitlements": {
                "aps-environment": "production"
            },
            "infoPlist": {
                "UIBackgroundModes": ["remote-notification"],
                "ITSAppUsesNonExemptEncryption": false
            }
        },
        "plugins": [
            "expo-router",
            "@react-native-firebase/app",
            "@react-native-firebase/auth",
            "@react-native-firebase/crashlytics",
            [
                "expo-build-properties",
                {
                    "ios": {
                        "useFrameworks": "static"
                    }
                }
            ],
            "./plugins/with-rnfb-fix"
        ],
        "experiments": {
            "typedRoutes": true,
            "reactCompiler": true
        }
    }
}

firebase.json for react-native-firebase v6:

# N/A — not using firebase.json config overrides

iOS

Click To Expand

ios/Podfile:

• I'm not using Pods
• I'm using Pods and my Podfile looks like:

ENV['RNS_GAMMA_ENABLED'] ||= '1'
require File.join(File.dirname(`node --print "require.resolve('expo/package.json')"`), "scripts/autolinking")
require File.join(File.dirname(`node --print "require.resolve('react-native/package.json')"`), "scripts/react_native_pods")

require 'json'
podfile_properties = JSON.parse(File.read(File.join(__dir__, 'Podfile.properties.json'))) rescue {}

def ccache_enabled?(podfile_properties)
  return ENV['USE_CCACHE'] == '1' if ENV['USE_CCACHE']
  podfile_properties['apple.ccacheEnabled'] == 'true'
end

ENV['EX_DEV_CLIENT_NETWORK_INSPECTOR'] ||= podfile_properties['EX_DEV_CLIENT_NETWORK_INSPECTOR']
ENV['RCT_USE_RN_DEP'] ||= '1' if podfile_properties['ios.buildReactNativeFromSource'] != 'true'
ENV['RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE'] ||= '1' if podfile_properties['ios.buildReactNativeFromSource'] != 'true'
ENV['RCT_HERMES_V1_ENABLED'] ||= '1' if podfile_properties['expo.useHermesV1'] == 'true'
platform :ios, podfile_properties['ios.deploymentTarget'] || '15.1'

prepare_react_native_project!

target 'expotestbuild' do
  use_expo_modules!

  if ENV['EXPO_USE_COMMUNITY_AUTOLINKING'] == '1'
    config_command = ['node', '-e', "process.argv=['', '', 'config'];require('@react-native-community/cli').run()"];
  else
    config_command = [
      'node', '--no-warnings', '--eval',
      'require(\'expo/bin/autolinking\')',
      'expo-modules-autolinking', 'react-native-config',
      '--json', '--platform', 'ios'
    ]
  end

  config = use_native_modules!(config_command)

  use_frameworks! :linkage => podfile_properties['ios.useFrameworks'].to_sym if podfile_properties['ios.useFrameworks']
  use_frameworks! :linkage => ENV['USE_FRAMEWORKS'].to_sym if ENV['USE_FRAMEWORKS']

  use_react_native!(
    :path => config[:reactNativePath],
    :hermes_enabled => podfile_properties['expo.jsEngine'] == nil || podfile_properties['expo.jsEngine'] == 'hermes',
    :app_path => "#{Pod::Config.instance.installation_root}/..",
    :privacy_file_aggregation_enabled => podfile_properties['apple.privacyManifestAggregationEnabled'] != 'false',
  )

  post_install do |installer|
    react_native_post_install(
      installer,
      config[:reactNativePath],
      :mac_catalyst_enabled => false,
      :ccache_enabled => ccache_enabled?(podfile_properties),
    )

    # [with-rnfb-fix] Strip broken React-use-frameworks.modulemap references from xcconfig files
    support_dir = File.join(installer.sandbox.root.to_s, 'Target Support Files')
    Dir.glob(File.join(support_dir, '**', '*.xcconfig')).each do |xcconfig_path|
      content = File.read(xcconfig_path)
      patched = content
        .gsub(/ ?-fmodule-map-file="[^"]*React-use-frameworks\.modulemap"/, '')
        .gsub(/ ?-Xcc -fmodule-map-file[=\\]+"[^"]*React-use-frameworks\.modulemap"/, '')
        .gsub(/ ?-Xcc -fmodule-map-file="[^"]*React-use-frameworks\.modulemap"/, '')
      if patched != content
        File.write(xcconfig_path, patched)
      end
    end

    # [with-rnfb-fix] Allow non-modular includes for Firebase pods
    installer.pods_project.targets.each do |t|
      if ["RNFBApp","RNFBAuth","RNFBAnalytics","RNFBCrashlytics","RNFBMessaging","RNFBRemoteConfig"].include?(t.name)
        t.build_configurations.each do |config|
          config.build_settings['CLANG_ALLOW_NON_MODULAR_INCLUDES_IN_FRAMEWORK_MODULES'] = 'YES'
          other = config.build_settings['OTHER_CFLAGS'] ||= ['$(inherited)']
          config.build_settings['OTHER_CFLAGS'] = (other + ['-Wno-non-modular-include-in-framework-module']).uniq
        end
      end
    end
  end
end

AppDelegate.m:

// N/A — using Expo's default AppDelegate (managed by expo-router)

---

Android

Click To Expand

Have you converted to AndroidX?

• my application is an AndroidX application?
• I am using android/gradle.settings jetifier=true for Android compatibility?
• I am using the NPM package jetifier for react-native compatibility?

Android builds work fine. This issue is iOS-only.

android/build.gradle:

// N/A — Android is not affected

android/app/build.gradle:

// N/A

android/settings.gradle:

// N/A

MainApplication.java:

// N/A

AndroidManifest.xml:

<!-- N/A -->

---

Environment

Click To Expand

expo-env-info output:

  System:
    OS: macOS 26.1
    Shell: 5.9 - /bin/zsh
  Binaries:
    Node: 22.21.1 - /opt/homebrew/bin/node
    npm: 11.11.0
    Watchman: 2025.12.22.00 - /opt/homebrew/bin/watchman
  Managers:
    CocoaPods: 1.16.2 - /opt/homebrew/bin/pod
  SDKs:
    iOS SDK:
      Platforms: DriverKit 25.2, iOS 26.2, macOS 26.2, tvOS 26.2, visionOS 26.2, watchOS 26.2
  IDEs:
    Android Studio: 2025.2 AI-252.27397.103.2522.14617522
    Xcode: 26.2/17C52 - /usr/bin/xcodebuild
  npmPackages:
    expo: ~55.0.11 => 55.0.11
    react: 19.2.0 => 19.2.0
    react-native: 0.83.4 => 0.83.4
  npmGlobalPackages:
    eas-cli: 18.5.0
  Expo Workflow: bare

• Platform that you're experiencing the issue on:
  • iOS
  • Android
  • iOS but have not tested behavior on Android
  • Android but have not tested behavior on iOS
  • Both
• react-native-firebase version you're using that has this issue:
  • 24.0.0
• Firebase module(s) you're using that has the issue:
  • app, analytics, auth, crashlytics, firestore, messaging, remote-config
• Are you using TypeScript?
  • Y & 5.9.2

---

• 🔗 Reproduction repository: AndreOleari015/expo-testbuild

[Arjit0762]

Hi everyone,
I’m currently blocked by this issue and looking for a short-term workaround :

#8960

Context:

Expo SDK 55 (EAS build)
Using React Native Firebase (Database)

iOS build failing with:

React-use-frameworks.modulemap not found
Already removed useFrameworks and enabled modular headers, but the issue persists (likely due to a dependency injecting it internally)

Would really appreciate if anyone has:

A temporary fix / patch
A working config for Expo + RNFirebase on iOS

@AndreOleari015

[robinshin]

Hey,
Looks like that this error is introduced in expo@55.0.10 and downgrading to expo@55.0.9 works as a short-term workaround on my side:

npx expo install expo@55.0.9

[artemryzhov]

Hi,

The same issue.

I can confirm that downgrading to expo@55.0.9 works.

"expo": "55.0.9",
"react-native": "0.83.4",
"@react-native-firebase/app": "^24.0.0",
"@react-native-firebase/messaging": "^24.0.0",

[Vashist-Agarwalla]

Hey, as a short term fix I recommend sticking to the following versions:

"expo": "55.0.9",
"react-native": "0.83.4",
"@react-native-firebase/analytics": "^23.8.8",
"@react-native-firebase/app": "^23.8.8",

I haven’t upgraded to @react-native-firebase v24 yet.

[ilyadynin]

I tried downgrading expo to 55.0.9 and firebase to 23.8.8 but it doesn't work :(

 "@react-native-firebase/app": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/app-check": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/auth": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/firestore": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/functions": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/messaging": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/perf": "23.8.8",
    "@react-native-firebase/storage": "23.8.8"

[foyarash]

Can confirm expo 55.0.9 fixed the issue for me. Im on RN Firebase v22.

[cuneytdev]

Any update for that issue?

[lochstar]

I'm running Expo 55.0.12, Firebase 23.8.8, Xcode 26.

The following fixed the build issues for me: expo/expo#44229 (comment)

[sahil-finkhoz]

+1

[abdu-zeyad]

+1

[AndreOleari015]

Hey, just came back here to say that I managed to solve the issue. Here's what fixed it:

1. Pin the Expo version — you need to keep it fixed at ~52.0.9. Don't let it update beyond that.

2. Add expo-build-properties to your app.json plugins with static framework linking for all Firebase modules:

[
    "expo-build-properties",
    {
        "ios": {
            "useFrameworks": "static",
            "forceStaticLinking": [                                                                                                                  
                "RNFBApp",
                "RNFBAuth",                                                                                                                          
                "RNFBFirestore",
                "RNFBMessaging",
                "RNFBAnalytics",
                "RNFBCrashlytics",                                                                                                                   
                "RNFBRemoteConfig"
            ]                                                                                                                                        
        }       
    }
]

That's it. Pinning the Expo version was the key — once I did that and added the forceStaticLinking config, the build went through without any issues.

[mikehardy]

LLM generated issues provide little value, this issue description is a technical word-salad with low signal vs noise - please review LLM output very carefully before dumping it on maintainers

https://github.com/mikehardy/rnfbdemo/blob/main/make-expo-demo.sh works, it uses Expo 55

How does it work when this issue shows people having problems? Because it relies on solutions built from troubleshooting in related issues in this repository - it appears those were not searched ?

https://github.com/invertase/react-native-firebase/issues?q=is%3Aissue%20state%3Aopen%20expo%2055%20build

#8657

#8657 (comment)