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Asset Library errors in App Store Connect, and how to fix them

Troubleshooting 31 October 2026 · 8 min read

Four Asset Library error codes with their fixes: ASSET_HAS_PLACEMENTS, delete the placements first; INVALID_ASSET_STATE, only approved assets archive; ATTRIBUTE.INVALID, type, group and category must agree; AWAITING_UPLOAD, the commit never landed

Most Asset Library problems come from four rules: an asset can only be deleted before it's ever submitted, and only once nothing places it; only an approved asset can be archived; a placement's type, device group and the asset's category must agree; and placements can only be added while the version or page is still editable. Find your symptom below for the cause and the fix.

Apple's Asset Library arrived on 5 October 2026 with new statuses and new rules, and its errors don't always say which rule you broke. This page maps each symptom to its cause, using Apple's help pages and API documentation (checked 31 October 2026) and what we hit while building Asset Library publishing into Storeboard.

At a glance

Symptom	Usual cause	Fix
Stuck in Uploading	The upload was never committed	Commit it, or delete it and upload again
Processing FAILED	The file doesn't match a spec	Read the reason, delete, re-upload a fixed file
Can't delete	It was submitted, or it's still placed	Archive it, or remove its placements first
Can't archive	It isn't approved	Delete it instead, or wait for approval
Placement refused	Wrong category or group, slot full, or the page is approved	Match the reference data; use an editable version
Accepted, not live	Another item in the submission was rejected	Fix or remove that item
Can't submit on its own	No approved version yet, or its parent is in review	Submit with the version, or wait
No iPhone Duo slot	The API's old screenshot sets have no Duo type	Use Asset Library placements, at an exact Duo size

Asset stuck in Uploading or Processing

The two look alike in App Store Connect but mean different things. Through the API you can tell them apart:

Uploading (AWAITING_UPLOAD) means Apple is still waiting for the file. The upload was reserved but never committed with PATCH and "uploaded": true, or a part never arrived. Commit it, or delete it and start again. To find every abandoned upload, list GET /v1/appAssetLibraries/{id}/images?filter[state]=AWAITING_UPLOAD.
Processing (UPLOAD_COMPLETE) means Apple has the file and is checking it. Apple says you can't act on the asset until that finishes, and doesn't publish how long it takes. Wait.

From our own publishing: with the older screenshot API, a commit that returned success could still leave an image waiting for upload, and App Store Connect then blocked Add for Review with "1 or more screenshots must finish processing". Reading each asset's state back after the run and re-sending the stragglers fixed it. Do the same with the Asset Library: a 200 on the commit isn't proof of delivery.

Asset processing FAILED

The API state FAILED means Apple couldn't process the file; its stateDetails give the reason. You can't fix a failed asset in place: delete it and upload a corrected file. Common causes:

Size. Screenshot and preview specs are exact pixel sizes, not ranges. A Duo screenshot must be exactly 2007 × 2853, 1398 × 2034 or a landscape version of either.
Transparency. Screenshots and creative asset images can't have an alpha channel. Flatten before exporting.
Byte count. The commit is checked against the fileSize you sent when reserving; a mismatch fails.
Video length or audio. Apple checks footage only after upload, so a clip outside the duration range (5 to 30 seconds for header and search videos), or without audio where the spec requires it, fails processing rather than being refused up front.

If processing succeeds but the asset won't fit the slot you meant, check its specId: Apple matched the file to a different spec than you expected.

Why can't I delete an asset?

It's been submitted. App Store Connect only deletes assets in Prepare for Submission. An approved asset can be archived instead.
It's still placed. Through the API, deleting an asset that a version, page or event still uses returns 409 STATE_ERROR.ASSET_HAS_PLACEMENTS: "The asset cannot be deleted while placements still use it. Delete those placements first." List them with GET /v1/appAssetLibraryImages/{id}/placements, delete each, then delete the asset. This is the reverse of the old screenshot sets, where deleting the set took its screenshots with it.

"Only an approved asset can be archived"

Archiving an asset that hasn't been approved returns 409 STATE_ERROR.INVALID_ASSET_STATE with that message. If the asset was never submitted, delete it; if it's in review, wait for the result. Archived assets can't be used in new placements, are hidden from the library unless you filter by status, and come back with Unarchive Asset.

An archived asset came back on its own? Apple says an archived asset may be restored automatically when a new version of a placement carries it over.

A placement is refused

409 ENTITY_ERROR.ATTRIBUTE.INVALID, "The requested 'placementType' and 'placementGroup' combination is not supported for this parent." The slot doesn't accept the asset's category (a screenshot uploaded as a creative asset, or the reverse), or the group doesn't belong to that slot. Category is fixed at upload, so re-upload with the right one, and take group names from the reference data.
409 STATE_ERROR.INVALID_STATE, "Creating a placement is not permitted in … current state." The version or custom product page is already approved. Place on a version in Prepare for Submission. To change the header on the live version without one, get the asset approved on its own, then use Browse Assets and Publish on the live version's Header and Search Results tab.
The slot is full. On a version, Apple's documentation gives 10 screenshots, 3 app previews and 1 header per device group; In-App Event slots take one asset. Remove a placement first. Custom product pages and tests have their own limits in the reference data.

Asset says Accepted but isn't live

Accepted isn't approved. It means your asset passed but something else in the same submission was rejected, and Apple publishes nothing from a submission until every item is accepted. Fix the rejected item and resubmit, or remove it from the submission.

Header or search results image rejected

App Review's message gives the reason. Apple's asset best practices list the usual ones for creative assets:

Content above a 4+ age rating, even if your app is rated higher.
Prices, discounts, website URLs or copyright symbols.
Claims you can't back up, such as awards you haven't won.
Other platforms, stores or marketplaces.
Apple recognitions such as Editors' Choice or App of the Day.
Too much text: Apple suggests a short phrase that adds to the image.

Edit or replace the asset and resubmit, or take it out of the submission so the rest can go live. Our header and search results images guide covers the design side.

Can't submit an asset on its own

No approved version yet. A new app's assets go in with its first version.
It's assigned to something. Assets placed on a version, custom product page, test or In-App Event are reviewed with that item, and can't be submitted alone while it's in an active submission.
Your role. Apple's submit page lists only the Account Holder, Admin and App Manager roles; Marketing is listed for managing assets, not submitting them.

Can't find the iPhone Duo screenshot slot

It's new. Apple published the Duo sizes on 9 September and said uploading Duo assets would be supported later in the year. On 5 October, the day the Asset Library launched, it began accepting iPhone Duo optimized apps.
Through the API, there's no Duo screenshot set. The deprecated appScreenshotSets resource has no iPhone Duo display type. Duo screenshots go in the Asset Library as screenshot assets, placed in a group whose display class is IPHONE_DUO (read from GET /v1/appAssetLibraryRefData).
In App Store Connect, Apple's help doesn't yet say which screen shows the Duo sizes. Try the Asset Library and the Media Manager (View All Sizes).
They aren't required yet. Apple requires them from April 2027 for apps on the iOS 27.1 SDK or later. Sizes and design advice: iPhone Duo App Store screenshots.

Header or search image not showing on the App Store

Device: Apple says creative assets are for iOS and iPadOS apps and appear on iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 and later, so older versions won't show them. Apple doesn't list the Mac App Store.
Status: the asset must be approved and then live: with a released version, or published to the live version with Browse Assets and Publish.
Search results slot empty: a header only fills search results if it's a universal (5244 × 2950) asset and you chose Use header asset in search results. Otherwise the search slot needs its own asset.
Only some languages: placements are per localization. A language with no placement has no header.

Can't change a video's poster frame

Apple's help says poster frames can't be changed after approval. Before then, change it in the Asset Library (it applies everywhere the video is used) or PATCH previewFrameTimeCode through the API. After approval, upload the video again with the frame you want.

Send creative assets that pass the first time

Storeboard 1.3, coming as an update, designs header, search results and iPhone Duo assets at Apple's exact sizes in every language, checks the header text for prices, URLs, © and other platforms before you submit, and publishes them to the Asset Library with your own API key. Free to download, with an optional one-time Pro purchase.

Get Storeboard for Mac

FAQ

How long does Asset Library processing take?

Apple doesn't publish a time. An asset in Processing has arrived and is being checked; one still in Uploading was never committed, so it won't finish on its own. Commit it, or delete it and upload again.

What does STATE_ERROR.ASSET_HAS_PLACEMENTS mean?

You tried to delete an asset that a version, custom product page, test or In-App Event still uses. Delete those placements first, then the asset.

Why does it say only an approved asset can be archived?

Archiving is for approved assets. An asset that was never submitted can be deleted instead; one in review has to wait for the result.

Why is my asset Accepted but not on the App Store?

Another item in the same submission was rejected. Nothing in a submission publishes until every item is accepted, so fix or remove the rejected item.

Why can't I add a placement to my version?

Placements can only be added while the version or custom product page is editable. Once it's approved, use a new version, or for the live header, get the asset approved alone and publish it with Browse Assets.