[🐛] 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

[birdofpreyru]

Maintainer edit:

workaround is to either

1. disable prebuild rncore with environment variable RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE=0 in your Podfile (or the equivalent) or that set in your environment as you run pod install to disable the pre-compiled react-native build] -- see https://github.com/mikehardy/rnfbdemo/blob/main/make-demo.sh for an example, specifically https://github.com/mikehardy/rnfbdemo/blob/270b7ea0df6a6899fcff1e0ca9b7f4389078fbe5/make-demo.sh#L310-L312 for one way to disable prebuilt rncore

or

2. use Podfile preinstall hook to force static link our Pods --> [🐛] 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 (comment)

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Issue

I am upgrading an existing, barebone-RN app using RN Firebase from RN@0.83 to RN@0.84. All looks fine for Android, however for iOS it fails to build with the following errors:

I'm not sure out of my head what is the purpose of <React/RCTConvert.h>, however in other places it similarly complains about imports of <React/RCTBridgeModule.h> and <React/RCTEventEmitter.h>, which I don't have to import inside my own libraries to support communication between JS and native layers in the latest RN versions... so guess that is just some legacy code which relies on legacy stuff removed (or hidden) now from RN?

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Project Files

Javascript

Click To Expand

package.json:

# N/A

firebase.json for react-native-firebase v6:

# N/A

iOS

Click To Expand

ios/Podfile:

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

# N/A

AppDelegate.m:

// N/A

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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/build.gradle:

// N/A

android/app/build.gradle:

// N/A

android/settings.gradle:

// N/A

MainApplication.java:

// N/A

AndroidManifest.xml:

<!-- N/A -->

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Environment

Click To Expand

react-native info output:

 OUTPUT GOES HERE

• 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:
  • e.g. 5.4.3
• Firebase module(s) you're using that has the issue:
  • e.g. Instance ID
• Are you using TypeScript?
  • Y/N & VERSION

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• 👉 Check out React Native Firebase and Invertase on Twitter for updates on the library.

[muhammadasadullahtariq]

Just installed the latest version and got these issues.

[DragomirAndrei19]

Experiencing the same and it happened precisely after the update from react native 0.83.1 to 0.84.0

I thought adding this to the podfile would help, but no, it doesn't work, it just creates other errors.

post_install do |installer|
  react_native_post_install(installer)

  installer.pods_project.targets.each do |target|
    target.build_configurations.each do |config|
      config.build_settings['CLANG_ALLOW_NON_MODULAR_INCLUDES_IN_FRAMEWORK_MODULES'] = 'YES'
    end
  end
end

[mikehardy]

Hey @birdofpreyru 👋
I haven't got my demo script building yet either but I am aware of one change...

Are you by any chance using the pre-compiled distribution of react-native? It is default now. Build from source as a first cut

Likely cause:
https://reactnative.dev/blog/2026/02/11/react-native-0.84#precompiled-binaries-on-ios-by-default

Likely workaround for CLI users:
RCT_USE_PREBUILT_RNCORE=0 in your Podfile (or the equivalent) or that set in your environment as you run pod install

As a second cut I haven't experimented with this yet but we do have Expo 54 working and they enabled it by default - there is a static linking trick you can do per-Pod on Expo that we could probably simulate in the post_install if I had a chance to figure out exactly what it is doing, I just haven't yet

https://github.com/mikehardy/rnfbdemo/blob/8766357c95f04b02fcae0e0beeb2bc59b7232331/make-expo-demo.sh#L96

and

https://github.com/mikehardy/rnfbdemo/blob/8766357c95f04b02fcae0e0beeb2bc59b7232331/make-expo-demo.sh#L149

(forceStaticLinking entries for each RNFB pod in the expo-build-properties array - all that stuff is open source so should be relatively easy to track down, just haven't had time yet apologies - would truly welcome it if someone else had time to do so and post back...)

[birdofpreyru]

@mikehardy

Are you by any chance using the pre-compiled distribution of react-native? It is default now.

Yes, I did. Indeed, opting out of the pre-compiled RN distribution helps to pass the build successfully.

[mikehardy]

Excellent - great to have a known workaround as a first cut "solution"

Hopefully we'll have a post_install recipe or something we can put in the specific podspecs shortly - if anyone cooks one up please please post it, otherwise this will sit open until I see exactly what forceStaticLinking is doing per-pod in expo-build-properties and document it as a new requirement for folks using pre-compiled RN on iOS