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How to autoupdate android app without playstore? Like Facebook app or any Contest app
(6 answers)
Closed 2 years ago.
I am developing an android app, I am pretty much completed with everything and now I wish to roll out updates to it in order to maintain and perform some bugfixes. (Note : I don't want my app to be released in the market as its related to my college degree project. i.e. It has only a few audience). If an update is available, I want the user to get notified of the update as soon as they open the app. And when they agree, the app should download the new updated .apk file and when the download is finished, it should automatically prompt the user to install it. (Prompt example attached below)
How do I achieve this without using the android playstore market?
I heard somewhere i can do this by simple version comparison of my app with a public domain (like dropbox or GitHub) which contains a txt file (which has version code) and an updated apk. If the versions match with the txt file, nothing happens.
If versions differ, it should show a dialog to download the update.
How do I perform this guys? Please help me out?.. Can someone please help me out with actual java codes?
P.s. - I am actually fairly new to all this, and I wish to learn Android studio.
Thankyou so much my friends :D
You can achieve it using Play Store(I know you don't want to use it) but its the recommended way to do. In Play Core library iv Google has introduced in-app updates feature where you can roll out updates to the user without rolling out a new apk in Play Store.
Supporting API level 21 and above, the Play Core library allows us to offer in-app updates meaning we can show that an app update is available whilst the user is within the context of our application. For more information, you can visit the developer site.
Related
I'm developing an android app that won't be downloaded via the Google Play store but instead through an APK listed on my website. I was looking for a way to update this app.
I've done some research and I think the best way would be to run an API at the start of the app that checks the downloaded app's version against the version of the APK listed on the website (at the time of app launch). If the version of the website APK is higher, then I prompt the user for an update. Ideally the API would get the APK itself without the user needing to go to the website.
I have some doubts about this that I hope someone can answer however:
First - Once I download the new APK does the old one get deleted or do I have to do that?
Second - How do I keep User Preferences?
If this isn't the right way to do it I'd appreciate any tips.
If it is the right way and you know of some good resources to build an API like this I'd appreciate those too!
I read this link and this question here but there is something I don't understand.
I have this line of code in my app packageManager.getInstalledPackages(flag), However i'm not using the QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES permission which is understandable that I will not be able to receive the user installed packages, that's not an issue as of now for me. However, The first link stated that:
The inventory of installed apps queried from a device are regarded as personal and sensitive user data
So will using this method packageManager.getInstalledPackages(flag) consider a violation and cause my app to be removed from the play store?
Thanks for your time and input.
Using the following method
packageManager.getInstalledPackages(flag)
will not be considered as violations. However this in android 11 will only give you list of packages of open apps to user.
I was wondering if anyone had a relatively simple solution for us.
We created an app to be used by our clients on android devices that we give them.
We would like the client to only be able to use our app and have limited access to everything else (i.e. settings, email etc.) What is the best way to achieve this without using 3rd party apps.
Thank you in advance!
This may not help but the L preview has a task locking feature included that may be of some insight, I'm not aware of how it functions as yet
Task locking
The L Developer Preview introduces a new task locking API that lets you temporarily restrict users from leaving your app or being interrupted by notifications. This could be used, for example, if you are developing an education app to support high stakes assessment requirements on Android. Once your app activates this mode, users will not be able to see notifications, access other apps, or return to the Home screen, until your app exits the mode.
http://developer.android.com/preview/api-overview.html
Hope this helped
Suppress the Title Bar & Make Your App a Launcher
Root Your Tablet
Modify System Files and Settings to hide the soft keys
On the next link you can find the complete solution for the Nexus 7 (2012)
http://thebitplague.wordpress.com/2013/04/05/kiosk-mode-on-the-nexus-7/
simple Answer is:
Lock Install button with modify system settings.
Create your own customized-ROM and apply your requirement to that ROM.
more info, visit XDADavelopers
First of all, I'm sorry I don't speak very good english. I have a thesis project to make android app similiar like logo quiz using java. Basicaly, I have to make the admin site of this app or make it updatable not via play store. I'm going to put the newest APK version in a website host. Does anyone here know how to make it work like that? Or maybe you have another idea to make the admin site? please tell me
The update also must be installed. The user will check is there any newest version. Then user will download it and the downloaded APK will be automaticaly installed
This is not easy to do. The only option you have is to write some server side code to let a client know what the latest version is. The client can trigger a local notification and alert the user that a new version is available.
Facebook managed to do what you're asking but I'm sure a lot of engineering effort went into it.
[EDIT]
Google has updated their policy to forbid dynamic updates.
“An app downloaded from Google Play may not modify, replace or update
its own APK binary code using any method other than Google Play's
update mechanism.”
FYI Without uploading on play store, user will never come to know about the updates of your app.
Or
There must be some kind of notification you should implement in your admin and send to your users using the app, and through that notification you should ask user to download updated APK from your web.
Let's say I published a game and after some point of time I wanted to release an all new feature for the game. Of course the app must be able recognize and download the update. How does this work specifically with Google Play apps? Does the app download the entire new version of APK from the market and reinstalls itself? I'm using Java for the development, if this info helps. Any tips you can give me about this topic?
With Google Play, the user is notified that app updates are available. It is up to the user to initiate the download of the updates.
You can always include in your app a check to your server as to whether an update is available. However, this becomes a maintenance issue.