I have to make an app for an organization. The app must be visible only for the organization's users. I used Google Play Console to upload my apk and I did everything from this tutorial.
The problem is that even if I have added the app on Google Admin Console whitelist, an set the visibility to everyone, I can not see the app on my enrolled devices. The device is listed on mobile devices from Google Admin Device Management, I can see all the public apps from the app whitelist but not my private one.
On all the internet I couldn't find any helpful tutorial I have no idea where I did mistake.
Any help, tutorial or advice will be a new chance to find the problem in my configuration. Many thanks.
There is another work-around for your app to be used by some specific users. The play store allows an app to be in the beta mode where you can add the users of your app just by adding their Gmail addresses. This is mainly used for testing purpose, however, the application can be found in Google Play store from the account which you have added in the list of beta testers and it might serve your purpose.
For more information, please follow this link.
SOLVED
After some checkings I found out that the apk had 0 supported devices because of one permission required in manifest file.
You may see how many supported devices has de apk in Release management -> Device catalog.
After removing that permission and uploading the new apk to Google Play Console, the app appeared.
Related
I have a dev version of my app that is not published in the Play Store. I would like to test dynamic links with it, but whenever I click a dynamic link, it opens the play store, and I get a not found error (because there is no corresponding package in the Play Store).
What's the recommended way of testing this? It would also apply to staging environments, etc... that are not published.
I was able to test it like this:
I published a closed alpha version of an app - open only to my email (beta should work just the same)
Opted in via the opt-in link in the developer console (it's on the APK section)
After that, clicking the dynamic link I created on the Firebase console worked as expected, without having my app out in the open.
Caveats:
Connected Google users - might cause a problem if only one is on the alpha group list
It takes a bit of time to get started. Make sure you can see the app in Google Play before trying to click the link
Updates, fixes and changes take time until they actually appear on Google Play. Google Play now offers internal testing, a level below alpha that propagates updates quicker.
The other answer above is technically correct, but you can get close to simulating the real behavior without putting anything on the Google Play Store.
If your application is installed, the dynamic link will open your application. This is true even if your app is not listed on the Play Store. If this is not working for you, your app is not properly set up to receive dynamic links.
If your application is not installed, you will be taken to the Play Store and you will see app not found. After, you can sideload the app to simulate a Play Store install.
I have to distribute Android apps within my organization. I have a google developer account. Below it tells to login to the admin console to enable private channel.
https://support.google.com/a/answer/2494992?hl=en
Problem -it does not sign me in as Google help states that
my.account#company.com, doesn't have an administrator but is instead managed by Google.
Requirement - So how can i get the administrator account.
Any help will be appreciated.
Regards
You can provide the .apk files directly to your organization.
Either you can allow to download a signed .apk file through a web site which will launch the install procedure or you can make an app market which provides a list of .apk files and installs them automatically, as Amazon's App Shop.
I'm not sure if Google account allows you to share app locally. But we use Hockeyapp to do the same. It works great. You can even integrate it to your app and upload the crashes too. Many other features. Take a look at this to know other solutions. It supports iOS as well as Android and offers a good user experience.
But you've to pay a bit for it. CashAnalytics is free. Do small research for yourself.
I have used crashlytics for this purpose in my last project.
It works great for beta distribution in development phase.
Also, it's crash reporting is excellent to guide you to the source code line causing crashes.
Several years ago, Android allowed you to set a permission that lets you install apps from a third party location other than Google's own app store Google Play. Eventually they deprecated that permission and only allowed hardware manufacturers to set that permission. I haven't checked since then whether that is still the case.
What I am wondering though is how I would handle a situation where a company wants to install an APK file on to their own devices but not host the APK file in Google Play. How would they provision this?
Android does allow users to install APK files on to their devices that don't come from Google Play, although that feature has to be enabled. Can that feature be enabled programmatically?
The solution that I can think of to installing company apps is to upload an installer app to Google Play that has been developed specifically by the company and used only for the company, even if it's available to everyone in Google Play. Employees would install this app as they do any app from Google Play. When this installer runs, it would prompt for a username/password. Upon authentication, the app would retrieve the company's apps from its own server and install them.
Is this the solution enterprises are currently using or is there something built into Jelly Bean / KitKat / Lollipop that provides provisioning?
EDIT:
Google states on their Android site:
The application is installed on users' devices. Android does not
currently have an automated provisioning solution. Some of the ways a
sysadmin might distribute the application to users are as follows:
Google Play. Enabling installation from another store. Distributing
the application through other means, such as email or websites.
http://developer.android.com/guide/topics/admin/device-admin.html
Aside from those suggestions, they don't offer anything else. Those solutions wouldn't be acceptable in many organizations.
The solution that I can think of to installing company apps is to upload an installer app to Google Play that has been developed specifically by the company and used only for the company, even if it's available to everyone in Google Play.
I'm pretty certain that only the Play Store app has the authority/permissions to programmatically install apps. Those permissions are not available externally to third-party apps. It would be a lot easier to use one of the following options and simply let the OS handle the installation process.
For enterprise apps, the APK file can be
hosted on a public URL. When downloaded, it installs automatically on the user's phone.
sent as an email attachment. Again, when downloaded, it installs automatically on the user's phone.
In both these cases, the user is asked whether they would like to install an APK that originates from a third-party source.
Also, it is not possible to programmatically change the permission for installing third-party apps. That choice has to be made by the user, and the user is confronted with that choice when they access an APK file in the two ways described above.
There is one more option - using Google Play's private channel:
1. Distribute Android apps in your organization.
2. Use a Private Channel to distribute apps in your organization.
3. Deploy app through Google Play Store in a private channel without Google Apps?.
We have a fleet tracking Android app which is isntalled on around 100 mobiles.
Problem is to update each mobile whenever there is a patch release. And unfotunately we have not set auto-update.
Now we need to call each driver and follow the process of update from google play.
This is becoming very tedious as they have to go to google play, search the application and install/update it.
And the mobiles are located all over the country.
Before it was easy as Goolge play was giving an option to know the apps installed on each mobile.
Need your advice on how do we manage/automate this update issue.
Build an in-app push notification that there's a new version and have an easy link to Google Play from it. However, this does have a bootstrapping problem, and you will have to make everyone install the new version manually (as in you call them and ask them to do it) at least once. Still, this is your only viable option, as Google Play developer agreement prohibits pushing app updates through other channels.
If you have email or IM contact with the drivers, you can also send them a message there's a new version with the direct link to the Google Play. They will have to open it on their device, of course.
The link format should be market://details?id=com.mycompany.myapp, https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mycompany.myapp, or http://market.android.com/details?id=id=com.mycompany.myapp. Either of these three in general should work, though some OEMs have messed up their devices configuration and prevent Google Play app from intercepting the http/https form properly.
You could check a text file located on a server or something like that and then lookup if the current instaleld version is the same as the server version. If not you could download the new apk and open it. As far as I know this is not allowed by Google Play so you must remove the app from google play
I have android app published on google play store. it is visible to all users in USA. But now i want to publish my application so that only specific devices can install this application.
For this purpose, i googled a lot but not getting anything. what i found is "Google play store private channel". I tried to understand that but no luck.
I think google play private channel restrict application to specific user not devices.
Am i right ?
Please guide for the same.
http://developer.android.com/google/play/filters.html
take a look at this link, it tells you how to restrict certain devices installing or viewing your app in the play store. You can restrict access by sdk version or screen size.