I have an Android app that is currently on an Internal Test Track (Version 1). I am trying to upload a new version (Version 2), but I want my current users to still test Version 1.
The console will not let me retain Version 1.
Is there a way I can have user Group A test Version 1 and user Group B test Version 2?
I did try using an Internal Test and Alpha test. But the Alpha version was downloaded to both groups even when only a single group was selected for it.
All the explanations are on this help page
Summary:
you can only have one internal test
you can have multiple closed tests, but users need to opt-in
It sounds like you want to have version 1 on a (new) closed track and will need to get your existing users to opt-in to that, and rmeove them from the internal test
Then have version 2 on a new internal test track that targets group B.
The other option would not be to have an internal test track at all, and have two closed test tracks, one for Group A, and one for Group B.
Internal test tracks are normally for very quick release for developers or immediate QA within your own company. Closed test tracks are usually trusted testers, or for people within your company not necessarily within the development team who can wait a little bit for the rollout to complete.
This isn't really a whole answer to your problem, but I have figured out that you can send people links to download a certain version of the app with 'Internal App Sharing' on the Google Play Console.
So yeah, set up 'Internal App Sharing'. (Sorry, I'm too lazy to write up steps on how to do that.)
After I set that up, when I use the 'App bundle explorer' to observe an apk or app bundle, there is a Downloads tab:
And I copied that shareable link and sent it to my phone. And then I opened that shareable link on my phone. I had to enable internal app sharing in my google play store settings (look this up because it's not obvious how to do it) on my phone. And then the link sent me to a page where I could download that specific version.
Not sure if this type of thing could be used to solve your problem but it's worth a shot.
Related
I'm trying to test the in-app purchase of a consumable item on Android, but I'm unable to do so, as the item appears as being unavailable in my country:
This only happens when I'm testing on a device connected to Android Studio (which I need to be able to do) - if I instead download the app onto the device, the consumable item appears normally, i.e. as being available.
Some details:
I'm testing on a physical device running Android version 6.0.1
That device is running the latest version of the Google Play application
I'm testing with a user that has been set up both as a track tester and a license tester, and that is also currently signed in on the device
I've made the app available in all available 177 countries and regions
The app does not have a production release, it's only available on the closed testing track
If you have uploaded the build from the closed track, please ensure that you have accepted the test invitation from the invited email or it will show this error.
Step 1: Go to Release -> Testing -> Closed Testing
Step 2: Click on Manage Track
Step 3: Click on Testers tab
Step 4: Scroll to the bottom and you will see 2 options. Copy the link for web and open the link in your phone or browser with the test email you want to test.
Step 5: When you open the link you will have an option to Become A Tester. Click on that and then you are good to go.
The solution in my case was to select the app in the Google Play Console, then go to Release > Production > Countries/regions, and add the countries/regions there. Having the countries/regions selected in the closed/internal track only is not sufficient. It seems this is necessary regardless of whether one actually has a production release or not - again, in my case, I did not. It took maybe 10-20 mins after I made the update until I stopped seeing the issue.
TL;DR:
Upload to the Internal Test track and make sure it has the highest version code
I was having this issue for a few days, and also tried numerous things, but to no avail.. I uploaded my app bundle to a Closed Testing track in the Play Store, which did not solve the problem. After countless other methods, I eventually tried to upload a bundle to the Internal Testing track, which immediately solved the issue and allowed me to use test cards again.
I have found the other versions of my question on SO and have already tried to contact Google through their dev support trying both the chat/email options, but have yet to get a straight answer about this.
I have an app that is currently using the internal testing track on Google Play. I have numerous testers all of which can download the app, use it and test it no problem. The reason I want to use internal testing, for now, is that the documentation states there is no verification period between versions and testers get the new version immediately.
The issue I am currently experiencing is that a tester who already has the app is not served an updated version when they return to the store page. If they uninstall and reinstall the app, the new app they install serves the new version.
My question is why would the new version be available but not present the user with the 'Update' button to install the new version?
Is there an issue with the app being on the internal test track? Does my app need to be verified? Can an app be verified using the internal test track? It has been 17 days since my initial upload to verify the app, which seems rather long to wait for the verification.
Does anyone have some insight into this issue? I am running out of ideas and it is rather annoying to have testers need to uninstall and reinstall the app every new version I would like tested.
After almost a month I finally have the update button. Here are the steps I took:
Create a new Closed Testing Track and go through all steps required to post a closed testing app.
Wait until the app is verified and the store page updates with the relevant store page data. (This took ~3-4 business days)
I can now publish to the Internal Testing Track, see the Update button, and use it. I no longer need to publish to the Closed Track unless I want to.
I've looked over most of the documentation and nowhere does it say in writing that your build needs to be verified to have the Update button appear, nor does it say anywhere that it is required to be in at least Closed Testing to be verified.
I hope this helps someone else in the near future as this was quite annoying.
Although a little cumbersome, when using internal testing, you'll provide your users with a URL where they can download the app (via the play store), note, this URL can be found under your "How testers join your test" section, on your "testers" tab, on your 'Internal testing' page.
When you create a new version, the testers who already have the app installed, can use the same URL provided in the first place, and they can click to download via the play store (counter-intuitive as they already have it), but when it takes them to the play store, it will give them an option to update the app, and you'll see your updated release note ect...
This means you won't need to go through the Closed testing approach and wait to get it verified.
I hope this helps somebody, I didn't want to create a closed tracked and get it verified as my app is very early into dev.
Our app update has been rejected even though we addressed the issue. In the email with the details of the rejection says that we have some vulnerabilities with our recent submission but it says that the version that have issue is the one on the production channel:
and we didn't submit that version because it's already public, my latest version is 2021031602 (3.3.0) and as you can see in the image above that version doesn't have any vulnerability and I want to upload it to a closed test channel not production. I post this question here because I'm unable to get a proper response from the Google Play Team.
This is the most recent chat that I had with them:
Then I get this email:
But I never got an answer from the policy team, we have been running with this issue since January and honestly I don't know what else can we do.
Anyone who has been in this same situation? I'll really appreciate your input.
Greetings!
I managed to solve the issue with the following steps, in case someone is struggling to find how to remove a non complaining bundle/apk.
Go to your Play Console.
Select the app.
Go to App bundle explorer.
Select the non-compliant APK/app bundle's App version at the top right dropdown menu, and make a note of which releases they are under.
Go to the track with the policy issue. It will be one of these 4 pages: Internal / Closed / Open testing or Production. (If the bundle with the issue is on the production track, you'll need to upload an update directly to that track until you get to the step 8).
Near the top right of the page, click Create new release. (You may need to click Manage track first)
If the release with the violating APK is in a draft state, discard the release.
Add the policy compliant version of app bundles or APKs.
Make sure the non-compliant version of app bundles or APKs is under the Not included section of this release. For further guidance, please see the "Not included (app bundles and APKs)" section in this Play Console Help article.
To save any changes you make to your release, select Save.
When you've finished preparing your release, select Review release.
If the non-compliant APK is released to multiple tracks, repeat steps 5-9 in each track.
I recently published an application to production mode on the play-store, the app status has changed from review to open testing, what does this mean? Might I have selected an option by mistake or it is a normal term as am meeting it for the first time.
Image
Internal testing: The app is not visible to the general public on Google Play. The app is only available to a list of people you manually set - you add their emails, and they get an invitation.
Closed testing: Same as Internal testing (not publicly visible, has an allow-list), but you get a Google report. Google will test your app and give you feedback.
Open testing: Visible to the general public on Google Play, but with a "Pre-release" warning. People can review the app, but the reviews are only visible to you.
Production: Visible to the general public. User reviews are public.
The workflow I use is:
I set the app as Internal testing (even if it is just my email address) . Right after doing this I
Promote the app to "Close testing" (even if it is just my email address) - so I can get Google's report right away.
After getting Google's report and fixing what they suggest (or ignoring it), I promote the app to production.
The reason why I jump from internal to closed testing is because I want Google's report right away. I do internal testings outside Google Play (I develop with React Native and Expo - and I use Expo for internal testings). So, the moment I submit the app it is already internally tested.
I also go straight from "closed testing" to "production" because my apps have a small audience, and I'm okay with public feedback. But if you are afraid you app may have bugs and it can hinder the app reputation with bad reviews, do the "open testing" first.
There's some testing type.
I hope you may know what production is. Production means when an application is completely ready for every device.
What's the difference between an internal, closed, and open test?
You can create releases on three testing tracks before you release
your app to production. Each phase of testing helps you gather the
feedback you need to make improvements to your app throughout its
development.
Internal testing: Create an internal testing release to quickly
distribute your app to up to 100 testers for initial quality assurance
checks. We recommend running an internal test before releasing your
app to the closed or open tracks. If needed, you can run internal
tests concurrently with closed and open tests for different versions
of your app.
Tip: You can also use internal testing to test apps that are not fully
configured (see below). Closed testing: Create a closed testing
release to test pre-release versions of your app with a wider set of
testers to gather more targeted feedback. Once you've tested with a
smaller group of colleagues or trusted users, you can expand your test
to an open release. On your Closed testing page, an alpha track will
be available as your initial closed test. If needed, you can also
create and name additional closed tracks.
If you're testing an existing app that you've published before, only
users in your test group will receive an update for your closed
version.
Open testing: Create an open testing release to run a test with a
large group and surface your app's test version on Google Play. If you
run an open test, anyone can join your testing program and submit
private feedback to you. Before choosing this option, make sure your
app and store listing is ready to be visible on Google Play.
Copied from google support.
Easy way : Open testing
Pre-launch reports
Spot issues before they affect your users. Test on a range of Android
devices to learn more about your app's stability, performance, accessibility, and more.
Here's another beautiful question with answer
After releasing our app for a few internal users via the Play Store Internal test track, we moved to closed Alpha testing. However, for some of our Alpha testers, the new update of the app is not visible at all. All of these users have opted-in to be part of this test track too but, when they access the app listing on Play Store app, they see an older release and not a build that was released several hours ago.
Some of these users even see the update that was pushed a week ago! Even for one of the developers who has access to the Play Console who got the notification of the update gone live when tried to go to the app listing sees an older version only. What's surprising is that these same users can see the latest version on the web version of Play Store.
I've tried multiple solutions based on this SO question like Play Store Force Stop + cache clear + data clear + network change, etc. Nothing worked for me.
Having faced a similar problem, I had a chat with one of the Play Console support rep. After verifying the release sanity using the app package name, the rep gave me following answer:
Please note, due to device connectivity and varying server load, it may take several days (in some cases a week) for app updates to reach all devices. The behavior you are seeing with the update being available on the web is common for apps. The mobile store will update in due course.
However, at the end he asked me to try out one thing - since its mostly the internal users who are not seeing the update, I should ask all of these users to opt-out of the internal test track and then re-opt-in to the alpha test track. He hypothesised that since I'm only releasing updates in the alpha track now, Internal track may be creating an issue with app updates for these users.
It actually worked for us! Give it a try.