I have my application published in Production in Google Play Store. Now I would like to provide new version for Alpha tests. I added testers to google groups, they have recieved proper link to test APK. But when they click on "download it", it links them to not Alpha, but Production version. It's already more then 1 day since I published the Alpha version. Anyone knows what can be the reason?
Somethings you can try are:
Make sure that the version code for your Alpha APK is higher,
otherwise it becomes inactive.
Ensure that the testers have opted in. Your share link should be:
https://play.google.com/apps/testing/PACKAGE_NAME
Clearing cache/data and restarting your Google Play Store
application. This might refresh the Play Store App to see any
available updates.
Make sure your app is in a published state. You do not need a production apk, but it shouldn't be in a draft or unpublished state.
The device a user is testing may have to remove all other account except for the account invited to test. Multiple accounts may cause problems.
Related
I integrated Google IAP Billing to an Android application.
I published my application in Alpha version on Google Play Store. I copied the public key that I added in my project on Android Studio. So, I use the good Public API Key with my IabHelper instance.
I signed an APK that I use on a device with an unique account that is different from my developer account. This account is added in the license testing emails field on the Settings part of Google Play Developer Console.
I also checked the SKU ID of the item I want to purchase is the same on my application and on the application signed.
When I launch the buy process, I get a dialog with Please sign in to your google account error. But, I am already connected because I can go on Play Store application and download apps. I also tried to clear cache data for Play Store app and Google Play Services but nothing works for me.
I must mention that on the manage list of alpha testers, I have created a google+ community like asked but there is no link to send to my alpha-testers to opt-in.
Someone has an idea about the problem ? And the solution to solve it ?
The alpha tester has to satisfy these two conditions:
joined the alpha testing community
opted-in for alpha tests
Firs you have to invite the tester to the alpha testing community. Second the alpha tester have to opt-in using this URL: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/your.package.name
It just takes time. Give it couple of hours and it will work.
Also make sure that the file you are running on your phone is signed with the sane certificate that is uploaded on google play (not debug file)
I gather from other postings that it is near impossible to my check licensing code until i publish a new app for the first time in the google play store?
I have uploaded my apk to the Play dev console, (promoted to prod, but unpublished), tested with account owner ID, and still come up with "ERROR_NOT_MARKET_MANAGED" as the license response.
If true what is a good strategy for not making it available to anyone else who might purchase and then complain that it fails licensing checks before i test licensing and fix any related coding problems? Can I make it available in "no countries" at first? Should I put a ridiculously high price in a single country (and does that have to include my own country)?
I would hope there are better solutions to this dilema.
Assuming you are using Google Play Licensing, they write:
Note: Previously you could test an app by uploading an unpublished "draft" version. This functionality is no longer supported; instead, you must publish it to the alpha or beta distribution channel. For more information, see Draft Apps are No Longer Supported.
I've uploaded my app to the Developer Console, but didn't publish it yet(it's still in draft mode).
Whenever a user who is not a test user tries to use the In App Biiling he receives the following error -
User is not eligible for this purchase
I've looked around and read some other question regarding the issue, and now I know that the reason for this error is because the user is not a test user and the app hasn't been published.But I still want to be sure of one thing -
When I publish my application, will the In-App Billing work and users will not receive these errors?
Thanks!
The best way to make sure it works like this would be to try it out by yourself.
You can create a new Google Play user account, register it as an alpha/beta tester and release a alpha/beta version of your app (look for "Testing with real transactions" section for more details). It's safe because only your beta tester user can see published application and nobody else. Then install this app to the beta tester's device and check in-app billing works. Then upload a new draft version and make sure beta tester is not impacted.
I had same concern before I published a first version of my application. From today's experience I can say, that normal Google Play users can only see a published version and they do not get any error messages when a new draft is uploaded. Hope this helps.
I have developed my app and have published it through Google Play for alpha testing. As one of the testers I get an opt-in link, where I signed in as a tester. After that I was hoping to download the app directly with my phone by going to the Play Store on my phone. But as it seems to turn out, I have to got to the app's web profile and then from there click download; only then does the Play Store download the app to my phone.
I want to get other alpha testers involved and I was hoping to make the process easier for them. Is there an easier way? As in, once they opt-in, I would like them to just use their Android phone to download the app the way they would any other app. Is there a way?
Clarifications:
I am not looking for an alternative to Google Play
I have already gone through the Google Group creation process. My question is concerning what happens after a group member opts-in. Can they use their phone directly (play-app on phone) or must they download from the website? So far I have not been successful using the play-app.
You need to publish the app before it becomes available for testing.
if you publish the app and the apk is only in "alpha testing" section
then it is NOT available to general public, only for activated testers in the alpha section.
EDIT:
One additional note: "normal" users will not find your app on Google Play, but also the activated tester can not find the application by using the search box.
Only the direct link to the application package will work. (only for the activated testers).
Here is a check list for you:
1) Is your app published? (Production APK is not required for publishing)
2) Did your alpha/beta testers "Accept invitation" to Google+ community or Google group?
3) Are your alpha/beta testers logged in their Google+ account?
4) Are your alpha/beta testers using your link from Google Play developer console? It has format like this: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.yourdomain.package
Publish your alpha apk by pressing the submit button.
Wait until it's published.
(e.g.: CURRENT APK published on Apr 28, 2015, 2:20:13AM)
Select Alpha testers - click Manage list of testers.
Share the link with your testers (by email).
(e.g.: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/uk.co.xxxxx.xxxxx)
It should be noted that releasing an alpha app for the first time may take up to a few hours before an opt-in link is available and invitations are sent out to the email addresses in your testers list.
From Google support:
After publishing an alpha/beta app for the first time, it may take a
few hours for your test link to be available to testers. If you
publish additional changes, they may take several hours to be
available for testers. [source]
You may want to wait until you have an initial opt-in link before publishing more changes to the app because doing so is likely to increase your wait time for receiving your tester link; or, may lead to your testers testing with the incorrect version.
Hope that clears things up for anyone confused about why they don't have an opt-in link as depicted in screenshots in this SO thread!
Under APK/ALPHA TESTING/MANAGE TESTERS you find:
Choose the method you want.
Then you need to first upload your Apk. Before it can be published you need to go to the usual steps in publishing which means: you need icons, the FSK ratings, screenshots etc.
After you added it you click on publish.
You find the link for your testers at:
Google play store provides closed testing track to test your application with a limited set of testers pre-defined in the tester's list known as Alpha Testing. Here are some important things to be considered to use alpha testing.
Important
After publishing an alpha/beta app for the first time, it may take a few hours for your test link to be available to testers. If you publish additional changes, they may take several hours to be available for testers
Managing Testers for Alpha Testing
The Screenshot is most recent as of answering this question. You can see the manage testers for closed alpha testing, You can add and remove tester one by one or you can use CSV file to bulk add and remove. The list of defined email addresses will be eligible for testing the app, here you can a control whom to provide the app for testing. Hence, this is known as Closed Testing.
You can see the link(washed out by red line), once your app available to test, your testers can download and test the app by going to the below-given link. For that Google will ask once to the tester for joining the testing program. Once they have joined the program, they will receive an app update. As stated by store, it may take 24 hours to make an app available for testing.
Once your app available, Your invited testers can join the test by going the link https://play.google.com/apps/testing/YOUR PACKAGE NAME
Managing App Releases
After the Manage testers card, there is a card for manage release, from here you can manage your alpha releases and roll-out them to production by clicking the button at the top of the card once they well tested. This process of rolling out from testing to production/public is known as stagged roll-out. In stagged roll-out, the publisher publishes by the percentage of users, to better analyze the user response.
You can also manage multiple alpha release app versions from here, at the bottom of the screenshot you can see that I have once more apk build version being served as alpha test app.
Managing Closed Track Testing Availability
Apart from the user based control, you have one more control over the availability of the app for a test in the country. You can add limited countries tester to the app. suppose your list of the testers are from multiple countries and you want the application to be tested in your country only, rather removing testers from the testing list, you can go through Alpha Country Availability. It gives more precise control over testers.
Here, In Screenshot, my app is available worldwide states that my testers (from testers list) can test the app in all countries.
In my experience the flow is:
you publish the app as beta in Google Play and create the Google+ community
invite the tester to the community
once he has joined, send him the link of the test app in Google Play
the tester opens the link in the browser (not google play app)
registers as tester
in the browser, install the apps to the device (the app will be magically pushed to the device)
Another issue of that page if you use multiple playstore accounts:
In some cases you still get a 404, even if you are currently logged in with the right account, the one you joined the beta community with.
As a workaround, you can clear the browser cache, use another browser for the beta signup, or just use the incognito mode of your browser.
You can use a Google Group and have your alpha testers just join the group. Everything else should just be handled through the Google Play Store App.
I have developed my app and have published it through Google Play for alpha testing. As one of the testers I get an opt-in link, where I signed in as a tester. After that I was hoping to download the app directly with my phone by going to the Play Store on my phone. But as it seems to turn out, I have to got to the app's web profile and then from there click download; only then does the Play Store download the app to my phone.
I want to get other alpha testers involved and I was hoping to make the process easier for them. Is there an easier way? As in, once they opt-in, I would like them to just use their Android phone to download the app the way they would any other app. Is there a way?
Clarifications:
I am not looking for an alternative to Google Play
I have already gone through the Google Group creation process. My question is concerning what happens after a group member opts-in. Can they use their phone directly (play-app on phone) or must they download from the website? So far I have not been successful using the play-app.
You need to publish the app before it becomes available for testing.
if you publish the app and the apk is only in "alpha testing" section
then it is NOT available to general public, only for activated testers in the alpha section.
EDIT:
One additional note: "normal" users will not find your app on Google Play, but also the activated tester can not find the application by using the search box.
Only the direct link to the application package will work. (only for the activated testers).
Here is a check list for you:
1) Is your app published? (Production APK is not required for publishing)
2) Did your alpha/beta testers "Accept invitation" to Google+ community or Google group?
3) Are your alpha/beta testers logged in their Google+ account?
4) Are your alpha/beta testers using your link from Google Play developer console? It has format like this: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.yourdomain.package
Publish your alpha apk by pressing the submit button.
Wait until it's published.
(e.g.: CURRENT APK published on Apr 28, 2015, 2:20:13AM)
Select Alpha testers - click Manage list of testers.
Share the link with your testers (by email).
(e.g.: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/uk.co.xxxxx.xxxxx)
It should be noted that releasing an alpha app for the first time may take up to a few hours before an opt-in link is available and invitations are sent out to the email addresses in your testers list.
From Google support:
After publishing an alpha/beta app for the first time, it may take a
few hours for your test link to be available to testers. If you
publish additional changes, they may take several hours to be
available for testers. [source]
You may want to wait until you have an initial opt-in link before publishing more changes to the app because doing so is likely to increase your wait time for receiving your tester link; or, may lead to your testers testing with the incorrect version.
Hope that clears things up for anyone confused about why they don't have an opt-in link as depicted in screenshots in this SO thread!
Under APK/ALPHA TESTING/MANAGE TESTERS you find:
Choose the method you want.
Then you need to first upload your Apk. Before it can be published you need to go to the usual steps in publishing which means: you need icons, the FSK ratings, screenshots etc.
After you added it you click on publish.
You find the link for your testers at:
Google play store provides closed testing track to test your application with a limited set of testers pre-defined in the tester's list known as Alpha Testing. Here are some important things to be considered to use alpha testing.
Important
After publishing an alpha/beta app for the first time, it may take a few hours for your test link to be available to testers. If you publish additional changes, they may take several hours to be available for testers
Managing Testers for Alpha Testing
The Screenshot is most recent as of answering this question. You can see the manage testers for closed alpha testing, You can add and remove tester one by one or you can use CSV file to bulk add and remove. The list of defined email addresses will be eligible for testing the app, here you can a control whom to provide the app for testing. Hence, this is known as Closed Testing.
You can see the link(washed out by red line), once your app available to test, your testers can download and test the app by going to the below-given link. For that Google will ask once to the tester for joining the testing program. Once they have joined the program, they will receive an app update. As stated by store, it may take 24 hours to make an app available for testing.
Once your app available, Your invited testers can join the test by going the link https://play.google.com/apps/testing/YOUR PACKAGE NAME
Managing App Releases
After the Manage testers card, there is a card for manage release, from here you can manage your alpha releases and roll-out them to production by clicking the button at the top of the card once they well tested. This process of rolling out from testing to production/public is known as stagged roll-out. In stagged roll-out, the publisher publishes by the percentage of users, to better analyze the user response.
You can also manage multiple alpha release app versions from here, at the bottom of the screenshot you can see that I have once more apk build version being served as alpha test app.
Managing Closed Track Testing Availability
Apart from the user based control, you have one more control over the availability of the app for a test in the country. You can add limited countries tester to the app. suppose your list of the testers are from multiple countries and you want the application to be tested in your country only, rather removing testers from the testing list, you can go through Alpha Country Availability. It gives more precise control over testers.
Here, In Screenshot, my app is available worldwide states that my testers (from testers list) can test the app in all countries.
In my experience the flow is:
you publish the app as beta in Google Play and create the Google+ community
invite the tester to the community
once he has joined, send him the link of the test app in Google Play
the tester opens the link in the browser (not google play app)
registers as tester
in the browser, install the apps to the device (the app will be magically pushed to the device)
Another issue of that page if you use multiple playstore accounts:
In some cases you still get a 404, even if you are currently logged in with the right account, the one you joined the beta community with.
As a workaround, you can clear the browser cache, use another browser for the beta signup, or just use the incognito mode of your browser.
You can use a Google Group and have your alpha testers just join the group. Everything else should just be handled through the Google Play Store App.