Live Update API

Installation and Usage#

In order to use the Live Update API inside of your app. You need to install the latest version of the Appflow SDK and set the UPDATE_METHOD to none:

ionic deploy add --update-method=none --app-id="YOUR_APP_ID" --channel-name="YOUR_CHANNEL_NAME"

Then you can import the Live Update API in order to it in your code:

// ES2015/Typescript
import { Deploy } from 'cordova-plugin-ionic';

...

async changeToBetaChannel() {
  await Deploy.configure({channel: 'BETA'});
}

...

// Angular
import { Deploy } from 'cordova-plugin-ionic/dist/ngx';

...

constructor(private deploy: Deploy) {
  ...
}

async changeToBetaChannel() {
  await this.deploy.configure({channel: 'BETA'});
}

...

Index#

Classes#

IonicDeploy

Interfaces#

CallbackFunction
CheckForUpdateResponse
IAppInfo
ICurrentConfig
IDeployConfig
ISnapshotInfo
ISyncOptions

Classes#

IonicDeploy#

IonicDeploy:

The Ionic Live Update Plugin API

usage:

async performManualUpdate() {
 const update = await Deploy.checkForUpdate()
 if (update.available){
   // We have an update!
 }
}

Methods#

The plugin contains many functions that can help you utilize Deploy inside of your app.

configure
getConfiguration
sync
checkForUpdate
downloadUpdate
extractUpdate
reloadApp
getCurrentVersion
getVersionById
getAvailableVersions
deleteVersionById

checkForUpdate#

▸ checkForUpdate(): Promise<CheckForUpdateResponse>

description: Check for available updates for the currently configured app id and channel.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async performManualUpdate() {
 const update = await Deploy.checkForUpdate()
 if (update.available){
   // We have an update!
 }
}

Returns: Promise<CheckForUpdateResponse> A response describing an update if one is available.

configure#

▸ configure(config: IDeployConfig): Promise<void>

description: Update the default configuration for the plugin on the current device. The new configuration will be persisted across app close and binary updates.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async configureDeploy() {
 const config = {
   'appId': 'YOUR_APP_ID',
   'channel': 'CHANNEL_NAME'
 }
 await Deploy.configure(config);
}

Parameters:

Name	Type	Description
config	IDeployConfig	The new configuration for the plugin on this device.

Returns: Promise<void>

deleteVersionById#

▸ deleteVersionById(version: string): Promise<boolean>

description: Remove the files specific to a snapshot from the device.

usage:

async deleteVersion() {
 const versions = await Deploy.getAvailableVersions();
 Deploy.deleteVersionById(versions[0].versionId);
}

Parameters:

Name	Type	Description
version	`string`	The versionId

Returns: Promise<boolean> true if the update was deleted.

downloadUpdate#

▸ downloadUpdate(progress?: CallbackFunction<number>): Promise<boolean>

description: Download the new files from an available update found by the checkForUpdate method and prepare the update.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async performManualUpdate() {
 const update = await Deploy.checkForUpdate()
 if (update.available){
   await Deploy.downloadUpdate((progress) => {
     console.log(progress);
   })
 }
}

Parameters:

Name	Type	Description
`Optional` progress	CallbackFunction<`number`>	A progress callback function which will be called with a number representing the percent of completion of the download and prepare.

Returns: Promise<boolean> true if the download succeeded

extractUpdate#

▸ extractUpdate(progress?: CallbackFunction<number>): Promise<boolean>

description: Extract a downloaded bundle of updated files.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async performManualUpdate() {
 const update = await Deploy.checkForUpdate()
 if (update.available){
   await Deploy.downloadUpdate((progress) => {
     console.log(progress);
   })
   await Deploy.extractUpdate((progress) => {
     console.log(progress);
   })
 }
}

Parameters:

Name	Type	Description
`Optional` progress	CallbackFunction<`number`>	A progress callback function which will be called with a number representing the percent of completion of the extract.

Returns: Promise<boolean> true if the extract succeeded

getAvailableVersions#

▸ getAvailableVersions(): Promise<ISnapshotInfo[]>

description: Get a list of the snapshots available on the device.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async checkVersions() {
const versions = await Deploy.getAvailableVersions();
console.log(versions);
// [
//   {
//     'versionId': 'versionId1',
//     'channel': 'CHANNEL_NAME',
//     'binaryVersion': '1.0.1'
//   },
//   {
//     'versionId': 'versionId2',
//     'channel': 'CHANNEL_NAME',
//     'binaryVersion': '1.0.1'
//   },
// ]

Returns: Promise<ISnapshotInfo[]> a list of available updates.

getConfiguration#

▸ getConfiguration(): Promise<ICurrentConfig>

description: Get the current configuration for the plugin on the current device.

since: v5.0.0

usage: `typescript const info = Deploy.getConfiguration() console.log(info) // { // 'appId': 'abcd1234', // 'channel': 'MY_CHANNEL_NAME', // 'binaryVersionName': 'X.X.X', // 'binaryVersionCode': 'X.X.X', (string on iOS number on Android) // 'disabled': false, // 'updateMethod': 'auto', // 'maxVersions': 3, // 'minBackgroundDuration': 30, // 'currentVersionId': 'xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx' // 'currentBuildId' : 'xxxxxxx' // }

Returns: Promise<ICurrentConfig> The current configuration of the plugin.

getCurrentVersion#

▸ getCurrentVersion(): Promise<ISnapshotInfo | undefined>

description: Get info about the currently deployed update or undefined if none are applied.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

const info = await Deploy.getCurrentVersion()
console.log(info)
// {
//   'versionId': 'UUID_OF_ACTIVE_CODE',
//   'channel': 'CHANNEL_NAME',
//   'binaryVersion': 'X.X.X'
// }

Returns: Promise<ISnapshotInfo | undefined> The info about the currently applied update or undefined if none is applied.

getVersionById#

▸ getVersionById(versionId: string): Promise<ISnapshotInfo>

description: Get info about the update by its versionId

since: v5.0.0

Parameters:

Name	Type
versionId	`string`

Returns: Promise<ISnapshotInfo> The info about the currently applied update or undefined if none is applied.

reloadApp#

▸ reloadApp(): Promise<boolean>

description: Reload the app if a more recent version of the app is available.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async performManualUpdate() {
 const update = await Deploy.checkForUpdate()
 if (update.available){
   await Deploy.downloadUpdate((progress) => {
     console.log(progress);
   })
   await Deploy.extractUpdate((progress) => {
     console.log(progress);
   })
   await Deploy.reloadApp();
 }
}

Returns: Promise<boolean> true if the reload succeeded

sync#

▸ sync(syncOptions?: ISyncOptions, progress?: CallbackFunction<number>): Promise<ISnapshotInfo | undefined>

description: Check for an update, download it, and apply it in one step.

since: v5.0.0

usage:

async performAutomaticUpdate() {
 try {
   const currentVersion = await Deploy.getCurrentVersion();
   const resp = await Deploy.sync({updateMethod: 'auto'}, percentDone => {
     console.log(`Update is ${percentDone}% done!`);
   });
   if (!currentVersion || currentVersion.versionId !== resp.versionId){
     // We found an update, and are in process of redirecting you since you put auto!
   }else{
     // No update available
   }
 } catch (err) {
   // We encountered an error.
 }
}

Parameters:

Name	Type	Default value	Description
`Default value` syncOptions	ISyncOptions	{}	(Optional) Application update overrides.

Returns: Promise<ISnapshotInfo | undefined> The info about the currently applied update or undefined if none is applied.

Interfaces#

CallbackFunction#

▸ __call(result?: [T]()): void

A callback function to handle the result.

Parameters:

Name	Type
`Optional` result	[T]()

Returns: void

CheckForUpdateResponse#

CheckForUpdateResponse:

The response object describing if an update is available.

available#

● available: boolean

Whether or not an update is available.

`<Optional>` build#

● build: undefined | string

The id of the build if available.

compatible#

● compatible: boolean

Equivalent to available since v5 this can be ignored in favor of available

deprecated:

`<Optional>` incompatibleUpdateAvailable#

● incompatibleUpdateAvailable: undefined | false | true

Whether or not there is an update available that is not compatible with this device.

partial#

● partial: false

Legacy indicator of whether the update is a partial one. This will always be false and can be ignored

deprecated:

`<Optional>` snapshot#

● snapshot: undefined | string

The id of the snapshot if available.

`<Optional>` url#

● url: undefined | string

The url to fetch the manifest of files in the update.

IAppInfo#

IAppInfo:

Information about the application.

binaryVersionCode#

● binaryVersionCode: string | number

The versionCode on Android or CFBundleVersion on iOS this should be changed every time you do a new build debug or otherwise.

binaryVersionName#

● binaryVersionName: string

The versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS this is the end user readable version listed on the stores.

bundleName#

● bundleName: string

The bundle name.

bundleVersion#

● bundleVersion: string

deprecated: The versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS this is the end user readable version listed on the stores.

dataDirectory#

● dataDirectory: string

Directory where the snapshots are stored

device#

● device: string

A generated device ID (NOT a native device ID)

platform#

● platform: "ios" | "android"

The platform that the app is currently installed on.

platformVersion#

● platformVersion: string

The version of the native platform.

version#

● version: string

deprecated: The versionCode on Android or CFBundleVersion on iOS this should be changed every time you do a new build debug or otherwise.

ICurrentConfig#

ICurrentConfig:

The current configuration for the deploy plugin on the device.

appId#

● appId: string

The Ionic Appflow app id.

binaryVersion#

● binaryVersion: string

deprecated: The binary version of the native bundle versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS deprecated in favor of versionName

binaryVersionCode#

● binaryVersionCode: string

The build version code of the native bundle versionCode on Android or CFBundleVersion on iOS

binaryVersionName#

● binaryVersionName: string

The binary version of the native bundle versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS

channel#

● channel: string

The channel that the plugin should listen for updates on.

`<Optional>` currentBuildId#

● currentBuildId: undefined | string

The id of the currently applied build or undefined if none is applied.

`<Optional>` currentVersionId#

● currentVersionId: undefined | string

The id of the currently applied updated or undefined if none is applied.

disabled#

● disabled: boolean

Whether the user disabled deploy updates or not.

host#

● host: string

The host API the plugin is configured to check for updates from.

maxVersions#

● maxVersions: number

The maximum number of updates to be stored locally on the device.

minBackgroundDuration#

● minBackgroundDuration: number

The number of seconds the app needs to be in the background before the plugin considers it closed for the purposes of fetching and applying a new update.

updateMethod#

● updateMethod: "none" | "auto" | "background"

The currently configured updateMethod for the plugin.

IDeployConfig#

IDeployConfig:

The configuration for the deploy plugin on the device.

`<Optional>` appId#

● appId: undefined | string

The Ionic app id.

`<Optional>` channel#

● channel: undefined | string

The channel that the plugin should listen for updates on.

`<Optional>` debug#

● debug: undefined | false | true

whether or not the app should in debug mode

`<Optional>` maxVersions#

● maxVersions: undefined | number

The number of previous updates to be cached on the device

`<Optional>` minBackgroundDuration#

● minBackgroundDuration: undefined | number

The number of seconds the app should be in the background for before the plugin considers it closed and checks for an updated on resume of the app.

`<Optional>` updateMethod#

● updateMethod: "none" | "auto" | "background"

The update method the app should use when checking for available updates

ISnapshotInfo#

ISnapshotInfo:

Information about a snapshot

binaryVersion#

● binaryVersion: string

deprecated: The binary version the snapshot was downloaded for. The versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS this is the end user readable version listed on the stores.

binaryVersionCode#

● binaryVersionCode: string

The binary version build code the snapshot was downloaded for. The versionCode on Android or CFBundleVersion on iOS this should be changed every time you do a new build debug or otherwise.

binaryVersionName#

● binaryVersionName: string

The binary version name the snapshot was downloaded for. The versionName on Android or CFBundleShortVersionString on iOS this is the end user readable version listed on the stores.

binary_version#

● binary_version: string

deprecated: in favor of binaryVersion

The binary version the snapshot was downloaded for.

buildId#

● buildId: string

The id for the snapshot.

channel#

● channel: string

The channel that the snapshot was downloaded for..

deploy_uuid#

● deploy_uuid: string

deprecated: in favor of versionId

The id for the snapshot.

versionId#

● versionId: string

The id for the snapshot.

ISyncOptions#

ISyncOptions:

Configuration options for the call to sync

`<Optional>` updateMethod#

● updateMethod: "background" | "auto"

Whether the update should be applied immediately or on the next app start.

Plugin Variables#

The deploy plugin uses variables to configure the way in which the plugin behaves. You can set these values when you add the plugin using flags (if using the ionic deploy add command) or using cordova variables (if using ionic cordova plugin add). The available variables are as follows:

App ID#

Required
The app id is required to receive updates for an app in the Appflow dashboard.
ionic deploy add --app-id=abcdef12
ionic cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-ionic --variable APP_ID=abcdef12

Channel Name#

Required
The channel name is required to receive updates for an app in the Appflow dashboard and indicates the channel from which the device will receive updates. Note this can also be updated programatically at runtime for advanced use cases.
ionic deploy add --channel-name=Production
ionic cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-ionic --variable CHANNEL_NAME=Production

Update Method#

Default background
The update method determines how the app will check for and apply updates. Possible values are:
- background (Recommended) - The app will check for updates in the background and not prolong the amount of time the splash screen is shown. If an update is available it will be downloaded and installed while the user is using the older version. The next time they launch the app or the app has been in background for the duration specified my min-background-duration the new version will be loaded.
- auto - The app will delay the launch of the app by extending how long the splash screen is shown while downloading any available updates. Once the update is available the new version will be immediately shown and the splash screen will be hidden. We generally don't recommend this mode since it can lead to the splash screen showing for a long time particularly if the user is on a poor network connection.
- none - Setting the update method to none indicates that you will manually perform all update logic programatically and the plugin will not check for or apply updates on its own.
ionic deploy add --update-method=background
ionic cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-ionic --variable UPDATE_METHOD=background

Max Versions#

Default 2
This tells the plugin the number of previous updates it should keep on the device in order to speed up the rollback process if ever needed.
ionic deploy add --max-versions=2
ionic cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-ionic --variable MAX_STORE=2

Min Background Duration#

Default 30
This tells the plugin the number of seconds the app needs to be in the background for it to have been considered "closed". If the app has been in the background for at least this duration the plugin will check for and apply updates according to the update method as if the app were opened from a fully closed state. This is helpful for triggering updates even when a user never fully closes the app but also allowing them to page over to another app or password manager for short periods of time without triggering an update.
ionic deploy add --min-background-duration=60
ionic cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-ionic --variable MIN_BACKGROUND_DURATION=60

Change Log#

5.4.4#

Fix issue where too many network requests at once could fire and cause performance issues.

5.4.3#

Fix issue where types caused incompatability with Ionic v3 (Typescript 2.x)

5.4.0#

Added Deploy API Imports
Removed dependency on cordova-plugin-file

5.3.0#

Added an 'incompatibleUpdateAvailable' property to the 'CheckForUpdateResponse' ([#204] (https://github.com/ionic-team/cordova-plugin-ionic/pull/204))
'ConfigurationInfo' now contains the 'BuildId' in addition to the 'SnapshotId' ([#204] (https://github.com/ionic-team/cordova-plugin-ionic/pull/204))

5.2.9#

Get dataDirectory from getAppInfo function (#197)
Add proxy for browser platform to support it (#199)

5.2.8#

Fix Type Error in IDeployConfig (#196)

5.2.7#

Change hook to run before_prepare and make it async (#178)
Fixed bug where the a new binary update would load an older cached version of the app (#179))

5.2.6#

Check for Capacitor and switch folder (#164)
Remove unused import (#163)
Delay device ready until pro checks are done (#161)

5.2.5#

Fix bug where binaryVersionName and binaryVersionCode are not returned from getConfiguation call
Fix bug where downloadUpdate progress call back would go from 0 to 50 rather than 100 (#156)
Check if the device is online before checking for updates (#154)

5.2.4#

update check device resp to be accurate (#148)

5.2.3#

Fixed bug with AndroidManifest.xml syntax for real since our release script kept breaking it

5.2.2#

Fixed bug with AndroidManifest.xml syntax

5.2.1#

Add ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE permission to make navigator.onLine work on android

5.2.0#

Added DisableDeploy Cordova preference allowing disabling of the plugin
Requires cordova-plugin-ionic-webview@^2.1.4 for DisableDeploy support to work correctly

5.1.6#

Fixed a bug with none update method strategy that could cause background updates upon resume of the app from background

5.0.6#

Fixed a bug with version rebulds that could make some initial redirects take up to 15 seconds.

5.0.5#

Rebuild a deploy directory in the case where the binary version has changed since the update was downloaded.

5.0.0#

Release!

Installation and Usage#

Index#

Classes#

Interfaces#

Classes#

IonicDeploy#

Methods#

checkForUpdate#

configure#

deleteVersionById#

downloadUpdate#

extractUpdate#

getAvailableVersions#

getConfiguration#

getCurrentVersion#

getVersionById#

reloadApp#

sync#

Interfaces#

CallbackFunction#

CheckForUpdateResponse#

available#

<Optional> build#

compatible#

<Optional> incompatibleUpdateAvailable#

partial#

<Optional> snapshot#

<Optional> url#

IAppInfo#

binaryVersionCode#

binaryVersionName#

bundleName#

bundleVersion#

dataDirectory#

device#

platform#

platformVersion#

version#

ICurrentConfig#

appId#

binaryVersion#

binaryVersionCode#

binaryVersionName#

channel#

<Optional> currentBuildId#

<Optional> currentVersionId#

disabled#

host#

maxVersions#

minBackgroundDuration#

updateMethod#

IDeployConfig#

<Optional> appId#

<Optional> channel#

<Optional> debug#

<Optional> maxVersions#

<Optional> minBackgroundDuration#

<Optional> updateMethod#

ISnapshotInfo#

binaryVersion#

binaryVersionCode#

binaryVersionName#

binary_version#

buildId#

channel#

deploy_uuid#

versionId#

ISyncOptions#

<Optional> updateMethod#

Plugin Variables#

App ID#

Channel Name#

Update Method#

Max Versions#

Min Background Duration#

Change Log#

5.4.4#

5.4.3#

5.4.0#

5.3.0#

`<Optional>` build#

`<Optional>` incompatibleUpdateAvailable#

`<Optional>` snapshot#

`<Optional>` url#

`<Optional>` currentBuildId#

`<Optional>` currentVersionId#

`<Optional>` appId#

`<Optional>` channel#

`<Optional>` debug#

`<Optional>` maxVersions#

`<Optional>` minBackgroundDuration#

`<Optional>` updateMethod#

`<Optional>` updateMethod#