Migration Guide

Important

Visual Studio App Center is scheduled for retirement on March 31, 2025. While you can continue to use Visual Studio App Center until it is fully retired, there are several recommended alternatives that you may consider migrating to.

Learn more about support timelines and alternatives.

Visual Studio App Center is the new home of CodePush. App Center is a development tool that includes a set of cloud services for building and managing mobile applications. App Center is the next generation of HockeyApp and Xamarin Test Cloud. Learn more about App Center.

The movement of CodePush into App Center is a step forward in improving the overall user experience and progression of CodePush.

This guide was made to make moving from CodePush to App Center straightforward. Besides the use of a new CLI, we've tried to limit the changes you must make immediately. You won't have to make any changes in your code until the release of the new SDK next year.

If you're a current CodePush user, your account has already been migrated for you. All of your CodePush data can be accessed by logging into App Center. If not, that's okay too! You can get started by creating an account.

Getting Started

Setting up your account

Depending on the status of your account, the process is a little different:

• Current CodePush users: We've already migrated your account! No further action is required regarding account setup. You can access your account data by logging into App Center.
• New CodePush users: Create an account on App Center.

Note

If you had both a CodePush and App Center account that shared an email address, then no further action is required. These accounts will be merged upon logging in to App Center.

Getting Set up in the App Center Portal

Once you log in, the first thing you'll see is a list of all your applications. If you had a previous CodePush application, you should find it listed and annotated.

The back-end migration of CodePush was completed on June 2, 2017. If any of your apps were made before this date, you must specify the OS and Platform of the app.

We don't currently support Cordova apps in the portal. You can still use the App Center CLI, and we're working on supporting additional platforms. App Center's mission is to provide quality support for as many platforms as possible. Periodically check out the App Center blog for news or updates, and our product roadmap.

If you imported a React Native app, or are starting a new React Native app, you should see an app overview panel that lets you manage your app and shows how to add other App Center SDKs. Your App Center app secret is what allows your app to send information to App Center, it isn't the same as your CodePush deployment keys. CodePush deployment keys can be checked by opening the terminal and running:

appcenter codepush deployment list <ownerName>/<appName> --displayKeys

Install the App Center CLI

To start releasing updates to your end users, you must install the App Center CLI. To install it, open a terminal window or command prompt and execute the following command:

npm install -g appcenter-cli

Once installed, use the appcenter command, see below for the available commands.

To log in to your account use appcenter login. This command will open the App Center website and present you with an authentication token.

The token must be put into the CLI for authentication and to complete the login process.

Now you're free to use CodePush functionality in your apps through the App Center CLI.

Using CodePush in the App Center Portal

CodePush can be found within the Distribution section of the App Center portal. CodePush is only visible in App Center when using React Native, and soon Cordova applications.

If your application has a history of releases for a given deployment, these releases will be visible. Switching between deployments is as simple as using the dropdown at the upper right-hand corner of the screen.

Clicking the "Edit" button will provide you with a panel for patching your release. Editing the items on this page would be equivalent to using appcenter codepush patch.

For now, developers using CodePush must distribute releases using the release commands in the App Center CLI. If you create your React Native app using the dashboard then you must create default deployments using App Center.

Or you can use the following commands in the App Center CLI to create the recommended deployments before pushing a release:

appcenter codepush deployment add -a <ownerName>/<appName> Staging
appcenter codepush deployment add -a <ownerName>/<appName> Production

The App Center CLI Experience

This section was constructed to enable you to see some of the most common CodePush commands and how they've changed within the App Center CLI.

Tip

Most App Center CLI commands can be shortened by using appcenter apps set-current <ownerName>/<appName>. By setting an app as the current app you no longer have to use the -a flag to specify the app you're trying to perform the command on.

Creating an App in the App Center CLI:

appcenter apps create -d MyApp -o iOS -p React-Native

Releasing an Update App Center CLI:

appcenter codepush release-react MyApp 

List App Deployments App Center CLI:

appcenter codepush deployment list MyApp

CLI Command Comparison:

CodePush	App Center
code-push app add MyApp ios react-native	appcenter apps create -d MyApp -o iOS -p React-Native
N/A	appcenter apps set-current <ownerName>/MyApp
N/A	appcenter apps get-current
code-push deployment add myApp <DeploymentName>	if current app is set: appcenter codepush deployment add <DeploymentName> if not: appcenter codepush deployment add -a <ownerName>/MyApp <DeploymentName>
code-push release-react MyApp ios	if current app is set: appcenter codepush release-react if not: appcenter codepush release-react -a <ownerName>/MyApp
code-push access-key list	appcenter tokens list

App Center CLI CodePush Cheat Sheet

Command	Description	Example
App Center
appcenter help	Get command or category help	-
appcenter login	Log the CLI into App Center	-
appcenter logout	Log the CLI out of App Center	-
appcenter profile	View and manage profile information	-
appcenter tokens	Manage API tokens	appcenter tokens list
appcenter orgs	Manage organizations	appcenter orgs list
Apps
appcenter apps create	Create a new app	appcenter apps create -d MyApp -o Android -p React-Native
appcenter apps delete	Delete an app	appcenter apps delete -a ownerName/MyApp
appcenter apps get-current	Get the application that's set as default for all CLI commands	-
appcenter apps list	Get list of configured applications	-
appcenter apps set-current	Set default application for all CLI commands	appcenter apps set-current <ownerName>/MyApp
CodePush
appcenter codepush deployment	View and manage your app deployments	appcenter codepush deployment list
appcenter codepush help	Get CodePush specific command or category help	-
appcenter codepush patch	Update the metadata for an existing release	appcenter codepush patch -m
appcenter codepush promote	Promote the latest release from one app deployment to another	appcenter codepush promote -s Staging -d Production
appcenter codepush release	Release an update to an app deployment	appcenter codepush release -a ownerName/MyApp
appcenter codepush release-cordova	Release a Cordova update to an app deployment	appcenter codepush release-cordova --description "modified assets"
appcenter codepush release-react	Release a React Native update to an app deployment	appcenter codepush release-react -x
appcenter codepush rollback	Roll back the latest release for an app deployment	appcenter codepush rollback Staging

FAQ

Will the move impact my customers?

No.

What changes for CodePush?

For now, the only significant change is the use of the App Center CLI and the structure of the commands. No changes in your code will be necessary until the release of the new SDK, which currently has no ETA. The CodePush team is greatful for your help in making CodePush successful. It wouldn't be possible without such an amazing community.

Is using CodePush functionality still free?

Yes.

Why the move?

Moving to App Center means more support, more resources, and a home among Microsoft's first class services for mobile development.

Can I still log on?

Yes.

Can I continue to use the CLI?

Yes, we're committed to maintain the CLI through September 2018. You're free to continue using the CLI, but all features besides release and viewing metrics will be disabled in Late March 2018. Finally, the CodePush CLI will be retired in Mid-October 2018.

Will I need to create a new account for App Center if I already have one?

If you used the same email for both accounts, you can log into App Center using your original account. If not, one will be created for your CodePush app. To manage your apps from the same account, create an organization in App Center, add your new account to it, and transfer your app to the organization.

Helpful Resources

• CodePush Documentation
• App Center
• App Center Documentation