Adding an App

An app can be published into the enterprise app store via a variety of means. For example, you can use Mobile Administrator to upload it directly from a binary, or you can have it uploaded automatically from webMethods Mobile Designer. Mobile Designer can control build nodes in order to manage the building of projects directly.

When you add an app with Mobile Administrator, you first have to decide how you would like to create the new app. You can add application binaries that have been developed, for example, with Mobile Designer. Or you can add apps from an existing app store. You can also just create a shell for an app that is yet to be developed.

Depending on your selection, different options are shown that you have to specify. For detailed information, see the appropriate section later in this documentation.

Each app that you add will immediately be visible in Mobile Administrator. In the app store client, however, an app will only be visible if there is a stable version for this app.

The sections below describe typical scenarios for adding an app to your app store.

You have developed your app (for example, with Mobile Designer) and you have the ready-to-upload binaries for all platforms on which the app can be used (for example, an iOS .ipa file and and Android .apk file). A build configuration is not required in this case.

1. Add an app with the option I have an application binary and then upload a binary. See Adding an Application Binary.

Using this option, you can only upload a single binary (for example, the above-mentioned .ipa file). Additional binaries can be uploaded from the Versions page of the app as described below.

2. Edit the app details. For example, specify the final app name, provide a description, an icon, screenshots, and assign the app to an existing category. See Editing an App.

3. Go to the Versions page of the app and do the following:

a. Upload the binaries for all other platforms (for example, the above-mentioned .apk file).

Depending on the platform, some policies are already predefined. For example, for Android it is predefined that the app usage is to be logged and that app crashes are to be reported.

4. Go to the Permissions page of the app. Make sure that your users will be able to download your app. In most cases, you will allow them to view and download stable versions. See Managing the Permissions of an App.

5. If you have selected a stable product stage, the new app is now visible in your app store and can be installed on the mobile devices of your users. See Using the App Store on a Mobile Device.

You want to upload a Mobile Designer project and let Mobile Administrator build the binaries for you (for example, for Android and iOS). In this case, a build configuration is required. This scenario assumes that your source code is not stored in a source code repository. It assumes instead that all required source code files are stored locally on your machine.

1. Add an app with the option I will enter the application details manually. Specify all required options such as the app name, description, category and icon. Specify the bundle ID for each platform on which you want to make the app available. This must be the same bundle ID as defined in the source. Otherwise, the build will fail. See Specifying the Details for the New App Manually.

2. If you want to add screenshots, edit the app after it has been created. See Editing an App.

3. Go to the Permissions page of the app. Make sure that your users will be able to download your app. In most cases, you will allow them to view and download stable versions. See Managing the Permissions of an App.

4. As no binaries have been uploaded yet, the app is not yet installable. Therefore, go to the Build page of the app. On the Build Configurations tab, add a new build configuration for each platform (for example, one for iOS and another for Android). See Adding a Build Configuration. Make sure to specify the following in each build configuration:

d. Specify platform-specific information such as the iOS provisioning profile or Android developer certificate.

e. Select Build using webMethods Mobile Designer and enter a target name, that is, the "target device" as defined in Mobile Designer.

f. Define the app policies. For example, you can define that the app usage is to be logged and that app crashes are to be reported.

5. Check the Build Configurations tab. An entry should now be shown for each platform for which you have created a build configuration. See Managing the Build Configurations of an App.

6. Do the following on the Build Configurations tab:

b. If you want, you can also specify a build number. If you do not specify a build number, is automatically increased when you launch the build configuration.

7. Go to the Build Jobs tab and view the job output. Make sure that the build jobs for the different platforms have been run successfully. See Managing the Build Jobs of an App.

8. Go to the Versions page of the app. The result of each build job is a new app version on this page. See Managing the Versions of an App.

9. If you have selected a stable product stage, the new app is now visible in your app store and can be installed on the mobile devices of your users. See Using the App Store on a Mobile Device.