how to build APK for Android intended for internal distribution?

Question

I'm working on an Android app with React Native.

For testing and developing I just follow the regular dev workflow with a server on my dev machine, reload JS, etc.

Now I want to pass the APK to other people in my company so that they can test the app on their device.

I've been looking into the android folder on my React Native project but I can't find an APK ready to send to other people. It seems the only APK was built when I created the project a few weeks ago, and I'm assuming this APK does not contain any JS code.

I've found these instructions for building a signed app for the Play Store, but I don't need to distribute this APK on the Play Store.

So, how do I create a self contained APK with the JS files and assets that I can easily pass to other people for testing?

Answer 1

From the link you already had in the question, you can skip over the signing details, and just go to "Generating the release APK"

Simply run the following in a terminal:

$ cd android && ./gradlew assembleRelease

Gradle's assembleRelease will bundle all the JavaScript needed to run your app into the APK.

...

The generated APK can be found under android/app/build/outputs/apk/app-release.apk, and is ready to be distributed.