Install 2 versions of same Windows 10 Universal App in the same OS instance

Question

We are developing a Windows 10 Universal app. Currently, there are 2 branches of the app code, MAIN and DEV. We would like to be able to install (and run) both builds on the same OS instance at the same time.

Right now, we do not see any other way of doing this than having a separate VM for each app build, but this is not our preference.

Does anyone have any experience with this type of challenge, and does anyone know if this is even possible from technology standpoint?

Answer 1

Each package must have a distinct PFN (Package Family Name) listed in the package.appxmanifest.xml if you want them to be installed on the same computer.

There's no way to sideload multiple versions of the same package.

So, use different PFNs for each branch (probably easiest, if done from your build system), or explore your VM options.