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React Native over-the-air (OTA) updates are a release pipeline, not just a way to download a new JavaScript bundle. A production pipeline needs an update client inside the native app, strict compatibility rules, a tested route to production, controlled rollout, health monitoring and a recovery plan. OTA delivery can update compatible JavaScript and assets; it does not replace a native app release when native code changes or platform rules require one.
What does a React Native OTA pipeline deliver?
An OTA service distributes eligible JavaScript and asset updates to installed apps. The app still needs native code that knows how to find, fetch, parse and validate those updates. With Expo’s EAS Update, that client is expo-updates. Expo documents integration for existing React Native projects, including projects that retain their native Android and iOS directories, but the library must be included in a new native build before those installed apps can receive EAS updates.
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That division matters: the native binary establishes the capabilities and compatibility boundary; OTA updates supply changes that fit within it. A change that requires new native code or alters the JavaScript/native interface needs a compatible native build, distributed through the relevant app-store or other native-app release process.
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How does EAS Update decide whether an update fits an app?
Platform and runtime version must match
In EAS Update, an update must match the installed build’s platform and runtime version exactly. An iOS update is not an Android update, and an update for one runtime version is not automatically eligible for another.
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Runtime version marks the JavaScript/native boundary
The runtime version represents the interface between JavaScript and native code. If a native change alters that interface, assign a new runtime version and ship a native build for that compatibility set. Otherwise, JavaScript that expects a different native interface could be delivered to a binary that cannot provide it.
Expo’s deployment guide recommends the appVersion runtime policy by default. That is Expo guidance for EAS Update, not a universal rule for every OTA system; teams should choose a policy that accurately separates compatible native binaries.
What should happen between a tested update and production?
A release pipeline should make it possible to verify a candidate before broad exposure and to know which update reached which audience. In EAS Update, channels and branches provide routing and release bookkeeping. A practical sequence is:
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- Build with the intended routing. Configure the update client and compatibility policy in the native app. In the usual EAS workflow, the binary’s channel is set when the app is built; publishing an update does not casually change that embedded routing.
- Publish to a preview or staging route. Send the candidate to a build intended for verification rather than immediately exposing it to all production users.
- Verify the candidate. Test the update on representative devices and check that it behaves correctly with the native binary and persisted app data it will encounter.
- Promote or republish the tested artifact where the environment allows. Keep staging and production environment variables and code-signing configuration aligned so a promotion does not silently change the conditions under which the update runs.
- Release through the production route. Record the target platform, runtime, route and artifact so the team can identify what is live and what should be reverted if problems appear.
These controls are not interchangeable: routing determines which builds can see an update, while staging verifies a candidate and promotion moves a tested release toward production.
How should a team limit exposure and monitor an OTA release?
Start with a gradual rollout
EAS Update supports percentage-based rollout for an individual update. Begin with a small share of the intended audience, inspect the signals, and increase exposure only when they are healthy. A percentage limit reduces how many users encounter a problem at first; it does not demonstrate that the update is correct.
Watch adoption and failures
Expo’s production guidance recommends observing rollout adoption, crashes or fatal errors, trends, update size and bandwidth. The exact metrics available depend on the monitoring setup, so define in advance which dashboards or alerts the release owner will check and what would stop expansion.
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Check persisted-state compatibility
A bundle can match the native runtime and still fail when it encounters data written by an older app version. Review migrations and persisted-state assumptions as part of release testing, especially when new code reads or transforms stored data.
What does rollback mean in an OTA system?
Have a recovery procedure ready before publishing. In EAS Update, distinguish between reverting to a previous published update and rolling back to the update embedded in the native binary. Decide who can initiate each action, how the affected audience will be identified, and how the team will confirm that recovery has taken effect. A rollback control is a recovery mechanism, not a substitute for monitoring or compatibility testing.
Can an OTA update replace an iOS app-store release?
No blanket answer is safe. Apple’s App Review Guideline 2.5.2 says: “Apps should be self-contained in their bundles, and may not read or write data outside the designated container area, nor may they download, install, or execute code which introduces or changes features or functionality of the app, including other apps.” The guideline describes a limited exception for certain educational apps that teach, develop or test executable code, subject to conditions.
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This is a platform policy, not a legal interpretation. Teams should check the current guideline and the rules for their app and distribution context. In particular, do not assume that an OTA mechanism makes delivery of feature-changing code permissible. Use a native app release when the change requires native code, and assess policy requirements before using OTA for changes that introduce or alter functionality.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What should teams consider after CodePush and App Center?
Microsoft App Center’s announced shutdown date was March 31, 2025. Expo’s current bare React Native guidance describes CodePush as retired and incompatible with React Native’s New Architecture, so it should not be treated as a supported default for new work.
Expo’s 2024 migration article described several paths: stop using OTA, use a standalone or self-hosted CodePush version, run a self-hosted server that conforms to Expo’s Updates V1 Protocol, or use hosted EAS Update. Those paths have different maintenance and compatibility implications. Before selecting any service or self-hosted implementation, verify its current support for the project’s React Native version and architecture.
How should a team choose an OTA implementation?
EAS Update is one documented option, including for existing React Native apps that integrate expo-updates; it is not the only possible implementation. A self-hosted service conforming to Expo’s Updates V1 Protocol is another approach described in Expo’s migration guidance. The available evidence does not establish a current, comprehensive vendor or cost ranking, so compare candidates against the needs of the project rather than assuming feature parity.
- Can it integrate with the project’s native setup and support its React Native architecture and version?
- Can it target platform and runtime compatibility precisely?
- Does it provide preview or staging routes, promotion controls and gradual rollout?
- Can the team observe update health and understand how rollback behaves?
- What signing and security controls protect update delivery?
- If self-hosted, who will operate, secure and maintain the service?
- Are the current pricing and commercial terms suitable for the project?
Expo engineering author Jacob Clausen wrote in a February 18, 2026 production article that “Expo’s OTA update service (EAS Update) can get an update to your users in just minutes.” That speed makes deliberate exposure, observation and recovery more important, not less.
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