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Running On Device React Native

This document provides instructions for running a React Native app on an actual Android or iOS device for testing and debugging. It describes enabling USB debugging on Android devices, installing and running the app via USB or over Wi-Fi, and connecting to the development server for live reloading. The document also notes that apps should be built for production release before submitting to app stores.

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Mrinmoy Shee
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84 views4 pages

Running On Device React Native

This document provides instructions for running a React Native app on an actual Android or iOS device for testing and debugging. It describes enabling USB debugging on Android devices, installing and running the app via USB or over Wi-Fi, and connecting to the development server for live reloading. The document also notes that apps should be built for production release before submitting to app stores.

Uploaded by

Mrinmoy Shee
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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4/19/23, 7:44 AM Running On Device · React Native

Running On Device
It's always a good idea to test your app on an actual device before releasing it to your
users. This document will guide you through the necessary steps to run your React
Native app on a device and to get it ready for production.

INFO

If you used create-expo-app to set up your project, you can run your app on a device in
Expo Go by scanning the QR code that is displayed when you run npm start . Refer to
the Expo guide for running your project on your device for more information.

Android iOS

Running your app on Android devices


Development OS

macOS Windows Linux

1. Enable Debugging over USB

Most Android devices can only install and run apps downloaded from Google Play, by
default. You will need to enable USB Debugging on your device in order to install your
app during development.

To enable USB debugging on your device, you will first need to enable the "Developer
options" menu by going to Settings → About phone → Software information and then
tapping the Build number row at the bottom seven times. You can then go back to
Settings → Developer options to enable "USB debugging".

2. Plug in your device via USB

Let's now set up an Android device to run our React Native projects. Go ahead and
plug in your device via USB to your development machine.

Now check that your device is properly connecting to ADB, the Android Debug Bridge,
by running adb devices .
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4/19/23, 7:44 AM Running On Device · React Native

$ adb devices
List of devices attached
emulator-5554 offline # Google emulator
14ed2fcc device # Physical device

Seeing device in the right column means the device is connected. You must have only
one device connected at a time.

3. Run your app

Type the following in your command prompt to install and launch your app on the
device:

$ npx react-native run-android

Hint: You can also use the React Native CLI to generate and run a Release build (e.g.
npx react-native run-android --variant=release ).

Connecting to the development server


You can also iterate quickly on a device by connecting to the development server
running on your development machine. There are several ways of accomplishing this,
depending on whether you have access to a USB cable or a Wi-Fi network.

Method 1: Using adb reverse (recommended)

You can use this method if your device is running Android 5.0 (Lollipop) or newer, it has
USB debugging enabled, and it is connected via USB to your development machine.

Run the following in a command prompt:

$ adb -s <device name> reverse tcp:8081 tcp:8081

To find the device name, run the following adb command:

$ adb devices

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4/19/23, 7:44 AM Running On Device · React Native

You can now enable Live reloading from the Developer menu. Your app will reload
whenever your JavaScript code has changed.

Method 2: Connect via Wi-Fi

You can also connect to the development server over Wi-Fi. You'll first need to install
the app on your device using a USB cable, but once that has been done you can debug
wirelessly by following these instructions. You'll need your development machine's
current IP address before proceeding.

Open the command prompt and type ipconfig to find your machine's IP address
(more info).

1. Make sure your laptop and your phone are on the same Wi-Fi network.
2. Open your React Native app on your device.
3. You'll see a red screen with an error. This is OK. The following steps will fix that.
4. Open the in-app Developer menu.
5. Go to Dev Settings → Debug server host & port for device.
6. Type in your machine's IP address and the port of the local dev server (e.g.
10.0.1.1:8081).
7. Go back to the Developer menu and select Reload JS.

You can now enable Live reloading from the Developer menu. Your app will reload
whenever your JavaScript code has changed.

Building your app for production


You have built a great app using React Native, and you are now itching to release it in
the Play Store. The process is the same as any other native Android app, with some
additional considerations to take into account. Follow the guide for generating a signed
APK to learn more.

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