Store release glossary
The words TestFlight, Google Play and the Amazon Appstore use for getting a build to testers and users. Each entry says what the store means by the term, links the store's own page, and says whether VibeView handles it or you do it in the store's console.
A
- .aab vs .apk
- An .aab (Android App Bundle) is a publishing format that Google Play turns into optimized APKs for each device, while an .apk is the installable package itself.
- Amazon Live App Testing
- Amazon Live App Testing is the Amazon Appstore's beta testing service, which sends a version of your app to chosen testers through the Amazon Developer Console before it goes live.
- App Store Connect API key
- An App Store Connect API key is a role-based private key from App Store Connect that lets a tool use Apple's API and upload builds for your team.
B
- Beta App Review
- Beta App Review is Apple's review of a TestFlight build and its test information before people in an external group can install it.
- Build number vs version
- The version is the release number users see, and the build number tells apart each build of that version. In an Info.plist they are CFBundleShortVersionString and CFBundleVersion.
C
- Changes not sent for review
- Changes not sent for review are Play Console changes that are saved but wait on the Publishing overview page until you send them to Google for review yourself.
E
- Export compliance
- Export compliance is Apple's per-build question about whether your app uses encryption that US export rules don't exempt. You can answer it ahead of time in your Info.plist.
- External testing group
- An external testing group is a TestFlight group of people outside your App Store Connect team, who get a build after Beta App Review approves it.
G
- Google Play tracks
- Google Play tracks are the release channels in Play Console (internal testing, closed testing, open testing and production), each with its own releases and its own audience.
I
- Internal testing group
- An internal testing group is a TestFlight group made only of App Store Connect users on your team, who can test a build without Beta App Review.
M
- Managed publishing
- Managed publishing is a Play Console setting that holds your approved changes until you publish them yourself, instead of publishing each one as soon as Google approves it.
- Missing Compliance
- Missing Compliance is the App Store Connect status of a build whose export compliance information hasn't been provided yet, and Apple marks it as needing your action.
P
- Phased release
- Phased release is an App Store option that releases a version update over 7 days to a growing share of users who have automatic updates turned on.
S
- Staged rollout
- A staged rollout releases a Google Play update to a percentage of users first, and you raise that percentage in Play Console when you're ready.
T
- TestFlight
- TestFlight is Apple's beta testing service: testers install your uploaded builds with the TestFlight app before the app reaches the App Store.
- TestFlight public link
- A TestFlight public link is an invitation URL for one external group that anyone who has it can use to join, up to a tester limit you choose.
V
- versionCode
- versionCode is the positive whole number in an Android app's build settings that tells Android and the stores which build is newer, and every release needs a higher one.
W
- What to Test
- What to Test is the note on a TestFlight build that tells testers what changed and what to try; external testing needs one.
For a release step by step, see the TestFlight external testing checklist. The guides library covers builds, store releases and testing for iOS, Android, Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV and Roku.