Auto Update for Flutter

A comprehensive Flutter package for automatically updating your app using GitHub releases, without relying on Google Play Store.

Features

• ✅ Automatic version checking from GitHub releases
• ✅ Download progress tracking with visual feedback
• ✅ Automatic installation after download
• ✅ Customizable UI and callbacks
• ✅ Permission handling for storage and installation
• ✅ Modular design for easy integration
• ✅ Error handling and retry mechanisms
• ✅ Rate limiting to prevent spam checks
• ✅ Release notes support in update dialogs

Quick Start

1. Add Dependencies

dependencies:
  autoupdate: ^0.0.1

2. Configure Android Permissions

Add these permissions to your android/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml:

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE" />

3. Basic Usage

Method 1: Using AutoUpdaterMixin (Recommended)

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:autoupdate/autoupdate.dart';

class MyHomePage extends StatefulWidget {
  @override
  _MyHomePageState createState() => _MyHomePageState();
}

class _MyHomePageState extends State<MyHomePage> with AutoUpdaterMixin {
  @override
  void initState() {
    super.initState();

    final config = AutoUpdaterConfig(
      githubRepo: 'your-username/your-repo',
      apkFileName: 'app-release.apk',
    );

    initAutoUpdater(config);
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      appBar: AppBar(title: Text('My App')),
      body: Center(
        child: UpdateCheckButton(
          autoUpdater: autoUpdater!,
          child: Text('Check for Updates'),
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

Method 2: Standalone Instance

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:autoupdate/autoupdate.dart';

class MyApp extends StatelessWidget {
  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return AutoUpdaterWidget(
      config: AutoUpdaterConfig(
        githubRepo: 'your-username/your-repo',
        apkFileName: 'app-release.apk',
        checkOnStartup: true,
      ),
      child: MaterialApp(
        title: 'My App',
        home: MyHomePage(),
      ),
    );
  }
}

Configuration

AutoUpdaterConfig

final config = AutoUpdaterConfig(
  // Required
  githubRepo: 'your-username/your-repo',
  apkFileName: 'app-release.apk',

  // Optional - UI customization
  showReleaseNotes: true,
  allowSkip: true,
  dialogTitle: 'Update Available',
  dialogContent: 'A new version is available!',
  updateButtonText: 'Update Now',
  skipButtonText: 'Later',

  // Optional - Behavior
  checkOnStartup: true,
  minCheckInterval: Duration(hours: 1),
  showProgressDialog: true,
  progressDialogTitle: 'Downloading Update',
  autoInstall: true,

  // Optional - Theme
  dialogTheme: ThemeData.light(),
);

Custom Callbacks

final callbacks = AutoUpdaterCallbacks(
  onUpdateAvailable: (context, versionInfo, currentVersion) async {
    // Custom update dialog
    return await showDialog<bool>(
      context: context,
      builder: (ctx) => AlertDialog(
        title: Text('🎉 New Update!'),
        content: Text('Version ${versionInfo.version} is available'),
        actions: [
          TextButton(
            onPressed: () => Navigator.pop(ctx, false),
            child: Text('Later'),
          ),
          ElevatedButton(
            onPressed: () => Navigator.pop(ctx, true),
            child: Text('Update'),
          ),
        ],
      ),
    ) ?? false;
  },

  onDownloadProgress: (percent, received, total) {
    print('Download: $percent%');
  },

  onDownloadCompleted: (filePath) {
    print('Download completed: $filePath');
  },

  onInstallCompleted: () {
    print('Installation completed!');
  },

  onVersionCheckFailed: (error) {
    print('Version check failed: $error');
  },
);

GitHub Setup

1. Create Releases

1. Go to your GitHub repository
2. Click on "Releases" → "Create a new release"
3. Set a tag (e.g., v1.0.1)
4. Add release notes
5. Upload your APK file
6. Publish the release

2. APK Naming

Ensure your APK filename matches the apkFileName in your config:

AutoUpdaterConfig(
  apkFileName: 'app-release.apk', // Must match your uploaded file
  // ...
)

3. Version Format

Use semantic versioning for your releases:

• v1.0.0
• v1.0.1
• v2.0.0

Advanced Usage

Manual Update Check

// Using mixin
await checkForUpdates();

// Using standalone instance
await autoUpdater.checkForUpdates(context);

Status Monitoring

// Check if update is in progress
if (autoUpdater.isChecking) {
  print('Update check in progress');
}

if (autoUpdater.isDownloading) {
  print('Download in progress');
}

// Get last check time
final lastCheck = autoUpdater.lastCheckTime;

Custom Progress Dialog

final callbacks = AutoUpdaterCallbacks(
  onDownloadProgress: (percent, received, total) {
    // Update your custom progress UI
    setState(() {
      downloadProgress = percent;
    });
  },
);

Error Handling

The package includes comprehensive error handling:

• Network errors: Automatic retry with exponential backoff
• Permission errors: User-friendly permission request dialogs
• Download errors: Detailed error messages and cleanup
• Installation errors: Fallback options and error reporting

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. "No APK found in release assets"

   • Ensure your APK file is uploaded to the GitHub release
   • Check that the filename matches your config

2. "Storage permission denied"

   • Add required permissions to AndroidManifest.xml
   • Request permissions at runtime

3. "Install permission denied"

   • Enable "Install unknown apps" in Android settings
   • Request MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission

4. "Version check failed"

   • Verify your GitHub repository URL
   • Check internet connectivity
   • Ensure the repository is public or you have proper access

Debug Mode

Enable debug logging:

// Add this to see detailed logs
import 'dart:developer' as developer;

// In your callbacks
onVersionCheckFailed: (error) {
  developer.log('Version check failed: $error');
},

API Reference

AutoUpdaterConfig

Property	Type	Default	Description
githubRepo	String	Required	GitHub repository (owner/repo)
apkFileName	String	Required	APK filename to download
showReleaseNotes	bool	true	Show release notes in dialog
allowSkip	bool	true	Allow users to skip updates
checkOnStartup	bool	true	Check for updates on app start
minCheckInterval	Duration	1 hour	Minimum time between checks
showProgressDialog	bool	true	Show download progress dialog
autoInstall	bool	true	Auto-install after download

AutoUpdaterCallbacks

Callback	Parameters	Description
onUpdateAvailable	context, versionInfo, currentVersion	Custom update dialog
onDownloadProgress	percent, received, total	Download progress updates
onDownloadStarted	url	Download started
onDownloadCompleted	filePath	Download completed
onDownloadFailed	error	Download failed
onInstallStarted	filePath	Installation started
onInstallCompleted	-	Installation completed
onInstallFailed	error	Installation failed

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Add tests
5. Submit a pull request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions:

1. Check the troubleshooting section
2. Search existing issues
3. Create a new issue with detailed information

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for a list of changes and version history.