Skip to content

Deploy Applications

In this section, you will find all the available methods to deploy an application.

More and more apps are only available for arm64. We strongly recommend using arm64 images, rather than x86_64, for best compatibility.

From Google Play Store

The application you are developing or testing may require an interaction with Google Play Services (e.g.: in-app purchasing, advertising, etc.). If you really need them, you can use the packages provided by Open GApps.

Minimum version badge

  1. Click on in the right toolbar, and INSTALL GAPPS:

    Install APPS widget

  2. Read the disclaimer carefully and click INSTALL GAPPS again:

    Open GApps disclaimer approval

  3. Wait for the package to upload and install. When done, you will be prompted to reboot the virtual device:

    Reboot device prompt

  4. Reboot the device.

After reboot, you may have to wait a couple of minutes for the Google Apps to update themselves before opening them. Then, Google Play Store will be installed and accessible from Android Apps dashboard.

Minimum version badge

It is also possible to install the Open GApps package using the device content feature:

  1. Go to the Device content panel:

    device content

  2. In the Packages section, click install next to the Open GApps package:

    open gapps package

  3. The Open Gapps package will be automatically downloaded and installed. Reboot the instance when prompted.

  4. Open Google Play Store in the Android App Drawer:

    Google Play Store in Android App Drawer

Most modern Android apps are only available for arm64 now. Make sure to use an arm64 image or you may not be able to install many apps from Google Play Store.

With an APK File

To deploy an application from an APK file to a virtual device, you can use one of the following methods:

Drag'n Drop

Drag and Drop the .apk file directly to the virtual device display. This will sideload and open the application automatically.

You can also drag and drop the APK file in the Google Apps Widget.

File upload

Open the File upload widget, drag'n drop your APK file or click BROWSE and select the APK file. This will sideload and launch the application automatically.

With ADB

You can also sideload APKs with ADB. Connect the instance to ADB and run the following command:

adb install <application name>.apk

Warning

If you don't use a universal APK, make sure it matches your instance image architecture:

  • x86 or x86_64 for x86_64 images.
  • arm (ARMv7) or arm64 (ARMv8) for arm64 images.

Applications for ARM/ARM64

More and more Android apps are only available for arm64 now, in accordance with Google requirements. If you use a x86_64 image, you will likely not be able to install many modern apps.

We therefore strongly recommend using one of our arm64 AMIs for best compatibility.