Test and publish an updated Android app for public distribution

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read

    • After you have requested an updated Android app for public distribution, perform these steps to test and publish it.

    Before you begin

    Role required: admin

    Procedure

    1. Upload the AAB file directly to Google Play so you can use the Google Play internal testing tool.
      See Google documentation for information about internal testing on Google Play.
    2. Check the following items on your app if they've changed from the original request:
      • App has the correct name, icon, splash screen, branding, and theming. For more information, see Create a theme with Theme Builder.
      • App uses the default instance you specified for login if you selected the instance pre-fill option when you requested the branded app.
      • EULA and privacy policy listed in the mobile app Settings tab under Legal link to the policies you specified.
    3. Set up your Android app:
      • Set up push notifications by adding your Google Firebase Cloud Messaging HTTPv1 Oauth token to your app type's push application record.

        See KB1639289 for detailed instructions.

      • (Optional) Test push notifications using an out-of-the-box push notification.

        See KB0829093 for detailed instructions.

      • (Optional) Set up deep links for your app by configuring an assetlinks.json file on each instance.

        See KB1648690 for detailed instructions.

    4. Make sure the app meets your branding requirements:
      • Reject the app to edit the branding, app name, app type, or any third-party information. Use the Duplicate option to copy information over to a new app request after you have rejected the app.
      • Approve the build to move forward with publishing the app to your end users.
    5. Optional: Customize your app's workflows:
      Use Mobile App Builder to customize your app. See Mobile App Builder for detailed information about how you can customize your branded app.
    6. After you have tested your app, set it up, and customized its workflows, you are ready to publish your branded Android app for public distribution.
      Deploy your AAB file to the Google Play console, or your enterprise mobility management (EMM) provider:
      • Upload your app to the Google Play console: to upload your public branded Android app to the Google, see Google documentation. Also see KB1157062 for ServiceNow guidance on creating your Google Play console listing metadata.
      • BlackBerry Portal: to publish your public branded Android app to the BlackBerry Portal if you're using BlackBerry mobile application management (MAM), see KB0813295.
      • Microsoft Intune: to sync your public branded Android app from Google to Microsoft Intune, see Microsoft documentation.
    7. Update your app before you update your ServiceNow family version, or at least once per year to keep your push notifications working and to leverage the most up to date ServiceNow mobile features.
      For more information, see Tested devices and supported versions for ServiceNow mobile apps.