MobileFlow
Build Android apps, manage devices and emulators, and run repeatable device workflows without leaving VS Code.
Preview release. MobileFlow is in active development. Android features are available today. iOS support is limited to device discovery and workflow planning for now.
Features
- Build Android apps from any folder. Detects Flutter, Expo, React Native and native Android projects and builds a debug APK, release APK or release AAB (Google Play). You review the folder and exact command before anything runs.
- Devices and emulators. Discover connected Android devices and running emulators, choose the active device, launch or stop emulators, and capture screenshots.
- Install and launch. Install an APK straight from a build output folder. MobileFlow reads the app ID and launcher activity from the APK, so you don't have to type them.
- Logcat. Stream device logs into a dedicated output channel.
- Visual workflow builder. Chain steps such as install, launch, stop, device info, screenshot and recent logs into a workflow, then save, duplicate, import or export it as JSON.
- Safe by design. Every run targets one confirmed device, asks for confirmation first, stops on failure or disconnect, and can be cancelled. MobileFlow never pairs devices, installs global tools or changes project files on its own.
Requirements
- Desktop VS Code 1.95 or newer.
- Android SDK Platform-Tools (
adb). Launching emulators also needs the Android Emulator and an AVD created in Android Studio.
- To build, you need your project's own toolchain: a JDK and the Android SDK, plus Flutter or Node.js where relevant.
- On a phone, turn on USB debugging and authorize this computer.
UI walkthrough
- Open MobileFlow from the Activity Bar. The sidebar shows Build Projects, Devices, Available Emulators and Workflows. If the icon is hidden, run MobileFlow: Show Sidebar from the Command Palette.
- Click Refresh Devices and select an online Android device. It is marked Active.
- Under Workflows, run Debug Snapshot. It reads device information, takes a screenshot and collects recent logs without restarting any app. Results and file locations appear in View → Output → MobileFlow.
- To create your own workflow, run MobileFlow: New Visual Workflow. Pick a template or add steps from the Step library, fill in each step's settings, then click Save and Review & run.
- To build, click Add folders… in Build Projects and choose your app folder. Expand it and choose Build APK · Debug, Build APK · Release or Build AAB · Release (Google Play). The build runs in a VS Code terminal, and the finished APK or AAB appears under the project.
- Use Install APK from this folder… to install a built APK on the active device.
Supported projects
| Project |
Folder to choose |
Notes |
| Flutter |
App root with pubspec.yaml |
Run flutter pub get first |
| Expo |
App root with package.json |
MobileFlow can generate the android/ folder with Expo prebuild once you confirm |
| React Native |
App root with android/ |
Install project dependencies first |
| Native Android |
Gradle project root |
Uses the project's Gradle wrapper |
Release builds use your project's existing signing configuration.
Settings
Search MobileFlow in Settings. If the Android SDK isn't found automatically through ANDROID_HOME, ANDROID_SDK_ROOT or PATH, set its location:
{
"mobileflow.sdkPath": "C:/Android/Sdk"
}
mobileflow.adbPath and mobileflow.emulatorPath can point to specific executables.
Known limitations
- iOS: experimental iPhone discovery uses xtool and is turned off by default. iOS builds, installs and app execution are not available yet. On some Linux hosts, a known usbmuxd issue can interrupt discovery.
- Cancelling a workflow stops the remaining steps, but it can't undo changes already made on the device.
- Physical USB reconnection and native macOS/Linux testing are still being qualified.
Roadmap
Coming next: release signing and version management, iOS builds and deployment, and automated publishing to Google Play and the App Store. Follow progress on GitHub.
Privacy
MobileFlow collects no telemetry or personal data and makes no network requests of its own. It runs the Android tools you have installed (such as adb, the emulator and your project's Gradle wrapper) on your machine, only when you start an action. Screenshots, logs and workflow files stay in local VS Code storage.
Feedback
Report bugs and request features at GitHub Issues. MobileFlow is open source under the MIT license.
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