timgws/laravel-expo-updates

Laravel package for handling Expo Updates protocol

Maintainers

Package info

github.com/timgws/laravel-expo-updates

pkg:composer/timgws/laravel-expo-updates

Statistics

Installs: 0

Dependents: 0

Suggesters: 0

Stars: 0

Open Issues: 0

Security

Advisories: 0

Aikido package health analysis

dev-development 2026-04-23 03:59 UTC

Requires

Requires (Dev)

MIT 1e31be9f2659e797cf9a75c3037b17db61844a9d

This package is auto-updated.

Last update: 2026-04-23 04:01:08 UTC

README

Laravel Expo Updates

⚓ Ship like you mean it 💥 

# composer require timgws/laravel-expo-updates

What is Laravel Expo Updates?

A lightweight Laravel package that lets you self-host over-the-air (OTA) updates for React Native apps using the Expo Updates protocol.

It takes care of the boring parts (manifest generation, asset serving, protocol compliance) so your existing Laravel backend becomes the control plane for fast, reliable updates.

expo-updates is a React Native library that enables your app to manage remote updates to your application code. It communicates with the configured remote update service to get information about available updates.

Laravel Expo Updates is designed to be a PHP implementation of the Expo Updates protocol, making it compatible with any React Native app using the expo-updates library. If you write your app's backend in PHP, this package lets you keep everything in one stack.

Why use it?

  • One stack: Keep everything server-side in PHP/Laravel. Simpler infrastructure, fewer moving parts.
  • Self-hosted: Own your release cadence, storage, and logs.
  • Full control: Gate who gets which updates and when.

Reporting Bugs

Spotted a bug? Thanks for helping improve Laravel Expo Updates! Please open a GitHub issue.

Installation (Server Side)

You can install the package via composer:

composer require timgws/laravel-expo-updates

After installing the package, publish the configuration file:

php artisan vendor:publish --provider="LaravelExpoUpdates\ExpoUpdatesServiceProvider" --tag="config"

Run the migrations:

php artisan migrate

Server side configuration

Sane defaults are provided, but you should review and adjust the configuration file that is published to your config folder.

The configuration file is located at config/expo-updates.php. Here you can configure:

  • Route prefix for the update endpoints
  • Code signing settings
  • Asset storage settings
  • Cache settings

Make sure to set the appropriate environment variables in your .env file. Here are the relevant variables:

# cat .env | grep ^EXPO_
EXPO_UPDATES_ROUTE_PREFIX=updates
EXPO_UPDATES_DEFAULT_PROJECT=default
EXPO_UPDATES_CODE_SIGNING_ENABLED=true
EXPO_UPDATES_CERTIFICATE_PATH=app/expo-updates/public.key
EXPO_UPDATES_PRIVATE_KEY_PATH=app/expo-updates/private.key
EXPO_UPDATES_SIGNATURE_CACHE_ENABLED=true
EXPO_UPDATES_SIGNATURE_CACHE_TTL=600
EXPO_UPDATES_ASSETS_DISK=local
EXPO_UPDATES_ASSETS_PATH=expo-updates/assets
EXPO_UPDATES_ASSETS_URL=https://www.myapplication.com/assets/
EXPO_UPDATES_CACHE_ENABLED=true
EXPO_UPDATES_CACHE_TTL=60

Installation (Client Side)

Check out the expo-updates configuration guide.

Warning

updates.url must point to https://YOUR-DOMAIN/updates/api/manifest (note the /api/manifest path). Pointing to the site root will return HTML, not a manifest.

Replacing the default models

The package comes with default Eloquent models for Update, Asset, and Manifest.

You can replace the default models by creating your own models that extend the package's models and updating the configuration file to use them.

Alternatively, you can create new implementations, as long as they fulfil the Interfaces provided.

Usage

Routes

The package automatically registers the following routes:

  • GET /expo-updates/manifest - Returns the latest manifest for the specified platform and runtime version
  • GET /expo-updates/asset/{key} - Serves an asset file

Headers

The manifest endpoint requires the following headers:

  • expo-protocol-version: 1
  • expo-platform: ios|android
  • expo-runtime-version: *
  • accept: application/expo+json, application/json, multipart/mixed

Optional headers:

  • expo-manifest-filters: * - Filter manifests by metadata
  • expo-expect-signature: * - Request code signing

Code Signing

To enable code signing:

  1. Set EXPO_UPDATES_CODE_SIGNING_ENABLED=true in your .env file
  2. Configure the paths to your certificate and private key: 
    EXPO_UPDATES_CERTIFICATE_PATH=/path/to/certificate.pem
EXPO_UPDATES_PRIVATE_KEY_PATH=/path/to/private.key

Asset Storage

Assets are stored using Laravel's storage system. By default, they are stored in the public disk under the expo-updates directory. You can configure this in the config file.

Quick checks & commands

Confirm the manifest route is registered:

php artisan route:list | grep -i manifest

Fetch the manifest like the client would (adjust headers/values as needed):

curl -i \
-H "Accept: application/expo+json" \
-H "Expo-Platform: ios" \
-H "Expo-Runtime-Version: 1.0.0" \
-H "Expo-Channel-Name: production" \
https://your-domain.example/api/manifest

Note

If you receive HTML instead of JSON, you’re likely hitting the wrong path or an HTML middleware. Double-check the URL and route group.

License

This project is licensed under the terms of the MIT license (MIT). Please see License File for more information.