Telerik AppBuilder is being retired on 10th May, 2018. It was an easy way to compile Cordova apps for iOS and Android packages without a Mac OS machine. With the Visual Studio plugin, AppBuilder provided a low-friction way to build cross-platform apps. A new platform is required to continue creating these apps due to the impending retirement. We need a tool that allows developers to initiate a build on a windows machine and receive an iOS package in return.
Telerik AppBuilder based on Cordova, the first step to moving away from AppBuilder will be converting the project into a Cordova project. There will be minimal work to move plugins and platforms over, although Cordova is strict with the directory structure. This initial pain will make it easier moving forward if you want to trial different platforms for app build and release.
- The CLI is really nice. To initiate a remote build:
phonegap remote install ios
- The paid plan is $9.99 / month.
- Supports QR Codes in the command line
- Lackluster desktop application without much functionality.
- The free plan is limited to 1 app.
- Has support for CLI or Localkit IDE
- Can deploy to HockeyApp or DeployGate.
- $20 / month per developer
- CLI is easy to use
monaca remote build ios
- Discontinued Visual Studio 2015 plugin
- No Visual Studio 2017 plugin.
- Visual Studio Code extension in development but no release date.
- Supports hosted Mac OS build agents
- If hosted agents unsuitable can use MacinCloud build agents or private agents on your machines
- Generic build and release support for applications other than iOS or Android apps such as a backend service.
- Full software development suite: Source Control, Project Management, Build & Release, Testing
- Free, but active development will exhaust free build minutes quickly.
- Need to check in to build
- Slow feedback loop
- Need to push app package to a third party for deployment
- Website easy to use with good UX
- Essentially free for development builds
- Poor deployment and automation support
- Downloads a zip file with packages.
- No straight to phone option.
- No QR Codes.
- No command line tools
- Adds a "Built with Cocoon" splash screen that you can remove for a one-time fee of $500
Ionic is good for building Angular based Cordova apps with cloud-build options. It is not suitable using with existing Telerik AppBuilder app due to being tied closely to the Ionic Framework.
Fastlane does not support windows and is out of the scope of this article.