Quick start

Four moving parts: a server you run, a CLI that publishes, an SDK inside the app, and a dashboard to watch it land. This page walks the shortest path through all four.

1. Start a server

git clone https://github.com/dnlsilva/open-ota && cd open-ota
cp .env.example .env
openssl rand -base64 32   # → paste as OTA_MASTER_KEY in .env
docker compose up -d      # server + postgres + minio

The server runs its migrations on boot and creates the first admin account from OTA_ADMIN_EMAIL / OTA_ADMIN_PASSWORD if you set them — otherwise the first signup on a self-hosted install becomes the admin. The dashboard is served on the same port: http://localhost:3000.

Caution

The compose defaults point storage at http://minio:9000, a hostname that only resolves inside the compose network. The moment you publish from your terminal or download onto a phone, set STORAGE_ENDPOINT and PUBLIC_BUNDLE_BASE_URL to an address those machines can reach — your LAN IP while developing. Presigned URLs are signed for one hostname, so this is not optional. Details in Self-host with Docker.

Prefer Supabase or Cloudflare over Docker? Same server, different entry point — see deploy targets.

2. Create a project and wire the app

npx @open-ota/cli login    # email + password from step 1
npx @open-ota/cli init

init creates (or links) a project, writes ota.config.json with the project id, API URL and the project’s public signing key, and wires the native side:

• Expo: adds the @open-ota/react-native config plugin to app.json. The plugin injects the boot path, the embedded config and the deep link scheme at prebuild.
• Bare React Native: applies the same edits directly to your native files, idempotently.

Then wrap the app:

import { OpenOta, OtaProvider } from "@open-ota/react-native";

export default OpenOta.wrap(function App() {
  return <OtaProvider>{/* your app */}</OtaProvider>;
});

OtaProvider checks for an update on launch and confirms a healthy start after the first frame — the confirmation that arms the automatic rollback.

Build and install a dev build (npx expo run:android / run:ios). Expo Go cannot load a native module, so it will not work here.

3. Publish

npx @open-ota/cli publish --channel staging --rollout 10

The CLI exports your JavaScript, zips it deterministically, hashes it, uploads straight to storage and asks the server to sign and activate the release:

LABEL  RELEASE                               PLATFORM  SIZE    SHA256        CHANNEL  ROLLOUT
v1     0193a4c8-…                            android   4.8 MB  b94d27b9934d  staging  10%
v1     0193a4c9-…                            ios       4.9 MB  1d5a90d3c2aa  staging  10%

4. Watch it land

Relaunch the app twice — once to download, once to run the new bundle. Then:

• Dashboard → your project → the release: downloads, installs, ready, rollback rate.
• Terminal: npx @open-ota/cli metrics --channel staging

When staging looks healthy:

npx @open-ota/cli promote v1 production --rollout 25

From here: gradual rollout, rollback, preview a release by QR code, or connect an agent over MCP.