Manage App Updates

Modified on Tue, 8 Jul at 8:25 PM

Keeping apps updated on your users’ devices gives them access to the latest features, while also improving app security and stability. This article outlines steps you can take as an IT admin to ensure the latest versions of apps are installed on your organization’s managed devices.

Default update behavior

By default, apps are updated automatically when the following constraints are met:

The device is connected to a Wi-Fi network.
The device is charging.
The device is idle (i.e. not actively used).
The app to be updated is not running in the foreground.

Google Play typically checks for app updates once a day, so it can take up to 24 hours before an app update is added to the update queue. After an app is added to the queue, it will be automatically updated the next time the constraints above are met.

The next sections describe how end users and IT admins can change the default update behavior on their device.

App update settings available to users

End users can modify the Wi-Fi network constraint by changing the auto-update settings on their device. A user can select one of the following options:

Update apps over any network.
Update apps over Wi-Fi only (this is the default setting).
Do not update apps.

The next section describes how you can override the setting set by the end user.

App update settings available to IT admins

As the IT admin you can override the update settings that your users configure to further customize the app update behavior on the devices you manage.

1. Set network constraints

You can set the network constraint and override the app update setting set by the end-user. You can choose one of the following options:

Update apps over any network.
Update apps over Wi-Fi only (this is the default setting).
Do not update apps.
Leave the choice to the end-user.

Note that enforcing the network constraint doesn’t affect the other constraints which still apply, and apps are only be updated when:

The device is charging.
The device is idle (i.e. not actively used).
The app to be updated is not running in the foreground.

To override these other constraints you can set a maintenance window (see section below).

You can set network constraints for your app updates in the "Auto Update Configuration" section, found in the Applications tab of your WizyEMM profile.

2. Set a maintenance window

You can set a maintenance window during which the following constraints are ignored:

The device is charging.
The device is idle (i.e. not actively used).
The app to be updated is not running in the foreground.

The maintenance window is configuration is found in the "System Updates" section, in the Configuration tab of your WizyEMM profile.

The maintenance window is defined by a start time (local time of the device) and a duration (between 30 minutes and 24 hours).

Note that setting a maintenance window doesn’t affect the network constraint which is controlled separately (see section above for controlling this constraint).

It can take up to 24 hours for an app update to be added to the update queue. After an app is added to the queue, it will be updated automatically the next time the device is in the maintenance window if the network constraint is met. As a result, it can take up to 48 hours for an app to update after you set a maintenance window.

3. Set a minimum version code

Setting a minimum version code overrides default update behaviors and interrupts the on-device experience for users. This method is therefore intended for critical updates only.

If you want to update an app immediately after the developer publishes it you can set a minimum version code for that app. If the version of the app currently installed on the device is older than the specified minimum version then the app is updated immediately to the latest available version. The constraints are ignored and the delay of 24 hours for the update to be available to a device does not apply.

IT admins should only use this method in emergency situations and never as a way to update apps over an extended period of time.

4. Set the Auto Update Mode to High Priority

In the Advanced configurations on your application, setting the auto update mode to high priority will force the application to update as soon as possible.

Other factors affecting app updates

There are a few other factors that may influence the timing and speed of app updates on Android devices:

App release settings: Android app developers have the ability to roll out app updates gradually. As a result, an app update may only initially be available to some devices in your fleet.
Pending installs: App updates are queued and installed one at a time. If a device has several apps with pending updates, it may take longer than expected to install all the updates.