DevHub by Root Native

Keep every dev build. Launch any one in one click.

DevHub is a CLI and a local web page for Expo developers. It keeps every development build on your machine, finds the build that matches your current code by its native fingerprint, and installs that build on a simulator, an emulator, or an Android phone.

npx @rootnative/devhub list

Why DevHub

Expo recommends a development build in place of Expo Go. When you work on many Expo projects, you get these problems:

• Each project needs its own dev client for each platform.
• EAS deletes old builds after a retention period.
• A native build takes minutes, but most of the time the native code did not change, and the old build still works.
• Nothing shows which builds you have, and which one matches your branch.

A dev client needs a new build only when the native fingerprint changes. DevHub stores each build with its fingerprint. When your code matches a stored build, you use that build, and you do not build again.

What DevHub does

Task	Command
Download your EAS dev client builds before EAS deletes them.	devhub sync
Show the builds of all your projects in one list.	devhub list
Give the path of a stored build file.	devhub where
Show the emulators, phones, and simulators that can get a build.	devhub devices
Install a stored build on a device that runs now.	devhub install
Find the stored builds that match the native code of a project.	devhub match
Show the builds and the devices on a page, with an install button.	devhub ui
Show the EAS login state that a sync needs.	devhub whoami
Check the tools and the store that DevHub uses, with the fix for each problem.	devhub doctor
Store each npx expo run:* build, and use it again on the next run.	The cache provider

How it works

DevHub keeps one store for all your projects. A build gets into the store in two ways:

• devhub sync downloads the finished EAS builds of each dev client profile in eas.json.
• The Expo build cache provider copies each build that npx expo run:android or npx expo run:ios makes on your machine.

Each build keeps its native fingerprint. devhub match calculates the fingerprint of your current code with the @expo/fingerprint of your project, the same as EAS does. A stored build with the same fingerprint runs your current JavaScript, so you install it and do not build again.

Platforms

Host	Android emulators and phones	iOS simulators
macOS	Yes	Yes
Windows	Yes	No
Linux	Yes	No

DevHub installs an iOS build on a simulator only. It does not install on an iPhone.

What DevHub does not do

• DevHub sends no telemetry. It uses the network only for devhub sync. See Security and privacy.
• DevHub never uninstalls an app, because an uninstall deletes the app data. When an install needs an uninstall, DevHub gives you the command.
• DevHub does not change your project. The cache provider is the only part that you add to a project, and you add it yourself.

Next steps

1. Install DevHub.
2. Follow the quick start.