I am new to Android development, and I am trying to add a feature into an app to support checking our server for an update, and if one is available, downloading it and installing it. The app is for a dedicated set top box, where it is the only app that the user will interact with, so we want the app to always be running. We are using Android 11.
I have the functionality working to the point where the app pulls an update from our server and uses the Android PackageInstaller.Session class to install it. My app's main activity has a launch mode of "singleTop", and so, after the app issues the "commit" call on the PackageInstaller.Session object to commit the update, Android shows the dialogue box asking the user if he/she wishes to accept the update. If they confirm acceptance, the app is replaced with the new version of the app as expected, but Android is then immediately showing the Android desktop instead of the new version of the app. However, if I select the app's icon from the desktop I can launch it and see that it is the new version.
Is this the expected behavior, or is there a way to relaunch the new version of the app automatically? I thought I could use the MY_PACKAGE_REPLACED intent to determine that the app was replaced, and then launch the new version via code, but I can't get this to work. It appears that my old version of the app is dying as soon as the user accepts to install the new version of the app from the dialogue box.
sorry, but what you're trying to do can't be done. You would need a secondary app to monitor the update of the first app and restart it.
At one point it was possible (many moons ago) to autostart an app after install but that security hole has been closed.
You can find good discussion on that here and here