Mobile app support and maintenance
Your app is in the stores, people pay for it, and nobody owns it technically. A mobile product is iOS, Android, a backend, infrastructure and two store reviews, and each part breaks in its own way. We keep the whole thing running, the way we have kept Abuk since 2018 and MemoWord since 2019.
When your app needs an owner
A live app does not stay the same. Apple and Google change the platforms around it every year, and most problems cross more than one layer.
- A payment fails on the phone while the order looks fine on the server, and nobody can say whose side is wrong
- Google deprecated a billing library or raised the target API level, and updates will be blocked after a deadline
- A new iOS version broke part of the app, and the bad reviews are already coming in
- A certificate or push key expired days before a release
- The developer has left, along with access to the store account or signing keys
- You coordinate an iOS freelancer, an Android freelancer and a backend contractor, and each one fixes only their own part
What we keep running
iOS and Android apps
Native Swift and Kotlin apps, or React Native with Expo. New OS versions tested on betas, SDKs and libraries kept on supported versions, crashes fixed starting with the ones that hit the most users.
Backend and API
The server your app talks to, on Rails, NestJS, Fastify, .NET or PHP with PostgreSQL or MySQL. When something breaks, we trace it from the phone to the database without handing it to another contractor.
Infrastructure
Hosting on AWS (ECS, CloudFront), Hetzner or other providers, Docker, deployments, monitoring and backups with restores that have actually been tested.
Payments and subscriptions
StoreKit and Google Play Billing, subscriptions, receipts and server-side validation. Billing libraries are updated before the stores’ deadlines, so renewals keep coming in.
Releases and both store reviews
We build, sign and submit releases, answer App Store and Google Play review feedback and roll updates out in stages. Certificates, keys and compliance forms are tracked on a calendar.
Accounts, keys and takeover
If a former developer held the developer account, certificates or signing keys, we go through recovery or transfer with Apple and Google. Apps built by other teams are taken over after an audit.
Four specialities and two reviews, one team
A mobile product needs at least four kinds of engineers: iOS, Android, backend and infrastructure. On top of that, every release passes two reviews you do not control, at Apple and at Google. One freelancer covers one or two of these, so the owner ends up coordinating several people while users are already writing reviews. We hold the whole product: the apps, the server, the hosting, the release process and the calendar of platform deadlines, with a technical lead on our side who talks to the business and sets priorities.
- One team responsible for apps, backend and infrastructure
- A calendar of store and platform deadlines that affect your app
- Testing on beta OS versions before the public release
- Releases planned so the app is never locked out of the stores
Years, not months: Abuk and MemoWord
The biggest worry when handing over a live product is that the new contractor disappears in a month. Our answer is a track record you can check. Abuk, an audiobook service with a website and native iOS and Android apps, has been supported by our team since 2018: a Rails backend, AWS ECS and CloudFront, Swift with StoreKit and Kotlin with Play Billing. MemoWord, a language learning app, has been with us since 2019, including a move of its .NET backend to a current version while the apps and billing stayed live.
- A technical lead role, not a queue of tickets
- Backend migrations done with live mobile clients and billing
- The same team on the product year after year
- A written report every month on what was done and what is coming
Taking over an app, even when the developer disappeared
Before we commit to supporting an app, we build it from source, run it on devices and read the code, the backend and the infrastructure. If the previous developer left with the store account or signing keys, we first establish what you still have. Access can usually be recovered with Apple or Google, and if it cannot, the app can be published again under your company’s own account. For Quaker we replaced a hybrid app on outdated technology with native iOS and Android apps, and we will tell you just as plainly if your app is in that position.
- Inventory of code, accounts, certificates and keys
- Recovery or transfer of the developer account to your company
- Code and build audit with a written report
- List of urgent risks, such as store deadlines or abandoned libraries
How mobile support starts
Audit
Before we take responsibility, we build the app from source, check store accounts, certificates and signing, and read the backend and infrastructure. You get a written report on the state the product is actually in.
Scope and terms
A monthly scope with an hour cap, an agreed response time for incidents and a clear rule for what happens when the cap is reached.
First release
We fix the urgent issues and ship a release ourselves, which proves the whole build, sign and submit chain works.
Ongoing support
Monitoring, updates, releases and fixes within the agreed scope, and a written report at the end of every month.
Platforms and tools
iOS
- Swift
- Objective-C
- StoreKit
- Xcode, TestFlight
- App Store Connect
Android
- Kotlin
- Java
- Google Play Billing
- Google Play Console
Cross-platform
- React Native
- Expo
- EAS Build
Backend and infrastructure
- Ruby on Rails, NestJS, Fastify, .NET
- PostgreSQL
- AWS ECS and CloudFront, Hetzner
- Docker
- Firebase Crashlytics
Ways to work with us
Monthly support plan
A fixed monthly scope after the audit, with an hour cap and an agreed response time: monitoring, updates, releases, billing fixes and a written report.
Technical lead and team
We also take the technical lead role: priorities, release planning and talking to the business, with iOS, Android and backend engineers behind it.
One-off work
An urgent fix, a compliance update before a store deadline or an account recovery, billed by the hour or as a fixed task.
Reviews
We treat each client and his project with love.
Revol team continues to streamline the client’s development capabilities through their high-quality work and reliable support. They communicate effectively and exhibit a strong understanding of the client’s needs and business.
Tomas
The work from Revol, have fully met expectations and satisfied the client. Their fresh approach and ability to remain available for support have been valuable assets. Customers can bring them on for a communicative, client-oriented team to achieve their goals with.
Andrey
Frequently asked questions
How long do you usually stay with a product?
Years. Abuk has been supported by our team since 2018 and MemoWord since 2019. Support works best when the same engineers know the code, the store accounts and the history of every decision, so we plan for a long arrangement from the first month.
Our developer disappeared and we have no access to the store account. Can it be recovered?
Usually yes, though it takes time and paperwork with Apple or Google. The first step is to establish what you do have (the code, the account, the signing keys), because the answer depends on which of them is missing. If recovery is impossible, the app can be published again under your company's account.
How much does app support cost?
It depends on the size of the app, the number of platforms, the backend and how often you want releases. After the audit we give a monthly scope with an hour cap and a fixed price. New features, redesign and migration to another stack are quoted separately.
How fast can you react to a critical bug?
Response time is agreed per app, depending on what the app does, and written into the plan. Keep in mind that a mobile fix also has to pass store review; for urgent cases we request an expedited review on iOS and use staged rollouts to limit the damage.
Do you support React Native apps and older codebases?
Yes, React Native with Expo as well as native Swift, Objective-C, Kotlin and Java. For apps on frameworks that are no longer maintained, the audit tells you how long support is realistic and what a migration would involve.
Do you also support the app's backend and servers?
Yes, and that is the point of the arrangement. The API, admin panel, hosting and deployments are covered in the same contract, so a failed payment or a missing push notification is traced from the phone to the database by one team.
Will the app stay in our own developer account?
It should. We publish under your company's Apple and Google accounts with access you grant, so ownership of the app never depends on us.
Tell us about your project
Describe the task in a few lines. Within one working day we reply with questions or a first view on scope and cost.
Prefer email or a call?
welcome@revolsource.com
+38 097 662 23 20
Revol Software OÜ, Tallinn, Estonia. Our team is distributed around the world.
Join our team
Send your CV to career@revolsource.com