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Getting started with Ship

Abstract

To start using Ship, you'll need to build an app and export the generated binary to Ship. You need to expose the Workflow that builds the binary and make sure you include the Deploy to Bitrise.io Step in it.

To start using Ship, you'll need to build an app and export the generated binary to Ship.

You have two options to open Ship from Bitrise:

  • On the Add-ons tab of the app: this option takes you to Ship’s home page.

  • From the Builds page: this option takes you to the build’s Ship page.

When first logging in, you might not have a single build version available to publish. But don’t worry, that can be fixed quickly.

Step versions compatible with Ship

Please note that the Deploy to Bitrise.io Step must be version 1.9.0 or higher and the Xcode Archive & Export for iOS Step for iOS apps must be version 2.6.0 or higher - older versions of the Steps do not support Ship.

To be able to deploy an app with Ship:

  • In one of your Workflows, you need a Step that builds your app. By default, Xcode Archive & Export for iOS, Gradle Runner and Android Build are automatically supported.

  • The same Workflow must have the correct version of the Deploy to Bitrise.io Step after the Step that builds your app.

  • The Deploy to Bitrise.io Step must export the relevant file: an APK file for Android apps and the .xcarchive file for iOS apps. If you use either one of the Xcode Archive & Export for iOS, Gradle Runner and Android Build Steps, you don’t have to change anything in the default configuration of the Deploy to Bitrise.io Step to export the relevant files.

Using Ship with different build Steps

By default, Xcode Archive & Export for iOS, Gradle Runner, and Android Build are automatically supported with Ship.

If you want to build your app with any other Step, you can do so - it just requires a little extra configuration.

Once you successfully built your app, you will be able to start using Ship.

In this section:

An app on Bitrise represents a Git repository that stores source code and has been connected to Bitrise to be able to run builds on it. As such, a Bitrise app isn't necessarily an actual application: it's just the code on which you run builds with Bitrise.

A Step is a block of script execution that encapsulates a build task on Bitrise: the code to perform that task, the inputs and parameters you can define for the task, and the outputs the task generates.

A Workflow is a collection of Steps, Environment Variables, and other configurations. When Bitrise starts a build, it runs one or more Workflows according to the configuration defined in the bitrise.yml file.