DevHub by Root Native

Keep every Expo development build on your machine.
Find the build that matches your code, and install it in one click.

Read the docs · Quick start · Commands · LLM docs

_{The devhub ui page on main, with made-up projects. The next release ships this design.}

Status: alpha. The CLI, the local page, and the Expo build cache provider are on npm. The desktop app and the launch of an app are not released yet. Each alpha can change the CLI and its JSON output. The CHANGELOG lists what each version has.

✨ Features

Feature	What it does	State
Keep your EAS builds	devhub sync downloads each finished EAS dev client build before EAS deletes it. devhub sync --all syncs each project that devhub sync saw before.	On npm
One library for all projects	One store folder, outside your projects, holds every build of every project.	On npm
Match by fingerprint	devhub match calculates the native fingerprint with the project's own @expo/fingerprint, and shows the stored builds with the same hash.	On npm
Keep your local builds	As an Expo build cache provider, DevHub stores each build of npx expo run:*, and installs a stored build when the native code did not change.	On npm
Install in one step	devhub install installs a stored build on a ready emulator, a USB Android device, or a booted iOS simulator. It checks the SHA-256 of the file first.	On npm
The local page	devhub ui opens a page with the builds, the devices, an install button, and a sync button.	On npm
Setup checks	devhub doctor checks Node, the store, eas-cli, adb, and Xcode, and gives the fix for each problem.	On npm
JSON for scripts and agents	Each command takes --json. The llms.txt file in the package gives the help, the JSON types, and the API.	On npm
No telemetry	DevHub uses the network only for EAS. It never reads, asks for, or stores your EAS token.	On npm
Desktop app	The local page in a desktop window, with a daily sync in the background.	In code, not released
Launch	Boot a device, install the build, and open the app with Metro or an EAS Update, in one action.	Planned
Profiles, prune, and import	Saved pairs of a device and a build, rules that delete old builds, and the import of an .apk, .aab, or .app file.	Planned

Android works on macOS, Windows, and Linux. iOS works on macOS.

_{In a narrow window, each build is a row.}

💡 Why

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 rebuild only when the native fingerprint changes. DevHub stores each build with its fingerprint. When your code matches a stored build, DevHub uses that build, and you do not build again.

🚀 Quick start

You need Node 20.19 or later, and an EAS login (npx eas-cli login).

npm install --global @rootnative/devhub
devhub doctor           # check the tools, and get the fix for each problem

cd my-expo-app
devhub sync             # download the EAS dev client builds of this project
devhub match            # show the stored build that matches the current code
devhub install <id>     # install it on a ready device
devhub ui               # or do all of this on the local page

To run one command with no install, use npx @rootnative/devhub <command>.

Note

A dev client is a debug build. Its JavaScript runs in development mode, so it does not show the real speed of your app in production.

Keep your local builds

Add DevHub to a project as an Expo build cache provider:

npm install --save-dev @rootnative/devhub

{
  "expo": {
    "buildCacheProvider": { "plugin": "@rootnative/devhub/cache-provider" }
  }
}

The first npx expo run:android builds the app, and DevHub stores the APK. The next run with the same native code installs the stored APK, and Gradle does not run. iOS works the same for a simulator. Read Keep your local builds for each rule.

Tip

EAS deletes old builds. Run devhub sync --all every day, so DevHub gets each build first. Sync every day shows the setup for cron, launchd, and Task Scheduler.

🧰 Commands

Command	What it does
devhub sync	Downloads each finished EAS dev client build of the project in the current folder that the store does not have. --all syncs each project.
devhub list	Shows the stored builds: project, platform, profile, app version, git commit, date, and the EAS expiry date.
devhub where <id>	Prints the path of a stored build file.
devhub devices	Lists the Android emulators and devices that adb sees, and on macOS the booted iOS simulators.
devhub install <id>	Installs a stored build on a ready Android emulator or device, or on a booted iOS simulator.
devhub match	Calculates the native fingerprint of the current project, and shows the stored builds with the same fingerprint.
devhub ui	Starts a local server, and opens the DevHub page in the browser.
devhub whoami	Shows the EAS login state.
devhub doctor	Checks the tools and the store, and gives the fix for each problem.

Each command takes --json. Results go to stdout, and progress and warnings go to stderr. The exit code is 0 for success, 1 for a failure, and 2 for a usage error.

🧭 How it works

flowchart LR
  run["npx expo run:*"] --> provider["Cache provider"]
  term["Terminal"] --> cli["devhub CLI"]
  browser["Browser"] --> server["devhub ui server"]
  provider --> core["Core"]
  cli --> core
  server --> core
  core --> store[("Store<br/>one folder, all projects")]
  core --> tools["adb, simctl, eas-cli"]
  tools --> targets["Simulators, emulators, EAS"]

Loading

• The project's own fingerprint. DevHub loads @expo/fingerprint from the project folder, and reads the fingerprint.config.js of the project. A bundled copy can calculate a different hash, and then you get the wrong build or no match.
• One store for all projects. The store is plain files in the data folder of your system, never inside a project. DEVHUB_HOME moves it.
• Commands as arrays. DevHub runs adb, simctl, and eas-cli with an array of arguments, never a shell string. A space or a quote in a path cannot change a command.
• Public eas-cli commands only. DevHub never calls a private EAS API.
• A local page. The devhub ui server listens on 127.0.0.1 only. Each run makes a new token, and each API call must send it.

🗺️ Roadmap

DevHub grows in small milestones. Each one gives you one useful result.

Milestone	Result	State
Keep	EAS dev client builds are never lost	On npm
Install	Install a stored build on a running emulator, simulator, or Android phone	On npm
Match	See the stored build that matches the current code	On npm. A manual check against a real EAS build is open.
Local builds	npx expo run:* stores each build, and uses a stored build again	On npm. A CI check passed on Android with Expo SDK 57. The checks on SDK 58 and on iOS are open.
Local page	devhub ui opens a page with the list, the devices, an install button, and a sync button	On npm. A new design is on main.
Doctor	devhub doctor checks the tools and the store, and gives the fix for each problem	On npm
Desktop	The local page in a desktop app, with a daily sync in the background	In code, not released

🤖 Docs for AI agents

Each command takes --json, so an agent reads the same output as the local page. The package ships llms.txt with the help of each command, the type of each JSON output, and the core API of the installed version: node_modules/@rootnative/devhub/llms.txt. The docs site serves the same file at llms.txt. Read For AI agents.

📚 Documentation

Page	Read it to
Introduction	Learn what DevHub does, and why
Installation	Install DevHub and its requirements
Quick start	Keep, match, and install your first build
Keep your local builds	Set up the Expo build cache provider
Sync every day	Run the sync with cron, launchd, or Task Scheduler
The store	Learn where DevHub keeps the builds, and how to move the store
JSON output and exit codes	Read the output of each command in a script
Security and privacy	Learn what DevHub reads, writes, and sends
Package README	Read the full CLI reference

🔧 Tech stack

Layer	Technology
CLI and core	Node 20.19 or later, TypeScript 5.9 in strict mode, ESM
Runtime dependencies	cross-spawn and json5, nothing else
Build	tsup, Turborepo 2
Tests	Vitest 3, on Linux, macOS, and Windows
Local page	An Expo SDK 58 app, exported for the web, and shipped inside the package
Desktop app	Electron 44
Docs	Docusaurus 3
Delivery	GitHub Actions, GitHub Pages, and npm with trusted publishing

🛠 Development

You need Node.js 24 (the version in .nvmrc) and pnpm 10.

git clone https://github.com/rootnative/devhub.git
cd devhub
pnpm install

Command	What it does
pnpm run build	Builds the page and the package with Turborepo
pnpm run dev	Builds the package in watch mode
pnpm run typecheck	Runs the type check
pnpm run test	Runs Vitest
pnpm run lint	Runs ESLint
pnpm run build:llms	Writes packages/devhub/llms.txt from the build
pnpm run preflight	Runs each check, in the order of a release
pnpm run docs:dev	Starts the docs site
pnpm run desktop	Builds and starts the desktop app

Run the build from the root, so Turborepo exports the page first. Then run the CLI from the build:

pnpm run build
node packages/devhub/dist/bin.js --help
node packages/devhub/dist/bin.js ui

To run one test file:

pnpm --filter @rootnative/devhub test -- src/__tests__/cli.test.ts

Repository layout

Path	What it is
packages/devhub/	@rootnative/devhub: the CLI, the core, the cache provider, and the devhub ui server
apps/web/	The devhub ui page. Private. The package ships its build.
apps/desktop/	The Electron app. Private.
docs/	The Docusaurus docs site. Private.
example/	The Expo app that the cache provider check builds. Run it through example/with-store.mjs, so a test build does not go into your own store.
scripts/	The llms.txt generator, the package and release checks, and the brand generator

🔒 Security

To report a vulnerability, read SECURITY.md. To learn what DevHub reads, writes, and sends, read Security and privacy.

📄 License

MIT © 2026 Root Native