Mobile App Setup

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The Rocket.Chat mobile app is built with React Native, allowing you to develop Android and iOS applications from a single codebase. Setting up the development environment requires you to download and install some dependencies.

Prerequisites

Before setting up, confirm that these tools are installed and running correctly on your device:

  • Git

  • Node.js: Minimum Node version: 22.14.0

  • Yarn (recommended instead of npm)

  • macOS with XCode Command Line Tools to run the iOS version, or the Android Studio to run the Android version.

  • A Rocket.Chat workspace URL. You can set up a development server environment or deploy a workspace using any of the deployment methods.

  • Follow the React Native documentation for your operating system to set up your React Native environment. This is necessary as Rocket.Chat does not support Expo-managed flow.

  • Maintain an active internet connection throughout the installation process.

Set up the codebase

Clone the GitHub repository and install the required dependencies by running these commands:

git clone https://github.com/RocketChat/Rocket.Chat.ReactNative.git
cd Rocket.Chat.ReactNative
yarn

For iOS

Run the app by executing these commands:

yarn pod-install
yarn ios

npm is not supported in this project.

For Android

Open the project in Android Studio and launch an emulator using the Android Studio Device Manager, or connect a physical device.

Navigate to the application's root folder, locate the “android” folder, and create a local.properties. In this file, add your Android SDK. Like so:

  • For Mac users:

    sdk.dir=/Users/YOUR_USER_NAME/Library/Android/sdk

  • For Windows users:

    sdk.dir=C:\\Users\\YOUR_USER_NAME\\AppData\\Local\\Android\\Sdk

    Mac and Windows handle file paths differently. While Mac uses the forward slash (/), Windows uses the backslash (\).

Now, run the following command to start the application:

yarn android

The app is now running on the emulator or your device. Depending on your internet connection, your application may take longer to set up.

Refer to the frequently asked questions for solutions to any problems you may encounter.

Additional resources

The following resources will help you understand how users can install the mobile app and the requirements for the same: