CODEWITHSUNDEEP
flutter
TemporaryFix
TemporaryFix

Reputation: 2196

Flutter debug vs release builds

What are some differences between an app file built with the flutter run command and a release version of the app built with the flutter build apk command?

I am wondering if the debug version of the app is what is causing some issues that I am experiencing I have listed in a different question

I read through the documentation on creating a release version of the app and noticed there's a section on creating a keystore. I wonder if a debug build creates a temporary keystore that gets erased after a certain period of time which is causing my issue in the other question.

But, I am curious overall what the differences are between a debug build and a release build as well which is why I am creating this question.

Upvotes: 6

Views: 4112

Answers (2)

harun_me
harun_me

Reputation: 301

Flutter is awesome; It provides different build modes for the development and testing of the application.

There are three build modes:

Debug mode (Flutter run --debug):

  1. We get all testing tools features in this mode.
  2. The app size is large.
  3. No compression is performed at this stage.

Profile mode (Flutter run --profile):

  1. We get fewer testing tool features in this mode.
  2. The app size is small.
  3. Some compression is performed, but not all.

Release mode (Flutter run --release):

  1. We don't get any tools in this stage.
  2. The actual app size is considered.
  3. All possible compression is performed.

Why do we need profile mode ?

In Flutter debug mode, using testing tools, we can test everything. However, what if we want to test how it will work in release mode or how it will actually function when users install this app from respected stores like the Play Store and App Store?

This is where profile mode comes into the picture because it is close to release mode. In profile mode, we get some testing tools, so we can perform testing. If the profile mode build passes all the testing, we can expect it to perform the same in the actual build.

Upvotes: 3

Rémi Rousselet
Rémi Rousselet

Reputation: 277617

The main differences between release and debug build are that in release:

  • asserts are disabled.
  • dart:developer is disabled
  • tree shaking did its job
  • Dart is AOT vs JIT/interpreted

Upvotes: 8

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