Case Studies/Semaphr

Remote control for your mobile apps

Ship a broken build? Block it in seconds, not days. Force-push critical updates, message users by version, and monitor adoption — all without waiting for app store review.

Visit semaphr.com
KILL SWITCHv3.2.1BLOCKEDVERSIONSv3.2.2v3.2.0MESSAGESscheduledSDK STATUSiOS SDKv2.1.0Android SDKv2.1.0all SDKs connectedSESSIONS500K+
10M+installs protected
500+dev teams
99.9%uptime
What it does

Full control, instantly

01

Kill Switch

Block any app version instantly. A broken build reaches users? Shut it down in seconds, not days. Users see a clear message explaining what happened. No app store review required.

Version blockingInstant rollbackZero delay
02

Force Update

Push users to the latest version without waiting for app store prompts. Set minimum required versions per platform. Users on outdated builds get a non-dismissible upgrade screen.

Minimum versionPlatform controlNon-dismissible
03

In-App Messaging

Send targeted messages to specific app versions. Announce maintenance windows, new features, or known issues. Schedule delivery, customize appearance, preview before sending.

TargetedScheduledCustomizable
04

Real-time Analytics

See which versions your users are running in real time. Track adoption of new releases. Identify version fragmentation before it becomes a support problem.

Real-timeVersion trackingAdoption metrics
05

Native SDKs

Lightweight iOS, Android, and React Native SDKs that integrate in under 10 minutes. One initialization call. Handles all UI presentation, caching, and retry logic automatically.

iOSAndroidReact Native
Under the hood

What powers it

Swift SDK

Native iOS SDK with background refresh and minimal battery impact.

Kotlin SDK

Native Android SDK with lifecycle-aware version checking.

React Native SDK

Cross-platform SDK for React Native apps with the same capabilities.

Ruby on Rails

Backend API handling message delivery, version rules, and analytics ingestion.

React

Dashboard for managing versions, messages, and monitoring adoption metrics.

PostgreSQL

Relational storage for version rules, message history, and analytics data.

Process
Shape-up4-week cyclesDaily syncs
Technologies
Ruby on RailsReactSwiftKotlinPostgreSQL
Takeaways

What we learned

01

Solve it once

We built kill switches and force-update flows dozens of times for different clients. Semaphr solved it permanently — one platform, every app, every team.

02

Seconds matter

When a broken build is live, every minute counts. The entire system was designed for instant response — from dashboard click to user-facing block screen.

03

Eat your own cooking

We use Semaphr on every app we ship. Building a product we rely on daily keeps the quality bar high and the feedback loop tight.

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