feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process by NathanWalker · Pull Request #1963 · NativeScript/android · GitHub

NativeScriptRuntime.reloadApplication()

Helpful for programmatic reset of JS isolate for clean restart of JS application as well as OTA (over-the-air) updates without restarting the entire app process.

NativeScript/ios#384

Summary by CodeRabbit

New Features
- Added a public runtime API for reloading the application, with optional base directory support.
Bug Fixes
- Improved reload reliability and prevented duplicate reload scheduling.
- Improved runtime shutdown by terminating workers and safely recreating the main runtime.
- Fixed application state cleanup during reloads.
- Improved timezone listener handling to prevent duplicate registrations and stale listeners.

No actionable comments were generated in the recent review. 🎉

ℹ️ Recent review info ⚙️ Run configuration

Configuration used: Repository UI

Review profile: CHILL

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Run ID: 4b27b8af-034e-4b48-b8cd-2db73030b528

📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between e612f1b and 2bb05a8.

📒 Files selected for processing (5)

test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/NativeScriptRuntime.java
test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/RuntimeHelper.java
test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/Runtime.cpp
test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/com_tns_Runtime.cpp
test-app/runtime/src/main/java/com/tns/Runtime.java

🚧 Files skipped from review as they are similar to previous changes (3)

test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/NativeScriptRuntime.java
test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/RuntimeHelper.java
test-app/runtime/src/main/java/com/tns/Runtime.java

📝 Walkthrough

Walkthrough

The PR adds public Java reload APIs, main-thread restart scheduling, Java and native runtime teardown, and main-runtime lifecycle reset handling. It also updates timezone receiver registration to use cached application context state.

Changes

Application reload and runtime teardown

Layer / File(s)	Summary
Reload entry points test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/NativeScriptRuntime.java	NativeScriptRuntime adds two static reloadApplication overloads and a private constructor.
Reload scheduling and context state test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/RuntimeHelper.java	RuntimeHelper caches application context, prevents duplicate scheduled reloads, reloads the runtime on the main thread, and tracks timezone receiver registration.
Java runtime shutdown test-app/runtime/src/main/java/com/tns/Runtime.java	Runtime adds destroyMainRuntime() and a native termination declaration. The method clears runtime state and invokes native termination.
Native runtime teardown test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/com_tns_Runtime.cpp, test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/Runtime.cpp	The JNI callback stops child workers, disposes the isolate, removes its event-loop entry, and deletes the runtime. Main-runtime destruction resets shared lifecycle state.

Estimated code review effort: 4 (Complex) | ~45 minutes

Merge Risk: ⚪ Minimal · up to 2bb05

The PR adds programmatic JavaScript bundle restarts without restarting the app process, and no actionable merge-blocking risk remains; it is merge-ready after normal checks.

Sequence Diagram(s)

sequenceDiagram
  participant NativeScriptRuntime
  participant RuntimeHelper
  participant Runtime
  participant NativeTerminationCallback
  participant V8Runtime
  NativeScriptRuntime->>RuntimeHelper: reloadApplication()
  RuntimeHelper->>Runtime: destroyMainRuntime()
  Runtime->>NativeTerminationCallback: TerminateRuntimeCallback(runtimeId)
  NativeTerminationCallback->>V8Runtime: terminate workers and destroy isolate
  NativeTerminationCallback-->>Runtime: native termination completes
  RuntimeHelper->>RuntimeHelper: initialize and run replacement runtime

Possibly related PRs

NativeScript/android#1972: Both changes modify native runtime and worker termination lifecycle handling.
NativeScript/android#2003: Both changes modify Runtime::DestroyRuntime and main-runtime event-loop teardown.
NativeScript/android#2006: Both changes update runtime teardown and main-runtime lifecycle cleanup.

Suggested reviewers: edusperoni

Poem

🐰 I press reload and clear the way,
The old runtime hops away.
Workers rest, the isolate ends,
A fresh runtime soon ascends.
Context cached, the clock receiver stays.

🚥 Pre-merge checks | ✅ 4 | ❌ 1

❌ Failed checks (1 warning)

Check name	Status	Explanation	Resolution
Docstring Coverage	⚠️ Warning	Docstring coverage is 8.70% which is insufficient. The required threshold is 80.00%.	Write docstrings for the functions missing them to satisfy the coverage threshold.

✅ Passed checks (4 passed)

Check name	Status	Explanation
Description Check	✅ Passed	Check skipped - CodeRabbit’s high-level summary is enabled.
Title check	✅ Passed	The title clearly summarizes the main change: adding reloadApplication to restart the JavaScript bundle without restarting the app process.
Linked Issues check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.
Out of Scope Changes check	✅ Passed	Check skipped because no linked issues were found for this pull request.

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@copilot resolve the merge conflicts in this pull request

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@copilot resolve the merge conflicts in this pull request

Resolved and pushed via merge commit 7b1f57c8 (merged origin/main into this branch and fixed both conflict files: Runtime.java and com_tns_Runtime.cpp).

Actionable comments posted: 4

🤖 Prompt for all review comments with AI agents

Verify each finding against current code. Fix only still-valid issues, skip the
rest with a brief reason, keep changes minimal, and validate.

Inline comments:
In `@test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/NativeScriptRuntime.java`:
- Around line 11-12: The NativeScriptRuntime.reloadApplication(String baseDir)
overload currently drops its baseDir argument, so callers cannot reload from a
chosen bundle location. Update this method to either pass baseDir through to a
new RuntimeHelper.reloadApplication(String baseDir) implementation that rebuilds
the runtime config from that directory, or remove the overload if it is not
meant to be supported; keep the API behavior aligned with the method signature
and related RuntimeHelper reload logic.

In `@test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/RuntimeHelper.java`:
- Around line 340-349: `registerTimezoneChangedListener` is unregistering
`timezoneChangedReceiver` with whatever `context` is passed in, but that can
differ between the initial call and `reloadApplication`, causing the old
receiver to remain registered. Update the listener bookkeeping so the same
Context instance used for registration is also used for `unregisterReceiver`
(for example by storing the registering Context alongside
`timezoneChangedReceiver` or consistently using `applicationContext` in
`registerTimezoneChangedListener` and its callers). Keep the existing
`IllegalArgumentException` handling only for truly stale registrations, and
ensure the old receiver is fully removed before assigning and registering the
new one.

In `@test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/com_tns_Runtime.cpp`:
- Around line 358-362: The null-runtime checks in the affected callbacks do not
stop execution, so `runtime->GetIsolate()` can still be called on a null pointer
and crash. In each callback that resolves a `runtime` and then uses it
(`com_tns_Runtime` helpers around the reported branches), add an immediate
return inside the `if (runtime == nullptr)` path before any dereference, and
apply the same early-exit pattern consistently to all listed null-runtime
branches.

In `@test-app/runtime/src/main/java/com/tns/Runtime.java`:
- Around line 478-500: The termination flow in Runtime.destroyMainRuntime() and
terminateWorkers() is racing because the TerminateThread message is posted
asynchronously and workerIdToHandler is cleared immediately afterward. Add a
blocking handshake so terminateWorkers() waits until each worker has actually
processed the termination signal before destroyMainRuntime() continues with
runtimeCache.remove(), pendingWorkerMessages.clear(), currentRuntime.remove(),
and TerminateRuntimeCallback. Use the existing Runtime and workerHandler
messaging path to coordinate completion, and only clear workerIdToHandler after
all workers confirm shutdown.

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Run ID: e52793de-9a24-4365-9c36-5c412d5895b3

📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between 92c2654 and 7b1f57c.

📒 Files selected for processing (4)

test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/NativeScriptRuntime.java
test-app/app/src/main/java/com/tns/RuntimeHelper.java
test-app/runtime/src/main/cpp/com_tns_Runtime.cpp
test-app/runtime/src/main/java/com/tns/Runtime.java

…process Helpful for programmatic reset of JS isolate for clean restart of JS application as well as OTA (over-the-air) updates without restarting the entire app process.

Note

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NathanWalker marked this pull request as ready for review June 25, 2026 19:05

Copilot started work on behalf of NathanWalker June 25, 2026 19:05 View session

Copilot finished work on behalf of NathanWalker June 25, 2026 19:12

coderabbitai Bot reviewed Jun 25, 2026

View reviewed changes

NathanWalker added 3 commits August 14, 2026 19:04

feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app …

f3a1a81

…process Helpful for programmatic reset of JS isolate for clean restart of JS application as well as OTA (over-the-air) updates without restarting the entire app process.

chore: pr comments

ad9b3d9

chore: main merge

2bb05a8

NathanWalker force-pushed the feat/reload-app branch from 0bc3036 to 2bb05a8 Compare August 15, 2026 02:09

NathanWalker added this to the 9.1.1 milestone Aug 20, 2026

feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process by NathanWalker · Pull Request #1963 · NativeScript/android · GitHub

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feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process - #1963

feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process#1963
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feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process by NathanWalker · Pull Request #1963 · NativeScript/android · GitHub

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feat: reloadApplication for JS bundle restart without restarting app process - #1963

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