I've been developing a Windows Phone 8.1 app using C#/XAML. My configuration is up-to-date Windows 8.1 PC + Visual Studio 2013.
I can test my app on WP 8.1 emulator that comes with VS2013, and also no problem deploying it on physical Windows 8.1 device.
However the app also runs on Windows 10 Mobile because the platform currently allows it that way. Which is good except, my app doesn't work as intended since the device got Windows 10 Mobile Anniversary Update.
I don't know if the problem is in Windows or in my app but that's not important here.
I need to create a hotfix for the issue. And here comes the question. Is there a way to deploy WP 8.1 app to Windows 10 Mobile without submitting it to the store first, without upgrading to Windows 10, and preferably without upgrading to VS2015?
UPDATE The reason I want to deploy WP 8.1 app to Windows 10 Mobile is to test if my patch fixes the issue manifests with Windows 10 Mobile. At the moment I don't understand where is the problem and keep submitting the fix attempts to the store is not ideal.
Thanks.
Is there a way to deploy WP 8.1 app to Windows 10 Mobile without submitting it to the store first, without upgrading to Windows 10, and preferably without upgrading to VS2015?
Yes, it is possible to deploy WP8.1 app to the Windows 10 Mobile without submitting it to store and without upgrading to Windows 10 and without upgrading to VS2015. But you need to make sure you have the Windows 10 Mobile device for you to test.
If the Windows 10 Mobile device is in your side, you can unlock the Windows 10 Mobile device and deploy your app to the Windows 10 Mobile device by using the USB with the same method that you deploy it to the Windows Phone 8.1 Mobile device.
Or you can try to sideload your app on the Windows 10 Mobile device without submitting it to the store by using the Application Deployment tool. For more information, please try to refer to this article:How to deploy Windows Phone 8.1 apps with the Application Deployment tool.