Publishing Channels

This article covers LanSphere’s app publishing mechanism: the four-state lifecycle from creation to going live, how to configure the three preset publishing channels — Web Link, API Access, and Lansenger AI Assistant — plus Publish to App Square, Publish as Component, and Version Management. It is for developers and admins delivering apps to end users or external systems.

The Four-State App Lifecycle

An app goes through four states from creation to external service:

Created: Newly created, not saved yet;
Saved (draft): Saved as a draft, visible only to you;
Published: Published to the App Square, published as a component, or published to Lansenger — the three channels are independent;
WebApp live: Gone live as a WebApp through a web link — can coexist with the three publishing channels.

“Independent channels” means you can publish only to Lansenger for end users, or simultaneously open a web link and API access externally — publishing and updating on each channel does not affect the others.

How to choose a publishing method:

Method	Best for
Publish to App Square	Open to all platform members (including Viewers)
Publish as Component	Consolidate a Workflow as a reusable component for other apps to call
Web Link (WebApp)	Give a scoped audience a standalone access page via link
API Access	Integrate the app’s capability into your own or third-party systems
Lansenger AI Assistant	Provide conversational service to Lansenger end users

The “Save” Button

On the App Development page, hovering over the “Save” button always shows three options:

Option	Description
Save	Save current edits as a draft
Publish to App Square	Publish the latest content to the App Square, visible and usable platform-wide
Publish as Component	Visible for the Workflow type only — publish the Workflow as a reusable component

Note: Drafts cannot be published to the App Square — save the latest content first. “Publish as Component” and “Publish to App Square” are mutually exclusive; an app can only take one.

The Publishing Channels Tab

The “Publishing Channels” tab on the app details page provides three preset channels: Web Link, API Access, and Lansenger AI Assistant.

Web Link

Takes the app live as a WebApp, serving externally through a link. Link visibility has three levels, effective immediately on selection:

Visibility	Description
Selected platform members (system default)	Only designated members can use it; the publisher’s own permission is fixed and cannot be revoked — additional members can be designated
All platform members	Every member on the platform can use it
Everyone	No identity restriction — anyone with the link can use it

Other actions:

Open: Open the WebApp in a new tab;
Copy Link: Copy the link to the clipboard for distribution.

API Access

Integrate the app’s capability into your own systems via API:

Copy API Link: Copy the app’s API access link;
Create Key: Create a calling key in one click. An app supports a single key only, shown masked;
Copy / Delete Key: Deletion invalidates the key immediately; a new one can be created anytime.

Note: An API key is the credential for calling the app — keep it safe and do not share it. If you suspect a leak, delete and recreate it immediately.

Lansenger AI Assistant

Publish the app as a Lansenger AI Assistant, directly usable by end users in the Lansenger client.

Tip: Only Chatflow and Agent apps support publishing as a Lansenger AI Assistant; Workflows do not.

Publishing flow:

In the “Publishing Channels” tab, pick the Lansenger AI Assistant channel and start publishing;
The flow varies slightly with account binding status:
- Lansenger linked: A confirmation pop-up appears — confirm to publish directly;
- Lansenger not linked: The pop-up guides you to the Lansenger authorization center — publishing runs automatically once QR-code authentication passes;
The assistant title defaults to the app name (within 10 characters) and the description defaults to the app description (within 20 characters) — adjust as needed;
Once published, the button changes to “Published” and is greyed out — no repeated publishing.

After publishing:

The system automatically creates the app and bot instance on the Lansenger side and lists it in the Lansenger client’s “AI Assistant Marketplace”;
End users see the assistant’s avatar, title, and description in the AI Assistant Marketplace — click to use.

Data authorization on end users’ first use:

On an end user’s first use of the assistant, the system pushes a data-authorization card; chatting starts only after approval;
If the user declines, the assistant is unusable; every later attempt re-pushes the authorization card;
Authorization is bound per “user–app” pair and is independent across users and assistants.

Updates after publishing: When the app is updated on the platform side, its basic info syncs automatically to the Lansenger side.

Deletion: Apps published to Lansenger can be deleted, but only platform-side data is deleted — Lansenger-side data must be handled separately.

Publish to App Square

Choose “Publish to App Square” in the “Save” button’s drop-down to save the latest content and list the app:

Once listed, everyone on the platform (including Viewers) can see and use it;
Drafts cannot be published — save first;
Mutually exclusive with “Publish as Component” — pick one.

Publish as Component

Only the Workflow type supports “Publish as Component”:

After saving the latest content, choose “Publish as Component” in the “Save” button’s drop-down;
Configure the component info as prompted;
After publishing, the Workflow becomes a component and syncs automatically to the “Collaboration Components → Workflow” tab for other apps on the platform to call.

Note: Components published through this entry are not listed in the App Square.

Version Management

Version Management records every published version of the app — release notes, publisher, and publish time. You can look back at historical versions to follow the app’s publishing and change history.