Base stores and device view stores
Base Stores and Device View Stores are stores that exist within the Snap Store and are provided by Canonical. To explain them more clearly, we have broken down the concepts here:
In the Base (Snap) Store:
- Private snap names can be registered
- Uploaded snap revisions can be published
The Device View (Snap) Stores are visible to connected devices:
- They can “include” access to all the snaps in the Base store, thus providing access to its snaps
- They can also include public snaps from the global Snap Store.
- Thus, you can curate a specific set of Brand and public snaps for each of your device types (known as device models)
There are a few points to note about Base Stores and Device View Stores. Firstly, production images may only point at a Device View Store, never at the Base Store. Secondly, only your devices can download, install, and refresh snaps from your private Snap Store.
Additionally, for image builds, developers can use their SSO credentials to download snaps from the dedicated Snap Store (please see the Switching to a Developer Account section).The authentication method used by devices is described below.
A standard store configuration using a Base and Device store
Snap stores are represented by the cylinders, with the Device Snap Store is represented by the cylinder with Acme in the top-right. Acme view store 1 has been configured to include snaps from the Global snap store and the Serial Vault is used by the company’s devices to authenticate and thereby gain access to private snaps.