Migrating from Transistorsoft

BGeo’s JS API is intentionally shaped like the popular react-native-background-geolocation library (Transistorsoft’s commercial SDK), so most integrations move over with small changes. This page inventories what maps directly, what differs, and what BGeo deliberately does not implement. It’s factual, not a comparison or a claim of equivalence — BGeo is a compatible engine, not a clone.

Install swap

Only the dependency changes. Method names, the default export shape, and the location object stay the same.

Remove the Transistorsoft package and install BGeo:

npm uninstall react-native-background-geolocation
npm install @dc-bgeo/react-native-background-geolocation

Update every import to the new package name:

// Before
import BackgroundGeolocation from 'react-native-background-geolocation';

// After
import BackgroundGeolocation from '@dc-bgeo/react-native-background-geolocation';

Follow Installation for the Android Maven repo and iOS pod — these replace whatever native setup Transistorsoft’s SDK required. Check Compatibility first: BGeo requires the New Architecture, so an app still on the old bridge needs to migrate that before swapping the tracking SDK.

The license key moves, the mechanism doesn’t

Both SDKs read the license from the native manifest at launch — before any JS runs — so the shape of this step is familiar. Only the key names change, and BGeo verifies its key offline (no license call home):

<application>
  <!-- Before (Transistorsoft) -->
  <meta-data
    android:name="com.transistorsoft.locationmanager.license"
    android:value="YOUR_TRANSISTOR_LICENSE" />

  <!-- After (BGeo) -->
  <meta-data
    android:name="com.bgeo.license"
    android:value="BGEO1....YOUR_KEY" />
</application>

<!-- Before (Transistorsoft) -->
<key>TSLocationManagerLicense</key>
<string>YOUR_TRANSISTOR_LICENSE</string>

<!-- After (BGeo) -->
<key>BGeoLicense</key>
<string>BGEO1....YOUR_KEY</string>

If you configure Transistorsoft through Expo’s config plugin (a license property in app.json), that value is generated into these same native files at prebuild — swap it for BGeo’s manifest entries directly. See License keys for the full snippets, evaluation-build rules, and error codes.

Config and method compatibility

Most Transistor config keys and methods behave identically — see the Config reference and Methods reference for exact types and defaults. What maps directly (unchanged names and shapes):

Lifecycle: ready, setConfig, start, stop, getState, changePace
Positioning: getCurrentPosition, watchPosition, stopWatchPosition
Events: onLocation, onMotionChange, onHeartbeat, onProviderChange, onHttp, onConnectivityChange, onGeofence, onGeofencesChange
Permissions: requestPermission, getProviderState, requestTemporaryFullAccuracy, isPowerSaveMode/onPowerSaveChange
Odometer: getOdometer, setOdometer, resetOdometer
Upload queue: sync, getLocations, destroyLocations, getCount, destroyLocation, insertLocation
Geofences: addGeofence, addGeofences, removeGeofence, removeGeofences, getGeofences, geofenceExists — see the Geofencing guide
Logging: native logger.error/warn/info/debug/verbose, getLog, destroyLog, uploadLog — see the Logging & debugging guide
HTTP config: url, method, headers, params, extras, httpRootProperty, autoSync, autoSyncThreshold, disableAutoSyncOnCellular, batchSync, maxBatchSize, maxRecordsToPersist
Motion/filter config: distanceFilter, stopTimeout, stationaryRadius, heartbeatInterval, desiredAccuracy, locationFilterPolicy, kalmanProfile
authorization (JWT refresh) — see the HTTP guide’s authorization section
The notification sub-keys (title, text, channelId, channelName, smallIcon, color, priority)

The location object shape is unchanged (coords, timestamp, is_moving, activity, battery, odometer, uuid, extras) — see Data types.

If you’re migrating from an older integration and remember gaps like missing onHttp/onConnectivityChange, isPowerSaveMode, odometer methods, filter policies, or a native logger — those are all implemented now; the list above is current, not aspirational.

A handful of keys are accepted for API compatibility but currently do nothing. Don’t rely on foregroundService, backgroundPermissionRationale, or enableHeadless (Android headless dispatch works via registerHeadlessTask() without it), and note that debug only plays sound cues — see Limitations — accepted-but-no-op config keys before you build around any of them.

API parity: what’s not here

BGeo deliberately does not implement the following part of Transistorsoft’s surface. This is a scoping decision for this SDK’s use case, not a temporary gap:

Transistor API / config	Alternative in BGeo
`schedule` / `startSchedule` / `scheduleUseAlarmManager`	Run your own scheduler (a JS timer, or a native alarm) that calls `start()`/`stop()`.
`locationTemplate` / `geofenceTemplate`	Shape the upload body with `httpRootProperty`/`params`/`extras` instead of a template string — see Shaping the body.
`transistorAuthorizationToken`	N/A (Transistorsoft-account specific) — use `authorization` for your own backend.
Custom notification `layout` / `actions` / `strings`	The supported `notification` sub-keys (`title`/`text`/`channelId`/`channelName`/`smallIcon`/`color`/`priority`) cover a fixed layout, not custom actions or arbitrary strings.
`emailLog`	`uploadLog()` to your own `logUrl` endpoint instead of emailing a log file.
`useSignificantChangesOnly`	No equivalent mode — the engine manages its own wake sources; see Tracking lifecycle — wake sources.
`stopOnStationary` / `stopAfterElapsedMinutes`	Call `stop()` yourself from `onMotionChange`/`onHeartbeat`.
`persistMode`	N/A — all tracked locations persist by default; a one-shot `getCurrentPosition()` fix opts in via its `persist` option instead.
`timestampFormat`	N/A — timestamps are always ISO-8601 UTC strings, see `Location.timestamp`.
`locationsOrderDirection`	N/A — the persisted queue is always oldest-first, see Data pipeline — persistence.
Burst averaging (`rollingWindow`/`burstWindow`/`maxBurstDistance`), the `onLocationFilter` callback, `kalmanDebug`/`filterDebug`	Unbuilt — these are unknown keys, silently stored but ignored by the native config dict. The implemented filter surface is `locationFilterPolicy`, `kalmanProfile`, and `odometerAccuracyThreshold` — use those instead of per-fix burst averaging or a filter-decision callback.
`reset()`	Call `setConfig()` with the values you want restored — see the Config reference for the documented default of each key.
`startGeofences()` (geofence-only tracking mode)	`start()` already runs geofences alongside location tracking — there’s no separate mode.
`getLocations()` pagination / `SQLQuery`	`getLocations()` returns the full queue, oldest-first; filter or paginate the array in JS. Note a large offline queue means a large payload crossing the React Native bridge in one call — a generic RN-bridge cost, not specific to this method.
`startBackgroundTask()` / `stopBackgroundTask()`	N/A.
`getDeviceInfo()` / `getSensors()`	N/A.

Behavioral differences worth knowing

Callback/promise contract is unchanged. ready()/setConfig()/ start()/stop() keep Transistor’s own quirky lifecycle behavior: supplying a failure callback makes the returned promise resolve with the error instead of rejecting. See Callback vs. promise contract.
sync() semantics are unchanged. It resolves with a snapshot of the queue taken before the drain starts, not what remains afterward. See sync().
Headless dispatch is Android-only, same event shape. No params wrapper, matching Transistor’s headless task. iOS has no headless equivalent — see Boot & killed-app behavior: iOS: no headless.
iOS relaunch model differs internally, same external guarantee. BGeo keeps tracking alive across kill/reboot with a session-based engine (CLLocationUpdate.liveUpdates/CLBackgroundActivitySession, on by default on iOS 17+) plus significant-location-change monitoring and a rolling wake region, rather than Transistorsoft’s own implementation — see Boot & killed-app behavior for the full model.

Steps

Install @dc-bgeo/react-native-background-geolocation; remove the Transistorsoft package. Set up the Android libs repo + iOS pod.
Point every import at @dc-bgeo/react-native-background-geolocation.
Replace the Transistorsoft license entries in AndroidManifest.xml and Info.plist with BGeo’s — see License keys.
Move JWT/token-refresh settings into the authorization object.
Remove any usage of the keys/methods listed under API parity, and check Limitations for accepted-but-no-op keys.
Test on a real device — background, kill/relaunch, reboot — see Boot & killed-app behavior.