What situation we can go with device channel?

Question

I need to make my custom SharePoint site responsive, So Planned to use bootstrap framework for making my web parts and pages responsive. My concern is there has device channel feature in SharePoint 2013 by default, I need to know what situation we can use device channel? And the main use of device channel?

I referred this links https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/jj862343.aspx https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/jj862340.aspx https://blog.mastykarz.nl/device-channels-sharepoint-2013/

I need more clarification regarding this

Answer 1

Use Device Channels

You use Device Channels to target different group of devecies. SharePoint reads the HTTP_USER_AGENT attribute to determine which device channel to use. Desktop uses the default and blank input of Device Inclusion Rules. Mobile ddevices is easy to target with the fallback of $FALLBACKMOBILEUSERAGENTS;. IPad is also ease to target, just use iPad as value of Device Incusion Rules. But Android Tablet is tough. If you type Android, you target all Android devices; tablets and phones since the HTTP_USER_AGENT of Android is similar to each other. Android phones uses Mobile in its HTTP_USER_AGENT which you need to add before Android targeting tablets. Otherwise you'll get the tablet device channel on Android phones as well.

When you test, you just add ?DeviceChannel=alias to see different views upon development. Be sure to test on real devices before deployment though.

http://sitecollection/site/pages/default.aspx
http://sitecollection/site/pages/default.aspx?DeviceChannel=ipad
http://sitecollection/site/pages/default.aspx?DeviceChannel=android
http://sitecollection/site/pages/default.aspx?DeviceChannel=mobile

If you're not using any screen width rules in your bootstrap implementation, device channels may work. But if you don't implement custom device channels, it won't make any change to your bootstrap. It'll use default (desktop) for every device.