Gradle Tutorial for Android - Getting Started

2017년 12월 27일About 3 min

Gradle Tutorial for Android - Getting Started 관련

In this Gradle Build Script tutorial you’ll learn the basic syntax in build.gradle files generated by Android Studio. You’ll also learn about gradlew tasks, build types, product flavors, build variants, and how to add additional information such as the date to the APK file name.

In this tutorial, you’ll gain a better understanding of what Gradle is, and how you can use Gradle to supercharge your builds. By the end of this tutorial you should be able to

Build your Android apps from the command-line
Read through a Gradle build file
Create your own Gradle plugin
Create build flavors for profit!

Note

This tutorial assumes you’re already familiar with the basics of Android development. If you are completely new to Android development, read through our Beginning Android Development tutorials to familiarize yourself with the basics.

What is Gradle?

Gradle is an open source build automation system. It brings the convenience of a Groovy-based DSL along with the advantages of Ant and Maven. With Gradle, you can easily manipulate the build process and its logic to create multiple versions of your app. It’s much easier to use and a lot more concise and flexible when compared to Ant or Maven alone.

So, there was little wonder why during Google I/O in May 2013, the Android Gradle plugin was introduced as the build tool built into the first preview of Android Studio

Getting Started

Download SocializifyStarter the starter project for this tutorial. At minimum, you’ll need Android Studio 3.0 installed on your computer.

Open the project in Android Studio and you’ll be prompted to setup the Gradle wrapper — Open the project in Android Studio and you’ll be prompted to setup the **Gradle wrapper**

Choose [OK] to configure the wrapper, which you’ll learn more about later in the tutorial.

Depending on which version of Android Studio you’re running, you may also be prompted to update the Gradle plugin — Depending on which version of Android Studio you’re running, you may also be prompted to update the **Gradle plugin**

Choose [Update] to finish opening the project in Android Studio.

Before starting working with the project, let’s review its structure in the Project pane in Android Studio:

Pay attention to the files with the green Gradle icon and .gradle extension. These files are generated by Android Studio automatically during project creation. They are responsible for the processing of your project’s build. They contain the necessary info about the project structure, library dependencies, library versions, and the app versions you’ll get as a result of the build process.

Project-level `build.gradle`

Module-level `build.gradle`

Finally, `settings.gradle`

Groovy vs. Kotlin in Gradle

Why Kotlin

Mastering the build: Gradle Commands

What is `gradlew`

`gradlew` tasks

`gradlew assemble`

`gradlew lint`

Managing Dependencies

Gradle Dependency Configurations

Ready to Publish: Working with Product Flavors and Build Types

Build Types

Build Signing

Build Flavors

What is a Build Variant

Creating Tasks

Creating Custom Plugins

Where to Go From Here

You can download the final project here.

The Android Gradle plugin 3.0 contains some significant differences from previous versions. So it’s worth reviewing the changelog.

Also, if you’re insterested in the Gradle Kotlin DSL, gradle/kotlin-dsl you can find a list of usage examples to get familiar with it.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this Getting Started with Gradle tutorial! Don’t forget to leave your feedback and feel free to ask any questions in the comments below