Android SDK

The Android SDK is not bundled with Elide: it carries its own licenses. Elide uses an SDK that is already installed, or provisions one of its own, and resolves which of its components to use for the API level being built.

Where the SDK comes from

The first of these that applies is the SDK root:

android {
  namespace = "com.example.app"
  compileSdk = 36
  sdk = "managed"
}

An SDK found through the environment or Android Studio’s location is never modified unless you ask, with elide install or --install-sdk.

The managed SDK starts from the Android command-line tools release this Elide pins, verified by SHA-256. Its own sdkmanager then installs every other component, in the layout Android Studio uses, so Studio can be pointed at it.

Install components

A plain elide build installs nothing. When a component is missing it fails, naming what to install:

Android SDK is missing: …/build-tools/36.0.0/aapt2
Install with: sdkmanager --install 'build-tools;36.0.0'
Or run elide install, or pass --install-sdk, to install them

elide install && elide build is a complete CI recipe. In CI, add the license acceptance:

elide install --accept-android-licenses
elide build

Licenses

No component is installed under a license that has not been accepted.

• sdkmanager records an acceptance under <root>/licenses; a root that has one is not asked again.
• On a terminal, elide install asks once before downloading.
• Off a terminal, --accept-android-licenses or ELIDE_ANDROID_ACCEPT_LICENSES=1 is the acceptance. --install-sdk on a build is also an acceptance, for what that build installs.
• With none of these, the install fails and prints the command:

The Android SDK licenses have not been accepted, so nothing was installed
Accept them with: elide install --accept-android-licenses (or set ELIDE_ANDROID_ACCEPT_LICENSES=1)

sdkmanager is never answered on your behalf: a component under a license it has not recorded fails to install.

Which components a build uses

Components are resolved against the installed SDK, not derived from compileSdk alone:

Platform-tools, the emulator and system images are needed only to run on a device, and are checked by the tasks that use them.

android {
  namespace = "com.example.app"
  compileSdk = 36
  buildTools = "36.0.0"
}

Lockfile

The project lockfile (.dev/elide.lock.v2.bin) records what a build resolved:

• the kind of root (system or managed; not its path, which differs between machines);
• the revision of cmdline-tools, platform-tools, emulator, each platforms;…, build-tools;… and system-images;… package;
• the R8 and bundletool releases.

While compileSdk, buildTools, the devices’ API levels and system images and the kind of root are unchanged, a build uses the recorded platform and build-tools and boots the recorded system image even when a newer one is installed, and elide install installs exactly the recorded packages. A component installed at another revision than recorded is reported as a warning. Commit the lockfile so every machine builds against the same components.

elide install --update   # re-resolve against the installed SDK and record the result

R8 and bundletool are not part of the Android SDK. Each Elide release pins one of each, downloads it once and verifies it by SHA-256.

Inspect the SDK

elide project info

In a project declaring android, the output has an Android section:

The android/sdk tool of elide mcp returns the same report to an agent (Editors and agents).

Environment variables