Android Builds

This guide covers building NativeScript apps for Android devices and Google Play.

Package Types

AAB (Android App Bundle)

Default for release builds. Required for Google Play:

norrix build android release
# or explicitly
norrix build android release --aab

Benefits:

• Smaller download size
• Optimized for each device
• Required for new Play Store apps

APK

For direct distribution or testing:

norrix build android release --apk

Use cases:

• Beta testing outside Play Store
• Enterprise distribution
• Development testing

Keystore Configuration

For release builds, you need a signing keystore.

Create a Keystore

keytool -genkey -v \
  -keystore release.keystore \
  -alias my-app-key \
  -keyalg RSA \
  -keysize 2048 \
  -validity 10000

Provide via CLI

norrix build android release \
  --keystore ./signing/release.keystore \
  --keystore-password $KEYSTORE_PASSWORD \
  --key-alias my-app-key \
  --key-password $KEY_PASSWORD

Provide via Config

// norrix.config.ts
import { defineConfig } from '@norrix/cli';
 
export default defineConfig({
  android: {
    keystorePath: './signing/release.keystore',
    keyAlias: 'my-app-key',
  },
});

Note: Store passwords in environment variables or Norrix secrets, not in version control.

Environment Variables

Store keystore passwords securely:

# Set as Norrix secrets
norrix env set KEYSTORE_PASSWORD mysecretpassword
norrix env set KEY_PASSWORD mykeypassword

These are injected at build time.

Build Artifacts

Successful Android builds produce:

Artifacts are uploaded to S3 and available in the dashboard.

Debug Builds

For development and debugging:

norrix build android debug

Debug builds:

• Use debug signing
• Enable debugging features
• Include debug symbols
• Faster build times

Version and Build Number

Specify Version

norrix build android release --version 1.2.0

Sets versionName in the manifest.

Specify Build Number

norrix build android release --build-number 42

Sets versionCode in the manifest.

Auto-Increment

If --build-number is omitted, Norrix automatically increments based on previous builds.

Play Store Submission

After building, submit to Play Store:

# Submit to production
norrix submit android production
 
# Submit to beta track
norrix submit android beta
 
# Submit to internal testing
norrix submit android internal

Troubleshooting

Signing Failed

• Verify keystore path is correct
• Check key alias exists in keystore
• Ensure passwords are correct
• Confirm keystore isn’t corrupted

AAB Not Accepted

• Check minimum SDK version
• Verify app bundle format
• Ensure signing is valid

Version Code Issues

• Version code must be higher than previous release
• Use --build-number to set explicitly
• Each track can have different version requirements

ProGuard Issues

• Check proguard-rules.pro for custom rules
• Add keep rules for reflection-based code
• Review mapping.txt for obfuscation issues