Android Development Software Setup

This guide describes how to install the Android Studio Development Bundle that you’ll use to build mobile VR apps.

The Android Studio Development Bundle includes all the necessary tools you need to begin developing Android Applications:

• Android Studio IDE (recommended IDE)
• Android Platforms
• Android SDK tools
• Android NDK
• Open JDK

Getting Started

If you’re planning to use a Mac for development, first install Xcode - https://developer.apple.com/xcode/download/. If you’re using another platform you may skip this installation.

To get started, download Android Studio - https://developer.android.com/studio/index.html. Please refer to the Install Android Studio (https://developer.android.com/studio/install.html?pkg=studio) guide for detailed installation steps.

Install Additional Packages and Tools

Once Android Studio has been installed, you can then install the following packages:

• Android SDK Platform, API level 26
• Android SDK Build Tools, v 28.0.3 or later
• Android NDK
• LLDB
• Open JDK

These packages are installed through the Android SDK Manager. To access the manager, either navigate to Tools > SDK Manager or click the SDK Manager icon in the toolbar ( ). If you do not have a project loaded you may navigate to Configure > SDK Manager.

Verify that the correct packages and versions have been installed

In the Android SDK Manager, select the SDK Platforms tab. Verify the following Android platform is installed, as it is the minimum version required by the SDK: Android 8.0 (Oreo).

Then select the SDK Tools tab. Verify that the following components are installed: NDK and LLDB, and that the following tool versions are installed: Android SDK Build Tools 28.0.3 (or later).

Please refer to the following pages for information about Android NDK (https://developer.android.com/studio/projects/add-native-code.html#download-ndk) and OpenJDK (https://developer.android.com/studio/intro/studio-config.html#jdk).

Configure Android Studio

Once you’ve finished installing the required packages, you can configure your development environment.

Android Studio Project Structure

To verify your settings in Android Studio, navigate to File > Project Structure > SDK Location. If you do not have a project loaded, navigate to Configure > Project Defaults > Project Structure > SDK Location.

Verify that Use embedded JDK is checked and that the following properties are set to appropriate values:

• Android SDK location
• JDK location
• Android NDK location

Make note of these locations, you’ll use them to set your environmental variables in the next section.

Environment Variables and Path

With the locations recorded in the previous step, set the following environment variables:

• Set the environment variable JAVA_HOME to the JDK location, typically C:\Program Files\Android\Android Studio\jre.
• Set the environment variable ANDROID_HOME to the Android SDK location, typically C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Android\Sdk.
• Set the environment variable ANDROID_NDK_HOME to the Android NDK location, typically C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Android\Sdk\ndk-bundle.
• Add the JDK tools directory to your PATH, typically C:\Program Files\Android\Android Studio\jre\bin.
• Add the Android SDK platform-tools directory to your PATH, typically C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Android\Sdk\platform-tools.
• Add the Android SDK tools directory to your PATH, typically C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Android\Sdk\tools.

Setting up your System to Detect your Android Device (Windows Only)

You must set up your system to detect your Android device over USB in order to run, debug, and test your application on an Android device. Note that developers should swap the provided USB cable with a different one when connecting to a PC or Mac.

If you are developing on Windows, you may need to install a USB driver for adb after installing the Android SDK. For an installation guide and links to OEM drivers, see the Android OEM USB Drivers document.

Samsung Android drivers may be found on their developer site: http://developer.samsung.com/android/tools-sdks/Samsung-Android-USB-Driver-for-Windows

Windows may automatically detect the correct device and install the appropriate driver when you connect your device to a USB port on your computer.

Access the Device Manager through the Windows Control Panel. If the device was automatically detected, it will show up under Portable Devices in the Device Manager. Otherwise, look under Other Devices in the Device Manager and select the device to manually update the driver.

To see the list of detected attached devices, enter the following at a command prompt:

adb devices

Note: You will need to successfully setup your Android development environment in order to use this command.

If the device does not show up, verify that the device is turned on with enough battery power, and that the driver is installed properly.

For more information, see our topic on adb.