Cheesesquare Deployment & Usage Guide

A comprehensive guide for building and running the Cheesesquare demo application, which showcases the Android Design Library components including Collapsing Toolbar, FloatingActionButton, NavigationView, and Snackbar.

1. Prerequisites

Required Software

Android Studio: Latest stable version (Arctic Fox or newer recommended)
JDK: Version 8 or 11 (OpenJDK or Oracle JDK)
Git: For cloning the repository
Android SDK:
- SDK Platform API 22+ (Android 5.1)
- Android SDK Build-Tools 30.0.0 or newer
- Android Support Repository (legacy) or AndroidX libraries (modern)

Hardware Requirements

Emulator: x86_64 system image with hardware acceleration (HAXM or Hypervisor)
Physical Device: Android 5.1+ (API 22) device with USB debugging enabled

2. Installation

Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/chrisbanes/cheesesquare.git
cd cheesesquare

Open in Android Studio

Launch Android Studio
Select File > Open and navigate to the cheesesquare directory
Click OK to open the project

Sync Project

Android Studio will automatically prompt to sync Gradle. If not:

Click File > Sync Project with Gradle Files
Or click the "Sync Now" banner if it appears

3. Configuration

This demo application requires no external API keys or environment variables. However, you may need to configure the following:

Gradle Configuration (Optional)

If behind a corporate proxy, edit gradle.properties:

systemProp.http.proxyHost=proxy.company.com
systemProp.http.proxyPort=8080
systemProp.https.proxyHost=proxy.company.com
systemProp.https.proxyPort=8080

Signing Configuration (For Release Builds)

Create app/keystore.properties (do not commit to version control):

storePassword=your_store_password
keyPassword=your_key_password
keyAlias=your_key_alias
storeFile=path/to/your/keystore.jks

4. Build & Run

Debug Build (Development)

Command Line:

./gradlew assembleDebug

APK location: app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk

Android Studio:

Select Run > Run 'app' (or press Shift+F10)
Choose target device (emulator or connected device)
Click OK

Install Directly to Device

./gradlew installDebug

Release Build (Production)

./gradlew assembleRelease

APK location: app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release-unsigned.apk

Note: For a signed release build, ensure you have configured signing keys in build.gradle or via keystore.properties.

Android App Bundle (AAB) for Play Store

./gradlew bundleRelease

Output: app/build/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab

5. Deployment

Sideloading (Testing)

Transfer the APK to device and install:

adb install app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk

Or use Android Studio's "Run" button for automatic deployment.

Google Play Store

Generate signed AAB: ./gradlew bundleRelease
Log in to Google Play Console
Create new application or select existing
Navigate to Production > Create new release
Upload app-release.aab
Complete store listing and submit for review

Firebase App Distribution (Beta Testing)

./gradlew assembleRelease
firebase appdistribution:distribute app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release.apk \
  --app 1:1234567890:android:0a1b2c3d4e5f6789 \
  --release-notes "Cheesesquare demo build" \
  --testers "testers@example.com"

6. Troubleshooting

Gradle Sync Failed

Issue: Could not find com.android.tools.build:gradle:x.x.x Solution: Update Android Gradle Plugin in build.gradle (project level):

classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:7.0.0' // or latest

SDK Not Found

Issue: SDK location not found Solution: Create local.properties in project root:

sdk.dir=/path/to/your/Android/Sdk

Or set ANDROID_HOME environment variable.

Build Tools Version Mismatch

Issue: The SDK Build Tools revision (xx.x.x) is too low Solution: Update build.gradle (app level):

android {
    buildToolsVersion "30.0.3" // or latest
}

Or remove buildToolsVersion to use default.

Kotlin Version Conflict

Issue: Kotlin plugin version mismatch Solution: Ensure Kotlin version matches in build.gradle (project):

ext.kotlin_version = '1.5.21' // or latest stable
classpath "org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-gradle-plugin:$kotlin_version"

Installation Failed (Device)

Issue: INSTALL_FAILED_UPDATE_INCOMPATIBLE Solution: Uninstall existing app first:

adb uninstall com.support.android.designlibdemo

Then retry installation.

OutOfMemoryError During Build

Issue: java.lang.OutOfMemoryError: GC overhead limit exceeded Solution: Increase heap size in gradle.properties:

org.gradle.jvmargs=-Xmx2048m -XX:MaxPermSize=512m -XX:+HeapDumpOnOutOfMemoryError -Dfile.encoding=UTF-8

How to Deploy & Use chrisbanes/cheesesquare