As developers, we often start our journey on Windows machines, but many of us quickly realize that Windows can be challenging for development work. While Linux offers a more developer-friendly environment, it may not be ideal for other tasks like gaming. Enter Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) – a game-changer that allows us to harness the power of Linux within Windows.
In this two-part series, we’ll explore how to set up an Android development environment in WSL. This first post will cover the initial setup, including installing necessary tools and SDKs.
Prerequisites:
- WSL installed with Ubuntu distro
- Basic familiarity with command-line operations
Step 1: Installing OpenJDK and Gradle
Android development requires Java Development Kit (JDK) and Gradle. Let’s install them:
sudo apt install openjdk-8-jdk-headless gradle
export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-8-openjdk-amd64Note: You can opt for OpenJDK 11 if preferred, but OpenJDK 8 works well for most purposes.
Step 2: Installing Android Command Line Tools
Next, we’ll download and set up the Android command-line tools. You can get it from this link. (Make sure you get the one for Linux, not Windows)
cd ~
curl https://dl.google.com/android/repository/commandlinetools-linux-8512546_latest.zip -o /tmp/cmd-tools.zip
mkdir -p android/cmdline-tools
unzip -q -d android/cmdline-tools /tmp/cmd-tools.zip
mv android/cmdline-tools/cmdline-tools android/cmdline-tools/latest
rm /tmp/cmd-tools.zipStep 3: Setting Up Environment Variables
Configure the necessary environment variables. The Android SDK requires some environment variables to be set. Feel free to edit your .bash_profile or export them the way you like!
export ANDROID_HOME=$HOME/android
export ANDROID_SDK_ROOT=${ANDROID_HOME}
export PATH=${ANDROID_HOME}/cmdline-tools/latest/bin:${ANDROID_HOME}/platform-tools:${ANDROID_HOME}/tools:${ANDROID_HOME}/tools/bin:${PATH}Add these lines to your .bash_profile or preferred shell configuration file for persistence.
Step 4: Accepting SDK Licenses
Before proceeding, we need to accept the SDK licenses. we need to agree to some licenses. You probably should read them (if you haven’t already).
yes | sdkmanager --licensesStep 5: Installing SDK Components
Finally, let’s install the necessary SDK components.
sdkmanager --update
sdkmanager "platforms;android-30" "build-tools;30.0.3"You can view all available components and their versions with
sdkmanager --listConclusion
With these steps completed, you now have a basic Android development environment set up in WSL. You can build Android apps from within WSL, but there’s more to explore. In the next post, we’ll dive into advanced topics like setting up emulators, connecting USB devices, and integrating with IDEs for a complete development experience.
Keep an eye out for part two(Here), where we’ll tackle these exciting challenges and take your WSL Android development setup to the next level!
