Android Build

One-time setup

Install Android Studio (includes the Android SDK).
Run flutter doctor and accept licenses if asked: flutter doctor --android-licenses.

Debug build (testing)

flutter build apk --debug
flutter install          # installs on a connected device

Release build

1. Create your signing key (once, keep it forever)

keytool -genkey -v -keystore appforge-release.keystore -alias appforge \
  -keyalg RSA -keysize 2048 -validity 10000

Store the keystore file and passwords somewhere safe — losing them means you can never update your app on Google Play again.

2. Configure signing

Copy android/key.properties.example to android/key.properties and fill in the four values (never commit or share this file):

storeFile=C:/absolute/path/to/appforge-release.keystore
storePassword=YOUR_STORE_PASSWORD
keyAlias=appforge
keyPassword=YOUR_KEY_PASSWORD

That is all — no Gradle editing is needed. android/app/build.gradle.kts already picks the file up and signs the release build with it.

If key.properties is missing, the release build falls back to the debug key so local --release runs still work, and Gradle prints a warning. Google Play rejects debug-signed uploads, so make sure the file exists before publishing.

3. Build

flutter build appbundle --release     # .aab for Google Play (recommended)
flutter build apk --release           # .apk for direct distribution

Outputs land in build/app/outputs/.

4. Deep links (only if you use them)

Get your release SHA-256 fingerprint:

keytool -list -v -keystore appforge-release.keystore -alias appforge

Enter it on the admin Applications page (deep-link signing identifiers), re-download the configuration package, and upload the generated website/.well-known/assetlinks.json to your website. If you use Play App Signing, take the fingerprint from Play Console → Setup → App signing instead.

Version updates

Bump Version Name / Version Code / Build Number on the Applications page, re-download, re-apply, rebuild, upload to Play — then publish the version on the Store Settings page so existing installations see the update prompt.

Notes

The template pins the Android Gradle Plugin to 8.9.x for plugin compatibility. Do not raise it to 9.x until the WebView plugin supports it.
minSdk follows Flutter's default (currently 21+); targetSdk tracks the latest stable automatically.