gomobile

Documentation

Overview

Gomobile is a tool for building and running mobile apps written in Go.

To install:

$ go get golang.org/x/mobile/cmd/gomobile
$ gomobile init

At least Go 1.5 is required. For detailed instructions, see https://golang.org/wiki/Mobile.

Usage:

gomobile command [arguments]

Commands:

bind        build a library for Android and iOS
build       compile android APK and iOS app
init        install android compiler toolchain
install     compile android APK and install on device
version     print version

Use 'gomobile help [command]' for more information about that command.

Build a library for Android and iOS

Usage:

gomobile bind [-target android|ios] [-o output] [build flags] [package]

Bind generates language bindings for the package named by the import path, and compiles a library for the named target system.

The -target flag takes a target system name, either android (the default) or ios.

For -target android, the bind command produces an AAR (Android ARchive) file that archives the precompiled Java API stub classes, the compiled shared libraries, and all asset files in the /assets subdirectory under the package directory. The output is named '<package_name>.aar' by default. This AAR file is commonly used for binary distribution of an Android library project and most Android IDEs support AAR import. For example, in Android Studio (1.2+), an AAR file can be imported using the module import wizard (File > New > New Module > Import .JAR or .AAR package), and setting it as a new dependency (File > Project Structure > Dependencies). This requires 'javac' (version 1.7+) and Android SDK (API level 9 or newer) to build the library for Android. The environment variable ANDROID_HOME must be set to the path to Android SDK. The generated Java class is in the java package 'go.<package_name>' unless -javapkg flag is specified.

For -target ios, gomobile must be run on an OS X machine with Xcode installed. Support is not complete. The generated Objective-C types are prefixed with 'Go' unless the -prefix flag is provided.

The -v flag provides verbose output, including the list of packages built.

The build flags -a, -n, -x, -gcflags, -ldflags, -tags, and -work are shared with the build command. For documentation, see 'go help build'.

Compile android APK and iOS app

Usage:

gomobile build [-target android|ios] [-o output] [build flags] [package]

Build compiles and encodes the app named by the import path.

The named package must define a main function.

The -target flag takes a target system name, either android (the default) or ios.

For -target android, if an AndroidManifest.xml is defined in the package directory, it is added to the APK output. Otherwise, a default manifest is generated. By default, this builds a fat APK for all supported instruction sets (arm, 386, amd64, arm64). A subset of instruction sets can be selected by specifying target type with the architecture name. E.g. -target=android/arm,android/386.

For -target ios, gomobile must be run on an OS X machine with Xcode installed. Support is not complete.

If the package directory contains an assets subdirectory, its contents are copied into the output.

The -o flag specifies the output file name. If not specified, the output file name depends on the package built.

The -v flag provides verbose output, including the list of packages built.

The build flags -a, -i, -n, -x, -gcflags, -ldflags, -tags, and -work are shared with the build command. For documentation, see 'go help build'.

Install android compiler toolchain

Usage:

gomobile init [-u]

Init installs the Android C++ compiler toolchain and builds copies of the Go standard library for mobile devices.

When first run, it downloads part of the Android NDK. The toolchain is installed in $GOPATH/pkg/gomobile.

The -u option forces download and installation of the new toolchain even when the toolchain exists.

Compile android APK and install on device

Usage:

gomobile install [-target android] [build flags] [package]

Install compiles and installs the app named by the import path on the attached mobile device.

Only -target android is supported. The 'adb' tool must be on the PATH.

The build flags -a, -i, -n, -x, -gcflags, -ldflags, -tags, and -work are shared with the build command. For documentation, see 'go help build'.

Print version

Usage:

gomobile version

Version prints versions of the gomobile binary and tools