Ftyjtk

I am having a build issue with a Cordova project that I have inherited specifically the error raised is: -

:CordovaLib:transformClassesAndResourcesWithPrepareIntermediateJarsForDebug
:app:processDebugResourcesC:Usersandy.gradlecachestransforms-1files-1.1support-compat-28.0.0.aar96270291fb4c7e49ddab8d4d1a4f36f7resvaluesvalues.xml:133:5-70: AAPT: error: resource android:attr/fontVariationSettings not found.

I have another project which builds successfully and the difference between the two projects appears to be the platformsandroidproject.settings file, if I manually change the setting my project builds. However as this file appears to be re-created every time I run cordova prepare android this is not an ideal situation, the setting in question is: -

cordova.system.library.1=com.android.support:support-v4:+ 

if I change this to: -

cordova.system.library.1=com.android.support:support-v4:24.1.1+ 

my build is successful!

So my question is what impacts this setting, as I feel I need to understand the reasoning behind the differing value as other than the working project having more dependencies the non-working project contains the same references but has one additional dependency this being: -

cordova-plugin-file-opener2 

I do not have SDK version 28 installed, I can see the logic behind the error and I would assume installing version 28 may resolve the issue but I would like to understand why one project creates the settings with one version number and the second project is created with a differing one?

In Cordova projects, the versions of native libraries pulled into the Android build via Gradle are controlled directly by the Cordova plugins you have installed in your project.
The Gradle config is dynamically generated by Cordova, so each time you run cordova prepare android, the build.gradle file is regenerated.

In this case, the library dependency is the Android Support Library (com.android.support).

cordova-plugin-file-opener2 specifies version + which will pull in the very latest version, which is currently v28.0.0 as can be seen on the releases page.

However, if another plugin in your project specifies a different version, this will lead to problems and often build failures due to version conflicts.
In a native Android project, the build.gradle file is under your direct control, so you'd never have these problems.

One solution is to install the cordova-android-support-gradle-release plugin into your project.
This plugin overrides the versions of the Android Support Library specified by other plugins, enabling you to align the versions and so fix the build problems.

For example, in your case you can run:

cordova plugin add cordova-android-support-gradle-release --variable ANDROID_SUPPORT_VERSION=24.1.1

This will install the plugin and override the versions specified by other plugins to ensure v24.1.1 of the Support Library is included in your project.

One consideration is that v24 is quite old, so you may want to try a newer version, e.g.:

cordova plugin add cordova-android-support-gradle-release --variable ANDROID_SUPPORT_VERSION=27.+

Just to add some detail to my solution just in case it helps anybody else in the future!

DaveAlden added a very helpful description above of what is happening which is worth reading through as it is very difficult to get a clear concise explanation of what is or should be happening with these technologies.

My project did indeed already have the cordova-android-support-gradle-release plugin installed and it was set to 27.+ however I followed the following process and everything then started working: -

1. Updated my Android SDK software to the latest


2. Updated Cordova from version 8.0.0 to 8.1.2


3. Removed plugin cordova plugin add cordova-android-support-gradle-release
   


4. Added plugin back in cordova plugin add cordova-android-support-gradle-release --variable ANDROID_SUPPORT_VERSION=27
   

I then retried the build and everything then started working.