docs/onboarding.md

# Getting started

[TOC]

This page describes how to set up your workstation to check out source code,
make simple changes in Android Studio, and upload commits to Gerrit for review.

This page does **not** cover best practices for the content of changes. Please
see [Life of a Jetpack Feature](loaf.md) for details on developing and releasing
a library, [API Guidelines](api_guidelines.md) for best practices regarding
public APIs, or [Policies and Processes](policies.md) for an overview of the
constraints placed on changes.

## Workstation setup {#setup}

You will need to install the `repo` tool, which is used for Git branch and
commit management. If you want to learn more about `repo`, see the
[Repo Command Reference](https://source.android.com/setup/develop/repo).

### Linux and MacOS {#setup-linux-mac}

First, download `repo` using `curl`.

```shell
test -d ~/bin || mkdir ~/bin
curl https://storage.googleapis.com/git-repo-downloads/repo \
    > ~/bin/repo && chmod 700 ~/bin/repo
```

Then, modify `~/.bash_profile` (if using `bash`) to ensure you can find local
binaries from the command line.

```shell
export PATH=~/bin:$PATH
```

You will need to either start a new terminal session or run `source
~/.bash_profile` to pick up the new path.

If you encounter an SSL `CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED` error or warning about
Python 2 being no longer supported, you will need to install Python 3 and alias
your `repo` command to run with `python3`.

```shell {.bad}
repo: warning: Python 2 is no longer supported; Please upgrade to Python 3.6+.
```

```shell {.bad}
Downloading Repo source from https://gerrit.googlesource.com/git-repo
fatal: Cannot get https://gerrit.googlesource.com/git-repo/clone.bundle
fatal: error [SSL: CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED] certificate verify failed (_ssl.c:777)
```

First, install Python 3 from the [official website](https://www.python.org).
Please read the "Important Information" displayed during installation for
information about SSL/TLS certificate validation and the running the "Install
Certificates.command".

Next, open your `~/.bash_profile` and add the following lines to wrap the `repo`
command:

```shell
# Force repo to run with Python3
function repo() {
  command python3 "$(which repo)" $@
}
```

### Windows {#setup-win}

Sorry, Windows is not a supported platform for AndroidX development.

## Set up access control {#access}

### Authenticate to AOSP Gerrit {#access-gerrit}

Before you can upload changes, you will need to associate your Google
credentials with the AOSP Gerrit code review system by signing in to
[android-review.googlesource.com](https://android-review.googlesource.com) at
least once using the account you will use to submit patches.

Next, you will need to
[set up authentication](https://android-review.googlesource.com/new-password).
This will give you a shell command to update your local Git cookies, which will
allow you to upload changes.

Finally, you will need to accept the
[CLA for new contributors](https://android-review.googlesource.com/settings/new-agreement).

## Check out the source {#source}

Like ChromeOS, Chromium, and the Android build system, we develop in the open as
much as possible. All feature development occurs in the public
[androidx-master-dev](https://android.googlesource.com/platform/frameworks/support/+/androidx-master-dev)
branch of the Android Open Source Project.

As of 2020/03/20, you will need about 38 GB for a fully-built checkout.

### Synchronize the branch {#source-checkout}

Use the following `repo` commands to check out your branch.

#### Public master development branch {#source-checkout-master}

All development should occur in this branch unless otherwise specified by the
AndroidX Core team.

The following command will check out the public master development branch:

```shell
mkdir androidx-master-dev && cd androidx-master-dev
repo init -u https://android.googlesource.com/platform/manifest \
    -b androidx-master-dev --partial-clone --clone-filter=blob:limit=10M
repo sync -c -j8
```

NOTE On MacOS, if you receive an SSL error like `SSL: CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED`
you may need to install Python3 and boot strap the SSL certificates in the
included version of pip. You can execute `Install Certificates.command` under
`/Applications/Python 3.6/` to do so.

### Increase Git rename limit {#source-config}

To ensure `git` can detect diffs and renames across significant changes (namely,
the `androidx.*` package rename), we recommend that you set the following `git
config` properties:

```shell
git config --global merge.renameLimit 999999
git config --global diff.renameLimit 999999
```

## Explore source code from a browser {#code-search}

`androidx-master-dev` has a publicly-accessible
[code search](https://cs.android.com/androidx/platform/frameworks/support) that
allows you to explore all of the source code in the repository. Links to this
URL may be shared on public Buganizer and other external sites.

We recommend setting up a custom search engine in Chrome as a faster (and
publicly-accessible) alternative to `cs/`.

### Custom search engine for `androidx-master-dev` {#custom-search-engine}

1.  Open `chrome://settings/searchEngines`
1.  Click the `Add` button
1.  Enter a name for your search engine, ex. "AndroidX Code Search"
1.  Enter a keyword, ex. "csa"
1.  Enter the following URL:
    `https://cs.android.com/search?q=%s&ss=androidx%2Fplatform%2Fframeworks%2Fsupport`
1.  Click the `Add` button

Now you can select the Chrome omnibox, type in `csa` and press tab, then enter a
query to search for, e.g. `AppCompatButton file:appcompat`, and press the
`Enter` key to get to the search result page.

## Develop in Android Studio {#studio}

Library development uses a curated version of Android Studio to ensure
compatibility between various components of the development workflow.

From the `frameworks/support` directory, you can use `ANDROIDX_PROJECTS=MAIN
./gradlew studio` to automatically download and run the correct version of
Studio to work on main set of androidx projects. `ANDROIDX_PROJECTS` has several
other options like `ANDROIDX_PROJECTS=ALL` to open other subsets of the
projects.
[settings.gradle](https://cs.android.com/androidx/platform/frameworks/support/+/androidx-master-dev:settings.gradle)
file in the repository has these options listed.

```shell
ANDROIDX_PROJECTS=MAIN ./gradlew studio
```

Next, open the `framework/support` project root from your checkout. If Studio
asks you which SDK you would like to use, select `Use project SDK`. Importing
projects may take a while, but once that finishes you can use Studio as you
normally would for application or library development -- right-click on a test
or sample to run or debug it, search through classes, and so on.

If you see any errors (red underlines), click Gradle's elephant button in the
toolbar ("Sync Project with Gradle Files") and they should resolve once the
build completes.

> NOTE: You should choose "Use project SDK" when prompted by Studio. If you
> picked "Android Studio SDK" by mistake, don't panic! You can fix this by
> opening `File > Project Structure > Platform Settings > SDKs` and manually
> setting the Android SDK home path to
> `<project-root>/prebuilts/fullsdk-<platform>`.

> NOTE: If Android Studio's UI looks scaled up, ex. twice the size it should be,
> you may need to add the following line to your `studio64.vmoptions` file using
> `Help -> Edit Custom VM Options`:
>
> ```
> -Dsun.java2d.uiScale.enabled=false
> ```

## Making changes {#changes}

Similar to Android framework development, library developmnent should occur in
CL-specific working branches. Use `repo` to create, upload, and abandon local
branches. Use `git` to manage changes within a local branch.

```shell
cd path/to/checkout/frameworks/support/
repo start my_branch_name .
# make necessary code changes
# use git to commit changes
repo upload --cbr -t .
```

The `--cbr` switch automatically picks the current repo branch for upload. The
`-t` switch sets the Gerrit topic to the branch name, e.g. `my-branch-name`.

## Building {#building}

### Modules and Maven artifacts {#modules-and-maven-artifacts}

To build a specific module, use the module's `assemble` Gradle task. For
example, if you are working on `core` module use:

```shell
./gradlew core:core:assemble
```

Use the `-Pandroidx.allWarningsAsErrors` to make warnings fail your build (same
as presubmits):

```shell
./gradlew core:core:assemble -Pandroidx.allWarningsAsErrors
```

To build every module, run the Lint verifier, verify the public API surface, and
generate the local Maven repository artifact, use the `createArchive` Gradle
task:

```shell
./gradlew createArchive
```

To run the complete build task that our build servers use, use the
`buildOnServer` Gradle task:

```shell
./gradlew buildOnServer
```

### Attaching a debugger to the build

Gradle tasks, including building a module, may be run or debugged from Android
Studio's `Gradle` pane by finding the task to be debugged -- for example,
`androidx > androidx > appcompat > appcompat > build > assemble` --
right-clicking on it, and then selecting `Debug...`.

Note that debugging will not be available until Gradle sync has completed.

## From the command line

Tasks may also be debugged from the command line, which may be useful if
`./gradlew studio` cannot run due to a Gradle task configuration issue.

1.  From the configurations dropdown in Studio, select "Edit Configurations".
1.  Click the plus in the top left to create a new "Remote" configuration. Give
    it a name and hit "Ok".
1.  Set breakpoints.
1.  Run your task with added flags: `./gradlew <your_task_here>
    -Dorg.gradle.debug=true --no-daemon`
1.  Hit the "Debug" button to the right of the configuration dropdown to attach
    to the process.

#### Troubleshooting the debugger

If you get a "Connection refused" error, it's likely because a gradle daemon is
still running on the port specified in the config, and you can fix this by
killing the running gradle daemons:

```shell
./gradlew --stop
```

Note: This is described in more detail in this
[Medium article](https://medium.com/grandcentrix/how-to-debug-gradle-plugins-with-intellij-eef2ef681a7b).

#### Attaching to an annotation processor

Annotation processors run as part of the build, to debug them is similar to
debugging the build.

For a Java project:

```shell
./gradlew <your_project>:compileDebugJava --no-daemon --rerun-tasks -Dorg.gradle.debug=true
```

For a Kotlin project:

```shell
./gradlew <your_project>:compileDebugKotlin --no-daemon --rerun-tasks -Dorg.gradle.debug=true -Dkotlin.compiler.execution.strategy="in-process" -Dkotlin.daemon.jvm.options="-Xdebug,-Xrunjdwp:transport=dt_socket\,address=5005\,server=y\,suspend=n"
```

### Optional: Enabling internal menu in IntelliJ/Studio

To enable tools such as `PSI tree` inside of IntelliJ/Studio to help debug
Android Lint checks and Metalava, you can enable the
[internal menu](https://www.jetbrains.org/intellij/sdk/docs/reference_guide/internal_actions/enabling_internal.html)
which is typically used for plugin and IDE development.

### Reference documentation {#docs}

Our reference docs (Javadocs and KotlinDocs) are published to
https://developer.android.com/reference/androidx/packages and may be built
locally.

NOTE `./gradlew tasks` always has the canonical task information! When in doubt,
run `./gradlew tasks`

#### Javadocs

To build API reference docs for tip-of-tree Java source code, run the Gradle
task:

```
./gradlew disttipOfTreeDocs
```

This will output docs in the zip file:
`{androidx-master-dev}/out/dist/android-support-tipOfTree-docs-0.zip`, as well
as in local html files that you can check from your browser:
`{androidx-master-dev}/out/androidx/build/javadoc/tipOfTree/offline/reference/packages.html`

#### KotlinDocs

To build API reference docs for tip-of-tree Kotlin source code, run the Gradle
task:

```
./gradlew distTipOfTreeDokkaDocs
```

This will output docs in the zip file:
`{androidx-master-dev}/out/dist/dokkaTipOfTreeDocs-0.zip`

#### Release docs

To build API reference docs for published artifacts formatted for use on
[d.android.com](http://d.android.com), run the Gradle command:

```
./gradlew distpublicDocs
```

This will create the artifact
`{androidx-master-dev}/out/dist/android-support-public-docs-0.zip`. This command
builds docs based on the version specified in
`{androidx-master-dev-checkout}/frameworks/support/buildSrc/src/main/kotlin/androidx/build/PublishDocsRules.kt`
and uses the prebuilt checked into
`{androidx-master-dev-checkout}/prebuilts/androidx/internal/androidx/`. We
colloquially refer to this two step process of (1) updating PublishDocsRules.kt
and (2) checking in a prebuilt artifact into the prebuilts directory as
[The Prebuilts Dance](releasing.md#the-prebuilts-dance™). So, to build javadocs
that will be published to
https://developer.android.com/reference/androidx/packages, both of these steps
need to be completed.

Once you done the above steps, Kotlin docs will also be generated, with the only
difference being that we use the Gradle command:

```
./gradlew distPublicDokkaDocs
```

which generates the kotlin docs artifact
`{androidx-master-dev}/out/dist/dokkaPublicDocs-0.zip`

### Updating public APIs {#updating-public-apis}

Public API tasks -- including tracking, linting, and verifying compatibility --
are run under the following conditions based on the `androidx` configuration
block, evaluated in order:

*   `runApiTasks=Yes` => yes
*   `runApiTasks=No` => no
*   `toolingProject=true` => no
*   `mavenVersion` or group version not set => no
*   Has an existing `api/` directory => yes
*   `publish=SNAPSHOT_AND_RELEASE` => yes
*   Otherwise, no

If you make changes to tracked public APIs, you will need to acknowledge the
changes by updating the `<component>/api/current.txt` and associated API files.
This is handled automatically by the `updateApi` Gradle task:

```shell
# Run updateApi for all modules.
./gradlew updateApi

# Run updateApi for a single module, ex. appcompat-resources in group appcompat.
./gradlew :appcompat:appcompat-resources:updateApi
```

If you change the public APIs without updating the API file, your module will
still build **but** your CL will fail Treehugger presubmit checks.

### Release notes & the `Relnote:` tag {#relnote}

Prior to releasing, release notes are pre-populated using a script and placed
into a Google Doc. The Google Doc is manually double checked by library owners
before the release goes live. To auto-populate your release notes, you can use
the semi-optional commit tag `Relnote:` in your commit, which will automatically
include that message the commit in the pre-populated release notes.

The presence of a `Relnote:` tag is required for API changes in
`androidx-master-dev`.

#### How to use it?

One-line release note:

``` {.good}
Relnote: Fixed a critical bug
```

``` {.good}
Relnote: "Fixed a critical bug"
```

``` {.good}
Relnote: Added the following string function: `myFoo(\"bar\")`
```

Multi-line release note:

Note: If the following lines do not contain an indent, you may hit b/165570183.

``` {.good}
Relnote: "We're launching this awesome new feature!  It solves a whole list of
    problems that require a lot of explaining! "
```

``` {.good}
Relnote: """Added the following string function: `myFoo("bar")`
    It will fix cases where you have to call `myFoo("baz").myBar("bar")`
    """
```

Opt out of the Relnote tag:

``` {.good}
Relnote: N/A
```

``` {.good}
Relnote: NA
```

NOT VALID:

``` {.bad}
Relnote: This is an INVALID multi-line release note.  Our current scripts won't
include anything beyond the first line.  The script has no way of knowing when
the release note actually stops.
```

``` {.bad}
Relnote: This is an INVALID multi-line release note.  "Quotes" need to be
  escaped in order for them to be parsed properly.
```

### Common build errors

#### Diagnosing build failures

If you've encountered a build failure and you're not sure what is triggering it,
then please run
`./development/diagnose-build-failure/diagnose-build-failure.sh`.

This script can categorize your build failure into one of the following
categories:

*   The Gradle Daemon is saving state in memory and triggering a failure
*   Your source files have been changed and/or incompatible git commits have
    been checked out
*   Some file in the out/ dir is triggering an error
    *   If this happens, diagnose-build-failure.sh should also identify which
        file(s) specifically
*   The build is nondeterministic and/or affected by timestamps
*   The build via gradlew actually passes and this build failure is specific to
    Android Studio

Some more-specific build failures are listed below in this page.

#### Out-of-date platform prebuilts

Like a normal Android library developed in Android Studio, libraries within
`androidx` are built against prebuilts of the platform SDK. These are checked in
to the `prebuilts/fullsdk-darwin/platforms/<android-version>` directory.

If you are developing against pre-release platform APIs in the internal
`androidx-platform-dev` branch, you may need to update these prebuilts to obtain
the latest API changes.

### Missing external dependency

If Gradle cannot resolve a dependency listed in your `build.gradle`, you may
need to import the corresponding artifact into `prebuilts/androidx/external`.
Our workflow does not automatically download artifacts from the internet to
facilitate reproducible builds even if remote artifacts are changed.

You can download a dependency by running:

```shell
cd frameworks/support && ./development/importMaven/import_maven_artifacts.py -n 'someGroupId:someArtifactId:someVersion'
```

This will create a change within the `prebuilts/androidx/external` directory.
Make sure to upload this change before or concurrently (ex. in the same Gerrit
topic) with the dependent library code.

Libraries typically reference dependencies using constants defined in
[`Dependencies.kt`](https://cs.android.com/androidx/platform/frameworks/support/+/androidx-master-dev:buildSrc/src/main/kotlin/androidx/build/dependencies/Dependencies.kt),
so please update this file to include a constant for the version of the library
that you have checked in. You will reference this constant in your library's
`build.gradle` dependencies.

#### Updating an existing dependency

If an older version of a dependency prebuilt was already checked in, please
manually remove it within the same CL that adds the new prebuilt. You will also
need to update `Dependencies.kt` to reflect the version change.

#### My gradle build fails with "Cannot invoke method getURLs() on null object"

You're using Java 9's javac, possibly because you ran envsetup.sh from the
platform build or specified Java 9 as the global default Java compiler. For the
former, you can simply open a new shell and avoid running envsetup.sh. For the
latter, we recommend you set Java 8 as the default compiler using sudo
update-java-alternatives; however, if you must use Java 9 as the default then
you may alternatively set JAVA_HOME to the location of the Java 8 SDK.

#### My gradle build fails with "error: cannot find symbol" after making framework-dependent changes.

You probably need to update the prebuilt SDK used by the gradle build. If you
are referencing new framework APIs, you will need to wait for the framework
changes to land in an SDK build (or build it yourself) and then land in both
prebuilts/fullsdk and prebuilts/sdk. See
[Updating SDK prebuilts](playbook.md#prebuilts-fullsdk) for more information.

#### How do I handle refactoring a framework API referenced from a library?

Because AndroidX must compile against both the current framework and the latest
SDK prebuilt, and because compiling the SDK prebuilt depends on AndroidX, you
will need to refactor in stages: Remove references to the target APIs from
AndroidX Perform the refactoring in the framework Update the framework prebuilt
SDK to incorporate changes in (2) Add references to the refactored APIs in
AndroidX Update AndroidX prebuilts to incorporate changes in (4)

## Testing {#testing}

AndroidX libraries are expected to include unit or integration test coverage for
100% of their public API surface. Additionally, all CLs must include a `Test:`
stanza indicating which tests were used to verify correctness. Any CLs
implementing bug fixes are expected to include new regression tests specific to
the issue being fixed

See the [Testing](testing.md) page for more resources on writing, running, and
monitoring tests.

### AVD Manager

The Android Studio instance started by `./gradlew studio` uses a custom SDK
directory, which means any virtual devices created by a "standard" non-AndroidX
instance of Android Studio will be _visible_ from the `./gradlew studio`
instance but will be unable to locate the SDK artifacts -- they will display a
`Download` button.

You can either use the `Download` button to download an extra copy of the SDK
artifacts _or_ you can set up a symlink to your "standard" non-AndroidX SDK
directory to expose your existing artifacts to the `./gradlew studio` instance:

```shell
# Using the default MacOS Android SDK directory...
ln -s /Users/$(whoami)/Library/Android/sdk/system-images \
      ../../prebuilts/fullsdk-darwin/system-images
```

### Benchmarking {#testing-benchmarking}

Libraries are encouraged to write and monitor performance benchmarks. See the
[Benchmarking](benchmarking.md) page for more details.

## Library snapshots {#snapshots}

### Quick how to

Add the following snippet to your build.gradle file, replacing `buildId` with a
snapshot build Id.

```groovy {highlight=context:[buildId]}
allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
        jcenter()
        maven { url 'https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds/[buildId]/artifacts/repository' }
    }
}
```

You must define dependencies on artifacts using the SNAPSHOT version suffix, for
example:

```groovy {highlight=context:SNAPSHOT}
dependencies {
    implementation "androidx.core:core:1.2.0-SNAPSHOT"
}
```

### Where to find snapshots

If you want to use unreleased `SNAPSHOT` versions of `androidx` artifacts, you
can find them on either our public-facing build server:

`https://ci.android.com/builds/submitted/<build_id>/androidx_snapshot/latest`

or on our slightly-more-convenient [androidx.dev](https://androidx.dev) site:

`https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds/<build-id>/artifacts/repository` for a
specific build ID

`https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds/latest/artifacts/repository` for
tip-of-tree snapshots

### Obtaining a build ID

To browse build IDs, you can visit either
[androidx-master-dev](https://ci.android.com/builds/branches/aosp-androidx-master-dev/grid?)
on ci.android.com or [Snapshots](https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds) on the
androidx.dev site.

Note that if you are using androidx.dev, you may substitute `latest` for a build
ID to use the last known good build.

To manually find the last known good `build-id`, you have several options.

#### Snapshots on androidx.dev

[Snapshots](https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds) on androidx.dev only lists
usable builds.

#### Programmatically via `jq`

Install `jq`:

```shell
sudo apt-get install jq
```

```shell
ID=`curl -s "https://ci.android.com/builds/branches/aosp-androidx-master-dev/status.json" | jq ".targets[] | select(.ID==\"aosp-androidx-master-dev.androidx_snapshot\") | .last_known_good_build"` \
  && echo https://ci.android.com/builds/submitted/"${ID:1:-1}"/androidx_snapshot/latest/raw/repository/
```

#### Android build server

Go to
[androidx-master-dev](https://ci.android.com/builds/branches/aosp-androidx-master-dev/grid?)
on ci.android.com.

For `androidx-snapshot` target, wait for the green "last known good build"
button to load and then click it to follow it to the build artifact URL.

### Using in a Gradle build

To make these artifacts visible to Gradle, you need to add it as a respository:

```groovy
allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
        maven {
          // For all Jetpack libraries (including Compose)
          url 'https://androidx.dev/snapshots/builds/<build-id>/artifacts/repository'
        }
    }
}
```

Note that the above requires you to know the `build-id` of the snapshots you
want.

#### Specifying dependencies

All artifacts in the snapshot repository are versioned as `x.y.z-SNAPSHOT`. So
to use a snapshot artifact, the version in your `build.gradle` will need to be
updated to `androidx.<groupId>:<artifactId>:X.Y.Z-SNAPSHOT`

For example, to use the `core:core:1.2.0-SHAPSHOT` snapshot, you would add the
following to your `build.gradle`:

```
dependencies {
    ...
    implementation("androidx.core:core:1.2.0-SNAPSHOT")
    ...
}
```

## FAQ {#faq}

### How do I test my change in a separate Android Studio project? {#faq-test-change-studio}

If you're working on a new feature or bug fix in AndroidX, you may want to test
your changes against another project to verify that the change makes sense in a
real-world context or that a bug's specific repro case has been fixed.

If you need to be absolutely sure that your test will exactly emulate the
developer's experience, you can repeatedly build the AndroidX archive and
rebuild your application. In this case, you will need to create a local build of
AndroidX's local Maven repository artifact and install it in your Android SDK
path.

First, use the `createArchive` Gradle task to generate the local Maven
repository artifact:

```shell
# Creates <path-to-checkout>/out/dist/sdk-repo-linux-m2repository-##.zip
./gradlew createArchive
```

Next, take the ZIP output from this task and extract the contents to the Android
SDK path that you are using for your alternate (non-AndroidX) version of Android
Studio. For example, you may be using `~/Android/SDK/extras` if you are using
the default Android Studio SDK for app development or
`prebuilts/fullsdk-linux/extras` if you are using fullsdk for platform
development.

```shell
# Creates or overwrites android/m2repository
cd <path-to-sdk>/extras
unzip <path-to-checkout>/out/dist/top-of-tree-m2repository-##.zip
```

In the project's 'build.gradle' within 'repositories' notify studio of the
location of m2repository:

```groovy
allprojects {
    repositories {
        ...
        maven {
            url "<path-to-sdk>/extras/m2repository"
        }
    }
}
```

NOTE Gradle resolves dependencies in the order that the repositories are defined
(if 2 repositories can resolve the same dependency, the first listed will do so
and the second will not). Therefore, if the library you are testing has the same
group, artifact, and version as one already published, you will want to list
your custom maven repo first.

Finally, in the dependencies section of your standalone project's `build.gradle`
file, add or update the `implementation` entries to reflect the AndroidX modules
that you would like to test. Example:

```
dependencies {
    ...
    implementation "androidx.appcompat:appcompat::1.0.0-alpha02"
}
```

If you are testing your changes in the Android Platform code, you can replace
the module you are testing
`YOUR_ANDROID_PATH/prebuilts/sdk/current/androidx/m2repository` with your own
module. We recommend only replacing the module you are modifying instead of the
full m2repository to avoid version issues of other modules. You can either take
the unzipped directory from
`<path-to-checkout>/out/dist/top-of-tree-m2repository-##.zip`, or from
`<path-to-checkout>/out/androidx/build/support_repo/` after buiding `androidx`.
Here is an example of replacing the RecyclerView module:

```shell
$TARGET=YOUR_ANDROID_PATH/prebuilts/sdk/current/androidx/m2repository/androidx/recyclerview/recyclerview/1.1.0-alpha07;
rm -rf $TARGET;
cp -a <path-to-sdk>/extras/m2repository/androidx/recyclerview/recyclerview/1.1.0-alpha07 $TARGET
```

Make sure the library versions are the same before and after replacement. Then
you can build the Android platform code with the new `androidx` code.