Flutter-intellij: flutter plugin project is missing Android features

[mit-mit]

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Flutter plugin into Android Studio 3.0
2. File > New Flutter project
3. Pick either 'application' or 'plugin' template, and complete creation wizard
4. After creation is complete, expand the top-level android folder

=> android features are missing

• no Gradle Scripts top-level folder
• no res folder, so no way to add resources
• code analysis fails, for example:

1. Open src/main/java/<org id>/plugin.java
2. Add the import import android.support.v4.app.NotificationCompat;
3. Add a Builder variable:
   
   
   
   • In an app: Add a new line inside the MainActivity class containing NotificationCompat.Builder builder;
   
   
   • In a plugin: Add a new line above result.success... containing NotificationCompat.Builder builder;
   
   

=> still complains that it can't resolve the NotificationCompat symbol

If you try the same steps in a regular Android project, it works fine.

[mit-mit]

cc @jakobr-google you had some theory for the cause of this?

[jakobr-google]

I thinks it's the same problem as issue #966. See my comment there, and the reply to it.

[mit-mit]

cc @stevemessick. This makes it very, very hard to implement android plugins.

[mit-mit]

For clarity: I'm using Android Studio 3.0. I don't recall it being this broken in Android 2.3, but not entirely sure.

[stevemessick]

When Android Studio generates a project (using default values for everything) it's build.gradle has a dependencies section that looks like this:

dependencies {
    compile fileTree(dir: 'libs', include: ['*.jar'])
    compile 'com.android.support:appcompat-v7:26.1.0'
    compile 'com.android.support.constraint:constraint-layout:1.0.2'
    testCompile 'junit:junit:4.12'
    androidTestCompile('com.android.support.test.espresso:espresso-core:3.0.1', {
        exclude group: 'com.android.support', module: 'support-annotations'
    })
}

The second entry is key here. If we add an entry for appcompat to the build.gradle of an Android module generated by Flutter, and open that module as a top-level project in Android Studio, then everything works as expected. All the menu entries are enabled because it is just an Android Studio project (more-or-less). More precisely, it is a JAVA-MODULE with a java-gradle facet, and it has a sub-module with an android-gradle facet.

Our top-level Flutter project is a WEB-MODULE and it has no facets. I'm investigating how to change the top-level project to look more like an Android Studio project, but so far all I get are lots of errors. In addition to many differences in the Build menu, a "real" Android Studio project has a hammer icon next to the run configuration list that triggers a Gradle build. We should have that, too.

[stevemessick]

The additional Build menu items and the tool bar icon show up after the top-level project is converted to a java-gradle project. We have to add two files:

• .idea/gradle.xml
• build.gradle

The module definition (project.iml) needs to be edited:

• Change type to JAVA_MODULE
• Add external.system.id="GRADLE" to the <module> tag
• Add a java-gradle facet

That is not enough to make everything work, but the menu items will appear.

[stevemessick]

The Flutter project foo and its Android module foo/androd are completely separate IntelliJ/Android Studio projects. Each must be opened as top-level projects for full editing support. See:
https://github.com/flutter/flutter-intellij/blob/master/docs/android.md

[stevemessick]

Fixed with https://github.com/flutter/flutter-intellij/pull/1782

[mit-mit]

Confirmed that the following now works:

1. flutter create foobar
2. Start Android Studio
3. File > Open, select foobar/android (the android part is important!)
4. Invoke Build > Make Project
5. Open MainActivity.java and add import android.support.v4.app.NotificationCompat;

=> will now see the error mentioned at the top of this bug. That is by-design; we need to tell gradle where it's located

1. Expand 'Gradle Scripts' in the file pane, and open build.gradle (Module: app)
2. Add compile 'com.android.support:support-v4:+' under dependencies at the bottom
3. Save file, and accept the request to do a gradle sync

=> import should resolve