Setting up Windows for NativeScript

Setting up Windows for Android ​

You will need Node, a JDK (java development kit), Android Studio and the NativeScript CLI (command line interface).

Android Studio is not strictly necessary — however it provides an easy-to-use interface for installing and managing the Android SDKs.

We recommend using Chocolatey to install the required dependencies — a popular package manager for Windows.

Setting up the Android development environment can be daunting if you are new to Android development, however following the next steps carefully will get you up and running in no time.

Installing Node ​

To install Node we recommend using a node version manager, such as nvm-windows, nvs or any other node version manager you prefer. In these docs we will be using nvm-windows, but feel free to use a different node version manager.

1. Install nvm-windows using one of the following methods:
   ChocolateyInstaller Instructions

   bash

   choco install -y nvm

   text

   https://github.com/coreybutler/nvm-windows#installation--upgrades

2. After installation, open a new Command Prompt and verify:
   bash

   nvm version

3. Once the installation is complete, open a new Command Prompt and verify you can run nvm ls.
4. Install the latest Node release with:
   bash

   nvm install node

5. Verify the installation was successful and run
   bash

   node -v
   npm -v

Installing a JDK ​

To install a JDK (using the prebuilt OpenJDK binaries from Adoptium) open an Administrator Command Prompt (right click and select "Run as Administrator") and run the following command:

choco install -y temurin21

Once installed, you might need to add it to your Path. First, check if you need to add it to your Path by opening a new Command Prompt and running the following:

javac --version

If you see a version number printed, you may skip this step. Otherwise, you will need to add the JDK binaries to your system environment Path:

1. Search for "Edit the system environment variables" in Windows Search and select
2. Click on "Environment variables..." in the bottom corner
3. Under the "User variables for..." select the Path variable and click Edit...
4. Click New and add the JDK bin folder path to the list. The JDK location may vary depending on the version you have installed.

   C:\Program Files\Eclipse Adoptium\jdk-21.0.9.10\bin

Additionally, some installations may require creating the JAVA_HOME environment variable manually:

1. Search for "Edit the system environment variables" in Windows Search and select
2. Click on "Environment variables..." in the bottom corner
3. Click on New... under the "User variables for..." section
4. Add the following variable. Ensure you're using the correct JDK path, without the \bin suffix. Example:

   VARIABLE_NAME: JAVA_HOME
   VARIABLE_VALUE: C:\Program Files\Eclipse Adoptium\jdk-21.0.9.10-hotspot

You may need to restart your terminal for changes to apply.

Installing Android Studio ​

Download and install Android Studio. In the installation wizard make sure you have the following components selected (the list should appear if you select custom options):

• Android SDK
• Android SDK Build-Tools
• Android SDK Platform
• Android Virtual Device
• Performance (Intel ® HAXM) — optional, learn more about AMD Processor & Hyper-V support

The setup may take a while, but once it has finished a welcome screen should appear.

Android Studio installs the latest Android SDK by default, which in most cases should be all that's needed to build a NativeScript app.

After Android Studio finishes installing, open Settings > Languages & Frameworks > Android SDK and confirm the SDK path shown there matches the path you will use for ANDROID_HOME.

Then verify the following components are installed:

• Under SDK Platforms: at least one recent Android SDK Platform
• Under SDK Tools: Android SDK Build-Tools and Android SDK Platform-Tools

If ns doctor android later reports that no compatible Android SDK Build-Tools are installed, return to this screen and install a recent Build-Tools version.

Configuring ANDROID_HOME and PATH ​

Configure the ANDROID_HOME environment variable for NativeScript to be able to find the Android SDK.

1. Search for "Edit the system environment variables" in Windows Search and select
2. Click on "Environment variables..." in the bottom corner
3. Under the "User variables for..." click on New... to create the ANDROID_HOME user variable that points to the path of the Android SDK:

The SDK is by default located at:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\Android\Sdk

To find the actual location in the Android Studio Settings, navigate to Languages & Frameworks › Android SDK and copy the Android SDK Location.

Next, add Android platform-tools to path:

1. Search for "Edit the system environment variables" in Windows Search and select
2. Click on "Environment variables..." in the bottom corner
3. Under the "User variables for..." select the Path variable and click Edit...
4. Click New and add the platform-tools path to the list. The default location is inside the Android SDK's platform-tools folder:

   %LOCALAPPDATA%\Android\Sdk\platform-tools

Installing the NativeScript CLI ​

Install the NativeScript CLI globally:

npm install -g nativescript

Verifying the environment ​

To verify that the installation was successful, open a new Command Prompt window (to ensure the new environment variables are loaded) and run:

ns doctor android

If you see No issues were detected then you have successfully set up your system.

If not, verify the values NativeScript will resolve from your shell:

echo %JAVA_HOME%
javac --version
where javac
echo %ANDROID_HOME%
where adb
dir "%ANDROID_HOME%\build-tools"

Expected results:

• javac --version prints a Java version
• where javac points to your JDK bin folder
• echo %ANDROID_HOME% prints the Android SDK path configured in Android Studio
• where adb points to %ANDROID_HOME%\platform-tools\adb.exe
• dir "%ANDROID_HOME%\build-tools" shows one or more installed Build-Tools versions

If you're using Chocolatey and prefer not to open a new terminal, you can refresh your environment variables in the current PowerShell session by running:

Import-Module "$env:ChocolateyInstall/helpers/chocolateyInstaller.psm1"
Update-SessionEnvironment

After refreshing, run the ns doctor command again to confirm everything is working as expected.

Lastly, you will also want to set up an android device or emulator.

Setting up Windows for iOS ​