Today I wanted to try out NativeScript:

NativeScript enables you to build truly native apps for iOS, Android, and the Web, from a single JavaScript code base. With support for TypeScript, CSS, and popular frameworks like Angular and Vue.js.

Install NativeScript⌗

Either use Arch’s native packager or npm.

With the AUR:

yay -S nativescript

If you choose to install NativeScript via Node, do it like this:

npm i -g nativescript

Now you can bootstrap a NativeScript:

tns create <name-of-app>

Or you can use npx and create a local install (my preference).

npx nativescript create <name-of-app>

Android SDK⌗

Java 8⌗

You’ll need Java 8:

yay -S jdk8-openjdk8

Select Y to install that package and any additional packages that are needed.

Create the JAVA_HOME environment variable:

export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/default

Android SDK⌗

Install Android SDK and necessary build tools:

yay -S android-sdk android-sdk-platform-tools android-sdk-build-tools android-platform

Fix User Permissions⌗

The AUR installs the Android tools into /opt/android-sdk. The directory has root permissions, so let’s change that:

sudo groupadd android-sdk
sudo gpasswd -a <user> android-sdk
sudo setfacl -R -m g:android-sdk:rwx /opt/android-sdk
sudo setfacl -d -m g:android-sdk:rwX /opt/android-sdk

Re-login.

Don’t forget to add the environment variable to your bash profile file (.bashrc or similar).

Set the variable ANDROID_SDK_ROOT to /opt/android-sdk:

export ANDROID_SDK_ROOT='/opt/android-sdk'

Android Emulator⌗

You’ll need to install the required Android image with sdkmanager:

sdkmanager --list

Then install a system image, for example:

sdkmanager --install "system-images;android-29;default;x86"

Now you can create an emulator:

avdmanager create avd -n <name> -k "system-images;android-29;default;x86"

(Replace <name> with the name you want to give the emulator.)

See avdmanager for more infos.

Here’s a handy cheat sheet on GitHub.

You might get errors that “there is no space lift on device”. The error indicates that your /tmp folder is full: I am getting a no space left on device error.

Try clearing the folder or increase the available space in /tmp (instructions in link above).

Add the emulator path to your user paths, for example, in Bash:

# Android SDK
export PATH=$PATH:$ANDROID_HOME/emulator
export PATH=$PATH:$ANDROID_HOME/platform-tools/
export PATH=$PATH:$ANDROID_HOME/tools/bin/
export PATH=$PATH:$ANDROID_HOME/tools/
PATH=$ANDROID_HOME/emulator:$PATH

(Adjust to your needs.)

For example, the error “PANIC: Missing emulator engine program for ‘x86’ CPUS.” indicates that the emulator program is not in your path.

Run Android Emulator (Standalone)⌗

emulator @<name-of-the-generated-avd> &

The command starts the emulator in the background.

Run the Emulator via NativeScript⌗

You can also run the emulator with the NativeScript CLI.

Inside your NativeScript project directory, run the following command in the terminal:

tns run android --bundle

Choose “local setup” and NativeScript should pick up the emulator.

Or, if you didn’t install the CLI globally, run this command:

npx nativescript run android --bundle

Further Reading⌗