fdroid

F-Droid repository management tool

TLDR

Update repository index

$ fdroid update

Build app from source

$ fdroid build [app.id]

Initialize repository

$ fdroid init

Publish signed apps

$ fdroid publish

Check metadata for issues

$ fdroid lint [app.id]

Check for app updates

$ fdroid checkupdates [app.id]

fdroid is the server-side tool for managing F-Droid repositories. It builds Android apps from source, maintains repository metadata, and generates the index files that F-Droid clients use.The tool handles the entire app publication workflow: building APKs from source, signing them, generating metadata, and publishing to repositories. It enforces F-Droid's commitment to open source by building from source code.fdroid is used by the official F-Droid repository and third-party repositories hosting open source Android applications.

PARAMETERS

COMMAND

Operation: update, build, init, publish, lint, etc.

update

Update the repository index.

build APP

Build application from source.

init

Initialize new repository.

publish

Publish signed apps.

lint APP

Check metadata for issues.

checkupdates APP

Check for available upstream updates.

scanner APP

Scan APKs for known non-free libraries.

rewritemeta APP

Reformat and normalize metadata files.

deploy

Deploy the repository to a server.

import

Import a new app from source repository.

readmeta

Read and validate metadata.

-v, --verbose

More verbose output.

--help

Display help information.

CONFIGURATION

config.yml

Repository configuration including repo name, description, and keystore settings.

metadata/

Directory containing per-app metadata files describing build recipes and app information.

CAVEATS

Requires Android SDK. Building apps needs significant resources. Repository setup is complex. Signing requires key management.

HISTORY

fdroid is the server component of F-Droid, the open source Android app repository founded in 2010. It enables anyone to host their own repository of free software Android applications.