Sign release APKs with a fixed key from CI secrets

.gitea/workflows/build.yml

@@ -69,7 +69,25 @@ jobs:
             dist/shockolate-*-linux-*.tar.gz
             dist/shockolate-*-windows-*.zip
 
+      # The release key is stored base64-encoded in ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64
+      # (see README section 4.3). Without it the APK is a debug build.
+      - name: Prepare release signing
+        env:
+          KEYSTORE_BASE64: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64 }}
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          if [ -z "$KEYSTORE_BASE64" ]; then
+            echo "No signing key: the APK will be a debug build"
+            exit 0
+          fi
+          echo "$KEYSTORE_BASE64" | base64 -d > "${RUNNER_TEMP:-/tmp}/questshock-release.jks"
+          echo "QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE=${RUNNER_TEMP:-/tmp}/questshock-release.jks" >> "$GITHUB_ENV"
+
       - name: Build Quest APK
+        env:
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD }}
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEY_ALIAS }}
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEY_PASSWORD }}
         # QUESTSHOCK_BUILD_IMAGE is already set (see Preflight above), so
         # this runs build-apk.sh directly instead of trying to docker-run
         # the image again - same reasoning as `make package` above.

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -83,8 +83,30 @@ jobs:
       - name: Build the Linux and Windows packages
         run: make package
 
+      # The release key is stored base64-encoded in ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64; see
+      # README section 4.3. A tag build must be signed with it.
+      - name: Prepare release signing
+        env:
+          KEYSTORE_BASE64: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64 }}
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          if [ -z "$KEYSTORE_BASE64" ]; then
+            if [[ "$GITHUB_REF" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+              echo "::error::ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64 is not set: a release APK must be signed"
+              exit 1
+            fi
+            echo "No signing key: the APK will be a debug build"
+            exit 0
+          fi
+          echo "$KEYSTORE_BASE64" | base64 -d > "${RUNNER_TEMP:-/tmp}/questshock-release.jks"
+          echo "QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE=${RUNNER_TEMP:-/tmp}/questshock-release.jks" >> "$GITHUB_ENV"
+
       # Needs network access for Gradle's own dependency resolution.
       - name: Build the Quest APK
+        env:
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD }}
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEY_ALIAS }}
+          QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.ANDROID_KEY_PASSWORD }}
         run: make apk
 
       - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4

.gitignore

@@ -38,3 +38,7 @@
 
 # Local registry credentials (see registry.env.example)
 /registry.env
+
+# Signing keys
+*.jks
+*.keystore

AGENTS.md

@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ These come from the maintainer. Follow them without being asked again.
    `make apk` and `make android-studio` overwrite `android/engine.properties`
    with container-only paths and break an open Android Studio project. What you
    can do is dry-run patches (section 6) and run static consistency checks
-   (section 12). Say plainly in your report that the change was not built or
+   (section 13). Say plainly in your report that the change was not built or
    tested.
 3. **`engine/` and `android/gl4es-src/` are never edited.** They are vendored
    snapshots. Every change to them is a numbered patch under
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ not print it or commit it.
   `qs_config_frame_tick()`) is called from `xr_input.c`.
 - JNI symbol names must match the Java `native` declarations exactly
   (`Java_de_ladkau_questshock_<Class>_<method>`). A mismatch only fails at
-  runtime, so check it (section 12).
+  runtime, so check it (section 13).
 
 ### 4.5 Off-screen views (`OverlayPanel`, `MenuOverlay`, `KeyboardOverlay`)
 
@@ -337,7 +337,19 @@ or directory must also be declared as `inputs.file(...)`/`inputs.dir(...)` of
 The proprietary game data (`res/data/`, `res/sound/`) is never bundled or
 committed. The app refuses to start the engine until it is present.
 
-## 11. Code and documentation style
+## 11. Signing
+
+Distributed APKs are release builds signed with one fixed key, so users can
+update in place. `build-image/build-apk.sh` reads the key from
+`QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE`, `QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD`, `QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS`
+and `QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD`; `android/app/build.gradle` applies it to the
+`release` build type only when `QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE` is set. Both CI workflows
+decode it from the `ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64` secret. Without a key the build is
+a debug APK (`...-debug.apk`), which is only for testing. Never commit a
+keystore or a password, print them, or put them in a workflow file (README
+section 4.3 lists the secrets).
+
+## 12. Code and documentation style
 
 - Match the surrounding code: naming, comment density, idiom. C is plain C with
   `static` helpers and `//` comments; Java targets Android API 34 and uses only the SDK plus
@@ -353,7 +365,7 @@ committed. The app refuses to start the engine until it is present.
 - English, French and German strings live in `Strings.java`; keep the three
   entries of each key on the same `put(...)`.
 
-## 12. Verifying a change without building
+## 13. Verifying a change without building
 
 Because you may not build (rule 2), check statically and say so in the report:
 
@@ -375,7 +387,7 @@ Then report what was checked, what was not (build, on-device behaviour), and
 any device check the maintainer should do (for example a new patch that may
 need `android/force-rebuild.sh`).
 
-## 13. Commit messages
+## 14. Commit messages
 
 Draft only (rule 1). Use a short imperative subject (about 70 characters), a
 blank line, then a body that explains what the change does and why: the

README.md

@@ -69,9 +69,11 @@ sideloaded Android app, and needs your own copy of the game data.
     proprietary game assets (ships `res/GET_ASSETS.txt` in their place).
     See "4.1. Packaging a distributable build" below.
   - `apk` - builds `dist/questshock-<version>-android-arm64.apk` for
-    Android-based OpenXR headsets. Unlike every other target, this needs
+    Android-based OpenXR headsets (a debug build, `...-arm64-debug.apk`,
-    network access at build time (Gradle/AGP's own dependency
+    when there is no signing key - see "4.3. Releases and signing" below).
-    resolution). See "5. Android / Quest build" below.
+    Unlike every other target, this needs network access at build time
+    (Gradle/AGP's own dependency resolution). See "5. Android / Quest
+    build" below.
   - `android-studio` - stages `engine/`/`android/gl4es-src/` (scratch,
     patched copies) and the Android prebuilts with host-resolvable paths,
     so Android Studio can compile and deploy `android/` natively instead
@@ -215,7 +217,7 @@ package on every push, using the build-image as its container (so no
 extra setup is needed in CI beyond the image itself), and publishes the
 resulting tarball to dl.ladkau.de.
 
-### 4.3. GitHub releases
+### 4.3. Releases and signing
 
 The repository is developed on Gitea, and the GitHub repository is a mirror of
 it. `.github/workflows/release.yml` is GitHub's own workflow (the Gitea build
@@ -230,9 +232,33 @@ is `.gitea/workflows/build.yml`):
   `docker-entrypoint.sh` and `build-engine.sh`, so a change to any of them
   builds a new image (`build-image/VERSION` is not used). The first run is slow
   because it builds the image.
-- The APK is built with `assembleDebug`, so it is signed with the debug key of
+- The APK is signed with the release key described below.
-  the machine that built it. Android only updates an installed app from an APK
+
-  with the same signing key.
+**Signing.** Android only updates an installed app from an APK signed with the
+same key, so every distributed APK is signed with one fixed key. `make apk`
+(`build-image/build-apk.sh`) builds and signs the release APK when
+`QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE` is set, together with `QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD` and
+optionally `QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS` (default `questshock`) and
+`QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD` (default: the keystore password). Without a keystore
+it builds a debug APK, `questshock-<version>-android-arm64-debug.apk`, signed
+with a per-machine debug key. That is what Android Studio's Run uses too; an
+installed build has to be uninstalled before one signed with another key can be
+installed.
+
+Create the key once and keep the file and its password safe: without them,
+users have to uninstall the app to get an update.
+
+```sh
+keytool -genkeypair -v -storetype PKCS12 -keystore questshock-release.jks \
+    -alias questshock -keyalg RSA -keysize 4096 -validity 10000
+base64 -w0 questshock-release.jks    # the value of ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64
+```
+
+Both CI systems read the key from these secrets: `ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64`,
+`ANDROID_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD`, and optionally `ANDROID_KEY_ALIAS` and
+`ANDROID_KEY_PASSWORD`. Without `ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64`, the Gitea build
+produces a debug APK and the GitHub build fails on a tag. `*.jks` and
+`*.keystore` are git-ignored.
 
 ## 5. Android / Quest build
 
@@ -248,7 +274,8 @@ is `.gitea/workflows/build.yml`):
   apk` needs its own separate toolchain - see "5.2. Building natively in
   Android Studio" below.
 
-`make apk` builds `dist/questshock-<version>-android-arm64.apk` - an
+`make apk` builds `dist/questshock-<version>-android-arm64.apk` (or
+`...-arm64-debug.apk`, see "4.3. Releases and signing" above) - an
 immersive OpenXR app (see `android/app/src/main/cpp/xr_session.c`) that
 can be sideloaded onto any Android-based VR headset with OpenXR support
 (Meta Quest, Pico, etc. - see "1. Design principles" above), not just one

android/app/build.gradle

@@ -212,9 +212,28 @@ android {
         }
     }
 
+    // The release key comes from the environment (build-image/build-apk.sh,
+    // CI secrets). Without it there is no release signing, and the release
+    // build type is left unsigned.
+    def releaseKeystore = System.getenv("QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE")
+    def releaseStorePassword = System.getenv("QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD")
+    signingConfigs {
+        release {
+            if (releaseKeystore) {
+                storeFile file(releaseKeystore)
+                storePassword releaseStorePassword
+                keyAlias System.getenv("QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS") ?: "questshock"
+                keyPassword System.getenv("QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD") ?: releaseStorePassword
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
     buildTypes {
         release {
             minifyEnabled false
+            if (releaseKeystore) {
+                signingConfig signingConfigs.release
+            }
         }
     }
 

build-image/build-apk.sh

@@ -24,16 +24,33 @@ VERSION="$("$REPO_ROOT/build-image/version.sh")"
 VERSION_CODE="$(git -C "$REPO_ROOT" rev-list --count HEAD)"
 echo "Version: $VERSION (versionCode $VERSION_CODE)"
 
-echo "== Building the APK (gradlew assembleDebug) =="
+# A release APK is built and signed when QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE is set (with
+# QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD, and optionally QUESTSHOCK_KEY_ALIAS,
+# default "questshock", and QUESTSHOCK_KEY_PASSWORD, default the keystore
+# password). Without it the APK is a debug build, signed with a per-machine
+# debug key.
+if [ -n "${QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE:-}" ]; then
+    [ -f "$QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE" ] || { echo "BUILD FAIL: QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE ($QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE) does not exist" >&2; exit 1; }
+    [ -n "${QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD:-}" ] || { echo "BUILD FAIL: QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD is not set" >&2; exit 1; }
+    GRADLE_TASK=assembleRelease
+    APK="$ANDROID_DIR/app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release.apk"
+    PKG_SUFFIX=""
+else
+    echo "== QUESTSHOCK_KEYSTORE is not set: building a debug APK, not for distribution =="
+    GRADLE_TASK=assembleDebug
+    APK="$ANDROID_DIR/app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk"
+    PKG_SUFFIX="-debug"
+fi
+
+echo "== Building the APK (gradlew $GRADLE_TASK) =="
 cd "$ANDROID_DIR"
-./gradlew --no-daemon assembleDebug \
+./gradlew --no-daemon "$GRADLE_TASK" \
     "-PquestshockVersionName=$VERSION" "-PquestshockVersionCode=$VERSION_CODE"
 
-APK="$ANDROID_DIR/app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk"
+[ -f "$APK" ] || { echo "BUILD FAIL: $APK not found after $GRADLE_TASK" >&2; exit 1; }
-[ -f "$APK" ] || { echo "BUILD FAIL: $APK not found after assembleDebug" >&2; exit 1; }
 
 mkdir -p "$REPO_ROOT/dist"
-PKG_NAME="questshock-$VERSION-android-arm64.apk"
+PKG_NAME="questshock-$VERSION-android-arm64$PKG_SUFFIX.apk"
 cp "$APK" "$REPO_ROOT/dist/$PKG_NAME"
 
 echo "== Done =="