Automated Versioning in Android with CI/CD

🔢 The Manual Problem

Releasing an Android app involves:

1. Open build.gradle.kts.
2. Increment versionCode.
3. Update versionName.
4. Git commit “Bump version”.
5. Tag “v1.0.1”.

This is manual, error-prone (forgetting to bump code), and annoying.

🚀 The Automated Solution

Use Semantic Release or simple GitHub Actions to calculate the version based on your git history.

Strategy: Conventional Commits + SemVer

1. Commits: Format commits like feat: login screen (minor) or fix: crash on startup (patch).
2. Tool: Analyze commits since the last tag.
3. Result: Determine next version (e.g., 1.0.0 -> 1.1.0).

Implementation: Gradle Script

Create a versioning.gradle.kts file:

val versionPropsFile = file("version.properties")
val versionProps = Properties()

if (versionPropsFile.canRead()) {
    versionProps.load(FileInputStream(versionPropsFile))
} else {
    versionProps["VERSION_CODE"] = "1"
    versionProps["VERSION_NAME"] = "0.0.1"
}

tasks.register("bumpVersion") {
    doLast {
        val type = project.findProperty("bumpType") as? String ?: "patch"
        // Logic to increment version based on type
        // ...
        versionProps.store(versionPropsFile.writer(), null)
    }
}

CI/CD Pipeline (GitHub Actions)

In your .github/workflows/release.yml:

1. Checkout: Get code.
2. Calculate Version: Use semantic-release action.
3. Write Version: Update version.properties.
4. Build: ./gradlew bundleRelease.
5. Tag: Create git tag with new version.
6. Release: Upload AAB to Play Store.

name: Release App
on:
  push:
    branches: [ main ]
jobs:
  release:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Semantic Release
        uses: cycjimmy/semantic-release-action@v3
        id: semantic
        env:
          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

      - name: Update Version File
        if: steps.semantic.outputs.new_release_published == 'true'
        run: |
          echo "VERSION_NAME=${{ steps.semantic.outputs.new_release_version }}" > version.properties
          # Logic to increment versionCode based on commit count or timestamp

      - name: Build Release
        run: ./gradlew bundleRelease

🧠 Why Automate?

1. Consistency: No more “version 1.2.0” followed by “1.2.0-fix”.
2. Traceability: Every build is linked to a git tag.
3. Speed: Release with a single merge to main.

⚠️ Caveats

• Version Code: Must be an integer and always increase. A common pattern is Major * 10000 + Minor * 100 + Patch or simply using the git commit count / timestamp.
• Hotfixes: Requires a specific branch strategy (e.g., release/v1.0).

🏁 Conclusion

Automated versioning is a hallmark of a mature CI/CD pipeline. It removes friction from the release process and ensures your versionName always reflects the actual changes in the app.