Power up your C++ games with our Firebase C++ SDKs which provide a C++
interface on top of Firebase SDKs.
Access Firebase entirely from your C++ code, without having to write any
platform-native code. The Firebase SDK also translates many language-specific
idioms used by Firebase into an interface more familiar to C++ developers.
Find out more information about powering up your games with Firebase at our
Firebase games page
.
Already added Firebase to your C++ project? Make sure that you're using the
latest version of the
Firebase C++ SDK
.
Prerequisites
Install your preferred editor or IDE, such as Android Studio, IntelliJ,
or VS Code.
Obtain the
Android SDK
.
Make sure that your project meets these requirements:
Set up a physical device or use an emulator to run your app.
Emulators
must use an emulator image with Google Play.
For some C++ libraries, Google Play services is required on the client
device; review
the
list
on this page.
Sign into Firebase
using your Google
account.
Step 2
: Create a Firebase project
Before you can add Firebase to your C++ project, you need to create a Firebase
project to connect to your C++ project. Visit
Understand Firebase Projects
to learn more about
Firebase projects.
Create a Firebase project
-
In the
Firebase console
, click
Add project
.
-
To add Firebase resources to an
existing
Google Cloud project, enter its
project name or select it from the dropdown menu.
-
To create a new project, enter the desired project name. You can also optionally
edit the project ID displayed below the project name.
-
If prompted, review and accept the
Firebase terms
.
-
Click
Continue
.
-
(Optional)
Set up Google Analytics for your project, which enables you
to have an optimal experience using any of the following Firebase products:
Either select an existing
Google Analytics account
or to create a new account.
If you create a new account, select your
Analytics reporting location
, then accept
the data sharing settings and Google Analytics terms for your project.
-
Click
Create project
(or
Add Firebase
, if you're using an
existing Google Cloud project).
Firebase automatically provisions resources for your Firebase project. When
the process completes, you'll be taken to the overview page for your Firebase
project in the Firebase console.
Step 3
: Register your app with Firebase
To use Firebase in your Android app, you need to register your app with your
Firebase project. Registering your app is often called "adding" your app to your
project.
Go to the
Firebase console
.
In the center of the project overview page, click the
Android
icon
(
plat_android
)
or
Add app
to launch the setup workflow.
Enter your app's package name in the
Android package name
field.
What's a package name, and where do you find it?
A
package
name
uniquely identifies your app on the device and in the Google Play Store.
A
package name
is often referred to as an
application ID
.
Find your app's package name in your module (app-level) Gradle file,
usually
app/build.gradle
(example package name:
com.yourcompany.yourproject
).
Be aware that the package name value is case-sensitive, and it cannot be
changed for this Firebase Android app after it's registered with your
Firebase project.
(Optional)
Enter other app information:
App nickname
and
Debug signing certificate SHA-1
.
How are the
App nickname
and the
Debug signing certificate SHA-1
used within Firebase?
Click
Register app
.
Step 4
: Add the Firebase configuration file
Click
Download google-services.json
to obtain your Firebase Android
config file.
What do you need to know about this config file?
The Firebase config file contains unique, but non-secret identifiers for
your project. To learn more about this config file, visit
Understand Firebase
Projects
.
You can download your
Firebase config
file
again at any time.
Make sure the config file name is not appended with additional characters,
like
(2)
.
Open your C++ project in an IDE, then add your config file to your project:
(Gradle builds only)
To enable Firebase services in your C++ project,
add the
google-services
plugin
to your top-level
build.gradle
file.
Add rules to include the Google Services Gradle plugin. Check that you
have Google’s Maven repository, as well.
buildscript {
repositories {
// Check that you have the following line (if not, add it):
google() // Google's Maven repository
}
dependencies {
// ...
// Add the following lines:
classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:4.4.1' // Google Services plugin
implementation 'com.google.android.gms:18.4.0'
}
}
allprojects {
// ...
repositories {
// Check that you have the following line (if not, add it):
google() // Google's Maven repository
// ...
}
}
Apply the Google Services Gradle plugin:
apply plugin: 'com.android.application'
// Add the following line:
apply plugin: 'com.google.gms.google-services' // Google Services plugin
android {
// ...
}
You're done with set up tasks in the Firebase console. Continue to
Add Firebase C++ SDKs
below.
Step 5
: Add Firebase C++ SDKs
The steps in this section are an example of how to add
supported Firebase
products
to your
Firebase C++ project.
Download the
Firebase C++ SDK
, then unzip the SDK somewhere convenient.
The Firebase C++ SDK is not platform-specific, but it does contain
platform-specific libraries.
In your project's
gradle.properties
file, specify the location of the
unzipped SDK:
systemProp.firebase_cpp_sdk.dir=
full-path-to-SDK
To your project's
settings.gradle
file, add the following content:
def firebase_cpp_sdk_dir = System.getProperty('firebase_cpp_sdk.dir')
gradle.ext.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir = "$firebase_cpp_sdk_dir"
includeBuild "$firebase_cpp_sdk_dir"
To your module (app-level) Gradle file (usually
app/build.gradle
), add the
following content.
Include the
library dependencies
for the Firebase products that you want to use in your app.
Analytics enabled
android.defaultConfig.externalNativeBuild.cmake {
arguments "-DFIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR=$gradle.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir"
}
# Add the dependencies for the Firebase products you want to use in your app
# For example, to use Analytics, Firebase Authentication, and Firebase Realtime Database
apply from: "$gradle.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir/Android/firebase_dependencies.gradle"
firebaseCpp.dependencies {
analytics
auth
database
}
Analytics not enabled
android.defaultConfig.externalNativeBuild.cmake {
arguments "-DFIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR=$gradle.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir"
}
# Add the dependencies for the Firebase products you want to use in your app
# For example, to use Firebase Authentication and Firebase Realtime Database
apply from: "$gradle.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir/Android/firebase_dependencies.gradle"
firebaseCpp.dependencies {
auth
database
}
To your project's
CMakeLists.txt
file, add the following content.
Include the
libraries
for
the Firebase products that you want to use in your app.
Analytics enabled
# Add Firebase libraries to the target using the function from the SDK.
add_subdirectory(${FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR} bin/ EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL)
# The Firebase C++ library `firebase_app` is required,
# and it must always be listed last.
# Add the Firebase SDKs for the products you want to use in your app
# For example, to use Analytics, Firebase Authentication, and Firebase Realtime Database
set(firebase_libs
firebase_analytics
firebase_auth
firebase_database
firebase_app
)
target_link_libraries(${target_name} "${firebase_libs}")
Analytics not enabled
# Add Firebase libraries to the target using the function from the SDK.
add_subdirectory(${FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR} bin/ EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL)
# The Firebase C++ library `firebase_app` is required,
# and it must always be listed last.
# Add the Firebase SDKs for the products you want to use in your app
# For example, to use Firebase Authentication and Firebase Realtime Database
set(firebase_libs
firebase_auth
firebase_database
firebase_app
)
target_link_libraries(${target_name} "${firebase_libs}")
Sync your app to ensure that all dependencies have the necessary versions.
If you added Analytics, run your app to send verification to Firebase
that you've successfully integrated Firebase. Otherwise, you can skip the
verification step.
Your device logs will display the Firebase verification that initialization
is complete. If you ran your app on an emulator that has network access,
the
Firebase console
notifies you that your app connection is complete.
You’re all set! Your C++ app is registered and configured to use Firebase
services.
(optional alternative)
Use ndk-build to add SDKs
- Make sure that you have the
Android NDK
v10d or later.
Download the
Firebase C++ SDK
, then unzip the SDK somewhere
convenient.
The Firebase C++ SDK is not platform-specific, but it does contain
platform-specific libraries.
-
Open your
local.properties
file, then:
- Set the
firebase_cpp_sdk.dir
variable to the location
of the unzipped Firebase C++ SDK.
- Set the
ndk.dir
variable to the location of the
Android
NDK
.
-
To use Gradle's built-in ndkBuild support, create a
jni
directory within your top-level directory, then create the following
make
files.
-
Create a
jni/Application.mk
file with the
following:
APP_PLATFORM:=android-14
NDK_TOOLCHAIN_VERSION=clang
APP_ABI:=armeabi-v7a arm64-v8a x86 x86_64
APP_STL:=c++_static
APP_MODULES:=android_main
APP_CPPFLAGS+=-std=c++11
-
Create a
jni/Android.mk
file with the following
content.
Include the
libraries
of the Firebase product that you want to use. For example, to use
Analytics:
LOCAL_PATH:=$(call my-dir)/..
ifeq ($(FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR),)
$(error FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR must specify the Firebase package location.)
endif
# With Firebase libraries for the selected build configuration (ABI + STL)
STL:=$(firstword $(subst _, ,$(APP_STL)))
FIREBASE_LIBRARY_PATH:=\
$(FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR)/libs/android/$(TARGET_ARCH_ABI)/$(STL)
# The Firebase C++ library `libfirebase_app.a` is required for all Firebase products.
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_MODULE:=firebase_app
LOCAL_SRC_FILES:=$(FIREBASE_LIBRARY_PATH)/libfirebase_app.a
LOCAL_EXPORT_C_INCLUDES:=$(FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR)/include
include $(PREBUILT_STATIC_LIBRARY)
# Include the Firebase library for Google Analytics.
# Note: Duplicate this block for each Firebase product that you want
# to use in your app, and replace variable values as appropriate.
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_MODULE:=firebase_analytics
LOCAL_SRC_FILES:=$(FIREBASE_LIBRARY_PATH)/libfirebase_analytics.a
LOCAL_EXPORT_C_INCLUDES:=$(FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR)/include
include $(PREBUILT_STATIC_LIBRARY)
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_MODULE:=android_main
# Reference your project's C++ source files
LOCAL_SRC_FILES:=\
$(LOCAL_PATH)/src/common_main.cc \
$(LOCAL_PATH)/src/android/android_main.cc
LOCAL_STATIC_LIBRARIES:=\
firebase_analytics \
firebase_app # this library reference must always be listed last
LOCAL_WHOLE_STATIC_LIBRARIES:=\
android_native_app_glue
LOCAL_C_INCLUDES:=\
$(NDK_ROOT)/sources/android/native_app_glue \
$(LOCAL_PATH)/src
LOCAL_LDLIBS:=-llog -landroid -latomic
LOCAL_ARM_MODE:=arm
LOCAL_LDFLAGS:=-Wl,-z,defs -Wl,--no-undefined
include $(BUILD_SHARED_LIBRARY)
$(call import-add-path,$(NDK_ROOT)/sources/android)
$(call import-module,android/native_app_glue)
-
Open your top-level
build.gradle
file, then complete the
following steps:
-
Add the
dependencies
for the Firebase products that you want to use. For example, to use
Analytics:
dependencies {
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
}
-
Add the following lines so that your project uses Gradle's built-in
ndk-build support to include the Firebase libraries specified in your
jni/Android.mk
file.
android {
// ...
defaultConfig {
// ...
externalNativeBuild.ndkBuild {
arguments "FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR=${project.ext.firebase_cpp_sdk_dir}",
"NDK_APPLICTION_MK=jni/Application.mk",
sprintf("APP_PLATFORM=android-%d",
android.defaultConfig.minSdkVersion.mApiLevel)
}
}
}
Available libraries for Android (using ndk-build)
Each Firebase product has different dependencies. Be sure to add all the
listed dependencies for the Firebase products that you want to use.
Add Firebase C++ libraries (like
libfirebase_app.a
) by
including them in the top-level
jni/Android.mk
file. For other
dependencies (like
com.google.firebase:firebase-auth
), add them to your top-level
build.gradle
file.
Firebase product
|
Libraries and Dependencies
|
AdMob
|
libfirebase_admob.a
(required)
libfirebase_analytics.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-ads:19.8.0'
(required)
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
|
Analytics
|
libfirebase_analytics.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
|
App Check
|
libfirebase_app_check.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-appcheck:17.0.0'
|
Authentication
|
libfirebase_auth.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-auth:21.0.5'
|
Cloud Firestore
|
libfirebase_firestore.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-firestore:24.1.2'
|
Cloud Functions
|
libfirebase_functions.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-functions:20.1.0'
|
Cloud Messaging
|
libfirebase_messaging.a
(recommended)
libfirebase_analytics.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-messaging:23.0.5'
(recommended)
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
|
Cloud Storage
|
libfirebase_storage.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-storage:20.0.1'
|
Dynamic Links
|
ibfirebase_dynamic_links.a
(recommended)
libfirebase_analytics.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-dynamic-links:21.0.1'
(recommended)
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
|
Realtime Database
|
libfirebase_database.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-database:20.0.5'
|
Remote Config
|
libfirebase_remote_config.a
(recommended)
libfirebase_analytics.a
(required)
libfirebase_app.a
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-config:21.1.0'
(recommended)
implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics:21.0.0'
|
Available libraries
Learn more about the C++ Firebase libraries in the
reference documentation
and in our open-source SDK
release on
GitHub
.
Available libraries for Android
(using CMake)
Note that C++ libraries for Apple platforms are listed on the
Apple platforms
(iOS+) version of this setup page
.
Firebase product
|
Library references
(
firebaseCpp.dependencies
for
build.gradle
file)
|
Library references
(
firebase_libs
for
CMakeLists.txt
file)
|
AdMob
|
admob
|
firebase_admob
(required)
firebase_analytics
(required)
firebase_app
|
Analytics
|
analytics
|
firebase_analytics
(required)
firebase_app
|
App Check
|
appCheck
|
firebase_app_check
(required)
firebase_app
|
Authentication
|
auth
|
firebase_auth
(required)
firebase_app
|
Cloud Firestore
|
firestore
|
firebase_firestore
(required)
firebase_auth
(required)
firebase_app
|
Cloud Functions
|
functions
|
firebase_functions
(required)
firebase_app
|
Cloud Messaging
|
messaging
|
firebase_messaging
(recommended)
firebase_analytics
(required)
firebase_app
|
Cloud Storage
|
storage
|
firebase_storage
(required)
firebase_app
|
Dynamic Links
|
dynamicLinks
|
firebase_dynamic_links
(recommended)
firebase_analytics
(required)
firebase_app
|
Realtime Database
|
database
|
firebase_database
(required)
firebase_app
|
Remote Config
|
remoteConfig
|
firebase_remote_config
(recommended)
firebase_analytics
(required)
firebase_app
|
Additional information for mobile setup
Get NDK crash reports
Firebase Crashlytics supports crash reporting for apps using Android
native libraries. To learn more, see
Get Android NDK crash reports
.
Custom build systems
Firebase provides the script
generate_xml_from_google_services_json.py
to
convert
google-services.json
to
.xml
resources that you can include in
your project. This script applies the same transformation that the Google Play
services Gradle plugin performs when building Android applications.
If you don't build using Gradle (for example, you use ndk-build, makefiles,
Visual Studio, etc.), you can use this script to automate the generation of
Android String
Resources
.
ProGuard
Many Android build systems use
ProGuard
for builds in
Release mode to shrink application sizes and protect Java source code.
If you use ProGuard, you'll need to add the files in
libs/android/*.pro
corresponding to the Firebase C++ libraries that you're using in your ProGuard
configuration.
For example, with Gradle, if you're using Google Analytics,
your
build.gradle
file would look like:
android {
// ...
buildTypes {
release {
minifyEnabled true
proguardFile getDefaultProguardFile('your-project-proguard-config.txt')
proguardFile file(project.ext.
your_local_firebase_sdk_dir
+ "/libs/android/app.pro")
proguardFile file(project.ext.
your_local_firebase_sdk_dir
+ "/libs/android/analytics.pro")
// ... and so on, for each Firebase C++ library that you're using
}
}
}
Google Play services requirement
Most Firebase C++ libraries require
Google Play services
to be on the client's Android device. If a Firebase C++ library returns
kInitResultFailedMissingDependency
on initialization, it means Google Play services is not available on the
client device (meaning that it needs to be updated, reactivated, permissions
fixed, etc.). The Firebase library cannot be used until the situation on the
client device is corrected.
You can find out why Google Play services is unavailable on the client device
(and try to fix it) by using the functions in
google_play_services/availability.h
.
The following table lists whether Google Play services is required on a client
device for each supported Firebase product.
Firebase C++ Library
|
Google Play services required on client device?
|
AdMob
|
Not required
(usually)
|
Analytics
|
Not required
|
Authentication
|
Required
|
Cloud Firestore
|
Required
|
Cloud Functions
|
Required
|
Cloud Messaging
|
Required
|
Cloud Storage
|
Required
|
Dynamic Links
|
Required
|
Realtime Database
|
Required
|
Remote Config
|
Required
|
AdMob and Google Play services
Most versions of the Google Mobile Ads SDK for Android can work properly
without Google Play services on the client device. However, if you're using
the
com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-lite
dependency, instead of the
standard
com.google.firebase:firebase-ads
dependency listed above,
Google Play services is
required
.
AdMob initialization will only return
kInitResultFailedMissingDependency
when both the following are true:
- Google Play services is unavailable on the client device.
- You're using
com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-lite
.
Set up a desktop workflow (
beta
)
When you're creating a game, it's often much easier to test your game on desktop
platforms first, then deploy and test on mobile devices later in development. To
support this workflow, we provide a
subset of the Firebase C++ SDKs
which can run on
Windows, macOS, Linux, and from within the C++ editor.
For desktop workflows, you need to complete the following:
- Configure your C++ project for CMake.
- Create a Firebase project
- Register your app (iOS or Android) with Firebase
- Add a mobile-platform Firebase configuration file
Create a
desktop
version of the Firebase configuration file:
If you added the Android
google-services.json
file
? When you run
your app, Firebase locates this
mobile
file, then automatically
generates a
desktop
Firebase config file
(
google-services-desktop.json
).
If you added the iOS
GoogleService-Info.plist
file
? Before you run
your app, you need to convert this
mobile
file to a
desktop
Firebase
config file. To convert the file, run the following command from the same
directory as your
GoogleService-Info.plist
file:
generate_xml_from_google_services_json.py --plist -i GoogleService-Info.plist
This desktop config file contains the C++ project ID that you entered in
the Firebase console setup workflow. Visit
Understand Firebase Projects
to learn more about config files.
Add Firebase SDKs to your C++ project.
The steps below serve as an example of how to add any
supported Firebase product
to
your C++ project. In this example, we walk through adding
Firebase Authentication and Firebase Realtime Database.
Set your
FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR
environment variable to the location of
the unzipped Firebase C++ SDK.
To your project's
CMakeLists.txt
file, add the following content,
including the
libraries
for
the Firebase products that you want to use. For example, to use
Firebase Authentication and Firebase Realtime Database:
# Add Firebase libraries to the target using the function from the SDK.
add_subdirectory(${FIREBASE_CPP_SDK_DIR} bin/ EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL)
# The Firebase C++ library `firebase_app` is required,
# and it must always be listed last.
# Add the Firebase SDKs for the products you want to use in your app
# For example, to use Firebase Authentication and Firebase Realtime Database
set(firebase_libs firebase_auth firebase_database firebase_app)
target_link_libraries(${target_name} "${firebase_libs}")
Run your C++ app.
Available libraries (desktop)
The Firebase C++ SDK includes
desktop workflow support
for a subset of features, enabling certain parts of Firebase to be used in
standalone desktop builds on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Firebase provides the remaining desktop libraries as stub (non-functional)
implementations for convenience when building for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Therefore, you don't need to conditionally compile code to target the desktop.
Realtime Database desktop
The Realtime Database SDK for desktop uses REST to access your database, so you must
declare the indexes
that
you use with
Query::OrderByChild()
on desktop or your listeners will fail.
Additional information for desktop setup
Windows libraries
For Windows, library versions are provided based on the following:
- Build platform: 32-bit (x86) vs 64-bit (x64) mode
- Windows runtime environment: Multithreaded / MT vs Multithreaded DLL /MD
- Target: Release vs Debug
Note that the following libraries were tested using Visual Studio 2015 and 2017.
When building C++ desktop apps on Windows, link the following Windows SDK
libraries to your project. Consult your compiler documentation for more
information.
Firebase C++ Library
|
Windows SDK library dependencies
|
App Check
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32
|
Authentication
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32
|
Cloud Firestore
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32, rpcrt4, ole32, shell32
|
Cloud Functions
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32, rpcrt4, ole32
|
Cloud Storage
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32
|
Realtime Database
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32, iphlpapi, psapi, userenv
|
Remote Config
|
advapi32, ws2_32, crypt32, rpcrt4, ole32
|
macOS libraries
For macOS (Darwin), library versions are provided for the 64-bit (x86_64)
platform. Frameworks are also provided for your convenience.
Note that the macOS libraries have been tested using Xcode
13.3.1.
When building C++ desktop apps on macOS, link the following to your project:
pthread
system library
CoreFoundation
macOS system framework
Foundation
macOS system framework
Security
macOS system framework
GSS
macOS system framework
Kerberos
macOS system framework
SystemConfiguration
macOS system framework
Consult your compiler documentation for more information.
Linux libraries
For Linux, library versions are provided for 32-bit (i386) and 64-bit (x86_64)
platforms.
Note that the Linux libraries were tested using GCC 4.8.0, GCC 7.2.0, and
Clang 5.0 on Ubuntu.
When building C++ desktop apps on Linux, link the
pthread
system library to
your project. Consult your compiler documentation for more information. If
you're building with GCC 5 or later, define
-D_GLIBCXX_USE_CXX11_ABI=0
.
Next steps