Build Android 15 (AOSP) with Docker on Ubuntu 24.04

Why Docker Instead of Podman?

While Podman supports rootless builds, Docker is the better choice for most users, especially in CI/CD pipelines:

• Native integration with Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI
• Backed by a mature ecosystem and community

If you’re considering Podman, also read:
Android 15 AOSP Build with Podman on Ubuntu 24.04

Prefer a ready-to-run container? Pull my image from Docker Hub:
https://hub.docker.com/repository/docker/cdlee/aosp-builder/general

Prerequisite: Install Docker

Follow this step-by-step guide:
Install Docker on Ubuntu 24.04

Once Docker is working and your user is in the docker group, continue below.

1. Set Up Build Context

mkdir ~/aosp-builder && cd ~/aosp-builder

mkdir ~/aosp-builder && cd ~/aosp-builder

Dockerfile

FROM ubuntu:24.04

ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
ENV LANG=C.UTF-8
ENV USE_CCACHE=1
ENV CCACHE_DIR=/ccache
ENV CCACHE_EXEC=/usr/local/bin/ccache

RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
    git-core \
    gnupg \
    flex \
    bison \
    build-essential \
    zip \
    curl \
    zlib1g-dev \
    libc6-dev-i386 \
    x11proto-core-dev \
    libx11-dev \
    lib32z1-dev \
    libgl1-mesa-dev \
    libxml2-utils \
    xsltproc \
    unzip \
    fontconfig \
    rsync \
    openssl \
    && apt-get clean

COPY ccache /usr/local/bin/ccache

WORKDIR /workspace

FROM ubuntu:24.04

ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
ENV LANG=C.UTF-8
ENV USE_CCACHE=1
ENV CCACHE_DIR=/ccache
ENV CCACHE_EXEC=/usr/local/bin/ccache

RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
    git-core \
    gnupg \
    flex \
    bison \
    build-essential \
    zip \
    curl \
    zlib1g-dev \
    libc6-dev-i386 \
    x11proto-core-dev \
    libx11-dev \
    lib32z1-dev \
    libgl1-mesa-dev \
    libxml2-utils \
    xsltproc \
    unzip \
    fontconfig \
    rsync \
    openssl \
    && apt-get clean

COPY ccache /usr/local/bin/ccache

WORKDIR /workspace

Place your custom ccache binary as ./ccache (make sure it’s executable).

Build ccache 4.11.3 from Source on Ubuntu 24.04

2. Build the Docker Image

docker build -t aosp-builder .

docker build -t aosp-builder .

3. Run the Build Environment

Assuming AOSP 15 source is already synced in ~/aosp-15:

docker run -it --rm --user $(id -u):$(id -g) \
  -v .:/workspace -v /home/administrator/.cache/ccache:/ccache \
  aosp-builder bash

docker run -it --rm --user $(id -u):$(id -g) \
  -v .:/workspace -v /home/administrator/.cache/ccache:/ccache \
  aosp-builder bash

This will give you a shell inside the container, running with your host user permissions.

Note About Shell Prompt and Group Warnings

When you use --user with a UID/GID not defined in /etc/passwd or /etc/group inside the container (e.g., 1001:1001), you might see:

groups: cannot find name for group ID 1001
I have no name!@<container-id>:/workspace$

groups: cannot find name for group ID 1001
I have no name!@<container-id>:/workspace$

This is expected and harmless. It just means that the user doesn’t have a name entry inside the container. You can still build and run everything normally.

4. Build AOSP

Once inside the container:

source build/envsetup.sh
lunch aosp_arm64-trunk_staging-userdebug
m

source build/envsetup.sh
lunch aosp_arm64-trunk_staging-userdebug
m

The build runs cleanly under your host UID/GID, so no permission problems when accessing files from your host.

You now have a minimal, production-grade AOSP 15 build setup using Docker, great for both local and CI/CD use.