Execution failed for task ‘:shared:podInstall’

Understanding the Error: ‘Execution failed for task ‘:shared:podInstall”

This error message often arises during the build process of an Android project that utilizes external libraries (pods) managed by CocoaPods. It signifies a problem during the installation of these libraries, preventing the project from compiling successfully.

Causes of the Error

• Network Connectivity Issues: Problems accessing the CocoaPods repository can hinder pod installation.
• Outdated CocoaPods: An outdated version of CocoaPods might not be compatible with the project’s dependencies.
• Corrupted Podfile or Podfile.lock: These files specify the project’s dependencies and their versions. Errors in them can cause installation failures.
• Conflicting Dependencies: Multiple pods might require incompatible versions of the same library, resulting in a conflict.
• Missing or Incorrect Permissions: Insufficient permissions can prevent CocoaPods from writing necessary files.
• Project Configuration Issues: Incorrect project configurations, like build settings or paths, can lead to installation failures.

Troubleshooting Steps

1. Verify Network Connection

• Ensure that you have a stable internet connection.
• Try accessing the CocoaPods repository (https://cocoapods.org/) directly in your browser to confirm connectivity.

2. Update CocoaPods

sudo gem update cocoapods

3. Clean the Project

./gradlew clean

4. Update Podfile and Podfile.lock

pod update

5. Resolve Dependency Conflicts

• Manually specify compatible versions of conflicting libraries in your Podfile.
• Use the pod outdated command to identify potentially conflicting dependencies.

6. Check for Missing or Incorrect Permissions

• Ensure that your user has write permissions to the project directory and its subdirectories.
• Try running the command with root privileges (sudo pod install), but be cautious as this can affect other files.

7. Examine Project Configurations

• Check your project’s build settings (e.g., search paths) for any errors or inconsistencies.
• Review the Podfile for any incorrect paths or dependency specifications.

Additional Tips

• Try restarting your IDE or restarting your computer.
• Check the project’s log files (often located in build/) for more detailed error messages.
• Search online for similar issues and solutions, using keywords like “execution failed for task ‘:shared:podInstall'” and your specific pod names.
• Consider creating a new project and gradually adding dependencies to identify the source of the problem.

Example: Dependency Conflict

Podfile

platform :ios, '10.0'
use_frameworks!

target 'MyApp' do
  pod 'AFNetworking', '~> 3.0'
  pod 'Alamofire', '~> 4.0'
end

Output:

[!] Unable to satisfy the following requirements:
- Alamofire (~> 4.0) requires AFNetworking (~> 4.0)
- MyApp requires AFNetworking (~> 3.0)

Solution:

platform :ios, '10.0'
use_frameworks!

target 'MyApp' do
  pod 'AFNetworking', '~> 4.0'
  pod 'Alamofire', '~> 4.0'
end

By updating AFNetworking to a compatible version with Alamofire, the conflict is resolved.