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About Keystore and Key for singing my APK
I'm not sure if this is a stupid question but I'm not sure about the Keystore and Key.
Am I right that i only need one Keystore for all my apps but for every app I need a separate Key?
Answer by Bunny83 · Jan 31, 2019 at 02:33 AM
Actually you do not need seperate keys, but it's usually recommended to create a new key for each project. You are also free to store them seperately in seperate keystore files or to store them all in one keystore. Having seperate keystore files has the advantage that you can simply store it along with your project. If you use only one you need one central storage point for your keystore. It is recommended to use strong passwords and to use different passwords for the keystore and for the key itself. The keystore password just gives access to the keystore file itself. The key password is needed when you want to use that key. Think of a keystore as some kind of encrypted archive for keys (like an encrypted zip file).
Keep in mind to create backups of your keystore(s). The key actually identifies you as the owner / creator of the application / game. If you loose your key (or password) or keystore (or password) you are no longer able to publish updates to your game unless you use google play app signing to manage your keys. If you don't manage your keys over google play you essentially lost your access to your app in the store. You would need to re-publish it as a new app (with new bundle identifier).
Thank you for your detailed answer, really appreciate it.
Answer by KISP · Jan 30, 2019 at 09:39 PM
Yes. If you look at Android's official documentation (https://developer.android.com/training/articles/keystore) , they are clearly talking in the terms of one keystore with different keys.