react-native/docs/Libraries.md

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libraries	Linking Libraries	docs	Guides	docs/linking-libraries.html	debugging

Not every app uses all the native capabilities, and including the code to support all those features would impact in the binary size... But we still want to make easy to add these features whenever you need them.

With that in mind we exposed many of these features as independent static libraries.

For most of the libs it will be as simples as dragging two files, sometimes a third step will be necessary, but no more than that.

All the libraries we ship with React Native live on the Libraries folder in the root of the repository. Some of them are pure JavaScript, and you just need to require it. Other libraries also rely on some native code, in that case you'll have to add these files to your app, otherwise the app will throw an error as soon as you try to use the library.

Here the few steps to link your libraries that contain native code

Step 1

If the library has native code, there must be a .xcodeproj file inside it's folder. Drag this file to your project on Xcode (usually under the Libaries group on Xcode);

Step 2

Click on your main project file (the one that represents the .xcodeproj) select Build Phases and drag the static library from the Products folder insed the Library you are importing to Link Binary With Libraries

Step 3

Not every library will need this step, what you need to consider is:

Do I need to know the contents of the library at compile time?

What that means is, are you using this library on the native site or just in JavaScript? If you are just using it in JavaScript, you are good to go!

This step is not necessary for all libraries that we ship we React Native but PushNotificationIOS and LinkingIOS.

In the case of the PushNotificationIOS for example, you have to call a method on the library from your AppDelegate every time a new push notifiation is received.

For that we need to know the library's headers. To achieve that you have to go to your project's file, select Build Settings and search for Header Search Paths. There you should include the path to you library (if it has relevant files on subdirectories remember to make it recursive, like React on the example).