Making the Android emulator run faster

android performance testing android-emulator emulation
hpique picture hpique · Apr 18, 2010 · Viewed 202.8k times · Source

The Android emulator is a bit sluggish. For some devices, like the Motorola Droid and the Nexus One, the app runs faster in the actual device than the emulator. This is a problem when testing games and visual effects.

How do you make the emulator run as fast as possible? I've been toying with its parameters but haven't found a configuration that shows a noticeable improvement yet.

Answer

Gennadiy Ryabkin picture Gennadiy Ryabkin · Oct 17, 2012

Official web page

~50% faster

Windows:

  • Install "Intel x86 Emulator Accelerator (HAXM)" => SDK-Manager/Extras
  • Install "Intel x86 Atom System Images" => SDK-Manager/Android 2.3.3

  • Go to the Android SDK root folder and navigate to extras\intel\Hardware_Accelerated_Execution_Manager. Execute file IntelHaxm.exe to install. (in Android Studio you can navigate to: Settings -> Android SDK -> SDK Tools -> Intel x86 Emulator Accelerator (HAXM installer))

  • Create AVD with "Intel atom x86" CPU/ABI

  • Run emulator and check in console that HAXM running (open a Command Prompt window and execute the command: sc query intelhaxm)

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Also don't forget install this one

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P.S. during AVD creation add emulation memory: Hardware/New/Device ram size/set up value 512 or more

Linux:

  • Install KVM: open GOOGLE, write "kvm installation "
  • Create AVD with "Intel atom x86" CPU/ABI
  • Run from command line: emulator -avd avd_name -qemu -m 512 -enable-kvm
  • Or run from Eclipse: Run/Run Configurations/Tab "Target" - > check Intel x86 AVD and in "Additional Emulator Command Line Options" window add: -qemu -m 512 -enable-kvm (click Run)

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P.S. For Fedora, for Ubuntu

OS-X:

  • In Android SDK Manager, install Intel x86 Atom System Image
  • In Android SDK Manager, install Intel x86 Emulator Accelerator (HAXM)
  • In finder, go to the install location of the Intel Emulator Accelerator and install IntelHAXM (open the dmg and run the installation). You can find the location by placing your mouse over the Emulator Accelerator entry in the SDK Manager.
  • Create or update an AVD and specify Intel Atom x86 as the CPU. Intel x86 Emulator Accelerator (HAXM) showing Location

P.S: Check this tool, very convenient even trial

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