Environment.getExternalStorageDirectory() deprecated in API level 29 java

Question

Working on android Java, recently updated SDK to API level 29 now there is a warning shown which states that

Environment.getExternalStorageDirectory() is deprecated in API level 29

My code is

private void saveImage() {

if (requestPermission(Manifest.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE)) {

    final String folderPath = Environment.getExternalStorageDirectory() + "/PhotoEditors";
    File folder = new File(folderPath);
    if (!folder.exists()) {
        File wallpaperDirectory = new File(folderPath);
        wallpaperDirectory.mkdirs();
    }


    showLoading("Saving...");
    final String filepath=folderPath
                + File.separator + ""
                + System.currentTimeMillis() + ".png";
    File file = new File(filepath);

    try {
        file.createNewFile();
        SaveSettings saveSettings = new SaveSettings.Builder()
                .setClearViewsEnabled(true)
                .setTransparencyEnabled(true)
                .build();
        if(isStoragePermissionGranted() ) {
            mPhotoEditor.saveAsFile(file.getAbsolutePath(), saveSettings, new PhotoEditor.OnSaveListener() {
            @Override
            public void onSuccess(@NonNull String imagePath) {
                hideLoading();
                showSnackbar("Image Saved Successfully");
                mPhotoEditorView.getSource().setImageURI(Uri.fromFile(new File(imagePath)));
                sendBroadcast(new Intent(Intent.ACTION_MEDIA_SCANNER_SCAN_FILE,Uri.fromFile(new File(filepath))));
                Intent intent = new Intent(EditImageActivity.this, StartActivity.class);
                startActivity(intent);
                finish();

            } 

            @Override
            public void onFailure(@NonNull Exception exception) {
                hideLoading();
                showSnackbar("Failed to save Image");
            }
       });
   }

What will be the alternative for this?

Answer 1

Use getExternalFilesDir(), getExternalCacheDir(), or getExternalMediaDirs() (methods on Context) instead of Environment.getExternalStorageDirectory().

Or, modify mPhotoEditor to be able to work with a Uri, then:

• Use ACTION_CREATE_DOCUMENT to get a Uri to a location of the user's choosing, or

• Use MediaStore, ContentResolver, and insert() to get a Uri for a particular type of media (e.g., an image) — see this sample app that demonstrates doing this for downloading MP4 videos from a Web site

Also, note that your Uri.fromFile with ACTION_MEDIA_SCANNER_SCAN_FILE should be crashing on Android 7.0+ with a FileUriExposedException. On Android Q, only the MediaStore/insert() option will get your content indexed by the MediaStore quickly.

Note that you can opt out of these "scoped storage" changes on Android 10 and 11, if your targetSdkVersion is below 30, using android:requestLegacyExternalStorage="true" in the <application> element of the manifest. This is not a long-term solution, as your targetSdkVersion will need to be 30 or higher sometime in 2021 if you are distributing your app through the Play Store (and perhaps elsewhere).