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Google just announced that Google Cloud Messaging is now Firebase Cloud Messaging. What does this mean for existing users of GCM and what migration (if any) are needed?
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Migrate the GCM Client library to FCM Client LibrarySelect your GCM project from the list of existing Google Cloud projects, and select Add Firebase. In the Firebase welcome screen, select Add Firebase to your Android App. Provide your package name and SHA-1, and select Add App. A new google-services.
Firebase Cloud Messaging(FCM), was formerly known as Google Cloud Messaging(GCM). FCM is a cloud platform that provides messages and push notifications for operating systems- ios and Android, and websites as well.
On April 10, 2018, Google deprecated GCM. The GCM server and client APIs were removed on May 29, 2019, and currently any calls to those APIs can be expected to fail. Google Cloud Messaging, deprecated April 10 2018, has been deactivated and removed from Google's APIs.
Starting March 22, 2020, the versions 81 and 82 of chrome disallow the creation of any new subscriptions using FCM sender IDs. However, the versions 78,79 and 80 of chrome will still allow the FCM Sender IDs that were used before September 2019. All the other FCM Sender IDs will be rejected.
FCM (Firebase Cloud Messaging) is a new, improved version of the Google Cloud Messaging API under the Firebase brand. It has all the features of GCM as well as some additional features. Per the Firebase FAQ, it "inherits GCM’s core infrastructure, with new SDKs to make Cloud Messaging development easier". Google explained their decision to release FCM in their Cloud Messaging FAQ, where they wrote:
Firebase is known for being cross platform, so FCM now makes a natural fit in the Firebase suite of features designed for Android, iOS, and mobile web
Google recommends upgrading from GCM to FCM in their APIs for Android Release Notes. Reasons for doing so are given in the Firebase FAQ:
Benefits of upgrading to FCM SDK include:
- Simpler client development. You no longer have to write your own registration or subscription retry logic.
- An out-of-the-box notification solution. You can use Firebase Notifications, a serverless notifications solution with a web console that lets anyone send notifications to target specific audiences based on Firebase Analytics insights.
Some features of GCM are already deprecated (see https://developers.google.com/cloud-messaging/android/legacy-regid, for example) and now in the coming days GCM is going to be fully deprecated. Google says:
We will continue to support the current version of GCM Android and iOS SDKs because we know a lot of developers are using GCM SDKs today to handle notifications, and client app upgrade takes time.
But all new client-side features will be added to FCM SDKs only moving forward. You are strongly encouraged to upgrade to FCM SDKs.
From https://developers.google.com/cloud-messaging/android/android-migrate-fcm:
Import your GCM project as a Firebase project:
In the Firebase console, select Import Google Project.
Select your GCM project from the list of existing projects and select Add Firebase.
In the Firebase welcome screen, select Add Firebase to your Android App.
Provide your package name and SHA-1, and select Add App. A new google-services.json file for your Firebase app is downloaded.
Select Continue and follow the detailed instructions for adding the Google Services plugin in Android Studio.
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