Unknown bug requiring CLEAN PROJECT after any modification

Question

We have been developing an application. It's been a few months, and we have had a few weird bugs (such as the fact that somehow enabling Instant Run prevents us from compiling and testing).

Recently, we encountered the following behaviour: every time we want to Run our application to test it, an error pops up if anything has been modified since the last Run. The error message is:

Cause: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException

And here is a more detailed report coming from :app:transformClassesWithDesugarForDebug at the Execute transform step:

org.gradle.api.tasks.TaskExecutionException: Execution failed for task ':app:transformClassesWithDesugarForDebug'.
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.executeActions(ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.java:100)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.execute(ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.java:70)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.OutputDirectoryCreatingTaskExecuter.execute(OutputDirectoryCreatingTaskExecuter.java:51)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.SkipUpToDateTaskExecuter.execute(SkipUpToDateTaskExecuter.java:62)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ResolveTaskOutputCachingStateExecuter.execute(ResolveTaskOutputCachingStateExecuter.java:54)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ValidatingTaskExecuter.execute(ValidatingTaskExecuter.java:60)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.SkipEmptySourceFilesTaskExecuter.execute(SkipEmptySourceFilesTaskExecuter.java:97)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.CleanupStaleOutputsExecuter.execute(CleanupStaleOutputsExecuter.java:87)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ResolveTaskArtifactStateTaskExecuter.execute(ResolveTaskArtifactStateTaskExecuter.java:52)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.SkipTaskWithNoActionsExecuter.execute(SkipTaskWithNoActionsExecuter.java:52)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.SkipOnlyIfTaskExecuter.execute(SkipOnlyIfTaskExecuter.java:54)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteAtMostOnceTaskExecuter.execute(ExecuteAtMostOnceTaskExecuter.java:43)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.CatchExceptionTaskExecuter.execute(CatchExceptionTaskExecuter.java:34)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskGraphExecuter$EventFiringTaskWorker$1.run(DefaultTaskGraphExecuter.java:248)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor$RunnableBuildOperationWorker.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:336)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor$RunnableBuildOperationWorker.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:328)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:199)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.run(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:110)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskGraphExecuter$EventFiringTaskWorker.execute(DefaultTaskGraphExecuter.java:241)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskGraphExecuter$EventFiringTaskWorker.execute(DefaultTaskGraphExecuter.java:230)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskPlanExecutor$TaskExecutorWorker.processTask(DefaultTaskPlanExecutor.java:123)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskPlanExecutor$TaskExecutorWorker.access$200(DefaultTaskPlanExecutor.java:79)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskPlanExecutor$TaskExecutorWorker$1.execute(DefaultTaskPlanExecutor.java:104)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskPlanExecutor$TaskExecutorWorker$1.execute(DefaultTaskPlanExecutor.java:98)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskExecutionPlan.execute(DefaultTaskExecutionPlan.java:626)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskExecutionPlan.executeWithTask(DefaultTaskExecutionPlan.java:581)
    at org.gradle.execution.taskgraph.DefaultTaskPlanExecutor$TaskExecutorWorker.run(DefaultTaskPlanExecutor.java:98)
    at org.gradle.internal.concurrent.ExecutorPolicy$CatchAndRecordFailures.onExecute(ExecutorPolicy.java:63)
    at org.gradle.internal.concurrent.ManagedExecutorImpl$1.run(ManagedExecutorImpl.java:46)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor.runWorker(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:1142)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor$Worker.run(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:617)
    at org.gradle.internal.concurrent.ThreadFactoryImpl$ManagedThreadRunnable.run(ThreadFactoryImpl.java:55)
    at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:745)
Caused by: java.lang.RuntimeException: com.android.build.api.transform.TransformException: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException
    at com.android.builder.profile.Recorder$Block.handleException(Recorder.java:55)
    at com.android.builder.profile.ThreadRecorder.record(ThreadRecorder.java:104)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.pipeline.TransformTask.transform(TransformTask.java:212)
    at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method)
    at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.java:62)
    at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.java:43)
    at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:498)
    at org.gradle.internal.reflect.JavaMethod.invoke(JavaMethod.java:73)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.project.taskfactory.IncrementalTaskAction.doExecute(IncrementalTaskAction.java:46)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.project.taskfactory.StandardTaskAction.execute(StandardTaskAction.java:39)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.project.taskfactory.StandardTaskAction.execute(StandardTaskAction.java:26)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter$1.run(ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.java:121)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor$RunnableBuildOperationWorker.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:336)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor$RunnableBuildOperationWorker.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:328)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.execute(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:199)
    at org.gradle.internal.progress.DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.run(DefaultBuildOperationExecutor.java:110)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.executeAction(ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.java:110)
    at org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.execution.ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.executeActions(ExecuteActionsTaskExecuter.java:92)
    ... 32 more
Caused by: com.android.build.api.transform.TransformException: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarTransform.transform(DesugarTransform.java:292)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.pipeline.TransformTask$2.call(TransformTask.java:221)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.pipeline.TransformTask$2.call(TransformTask.java:217)
    at com.android.builder.profile.ThreadRecorder.record(ThreadRecorder.java:102)
    ... 48 more
Caused by: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException
    at sun.reflect.NativeConstructorAccessorImpl.newInstance0(Native Method)
    at sun.reflect.NativeConstructorAccessorImpl.newInstance(NativeConstructorAccessorImpl.java:62)
    at sun.reflect.DelegatingConstructorAccessorImpl.newInstance(DelegatingConstructorAccessorImpl.java:45)
    at java.lang.reflect.Constructor.newInstance(Constructor.java:423)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinTask.getThrowableException(ForkJoinTask.java:593)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinTask.reportException(ForkJoinTask.java:677)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinTask.join(ForkJoinTask.java:720)
    at com.android.ide.common.internal.WaitableExecutor.waitForTasksWithQuickFail(WaitableExecutor.java:146)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.getInitalGraphData(DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.java:162)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.lambda$makeDesugaringGraph$2(DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.java:134)
    at com.android.builder.desugaring.DesugaringGraphs.forVariant(DesugaringGraphs.java:50)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.makeDesugaringGraph(DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.java:132)
    at com.google.common.base.Suppliers$NonSerializableMemoizingSupplier.get(Suppliers.java:160)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.getAdditionalPaths(DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.java:111)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarTransform.incrementalAnalysis(DesugarTransform.java:305)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarTransform.transform(DesugarTransform.java:264)
    ... 51 more
Caused by: java.lang.IllegalArgumentException
    at org.objectweb.asm.ClassReader.<init>(Unknown Source)
    at org.objectweb.asm.ClassReader.<init>(Unknown Source)
    at org.objectweb.asm.ClassReader.<init>(Unknown Source)
    at com.android.builder.desugaring.DesugaringClassAnalyzer.analyze(DesugaringClassAnalyzer.java:142)
    at com.android.builder.desugaring.DesugaringClassAnalyzer.analyzeJar(DesugaringClassAnalyzer.java:92)
    at com.android.builder.desugaring.DesugaringClassAnalyzer.analyze(DesugaringClassAnalyzer.java:63)
    at com.android.build.gradle.internal.transforms.DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.lambda$getInitalGraphData$4(DesugarIncrementalTransformHelper.java:150)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinTask$AdaptedCallable.exec(ForkJoinTask.java:1424)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinTask.doExec(ForkJoinTask.java:289)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinPool$WorkQueue.runTask(ForkJoinPool.java:1056)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinPool.runWorker(ForkJoinPool.java:1692)
    at java.util.concurrent.ForkJoinWorkerThread.run(ForkJoinWorkerThread.java:157)

An image, if it can help:

The fix we have found is to Clean Project before trying to Run. It works, but we don't understand what is causing the problem, and this is slowing down production quite a bit. Any ideas?

Current build.gradle:

apply plugin: 'com.android.application'

android {
    compileSdkVersion 27
    defaultConfig {
        applicationId "com.example.payne.simpletestapp"
        minSdkVersion 16
        targetSdkVersion 27
        multiDexEnabled true
        versionCode 1
        versionName "1.0"
        testInstrumentationRunner "android.support.test.runner.AndroidJUnitRunner"
        vectorDrawables.useSupportLibrary = true
    }
    buildTypes {
        release {
            minifyEnabled false
            proguardFiles getDefaultProguardFile('proguard-android.txt'), 'proguard-rules.pro'
        }
    }
    packagingOptions {
        exclude 'META-INF/DEPENDENCIES'
        exclude 'META-INF/NOTICE'
        exclude 'META-INF/LICENSE'
        exclude 'META-INF/LICENSE.txt'
        exclude 'META-INF/license.txt'
        exclude 'META-INF/NOTICE.txt'
        exclude 'META-INF/notice.txt'
    }
    compileOptions {
        sourceCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
        targetCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
    }
}

dependencies {
    implementation fileTree(include: ['*.jar'], dir: 'libs')
    implementation 'com.android.support:appcompat-v7:27.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support.constraint:constraint-layout:1.1.2'
    implementation 'com.android.support:design:27.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support:support-v4:27.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support:support-vector-drawable:27.1.1'
    testImplementation 'junit:junit:4.12'
    androidTestImplementation 'com.android.support.test:runner:1.0.2'
    androidTestImplementation 'com.android.support.test.espresso:espresso-core:3.0.2'

    // TODO: revert 'api' to 'implementation' (checks relative dependencies)

    // Firebase Authentication
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-auth:16.0.2'
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-core:16.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-auth:15.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-identity:15.0.1' //TODO: verify necessary

    // Firebase Cloud Messaging (Notifications)
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-messaging:17.1.0'
    implementation 'com.firebase:firebase-jobdispatcher:0.8.5'

    // Google Location
    implementation  'com.google.android.gms:play-services-location:15.0.1' //TODO: verify necessary

    // OSMDroid (Map)
    implementation 'org.osmdroid:osmdroid-android:6.0.1'
    implementation 'org.osmdroid:osmdroid-wms:6.0.1'
    implementation 'org.osmdroid:osmdroid-mapsforge:6.0.1'
    implementation 'org.osmdroid:osmdroid-geopackage:6.0.1'
    implementation 'com.github.MKergall:osmbonuspack:6.5.1' // Historical Pin Clusters

    // Spring Android
    implementation 'org.springframework.android:spring-android-rest-template:2.0.0.M3'
    implementation 'org.apache.httpcomponents:httpclient-android:4.3.5'
    // JSON @ https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/com.fasterxml.jackson.core/jackson-databind
    implementation 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core:jackson-databind:2.9.6'

    // Animations et Images
    implementation 'com.squareup.picasso:picasso:2.71828'
    implementation 'com.github.faruktoptas:FancyShowCaseView:1.0.1'
    implementation 'com.daimajia.easing:library:2.0@aar'
    implementation 'com.daimajia.androidanimations:library:2.3@aar'

    // @Getters/@Setters
    compileOnly 'org.projectlombok:lombok:1.18.0'
    annotationProcessor 'org.projectlombok:lombok:1.18.0'
}

repositories {
    maven {
        url 'https://repo.spring.io/libs-milestone'
    }
}

apply plugin: 'com.google.gms.google-services'

Current gradle:

// Top-level build file where you can add configuration options common to all sub-projects/modules.

buildscript {

    repositories {
        google()
        jcenter()
    }
    dependencies {
        classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:3.1.3'


        // NOTE: Do not place your application dependencies here; they belong
        // in the individual module build.gradle files
        classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:4.0.2'
    }
}

allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
        jcenter()
        maven { url "https://jitpack.io" }
    }
}

task clean(type: Delete) {
    delete rootProject.buildDir
}

Here are some of the possibly relevant warnings I'm getting in the logcat:

W/art: Before Android 4.1, method android.graphics.PorterDuffColorFilter android.support.graphics.drawable.VectorDrawableCompat.updateTintFilter(android.graphics.PorterDuffColorFilter, android.content.res.ColorStateList, android.graphics.PorterDuff$Mode) would have incorrectly overridden the package-private method in android.graphics.drawable.Drawable
W/Java7Support: Unable to load JDK7 types (annotations, java.nio.file.Path): no Java7 support added

Answer 1

Finally solved this annoying issue.

It seems like it was caused by the following lines in my build.gradle:

compileOptions {
    sourceCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
    targetCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
}

I did not want to undo all the sugar that Java 8 allowed me to use, so I instead found a work around. Add in your gradle.properties the following lines:

android.enableD8.desugaring = true
android.enableIncrementalDesugaring=false

EDIT: You might want to read some of that documentation on Java 8 support using Android Gradle Plugin, too.