How to Compile and Run the Latest Version of Signal App (Android) v7.55.0

Introduction

Signal has always fascinated me, not only because of its focus on privacy, but also because it’s fully open source. This means you’re free to dive into the source code, learn how things work under the hood, and even compile your own version of the app.

In this post, I’ll walk you through how I compiled and ran the latest version of Signal Android (v7.55.0) on my local machine. This isn’t meant to be a super detailed tutorial, but more of a starting point if you’re curious about how Signal works behind the scenes.

Step 1: Get the Source Code

Signal Android’s code is available on GitHub:

git clone https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android.git

After cloning, switch to the latest version first (in this case v7.55.0). You can find the available versions in the GitHub repository under the tags section.

git checkout -b latest v7.55.0
git log

commit 8e9dc7895757f7e7bf7b2f3ac5b283371714caa5 (HEAD -> latest, tag: v7.55.0, origin/main, origin/HEAD, main)
Author: Michelle Tang mtang@signal.org
Date:   Wed Aug 27 16:09:44 2025 -0400

    Bump version to 7.55.0

Step 2: Open Android Studio

When you open the Signal Android project in Android Studio, the IDE runs a Gradle sync, which means it reads the project’s configuration files (build.gradle, settings.gradle, etc.) and sets up the project structure accordingly. During this process, Gradle also checks for any required libraries or plugins defined in the configuration. If those dependencies are not already available in your local cache, Android Studio will automatically download them from repositories such as Maven Central or Google’s Maven. That’s why you often see a “Sync” and “Downloading” process the first time you open the project or after clearing caches—it ensures the project has everything it needs to build and run correctly. As you can see in the screenshot below, just wait until the sync process finishes.

Step 3: Build the App

After the sync is complete, the first step is to build the project. This ensures that all the code and dependencies compile correctly and the project structure is set up properly. In Android Studio, you can build the project by going to the top menu and selecting Build → Make Project, or by using the shortcut Ctrl+F9 (Cmd+F9 on Mac). Building the project at this stage helps identify any missing dependencies, compilation errors, or configuration issues before you attempt to run the app.

Step 4: Run It Locally

Once the project builds successfully, you can run the app to see it in action. In Android Studio, click the Run button (the green triangle) in the toolbar, or use the shortcut Shift+F10 (on Windows/Linux) or Control+R (on Mac). You will then be prompted to select a target device, which can be either an Android emulator or a physical device connected via USB with developer mode enabled. Running the app allows you to verify that it launches correctly and that the initial setup is working before making any changes to the code.

After running the application, you can try registering a new account because the app has already been configured to connect to the Signal server. This setup allows you to test the app’s core features, such as sending and receiving messages, without needing any additional configuration. It’s a great way to verify that your local build is working correctly and that the connection to the server is properly established.

To check which version of Signal Android is currently installed on your device, open the app and navigate to Settings → Help. This section not only shows the app version but can also provide useful information for troubleshooting, ensuring that you are using the correct version, and confirming that your app is up to date before making any changes or updates.

Why This Matters

Compiling Signal yourself gives you:

• Transparency — you know exactly which version of the code you’re running.

• Learning — a chance to understand how a real-world secure messaging app is structured.

• Flexibility — the first step if you ever want to connect Signal Android to your own self-hosted Signal server.

What’s Next

In future posts, I’ll dive deeper into other parts of the ecosystem:

• Deploying a Signal Server

• Connecting your custom Android client

• and more…

This is just the beginning of exploring Signal from an open source and self-hosted perspective 🚀

Notes

This series is meant to document my journey in exploring and deploying Signal. If you’re also curious about running your own Signal server but don’t want to go through all the setup pain, I can help you get started. Just reach out!