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Getting Started

Purchase the Plugin

Purchase the plugin on the Fab Marketplace.

Install the Plugin

After purchasing, the plugin can be installed either directly through the Fab website or via the Fab plugin inside Unreal Engine. Once installed, it will appear in your project’s plugin list and can be enabled from there.

Enable Firebase Plugin

Once installed, the plugin will be available in Unreal Engine under the Plugins section. Go to Edit → Plugins, search for "PloxTools: Google Firebase Complete", and make sure it’s enabled.

Disable Any Other Custom Firebase plugins

Make sure that no other Firebase-related plugins are active, as they may override or conflict with this plugin. Go to Edit → Plugins and disable any third-party Firebase plugins. Only one Firebase integration can be active in a project at a time. Having multiple Firebase plugins enabled will cause dependency and initialization conflicts.

Create and Register Your Firebase Project

To use Firebase services in your project, you must have an active Firebase account and a Firebase project associated with your application. Firebase uses the same Google account system as Google Play Console, so no separate registration is required.

  1. Go to the Firebase Console.
  2. Sign in using your Google account (typically the same account used for Google Play Console).
  3. Click Add project.
  4. Enter a project name and follow the setup steps.
  5. Once the setup is complete, you will be redirected to the Firebase project dashboard.

This Firebase project will serve as the central configuration point for all Firebase services used by your Unreal Engine application.

Add Your Android App to Firebase

After creating a Firebase project, you need to register your Android application inside it. This step links your Unreal Engine app to the Firebase backend and defines which package name Firebase will recognize.

  1. In the Firebase Console, open your project and click Add app, then select Android.
  2. In the Android package name field, enter the exact package name used by your Unreal Engine project (for example com.company.appname).
  3. Make sure the package name matches Project Settings → Android → Package Name in Unreal Engine exactly, as any mismatch will prevent Firebase from initializing correctly.
  4. The App nickname field is optional and is only used for identification inside the Firebase Console.
  5. Click Register app to continue.

At this stage, Firebase will offer to download the google-services.json file. Downloading it is not required immediately and can be safely skipped for now if you plan to configure SHA keys or authentication providers later. The configuration file can be downloaded again at any time from the Firebase Console.

Optional: Configure SHA Keys (Required for Authentication)

Some Firebase Authentication providers require SHA keys to be registered in your Firebase project. This is mandatory for features such as Google Sign-In and recommended for other authentication flows.

Firebase uses SHA-1 and SHA-256 fingerprints generated from the keystore used to sign your Android application.

Generate SHA Keys from Your Release Keystore

It is recommended to generate SHA keys from your release keystore, as this is the keystore used to sign builds uploaded to Google Play. Using debug keys is generally unnecessary and may lead to authentication issues in production.

  1. Locate the release keystore used by your Unreal Engine project. This file is typically specified in Project Settings → Android → Distribution Signing or provided during packaging for release builds.
  2. Open a command prompt or terminal.
  3. Run the following command, replacing the keystore path and alias with your own values: keytool -list -v -keystore "C:\path\to\your\release.keystore" -alias your_key_alias
  4. When prompted, enter the keystore password.
  5. Copy the displayed SHA-1 and SHA-256 fingerprints.

The keystore file can be located anywhere on your system. The command must point to the exact keystore file used for signing your release builds.

Example

If your release keystore file

  • is named MyGameRelease.keystore
  • located at C:\Projects\MyGame\Build\Android\MyGameRelease.keystore
  • and the keystore alias is MyGameKey

The command will look like this:

  • keytool -list -v -keystore "C:\Projects\MyGame\Build\Android\MyGameRelease.keystore" -alias MyGameKey

Add SHA Keys to Firebase

  1. Open the Firebase Console and navigate to Project Settings (In the console, find the gear in the upper left corner, click and select "Project Settings").
  2. Scroll down to Your apps section and select your Android app.
  3. Scroll to the SHA certificate fingerprints section.
  4. Add the copied SHA-1 and/or SHA-256 values.
  5. Save the changes.

After adding SHA keys, you can download or re-download the google-services.json file to include the updated configuration.

If you do not use Firebase Authentication providers that require SHA keys, this step can be safely skipped.

Download and Configure google-services.json

Firebase requires a valid google-services.json configuration file to initialize correctly. This file links your Android application package to your Firebase project and is mandatory for all Firebase services.

Download google-services.json

  1. Open the Firebase Console and navigate to Project Settings (In the console, find the gear in the upper left corner, click and select "Project Settings").
  2. Scroll down to the Your apps section and select your registered Android app.
  3. In the app configuration section, download the google-services.json file.
  4. If you have just added or updated SHA keys, make sure to download the file again to include the latest configuration.

The configuration file can always be re-downloaded from this location if needed.

Store the Configuration File

Place the google-services.json file in a safe and stable location on your system, preferably close to your Unreal Engine project directory. The file does not need to be inside the project itself, but its path must remain valid and accessible during packaging.

Avoid placing the file in temporary folders or locations that may change or be deleted.

Configure the Plugin Settings

  1. Open Project Settings in Unreal Engine.
  2. Navigate to Plugins → PloxTools: Google Firebase Complete.
  3. Locate the setting google-services.json Path.
  4. Set the full path to your downloaded google-services.json file.

The plugin will automatically process this file during the build and inject all required Firebase configuration into the Android project.

Important Notes

  • The package name inside google-services.json must exactly match your Unreal Engine Android package name.
  • If the file is missing, invalid, or points to a different package name, Firebase initialization will fail.
  • Firebase will not function without a correctly configured google-services.json file.

Once this step is completed, the Firebase plugin is fully configured and ready for initialization.

Using Firebase Nodes in Blueprints

Once the plugin is enabled, all available Firebase functions become accessible directly in Blueprints. Each Firebase service is exposed under its own subcategory.

To view them:

  1. Right-click anywhere in the Blueprint graph.
  2. Use the search bar or scroll through the action list.
  3. Open the Firebase category — it contains all functions provided by the plugin.

Enable C++ Access (Optional)

If you plan to call the plugin directly from C++ code, you need to include its module in your project’s Build.cs file.

Open your project’s *.Build.cs file and add "PloxToolsFirebase" to the public dependency modules list:

PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] { 
"Core", "CoreUObject", "Engine", "InputCore", 
"EnhancedInput", "PloxToolsFirebase" });

Once the module is added, you can include the plugin’s header in your C++ classes:

#include "FirebaseCPPLibrary.h"

After that, the plugin’s functions will be available for direct use in your code. To view all available methods, simply Ctrl + Left Click on FirebaseCPPLibrary.h — this will open the header file with the full list of exposed functions.

Once these steps are complete, the plugin is ready to use in your project.