Is it possible to attach an Android res/drawable file to an email using Javamail?

Question

I’m looking for a two-way solution:

• Get the file path:

I would like to get the path of an image that is in res/drawable on my Android project.

I’m in need of the path because I have to send it in attachment by email, and I’m using Javamail for this and he only accepts one path or a File, for attached file.

• Getting Javamail to accept a Bitmap:

Change way of creating the email attachment, today I’m doing so:

MimeMultipart content = new MimeMultipart();
MimeBodyPart attachmentPart = new MimeBodyPart();
// aqui teria que setar um bitmap ao inves de um Path ou File;
attachmentPart.attachFile(attachment);
attachmentPart.setContentID("<image>");
attachmentPart.setDisposition(MimeBodyPart.INLINE);
content.addBodyPart(attachmentPart);

I’ll try to explain the problem a little better:

I need this so that if I don’t find a user-configured logo (in a specific folder and with a specific name on sdcard) for email signature, then I would use a default logo from my application, and this default logo is available in my Sources (res/drawable)since he is unchanging.

I saw the solution that @ramaral posted, but although good, it’s not a solution that I expected, I believe there must be another way, because I have to make a copy of the image for sdcard. I don’t think "smell good".

Final solution with the help of the answers cited

Using the Bytearraydatasource as quoted by @Elcio Arthur Cardoso in his reply, I switched my method that includes the attachment to allow attaching a file on byte[] thus:

MimeMultipart content = new MimeMultipart();

// ... add message part

// converter bitmap to byte[]
Bitmap bitmap = BitmapFactory.decodeResource(getResources(), R.drawable.transparent_1x1);
ByteArrayOutputStream stream = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
bitmap.compress(Bitmap.CompressFormat.PNG, 100, stream);
byte[] imageBytes = stream.toByteArray();

// criar anexo do email, apartir de um array de byte (byte[])
MimeBodyPart attachmentPart = new MimeBodyPart();
DataHandler handlerAttach = new DataHandler(new ByteArrayDataSource(imageBytes));
attachmentPart.setDataHandler(handlerAttach);
attachmentPart.setFileName("image.png");
attachmentPart.setContentID("<image>");
attachmentPart.setDisposition(MimeBodyPart.INLINE);
content.addBodyPart(attachmentPart);

That solution worked perfectly for my case.

Answer 1

You cannot directly access the path or file because the resources are compiled together with the application.

What you can do is create a Bitmap from the resource.

Resources resources= getResources();
Bitmap bitMap = BitmapFactory.decodeResource(resources, R.drawable.image);

The Bitmap can be recorded in the SdCard, then you can send it by email. See here how to record.

Answer 2

Searching, I found a solution I couldn’t test because I’m not home...

At first, you can access your app’s drawable with a protocol-based URI android.resource.

To access a drawable through the File would be:

File image = new File("android.resource://package_do_app/"+ R.drawable.image);

As I said earlier, I couldn’t test, if the code doesn’t work I delete the answer. If I’m breaking any rules in the O.R., I apologize in advance.

The source is this question from SO OFFICIAL. Another source with more details.

From what was found, the above form is not uniform for all versions of Android.

Therefore, analyzing the documentation of the MimeBodyPart Javamail, there is a Constructor that receives a InputStream, and how on Android it is possible to get a InputStream from a Drawable strictly located in the folder raw.

To recover a InputStream from a Drawable that’s in the folder resource/raw I do it this way:

public class AssetsHelper {
    public static InputStream readRawResource(Context context, int rawResId) {
        return context.getResources().openRawResource(rawResId);
    }
}

From your code, I would do something like:

MimeBodyPart attachmentPart = new MimeBodyPart(AssetsHelper.readRawResource(getApplicationContext(), R.raw.transparent1x1);
//... Restante do código

Putting your image on res/raw should work.

Answer 3

You should read the file the way the @ramaral spoke:

Resources resources= getResources();
Bitmap bitMap = BitmapFactory.decodeResource(resources, R.drawable.image);

but instead of recording to the Sdcard, you can attach direct using the Bytearraydatasource javamail.

These links (in English) should help:

• Send Email Attachement using byte[] with Java-Mail

• Sending Emails with Attachments Using Javamail