CMake/Ninja build error caused by long file paths on Windows

When building your React Native app for Android on Windows, you may encounter the following error:

Task :app:buildCMakeDebug[arm64-v8a] FAILED
C/C++: ninja: error: mkdir(nutrient_sdk_react_native_codegen_autolinked_build/CMakeFiles/react_codegen_nutrient_sdk_react_native_codegen.dir/react/renderer/components/nutrient_sdk_react_native_codegen): No such file or directory

Why this happens

Windows has a default maximum file path length of 260 characters (known as MAX_PATH). During an Android build, CMake and Ninja generate deeply nested build directories with long auto-generated names. When your project is located several folders deep in your file system, the combined length of your project path and these generated directory names can exceed the 260-character limit. When that happens, Ninja is unable to create the required directories, and the build fails with a misleading “No such file or directory” error — even though the parent directories exist.

This isn’t caused by your Gradle version or your Nutrient SDK setup; it’s a Windows-specific file system limitation.

Solution

There are two ways to resolve this.

Option 1: Move your project closer to the drive root (recommended)

This is the quickest fix. Move your project to a short path near the root of your drive, for example:

C:\myapp\

This reduces the total path length of all generated build files and keeps you well within the 260-character limit.

Option 2: Enable Win32 long path support on Windows

For a more permanent fix, you can lift the 260-character limit systemwide by enabling Win32 long path support via the Group Policy Editor:

1. Open the Group Policy Editor by pressing Win-R, typing gpedit.msc, and pressing Enter.
2. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Filesystem.
3. Double-click Enable Win32 long paths and set it to Enabled.
4. Click OK and restart your machine.

After restarting, retry your build with npx expo run:android (or your equivalent build command).