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Import Local Asset

The Android editor provides an optional asset source that indexes the device gallery (images and videos) via the Android MediaStore. This section explains how to opt in, how the default (upload-only) workflow behaves, and how to take care of the required permissions when the gallery integration is enabled.

Default behavior#

  • By default, the SDK keeps the system gallery disabled and relies on the upload buttons and camera intents. The Gallery section stays visible but starts empty and fills with the media that users add or capture while editing. This means no storage permissions are requested automatically and the media picker is handled by system intents.
  • Opt in by calling SystemGalleryPermission.setMode inside your EditorConfiguration.onCreate callback (or any later editor scope). This keeps the opt-in explicit even when you rely on the helper composables.
  • Once enabled, the asset library shows a Gallery section and the dock/timeline expose a Gallery quick action (Dock.Button.rememberSystemGallery). When end users only grant partial access (Android 14+ “selected photos”), the UI combines the selected items with the MediaStore listing.
import ly.img.editor.core.configuration.EditorConfiguration
import ly.img.editor.core.library.data.SystemGalleryConfiguration
import ly.img.editor.core.library.data.SystemGalleryPermission


@Composable
fun rememberEditorConfiguration(): EditorConfiguration =
    EditorConfiguration.remember {
        onCreate = {
            // Do scene and assets loading
            SystemGalleryPermission.setMode(SystemGalleryConfiguration.Enabled)
        }
    }

If you override the default onCreate handler or build your own engine bootstrap, add the sources manually as shown below.

import ly.img.editor.core.library.data.SystemGalleryConfiguration
import ly.img.editor.core.library.data.SystemGalleryPermission


suspend fun onCreate(engine: Engine) {
    engine.addDefaultAssetSources()
    SystemGalleryPermission.setMode(SystemGalleryConfiguration.Enabled)
    // …register any additional asset sources that you need afterwards
}

The in-editor gallery relies on three sources:

  • AssetSourceType.GalleryAllVisuals – combined images and videos (used for the default Gallery section)
  • AssetSourceType.GalleryImage
  • AssetSourceType.GalleryVideo

They are exposed in LibraryCategory.getElements and can also be consumed directly from custom LibraryContent definitions. When SystemGalleryConfiguration.Disabled is used, the sources only list the URIs that were manually added during the current session.

Permissions and manifest setup#

  • Declare the following permissions in your app manifest so the runtime requests can be triggered:

    • READ_MEDIA_IMAGES and READ_MEDIA_VIDEO on Android 13+
    • READ_MEDIA_VISUAL_USER_SELECTED on Android 14+ (to support the selected photos mode)
    • Fallback to READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE on Android 12 and lower

  • The built-in gallery UI and Dock.Button.rememberSystemGallery request the appropriate permissions via ActivityResultContracts.RequestMultiplePermissions and keep SystemGalleryPermission in sync automatically.

  • If you build your own UI layer, use SystemGalleryPermission.requiredPermission(mimeTypes) to obtain the permission set and call SystemGalleryPermission.addSelected(uri, context) for every user-selected URI when the picker returns limited access.

Once the permissions are granted, SystemGalleryAssetSource paginates over MediaStore and refreshes the gallery section automatically.

Legacy upload flow#

The UploadsOnlyAssetLibraryEditorSolution sample demonstrates how to replace the default gallery sections with the classic uploads picker and how to adjust the timeline options accordingly.

assetLibrary = {
    remember {
        val uploadsOnlyImages = LibraryCategory.Images.copy(
            content = LibraryContent.Sections(
                titleRes = ly.img.editor.core.R.string.ly_img_editor_asset_library_title_images,
                sections = listOf(
                    LibraryContent.Section(
                        titleRes = ly.img.editor.core.R.string.ly_img_editor_asset_library_section_image_uploads,
                        sourceTypes = listOf(AssetSourceType.ImageUploads),
                        assetType = AssetType.Image,
                        expandContent = LibraryContent.Grid(
                            titleRes = ly.img.editor.core.R.string.ly_img_editor_asset_library_section_image_uploads,
                            sourceType = AssetSourceType.ImageUploads,
                            assetType = AssetType.Image,
                        ),
                    ),
                ),
            ),
        )
        AssetLibrary.getDefault(images = uploadsOnlyImages)
    }
}

If you also want to hide the gallery quick action from the timeline menu, update the global configuration:

Optional: TimelineConfiguration lives in the editor-base module. You can only adjust it if your app includes it.

import ly.img.editor.base.timeline.state.AddClipOption
import ly.img.editor.base.timeline.state.TimelineConfiguration


TimelineConfiguration.addClipOptions = listOf(AddClipOption.Camera, AddClipOption.Library)
  • Update other categories (for example the combined LibraryCategory.getElements) the same way if you need to hide gallery sections globally.
  • The stock dock and timeline buttons open the image category, so once that category only contains AssetSourceType.ImageUploads, the uploads picker shows up automatically.