Android Question Google Maps Broken ? - Fixed

[RichardN]

I have a mature app that calls to the Google Maps API that has been working for a couple of years. Suddenly where there used to be a map is a blank white map with the multi-coloured Google logo bottom left and the +/- zoom feature bottom right.

I have another app registered to use precisely the same API key which is working just fine, although obviously under a different app ID. Both apps have been running OK on an Android 8.0 platform for some time. There are no quota limits for this API so ???

Anybody else seen this?

 

[DonManfred]

It depends on the Api.
Which Api are you explicitely calling/using?
Do you have added a Billing to your Account?

Edit to add: Google Maps itself is free. The problem may be the Apis you are using. Google has change the policy. You now need to have a valid Api key for some Apis and you do need to have Billing added to your Account.

 

[RichardN]

DM....

- I am simply using the Maps SDK For Android.
- The credentials for this application (and 4 others) in the API console are unchanged from when the app was working correctly.
- The Maps Access key is common to 5 different applications, all the others are working correctly.
- I set up billing ages ago when the requirement was announced by Google. If the lack of correct billing were the cause, surely the others would be broken as well?

On the face of it this looks like some sort of authentication problem between the app credentials and Google but I can't be sure.

Maybe the problem lies with Google servers?

 

[DonManfred]

The Maps Access key is common to 5 different applications

And you added the sha-1 key for all apps using this Key?

I am using one Key per App and it is working fine for all my projects.
After this thread i just tested them a few minutes ago.

I set up billing ages ago when the requirement was announced by Google

In the mail from google they provided a link to a check-billing page and from there, if i remember correctly, you can go to a site where the use of your api keys is listed and can be checked... Maybe you´ll find some answer there?

Did you tried to check the unfiltered log in b4a to maybe find some infos there?

 

[RichardN]

DM.... Thanks for your suggestions.

The SHA1 key was verified present and correct at the outset. The Google billing information is all as expected. (I have apps with a much greater gMap hit rate using exactly the same API key that are all still working normally.)

This app has been in distribution for the last two years with the current version published in June 2018 all working perfectly so I would like to exhaust all other possibilities before presuming the present version is broken and try to debug a fault that might be an external Google issue.

This issue has not filtered back to me yet from any users so it may be confined to my development device. I will report further.

 

[RichardN]

I have now had reports of the same behaviour from 2 users so the issue is not confined to my device.

Re-installation of the package in release or debug has had no effect on this behaviour and no errors are evident in normal or unfiltered logs.

Presuming an issue with Google I deleted the app from the list of authorised package names in the API console, I saved the data then closed. I then recreated the exact same package name with the same SHA-1 signing-certificate fingerprint and saved.

After a few minutes the app now works normally again without the blank map.

How very frustrating