###一. Android中ClassLoader的种类
Android的ClassLoader与Java的ClassLoader基本是一一对应的。如果对Java的ClassLoader不是很了解,可以参考《【Java 虚拟机】类加载器》。

  • BootClassLoader(Java的BootStrap ClassLoader)
    用于加载Android Framework层class文件。
  • PathClassLoader(Java的App ClassLoader)
    用于加载已经安装到系统中的apk中的class文件。
  • DexClassLoader(Java的Custom ClassLoader)
    用于加载指定目录中的class文件。
  • BaseDexClassLoader
    是PathClassLoader和DexClassLoader的父类。
    ###二. Android中ClassLoader的特点
    遵循双亲委派模型

ClassLoader在加载一个class文件时:会询问当前ClassLoader是否已经加载过子类,如果已经加载过则直接返回,不再重复加载。如果没有加载过,会去查询当前ClassLoader的parent是否已经加载过。

因为遵循双亲委派模型,Android中的classLoader具有两个特点:

  • 类加载共享
    当一个class文件被任何一个ClassLoader加载过,就不会再被其他ClassLoader加载。
  • 类加载隔离
    不同ClassLoader加载的class文件肯定不是一个。举个栗子,一些系统层级的class文件在系统初始化的时候被加载,比如java.net.String,这个是在应用启动前就被系统加载好的。如果在一个应用里能简单地用一个自定义的String类把这个String类替换掉的话,将有严重的安全问题。
    ###三. ClassLoader源码详解
    我们从ClassLoader.java的loadClass()方法看起。我们知道Android的ClassLoader是实现了双亲委派模型的,我们来从源码角度来看下是如何实现的。
protected Class<?> loadClass(String name, boolean resolve)
        throws ClassNotFoundException
    {
            // First, check if the class has already been loaded
            Class c = findLoadedClass(name);
            if (c == null) {
                long t0 = System.nanoTime();
                try {
                    if (parent != null) {
                        c = parent.loadClass(name, false);
                    } else {
                        c = findBootstrapClassOrNull(name);
                    }
                } catch (ClassNotFoundException e) {
                    // ClassNotFoundException thrown if class not found
                    // from the non-null parent class loader
                }

                if (c == null) {
                    // If still not found, then invoke findClass in order
                    // to find the class.
                    long t1 = System.nanoTime();
                    c = findClass(name);

                    // this is the defining class loader; record the stats
                }
            }
            return c;
    }

可以看到,先是判断ClassLoader自身是否加载过该class文件,如果没有再判断父ClassLoader是否加载过,如果都没有加载过再自己去加载。这和我们上述的双亲委派模型思想完全一致。
好了,我们来看下ClassLoader是如何去加载class文件的呢?也就是去看下findClass()方法的具体实现。

protected Class<?> findClass(String name) throws ClassNotFoundException {
        throw new ClassNotFoundException(name);
    }

很遗憾,findClass()方法是一个空实现,也就是说它的具体实现是交给子类的。

android中关于class Build以及如何修改android固件版本号 安卓classloader_dexpathlist


如图,可以看到DexClassLoader和PathClassLoader是ClassLoader的间接实现类。

所以,下面我们来着重讲解一下DexClassLoader和PathClassLoader的源码。

###四. DexClassLoader、PathClassLoader、BaseDexClassLoader源码详解

public class DexClassLoader extends BaseDexClassLoader {

    public DexClassLoader(String dexPath, String optimizedDirectory,
            String libraryPath, ClassLoader parent) {
        super(dexPath, new File(optimizedDirectory), libraryPath, parent);
    }
}

可以看到DexClassLoader的源码非常简单,只有一个构造方法。我们来看下其四个参数都是什么含义。

  • dexPath。要加载的dex文件路径。
  • optimizedDirectory。dex文件要被copy到的目录路径。
  • libraryPath。apk文件中类要使用的c/c++代码。
  • parent。父装载器,也就是真正loadclass的装载器。

我们接下来看PathClassLoader的源码。

public class PathClassLoader extends BaseDexClassLoader {
 
    public PathClassLoader(String dexPath, ClassLoader parent) {
        super(dexPath, null, null, parent);
    }

 
    public PathClassLoader(String dexPath, String libraryPath,
            ClassLoader parent) {
        super(dexPath, null, libraryPath, parent);
    }
}

它的源码也只是有两个构造方法,我们来看第二个构造方法,可以看出,它与DexClassLoader的构造方法的区别就是少了一个要把dex文件copy到的目录路径。正是因为缺少这个路径,我们的PathClassLoader只能用来加载安装过的apk中的dex文件。
这两个ClassLoader的真正核心方法都在BaseDexClassLoader中,我们现在来看下源码。

public class BaseDexClassLoader extends ClassLoader {
    private final DexPathList pathList;

    public BaseDexClassLoader(String dexPath, File optimizedDirectory,
            String librarySearchPath, ClassLoader parent) {
        super(parent);
        this.pathList = new DexPathList(this, dexPath, librarySearchPath, optimizedDirectory);
    }

    @Override
    protected Class<?> findClass(String name) throws ClassNotFoundException {
        List<Throwable> suppressedExceptions = new ArrayList<Throwable>();
        Class c = pathList.findClass(name, suppressedExceptions);
        if (c == null) {
            ClassNotFoundException cnfe = new ClassNotFoundException("Didn't find class \"" + name + "\" on path: " + pathList);
           for (Throwable t : suppressedExceptions) {
                cnfe.addSuppressed(t);
            }
            throw cnfe;
        }
        return c;
    }
    /**
     * @hide
     */
    public void addDexPath(String dexPath) {
        pathList.addDexPath(dexPath, null /*optimizedDirectory*/);
    }

    @Override
    protected URL findResource(String name) {
        return pathList.findResource(name);
    }

    @Override
    protected Enumeration<URL> findResources(String name) {
        return pathList.findResources(name);
    }

    @Override
    public String findLibrary(String name) {
        return pathList.findLibrary(name);
    }


    protected synchronized Package getPackage(String name) {
        if (name != null && !name.isEmpty()) {
            Package pack = super.getPackage(name);

            if (pack == null) {
                pack = definePackage(name, "Unknown", "0.0", "Unknown",
                        "Unknown", "0.0", "Unknown", null);
            }

            return pack;
        }

        return null;
    }

    /**
     * @hide
     */
    public String getLdLibraryPath() {
        StringBuilder result = new StringBuilder();
        for (File directory : pathList.getNativeLibraryDirectories()) {
            if (result.length() > 0) {
                result.append(':');
            }
            result.append(directory);
        }

        return result.toString();
    }

    @Override public String toString() {
        return getClass().getName() + "[" + pathList + "]";
    }
}

可以看到,这个类的实现也是比较简单。我们来分析一下。
我们看到BaseDexClassLoader有一个成员变量DexPathList,其次它的核心方法是findClass()。我们来看下具体实现。

@Override
    protected Class<?> findClass(String name) throws ClassNotFoundException {
        List<Throwable> suppressedExceptions = new ArrayList<Throwable>();
        Class c = pathList.findClass(name, suppressedExceptions);
        if (c == null) {
            ClassNotFoundException cnfe = new ClassNotFoundException("Didn't find class \"" + name + "\" on path: " + pathList);
           for (Throwable t : suppressedExceptions) {
                cnfe.addSuppressed(t);
            }
            throw cnfe;
        }
        return c;
    }

我们看到,findClass其实是通过成员变量pathList的findClass()方法来查找的。
所以,我们接下来还需要去看DexPathList的源码。
###五. DexPathList源码详解(重点)
由于DexPathList源码较长,我们这里分段讲解。
####1. 构造方法

public DexPathList(ClassLoader definingContext, String dexPath,
            String librarySearchPath, File optimizedDirectory) {

        if (definingContext == null) {
            throw new NullPointerException("definingContext == null");
        }

        if (dexPath == null) {
            throw new NullPointerException("dexPath == null");
        }

        if (optimizedDirectory != null) {
            if (!optimizedDirectory.exists())  {
                throw new IllegalArgumentException(
                        "optimizedDirectory doesn't exist: "
                        + optimizedDirectory);
            }

            if (!(optimizedDirectory.canRead()
                            && optimizedDirectory.canWrite())) {
                throw new IllegalArgumentException(
                        "optimizedDirectory not readable/writable: "
                        + optimizedDirectory);
            }
        }

        this.definingContext = definingContext;

        ArrayList<IOException> suppressedExceptions = new ArrayList<IOException>();
        // save dexPath for BaseDexClassLoader
        this.dexElements = makeDexElements(splitDexPath(dexPath), optimizedDirectory,
                                           suppressedExceptions, definingContext);

        this.nativeLibraryDirectories = splitPaths(librarySearchPath, false);
        this.systemNativeLibraryDirectories =
                splitPaths(System.getProperty("java.library.path"), true);
        List<File> allNativeLibraryDirectories = new ArrayList<>(nativeLibraryDirectories);
        allNativeLibraryDirectories.addAll(systemNativeLibraryDirectories);

        this.nativeLibraryPathElements = makePathElements(allNativeLibraryDirectories,
                                                          suppressedExceptions,
                                                          definingContext);

        if (suppressedExceptions.size() > 0) {
            this.dexElementsSuppressedExceptions =
                suppressedExceptions.toArray(new IOException[suppressedExceptions.size()]);
        } else {
            dexElementsSuppressedExceptions = null;
        }
    }

构造方法里最重要的一行代码是

this.dexElements = makeDexElements(splitDexPath(dexPath), optimizedDirectory,
                                           suppressedExceptions, definingContext);

这行代码的意思是构造一个Element数组。那么Element是什么呢?它是DexPathList的一个内部类。

static class Element {
        private final File dir;
        private final boolean isDirectory;
        private final File zip;
        private final DexFile dexFile;

        private ClassPathURLStreamHandler urlHandler;
        private boolean initialized;

        public Element(File dir, boolean isDirectory, File zip, DexFile dexFile) {
            this.dir = dir;
            this.isDirectory = isDirectory;
            this.zip = zip;
            this.dexFile = dexFile;
        }

        @Override public String toString() {
            if (isDirectory) {
                return "directory \"" + dir + "\"";
            } else if (zip != null) {
                return "zip file \"" + zip + "\"" +
                       (dir != null && !dir.getPath().isEmpty() ? ", dir \"" + dir + "\"" : "");
            } else {
                return "dex file \"" + dexFile + "\"";
            }
        }

        public synchronized void maybeInit() {
            if (initialized) {
                return;
            }

            initialized = true;

            if (isDirectory || zip == null) {
                return;
            }

            try {
                urlHandler = new ClassPathURLStreamHandler(zip.getPath());
            } catch (IOException ioe) {
                /*
                 * Note: ZipException (a subclass of IOException)
                 * might get thrown by the ZipFile constructor
                 * (e.g. if the file isn't actually a zip/jar
                 * file).
                 */
                System.logE("Unable to open zip file: " + zip, ioe);
                urlHandler = null;
            }
        }

        public String findNativeLibrary(String name) {
            maybeInit();

            if (isDirectory) {
                String path = new File(dir, name).getPath();
                if (IoUtils.canOpenReadOnly(path)) {
                    return path;
                }
            } else if (urlHandler != null) {
                // Having a urlHandler means the element has a zip file.
                // In this case Android supports loading the library iff
                // it is stored in the zip uncompressed.

                String entryName = new File(dir, name).getPath();
                if (urlHandler.isEntryStored(entryName)) {
                  return zip.getPath() + zipSeparator + entryName;
                }
            }

            return null;
        }

        public URL findResource(String name) {
            maybeInit();

            // We support directories so we can run tests and/or legacy code
            // that uses Class.getResource.
            if (isDirectory) {
                File resourceFile = new File(dir, name);
                if (resourceFile.exists()) {
                    try {
                        return resourceFile.toURI().toURL();
                    } catch (MalformedURLException ex) {
                        throw new RuntimeException(ex);
                    }
                }
            }

            if (urlHandler == null) {
                /* This element has no zip/jar file.
                 */
                return null;
            }
            return urlHandler.getEntryUrlOrNull(name);
        }
    }

其中,它有一个非常重要的成员变量DexFile。
接着回到主流程,我们通过makeDexElements()方法得到了一个elements数组。那么,makeDexElements()方法具体干了什么呢?

private static Element[] makeElements(List<File> files, File optimizedDirectory,
                                          List<IOException> suppressedExceptions,
                                          boolean ignoreDexFiles,
                                          ClassLoader loader) {
        Element[] elements = new Element[files.size()];
        int elementsPos = 0;
        /*
         * Open all files and load the (direct or contained) dex files
         * up front.
         */
        for (File file : files) {
            File zip = null;
            File dir = new File("");
            DexFile dex = null;
            String path = file.getPath();
            String name = file.getName();

            if (path.contains(zipSeparator)) {
                String split[] = path.split(zipSeparator, 2);
                zip = new File(split[0]);
                dir = new File(split[1]);
            } else if (file.isDirectory()) {
                // We support directories for looking up resources and native libraries.
                // Looking up resources in directories is useful for running libcore tests.
                elements[elementsPos++] = new Element(file, true, null, null);
            } else if (file.isFile()) {
                if (!ignoreDexFiles && name.endsWith(DEX_SUFFIX)) {
                    // Raw dex file (not inside a zip/jar).
                    try {
                        dex = loadDexFile(file, optimizedDirectory, loader, elements);
                    } catch (IOException suppressed) {
                        System.logE("Unable to load dex file: " + file, suppressed);
                        suppressedExceptions.add(suppressed);
                    }
                } else {
                    zip = file;

                    if (!ignoreDexFiles) {
                        try {
                            dex = loadDexFile(file, optimizedDirectory, loader, elements);
                        } catch (IOException suppressed) {
                            suppressedExceptions.add(suppressed);
                        }
                    }
                }
            } else {
                System.logW("ClassLoader referenced unknown path: " + file);
            }

            if ((zip != null) || (dex != null)) {
                elements[elementsPos++] = new Element(dir, false, zip, dex);
            }
        }
        if (elementsPos != elements.length) {
            elements = Arrays.copyOf(elements, elementsPos);
        }
        return elements;
    }

它的作用是通过loadDexFile()方法把dex文件都加载出来,然后返回一个elements数组。
接着,我们来看DexPathList中最重要的方法findClass()。

public Class findClass(String name, List<Throwable> suppressed) {
        for (Element element : dexElements) {
            DexFile dex = element.dexFile;

            if (dex != null) {
                Class clazz = dex.loadClassBinaryName(name, definingContext, suppressed);
                if (clazz != null) {
                    return clazz;
                }
            }
        }
        if (dexElementsSuppressedExceptions != null) {
            suppressed.addAll(Arrays.asList(dexElementsSuppressedExceptions));
        }
        return null;
    }

它就是通过遍历elements数组,拿到里面的每一个dex文件,通过DexFile的loadClassBinaryName()方法找到class字节码。通过查看DexFile源码,可以得知loadClassBinaryName()方法最终是调用的底层C++方法来load class。
至此,我们就完整地了解了ClassLoader加载class的具体实现。
###六. 总结
本文讲解了Android中几种ClassLoader的作用,并且从源码角度讲解了class的加载过程。在Android中加载class,其实最终是通过DexPathList的findClass来加载的。
另外,这里贴一下几个文件源码的查看地址。