Configuring a Maven project to build modules for Pineapple

This document illustrates how to create a simple web application project and configure the project to build a module for Pineapple.

Setting up a web project takes these steps:

  • Create a simple web application project.
  • Extend the project with the source for the Pineapple module.
  • Adding an assembly descriptor to the project.
  • Build the project.

Create a simple web application project

Create a web application project using the archetype plugin:

mvn archetype:create 
  -DgroupId=org.alpha.webapp
  -DartifactId=webapp
  -DarchetypeArtifactId=maven-archetype-webapp

Which creates a Maven project with this layout: 

webapp
 |-- src
 |   `-- main
 |       `-- java
 |           |-- resources
 |           |-- webapp
 |           |   `-- WEB-INF
 |           |       `-- web.xml
 |           `-- index.jsp
  `-- pom.xml

Extend the project with the source for the Pineapple module

Add a new source directory named pineapple to the project which will contain the source for the module.

Create these directories and file:

  • src/main/pineapple
    • The directory is the root directory for the module.
  • src/main/pineapple/app
    • The directory is a placeholder directory which at runtime time for operations will contain the project artifact if the projects creates a deployable artifact.
  • add an empty file named dummy.txt to the app directory for the sake of CVS.
  • src/main/pineapple/plan
    • Contains deployment plans if the project artifact is deployed using deployment plans.
  • src/main/plineapple/properties
    • This is the most important directory in the module.
    • The directory contains a property file for each environment in which the project artifact is used.

The resulting project layout is :

webapp
 |-- src
 |   `-- main
 |       |-- pineapple
 |       |   |-- app
 |       |   |   `-- dummy.txt
 |       |   |-- plan
 |       |   `-- properties
 |       `-- java
 |           |-- resources
 |           |-- webapp
 |           |   `-- WEB-INF
 |           |       `-- web.xml
 |           `-- index.jsp
  `-- pom.xml

Add assembly descriptor

An assembly is configured to create an project binary which contains the pineapple directory and its content.

Create the directory src/main/assembly.

Add an assembly descriptor named pineapple.xml to the assembly directory.

The resulting project layout is :

webapp
 |-- src
 |   `-- main
 |       |-- assembly
 |       |   `-- pineapple.xml 
 |       |-- pineapple
 |       |   |-- app
 |       |   |   `-- dummy.txt
 |       |   |-- plan
 |       |   `-- properties
 |       `-- java
 |           |-- resources
 |           |-- webapp
 |           |   `-- WEB-INF
 |           |       `-- web.xml
 |           `-- index.jsp
  `-- pom.xml

Put this content into the assembly descriptor:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<assembly>
  <id>deployment</id>
  <formats>
    <format>zip</format>
    <format>dir</format>    
  </formats>
  <fileSets>
    <fileSet>
      <directory>src/main/pineapple</directory>
      <outputDirectory></outputDirectory>
      <excludes>
        <exclude>**/dummy.txt</exclude>
      </excludes>
    </fileSet>
  </fileSets>
  <files>
    <file>
      <source>${basedir}/target/${artifactId}-${version}.war</source>
      <outputDirectory>app</outputDirectory>
      <destName>${artifactId}-${version}.war</destName>
    </file>
  </files>  
</assembly>

Configure the project to use the assembly plugin (with the assembly descriptor) as part of the build process by adding this to the POM in the build/plugins section:

  <build>
    <plugins>
      ...
      ...
      ...
      <plugin>
        <artifactId>maven-assembly-plugin</artifactId>
        <version>2.1</version>
        <configuration>
          <descriptors>
            <descriptor>src/main/assembly/pineapple.xml</descriptor>
          </descriptors>
        </configuration>
        <executions>
          <execution>
            <phase>package</phase>
            <goals>
              <goal>attached</goal>
            </goals>
          </execution>
        </executions>
      </plugin>
      ...
      ...
    </plugins>
  </build>

Note: The assembly plugin is attached to the Maven package phase. If the project is built using a package goal then the assembly plugin is invoked as part of the build process.

Build the project

Build the project by executing the following command:

mvn clean package

The target directory will contain:

webapp
 |-- src
 |-- target
 |   |-- webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT
 |   |-- webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT-pineapple.dir
 |   |-- webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT-pineapple.zip 
 |   `-- webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT.war

The webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT contains an exploded build of the application.

The webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT.war contains the "zipped" build of the application.

The webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT-pineapple.dir contains an exploded build of the application including the module which needed by Pineapple.

The webapp-1.0-SNAPSHOT-pineapple.zip contains an zipped build of the application including the module which needed by Pineapple.