Introduction to Maven

What is Maven?

Maven is a powerful build automation and project management tool used primarily for Java projects. It simplifies the build process, manages dependencies, and provides an effective way to manage project lifecycles.

Key Concepts

• **Project Object Model (POM)**: The fundamental unit of work in Maven, describing the project's configuration.
• **Dependencies**: External libraries or components that your project requires.
• **Repositories**: Storage locations for your project artifacts and dependencies.
• **Plugins**: Used to perform specific tasks during the build process.

Installation

1. Download Maven from the official site: Apache Maven.
2. Unzip the downloaded archive to a directory.
3. Add the `bin` directory of the created directory to the `PATH` environment variable.
4. Verify the installation by running `mvn -version` in the command line.

Project Structure

A typical Maven project follows a standard directory structure:

my-app/
|-- pom.xml
`-- src/
    |-- main/
    |   `-- java/
    |-- test/
        `-- java/
        

Build Process

The Maven build process involves several phases defined in the POM. The key phases include:

• **validate**: Check if the project is correct and all necessary information is available.
• **compile**: Compile the source code.
• **test**: Test the compiled code using a suitable testing framework.
• **package**: Package the compiled code into a distributable format (e.g., JAR).
• **install**: Install the package into the local repository.
• **deploy**: Copy the final package to the remote repository.

Best Practices

• Keep dependencies up to date.
• Use a consistent versioning scheme.
• Utilize profiles for different environments (development, testing, production).
• Document your build process and configurations in the POM.

FAQ

<dependencies>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.apache.commons</groupId>
        <artifactId>commons-lang3</artifactId>
        <version>3.12.0</version>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>