Build automation - Ant, Maven and Continuum

Working with global team use to be much complex before than now. When we started global development team for a product, following are main issues with the process we faced

• How to maintain code base, access single repository. I remember we schedule time for moving files into repository and check-out, in our project plan. Then we come up with replication model, but this is also complicated when we take build. Always need to check the files are latest / still some member are working on the product
• Build process is also need to be in same place (WAN / LAN) with the repository. Otherwise it would take hours to complete build. We needed remote access to build process too.

So we were introduced to ant build process in 2001.

• First started with just an ant build process (without fetching files from repository)
• Enhanced to fetch files from repository
• Developed custom web application which manages build process and sends mails on build process

Then onwards we started following same process for all our projects. Its streamlined and works great.

Recently we have moved from old repository to open source subversion. It is great for development and make build process simple.

We are moving into Maven and planning to integrate with CI. I found following sources are useful and I could complete setup within 2 hours.

• Maven - link : These steps are very easy to follow "Getting started"
• CI - Build automation - Comparison document (great one)
• I found continuum is powerful and easy to integrate with any type of build process and repository

See all the great features of build history, manual execution, scheduling, build dependency, report generation and notification.

Now this need to be moved step by step without distrubing existing process.

1. Move simple build process like stand alone application into maven
2. integrate with Continuum
3. Find out the suitability and stablility

Then follow same phases for other application like webapps and ear.