Jenkins (software)
Encyclopedia
Jenkins, previously known as Hudson
, is an open source
continuous integration
tool written in Java
. The project renamed itself after a dispute with Oracle
who claims the right to trademark the Hudson name and has applied for such a trademark as of December 2010. Complicating matters, Oracle has decided to continue development under the Hudson name, creating two parallel versions each considering the other a fork
.
Jenkins provides continuous integration services for software development, primarily in the Java programming language. It is a server-based system running in a servlet container such as Apache Tomcat
. It supports SCM tools including CVS
, Subversion, Git
, Mercurial
and Clearcase, and can execute Apache Ant
and Apache Maven
based projects as well as arbitrary shell scripts and Windows batch commands. The primary developer of Jenkins is Kohsuke Kawaguchi. Released under the MIT License
, Jenkins is free software
.
Builds can be started by various means, including being triggered by commit in a version control system, scheduling via a cron
-like mechanism, building when other builds have completed, and by requesting a specific build URL.
Around 2007 the project emerged as a popular alternative to CruiseControl
and other open-source build servers. At the JavaOne
conference in May 2008 the software was the winner of the Duke's Choice Award in the Developer Solutions category.
. Negotiations between the principal project contributors and Oracle took place, and although there were many areas of agreement a key sticking point was the trademarked
name "Hudson". As a result, on January 11, 2011, a call for votes was made to change the project name from "Hudson" to "Jenkins". The proposal was overwhelmingly approved by community vote on January 29, 2011 creating the Jenkins project. On February 1, 2011 Oracle indicated that they intended to continue development of Hudson, considering Jenkins to be a fork rather than a rename. Jenkins and Hudson will therefore continue as two independent projects, each claiming the other is the fork. As of 13. May 2011, Jenkins had 98 project members and 507 public repositories on github, Hudson 8 project members and 1 public repository. The one month bug statistics is similar: for Jenkins 270 bugs were opened and 182 closed, for Hudson 32 bugs were opened and 37 closed the last thirty days. By number of commits both projects show currently still approximately the same numbers.
Builds can generate test reports in various formats (JUnit
is supported out-of-the-box, others via plugins) and Jenkins can display the reports and generate trends and render them in the GUI.
Hudson (software)
Hudson is a continuous integration tool written in Java, which runs in a servlet container, such as Apache Tomcat or the GlassFish application server. It supports SCM tools including CVS, Subversion, Git and Clearcase and can execute Apache Ant and Apache Maven based projects, as well as arbitrary...
, is an open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
continuous integration
Continuous integration
In software engineering, continuous integration implements continuous processes of applying quality control — small pieces of effort, applied frequently...
tool written in Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
. The project renamed itself after a dispute with Oracle
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
who claims the right to trademark the Hudson name and has applied for such a trademark as of December 2010. Complicating matters, Oracle has decided to continue development under the Hudson name, creating two parallel versions each considering the other a fork
Fork (software development)
In software engineering, a project fork happens when developers take a legal copy of source code from one software package and start independent development on it, creating a distinct piece of software...
.
Jenkins provides continuous integration services for software development, primarily in the Java programming language. It is a server-based system running in a servlet container such as Apache Tomcat
Apache Tomcat
Apache Tomcat is an open source web server and servlet container developed by the Apache Software Foundation...
. It supports SCM tools including CVS
Concurrent Versions System
The Concurrent Versions System , also known as the Concurrent Versioning System, is a client-server free software revision control system in the field of software development. Version control system software keeps track of all work and all changes in a set of files, and allows several developers ...
, Subversion, Git
Git (software)
Git is a distributed revision control system with an emphasis on speed. Git was initially designed and developed by Linus Torvalds for Linux kernel development. Every Git working directory is a full-fledged repository with complete history and full revision tracking capabilities, not dependent on...
, Mercurial
Mercurial
Mercurial is a cross-platform, distributed revision control tool for software developers. It is mainly implemented using the Python programming language, but includes a binary diff implementation written in C. It is supported on Windows and Unix-like systems, such as FreeBSD, Mac OS X and Linux...
and Clearcase, and can execute Apache Ant
Apache Ant
Apache Ant is a software tool for automating software build processes. It is similar to Make but is implemented using the Java language, requires the Java platform, and is best suited to building Java projects....
and Apache Maven
Apache Maven
Maven is a build automation and software comprehension tool. While primarily used for Java programming, it can also be used to build and manage projects written in C#, Ruby, Scala, and other languages. Maven serves a similar purpose to the Apache Ant tool, but it is based on different concepts and...
based projects as well as arbitrary shell scripts and Windows batch commands. The primary developer of Jenkins is Kohsuke Kawaguchi. Released under the MIT License
MIT License
The MIT License is a free software license originating at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . It is a permissive license, meaning that it permits reuse within proprietary software provided all copies of the licensed software include a copy of the MIT License terms...
, Jenkins is free software
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
.
Builds can be started by various means, including being triggered by commit in a version control system, scheduling via a cron
Cron
Cron is a time-based job scheduler in Unix-like computer operating systems. Cron enables users to schedule jobs to run periodically at certain times or dates...
-like mechanism, building when other builds have completed, and by requesting a specific build URL.
Around 2007 the project emerged as a popular alternative to CruiseControl
CruiseControl
In software development, CruiseControl is a Java-based framework for a continuous build process. It includes, but is not limited to, plugins for email notification, Ant, and various source control tools. A web interface is provided to view the details of the current and previous builds...
and other open-source build servers. At the JavaOne
JavaOne
JavaOne is an annual conference inaugurated in 1996 by Sun Microsystems to discuss Java technologies, primarily among Java developers. JavaOne is held in San Francisco, California typically running from Monday to Thursday. Technical sessions on a variety of topics are held during the day. In the...
conference in May 2008 the software was the winner of the Duke's Choice Award in the Developer Solutions category.
Hudson
Jenkins was originally developed as the Hudson project. During November 2010, an issue arose in the Hudson community with respect to the infrastructure used, which grew to encompass questions over the stewardship and control by OracleOracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
. Negotiations between the principal project contributors and Oracle took place, and although there were many areas of agreement a key sticking point was the trademarked
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
name "Hudson". As a result, on January 11, 2011, a call for votes was made to change the project name from "Hudson" to "Jenkins". The proposal was overwhelmingly approved by community vote on January 29, 2011 creating the Jenkins project. On February 1, 2011 Oracle indicated that they intended to continue development of Hudson, considering Jenkins to be a fork rather than a rename. Jenkins and Hudson will therefore continue as two independent projects, each claiming the other is the fork. As of 13. May 2011, Jenkins had 98 project members and 507 public repositories on github, Hudson 8 project members and 1 public repository. The one month bug statistics is similar: for Jenkins 270 bugs were opened and 182 closed, for Hudson 32 bugs were opened and 37 closed the last thirty days. By number of commits both projects show currently still approximately the same numbers.
Plugins
Plugins have been released for Jenkins, extending it beyond purely being a build tool for Java projects. Plugins are available for integrating Jenkins with most version control systems and bug databases. Many build tools are supported via their respective plugins. Plugins can also change the way Jenkins looks or add new functionality.Builds can generate test reports in various formats (JUnit
JUnit
JUnit is a unit testing framework for the Java programming language. JUnit has been important in the development of test-driven development, and is one of a family of unit testing frameworks collectively known as xUnit that originated with SUnit....
is supported out-of-the-box, others via plugins) and Jenkins can display the reports and generate trends and render them in the GUI.
See also
- Continuous integration software
External links
- Jenkins homepage
- Hudson homepage
- Hudson Labs
- Hudson presentation
- Jenkins tutorial video
- Hudson free book
- Hudson and CI related articles
- Jenkins creator Kohsuke Kawaguchi on The Changelog podcast talking about the project origin and name change
- 7 Ways to Optimize Jenkins/Hudson from founder Kohsuke Kawaguchi