Defining Project Metadata

by

Table of Contents

3.1 Group ID, Artifact ID, and Version

The combination of group ID, artifact ID, and version uniquely identifies a Maven project. The group ID typically represents the project’s organization, while the artifact ID identifies the project itself. The version specifies the project’s release version.


<groupId>com.example</groupId>
<artifactId>my-project</artifactId>
<version>1.0.0</version>

3.2 Packaging Type

The packaging type in the POM defines the format in which the project is packaged. Maven supports various packaging types, such as jar, war, pom, and more. The packaging type influences the build output and lifecycle phases.


<packaging>jar</packaging>

3.3 Project Inheritance

Project inheritance enables you to create parent-child relationships between POMs. A parent POM defines common configurations, dependencies, and properties. Child projects can inherit and override these settings, promoting consistency and reducing redundancy.


<parent>
<groupId>com.example</groupId>
<artifactId>parent-project</artifactId>
<version>1.0.0</version>
</parent>

3.4 Property Management

Properties in the POM allow you to define reusable values that can be referenced throughout the project. They enhance maintainability by centralizing configuration, and you can use properties for setting version numbers, directory paths, and more.


<properties>
<java.version>1.8</java.version>
<project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
</properties>

In conclusion, the project metadata defined in the POM establishes the project’s identity, packaging, inheritance, and properties. Understanding and properly configuring project metadata are fundamental to successful Maven project management and build processes.

Leave a Comment