Artifactory: Centralizing Artifact Management for DevOps Success

Seun BSeun B
8 min read

Introduction

In software development environment, the need for efficient artifact management is paramount. As a DevOps Engineer, I recognized the necessity of streamlining the deployment process and ensuring a reliable artifact repository for Java applications. To achieve this, I recently embarked on a journey to set up Artifactory on cloud server. In this blog, I will share the steps I took to accomplish this, detailing the installation and configuration processes along the way.

Purpose

Artifactory management serve as vital components in a DevOps pipeline. They provide a centralized location to store and manage artifacts produced during the software development lifecycle. It is known for its rich feature set, including support for various package types, advanced search capabilities, and user management features.

The Situation:

As a DevOps Engineer, I once faced challenges with a team concerning dependency management and artifact storage, ultimately leading to delays in deployment when locally stored packages were accidentally deleted. The absence of a centralized repository made it difficult to track versions and manage dependencies effectively. To overcome these challenges, I decided to deploy Nexus to manage the artifacts while maven was already used in the environment to build the Java applications.

Let's start simple. First, we will put our Java app on Apache Tomcat, which is a web server. This helps us check if our app works right on a basic website. If it works here, we know it's good to go.

Pre-requisites: Ubuntu Server or any other Linux server

1. Installing Tomcat

Create a Tomcat User

sudo useradd -m -d /opt/tomcat -U -s /bin/false tomcat

Update the Linux Package Manager Cache

sudo apt update

Install Java

sudo apt install openjdk-17-jdk
java -version

Download and Install Tomcat Before downloading, confirm the latest Tomcat build package from the official website.

# Download Tomcat
cd /tmp
wget https://dlcdn.apache.org/tomcat/tomcat-11/v11.0.0-M26/bin/apache-tomcat-11.0.0-M26.tar.gz

# Extract Tomcat files
sudo tar xzvf apache-tomcat-11*tar.gz -C /opt/tomcat --strip-components=1

# Set ownership and permissions
sudo chown -R tomcat:tomcat /opt/tomcat/
sudo chmod -R u+x /opt/tomcat/bin

Configure Users for Tomcat:

  • Edit the tomcat-users.xml file to define user roles and access:
sudo nano /opt/tomcat/conf/tomcat-users.xml

Add the following lines before the closing </tomcat-users> tag:

<role rolename="manager-gui" />
<user username="manager" password="xxxxxxx" roles="manager-gui" />

<role rolename="admin-gui" />
<user username="admin" password="xxxxxxx" roles="manager-gui,admin-gui" />

Replace with your chosen password

image

Allow Remote Access:

  • To enable access to the Manager and Host Manager pages, edit the context.xml files:
# Edit Manager context file
sudo nano /opt/tomcat/webapps/manager/META-INF/context.xml

Comment out the Valve definition in this file by adding arrows to the beginning and end of line. Repeat the same for the Host Manager context file:

# Edit Host Manager context file
sudo nano /opt/tomcat/webapps/host-manager/META-INF/context.xml

image

Setup Systemd for Tomcat:

  • Find the Java location:
sudo update-java-alternatives -l

image

Create the java.sh profile:

sudo nano /etc/profile.d/java.sh
# Add the following lines
export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64
export PATH=$JAVA_HOME/bin:$PATH

Create the setenv.sh file for Tomcat:

sudo nano /opt/tomcat/bin/setenv.sh
# Add the following lines
export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64
export JRE_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64

Create the Tomcat Service File (to automatically start on every system reboot)

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/tomcat.service

Add the following configuration:

[Unit]
Description=Tomcat
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=forking
User=tomcat
Group=tomcat

Environment="JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64"
Environment="JAVA_OPTS=-Djava.security.egd=file:///dev/urandom"
Environment="CATALINA_BASE=/opt/tomcat"
Environment="CATALINA_HOME=/opt/tomcat"
Environment="CATALINA_PID=/opt/tomcat/temp/tomcat.pid"
Environment="CATALINA_OPTS=-Xms512M -Xmx1024M -server -XX:+UseParallelGC"

ExecStart=/opt/tomcat/bin/startup.sh
ExecStop=/opt/tomcat/bin/shutdown.sh

RestartSec=10
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Start Tomcat

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl start tomcat
sudo systemctl enable tomcat

image

Allow access to Tomcat on port 8080:

sudo ufw allow 8080

Test Tomcat Access the Tomcat web interface by navigating to http://<your-server-ip>:8080 in your web browser.

image

2. Downloading and Building Your Java Application with Maven

Install Maven

sudo apt update
sudo apt install maven
mvn -version

Clone A sample Application from GitHub

cd /home/ubuntu
git clone https://github.com/balogsun/maven-java-builds.git

Edit the pom.xml File

cd maven-java-builds

Change the <finalName> tag in your pom.xml to a name of your choice and save:

<finalName>My_Maven_Webapp</finalName>

image

Lets modify index.jsp file to what we would like to see on our browser when launced

nano /home/ubuntu/maven-java-builds/src/main/webapp/index.jsp

Look for below section and change it to whatwever suits you

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" style="max-width: 600px;">
    <tr>
        <td bgcolor="#ffffff" align="center" valign="top" style="padding: 40px 20px 20px 20px; border-radius: 4px 4px 0px 0px; color: #11111
            <h1 style="font-size: 28px; font-weight: 400; margin: 2;">My Builds with Maven</h1>
            <img src=" https://img.icons8.com/clouds/100/000000/handshake.png" width="125" height="120" style="display: block; border: 0px;"
            <p style="font-size:15px">Maven Build.</p>
            <p style="font-size:20px">Cool!!!</p>
        </td>

image

Build Your Application

mvn package

Deploy the WAR File to Tomcat

sudo cp /home/ubuntu/maven-java-builds/target/My_Maven_Webapp.war /opt/tomcat/webapps

Access your application at http://<your-server-ip>:8080/My_Maven_Webapp.

image

3. Installing Nexus Repository Manager

Download and Install Nexus Repository

cd /opt
sudo wget https://download.sonatype.com/nexus/3/latest-unix.tar.gz
sudo tar -zxvf latest-unix.tar.gz
sudo mv nexus-3.* nexus

Create Nexus User

sudo adduser nexus
sudo echo 'nexus ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL' >> /etc/sudoers

Change Ownership

sudo chown -R nexus:nexus /opt/nexus
sudo chown -R nexus:nexus /opt/sonatype-work

Configure Nexus to Run as a Service:

  • Edit the nexus.rc file:
sudo nano /opt/nexus/bin/nexus.rc
# Add the following line
run_as_user="nexus"

To modify config options, open the /opt/nexus/bin/nexus.vmoptions file, you can modify the config path as shown below

sudo nano /opt/nexus/bin/nexus.vmoptions

In the below settings, the directory is changed from ../sonatype-work to /opt/sonatype-work

-Xms1024m
-Xmx1024m
-XX:MaxDirectMemorySize=1024m

-XX:LogFile=/opt/sonatype-work/nexus3/log/jvm.log
-XX:-OmitStackTraceInFastThrow
-Djava.net.preferIPv4Stack=true
-Dkaraf.home=.
-Dkaraf.base=.
-Dkaraf.etc=etc/karaf
-Djava.util.logging.config.file=/etc/karaf/java.util.logging.properties
-Dkaraf.data=/opt/sonatype-work/nexus3
-Dkaraf.log=/opt/sonatype-work/nexus3/log
-Djava.io.tmpdir=/opt/sonatype-work/nexus3/tmp

Create a Systemd Service for Nexus

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/nexus.service

Add the following configuration:

[Unit]
Description=nexus service
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=forking
LimitNOFILE=65536
ExecStart=/opt/nexus/bin/nexus start
ExecStop=/opt/nexus/bin/nexus stop
User=nexus
Restart=on-abort

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Start Nexus

sudo systemctl start nexus
sudo systemctl enable nexus
sudo systemctl status nexus

Allow access to Nexus on port 8081:

sudo ufw allow 8081/tcp

Access Nexus Web Interface Navigate to http://<your-server-ip>:8081 in your web browser.

Login to Nexus

  1. Use the default credentials:

    • Username: admin

    • Password: (this password is generated during the installation; find it in the file /opt/nexus/sonatype-work/nexus3/admin.password).

image

Change the Admin Password

You will be prompted to change the password upon first login.

4. Creating Repositories in Nexus

Create a Maven Hosted Repository

  1. In the Nexus web interface, click on wheel-like icon.

  2. Click on repository and Create repository.

  3. Select maven2 (hosted) and click Next.

    image

  4. Configure the repository settings (like name, version policy, etc.), and click Create repository.

  5. Configure the repository settings, and click Create repository.

Test a manual upload to artifactory.

First get the url of your repository and copy it out for the next coomand below

image

cd /home/ubuntu/maven-java-builds/target
curl -v -u admin:pass --upload-file /root/maven-java-builds/target/My_Maven_Webapp.war http://<server-ip-address>:8081/repository/My_Maven_Webapp/

image

  • Check back at your repository in the browse section to find you artifacts uploaded.

  • Likewise, artifacts can also be donwloaded manually.

curl -X GET http://admin:pass@<server-ip-address>:8081/repository/My_Maven_Webapp/My_Maven_Webapp.war --output My_Maven_Webapp.war

Integrating Nexus with Maven Builds

Let's configure your Maven project to work with Nexus.

  • Navigate to your project directory:
cd /home/ubuntu/maven-java-builds

Configuring pom.xml

Your pom.xml file is the heart of your Maven project. Here's a sample configuration:

<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
  xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/maven-v4_0_0.xsd">
  <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
  <groupId>myapp</groupId>
  <artifactId>My_Maven_Webapp</artifactId>
  <packaging>war</packaging>
  <version>1.0.0</version>
  <name>My sample Maven Webapp</name>
  <url>http://maven.apache.org</url>

  <!-- Properties for Java version and encoding -->
  <properties>
    <maven.compiler.release>17</maven.compiler.release>
    <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
  </properties>

  <!-- Dependencies -->
  <dependencies>
    <dependency>
       <groupId>javax.servlet</groupId>
       <artifactId>javax.servlet-api</artifactId>
       <version>4.0.1</version>
       <scope>provided</scope>
    </dependency>
  </dependencies>

  <!-- Build configuration -->
  <build>
    <finalName>My_Maven_Webapp</finalName>
    <plugins>
      <!-- Compiler plugin -->
      <plugin>
        <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
        <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
        <version>3.10.1</version>
        <configuration>
          <release>17</release>
        </configuration>
      </plugin>
      <!-- WAR plugin -->
      <plugin>
        <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
        <artifactId>maven-war-plugin</artifactId>
        <version>3.3.2</version>
      </plugin>
      <!-- Deploy plugin -->
      <plugin>
        <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
        <artifactId>maven-deploy-plugin</artifactId>
        <version>3.1.0</version>
      </plugin>
    </plugins>
  </build>

  <!-- Distribution Management for Nexus -->
  <distributionManagement>
    <repository>
      <id>nexus</id>
      <name>My_Maven_Webapp</name>
      <url>http://<Ip-address>:8081/repository/My_Maven_Webapp/</url> <!-- Your repository URL here -->
    </repository>
  </distributionManagement>
</project>

Setting Up Nexus

Configure Maven to use Nexus by creating a settings.xml file:

mkdir -p ~/.m2 (this should already exist following initial deploymenets)
sudo nano ~/.m2/settings.xml

Add the following content:

<settings xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/SETTINGS/1.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/SETTINGS/1.0.0 https://maven.apache.org/xsd/settings-1.0.0.xsd">
    <servers>
        <server>
            <id>nexus</id>
            <username>username</username>
            <password>password</password>
        </server>
    </servers>
</settings>

Ensure proper permissions:

chmod 755 ~/.m2/settings.xml
chown username:groupname ~/.m2/settings.xml

Deploying Your Application

To deploy your application to Nexus, run:

mvn clean deploy

This command will compile your code, run tests, package your application, and upload it to Nexus.

image

Check back at your repository and find the newly uploaded artifacts

image

Updating Your Application

To update your application:

  1. Modify your pom.xml to increment the version number.

  2. Update your application code as needed.

  3. Run mvn clean deploy again to deploy the new version.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter a 401 Unauthorized error, ensure that:

  1. Your settings.xml is in the correct location (~/.m2/settings.xml or /root/.m2/settings.xml if running as root).

  2. The credentials in settings.xml match those in your Nexus server.

Java Compatibility

Ensure you're using Java 17 or later to set up your environment:

Conclusion

With these detailed steps, you would have successfully accomplished three key objectives: setting up Tomcat, deploying a Java application, and integrating Nexus Repository into the workflow. This process not only streamlines the development process but will also enhance collaboration within a team. The ability to manage dependencies efficiently and deploy applications reliably will definitely increase one's confidence in delivering high-quality software on time. Furthermore, these manual builds can be integrated into CI/CD pipelines, for full automation. Overall, this implementation significantly improves development lifecycle, positioning a team for more efficient and effective project execution.

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LinuxArtifactsDevopssoftware developmentCloud ComputingTomcatmavenmaven build toolmaven integration#Nexus

Written by

Seun B
Seun B

Automation Enthusiast