Gradle

Developer(s)	Hans Dockter, Adam Murdoch, Szczepan Faber, Peter Niederwieser, Luke Daley, Rene Gröschke, Daz DeBoer
Initial release	21 April 2008; 15 years ago (2008-04-21)
Stable release	8.6[1]  / 2 February 2024; 32 days ago (2 February 2024)
Preview release	8.7 RC2 / 29 February 2024; 5 days ago (2024-02-29)
Repository	github.com/gradle/gradle
Written in	Java, Groovy, Kotlin
Type	Build tool
License	Apache License 2.0
Website	www.gradle.org

Gradle is a build automation tool for multi-language software development. It controls the development process in the tasks of compilation and packaging to testing, deployment, and publishing. Supported languages include Java (as well as Kotlin, Groovy, Scala), C/C++, and JavaScript.^[2] Gradle builds on the concepts of Apache Ant and Apache Maven, and introduces a Groovy- and Kotlin-based domain-specific language contrasted with the XML-based project configuration used by Maven.^[3] Gradle uses a directed acyclic graph to determine the order in which tasks can be run, through providing dependency management. It runs on the Java Virtual Machine.^[4]

Gradle was designed for multi-project builds, which can grow to be large. It operates based on a series of build tasks that can run serially or in parallel. Incremental builds are supported by determining the parts of the build tree that are already up to date; any task dependent only on those parts does not need to be re-executed. It also supports caching of build components, potentially across a shared network using the Gradle Build Cache. It produces web-based build visualization called Gradle Build Scans. The software is extensible for new features and programming languages with a plugin subsystem.

Gradle is distributed as Free Software under the Apache License 2.0, and was first released in 2008.^[5]

History

Origin of the name

Founder and CEO Hans Dockter has said that he originally wanted to name the project "Cradle". However, to make the name unique and less "diminutive" he instead chose "Gradle", taking the "G" from the use of Groovy.^[6]

Major versions

Features

Gradle offers support for all phases of a build process including compilation, verification, dependency resolving, test execution, source code generation, packaging and publishing. Because Gradle follows a convention over configuration approach, it is possible to describe all of these build phases in short configuration files. Conventions include the folder structure of the project, standard tasks and their order as well as dependency repositories. However, all conventions can be overridden by the project configuration if necessary. ^[9]

Plugins are a central component of Gradle. They allow for integration of a set of configurations and tasks into a project and can be included from a central plugin repository or custom-developed for a single project.

Distribution

Gradle is available as a separate download, but can also be found bundled in products such as Android Studio. Gradle Wrapper is the recommended way to invoke Gradle. It can download the declared version of Gradle beforehand if necessary. ^[10]