Using Ant to automate tasks

To support using Apache Ant with Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) applications running on the application server, the product provides a copy of the Ant tool and a set of Ant tasks that extend the capabilities of Ant to include product-specific functions. Ant has become a very popular tool among Java programmers.

Apache Ant is a Java-based build tool. In theory, it is similar to Make, but Ant is different. Instead of a model in which it is extended with shell-based commands, Ant is extended using Java classes. Instead of writing shell commands, XML-based configuration files are used. These files reference a target tree in which various tasks are run. Each task is run by an object that implements a particular Task interface. By combining the following tasks with those provided by Ant, you can create build scripts that compile, package, install, and test your application on the application server:

• Install and uninstall applications

• Start and stop servers in a base configuration

• Run administrative scripts or commands

• Run the EJB deployment tool

• Run the JavaServer Pages (JSP) file precompilation tool

For more detailed information about Ant, refer to the Apache organization Web site.

(dependent on configuration)

• To run Ant and have it automatically see the WebSphere classes, use the ws_ant command.

• Use Ant tasks for deployment and server operation.

  This topic describes where to find the API documentation for the Apache Ant tasks for deploying applications and operating application servers.

• Use Ant tasks for building application code.

  This topic describes where to find the API documentation for the Apache Ant tasks for building applications.