CollabSphere 2020 - NSF ODP Tooling

NSF ODP TOOLING
BRING NSFS INTO THE CI/CD WORLD

JESSE
GALLAGHER
CTO - I KNOW SOME GUYS
IP MANAGER - OPENNTF
HTTP://FROSTILLIC.US
@GIDGERBY

What is it?
A set of Maven and Eclipse plugins for working with On-Disk Projects
Four main components
ODP → NSF compiler
NSF → ODP exporter
Deployment
Eclipse UI extensions

What is it?
No requirement for Designer
Works with a local Notes/Domino runtime or a remote server
Local runtime: macOS, Windows, or Linux on x86
Remote runtime: Anything that runs Java
Designed to allow clean, consistent builds without UI interaction
Provides some support for working with ODP projects in IDEs

Brief Aside: Maven
It’s not (inherently) scary!
Just look how cute that owl is
Maven is a tool used for build automation
It’s primarily used for Java projects, but is
adaptable to many things via plugins
A “pom.xml” file is a clear giveaway of
Maven’s use
We use it here because it allows for cleanly-
reproducible builds across systems, without
environment-specific details

Second Brief Aside: Complexity
Will this require lots of command-line knowledge?
Not really!
Will this require lots of complicated XML configuration?
Only kind of!
Will this complicate my day-to-day development experience?
Only if you want it to!

ODP Compiler
Takes an ODP and creates an NSF
Allows use of Maven and OSGi dependencies (i.e. XPages libraries)
Allows dynamically enabling “production” XPages settings like
resource aggregation
Allows applying a template name and version + build timestamp

Example Configuration
<plugin>
<groupId>org.openntf.maven</groupId>
<artifactId>nsfodp-maven-plugin</artifactId>
<configuration>
<updateSites>
<updateSite>${project.baseDir}/../../../releng/org.openntf.nsfodp.exampl
e.updatesite/target/site</updateSite>
</updateSites>
<templateName>ExampleProject</templateName>
</configuration>
</plugin>

ODP Compiler
Can be standalone or part of a larger
project tree
Pairs beautifully with Tycho for OSGi
compilation and the Assembly Plugin
for distribution

ODP Compiler
Basic configuration is simple: put your ODP in an “odp” directory and add a pom.xml
file above it
Allows configuration during compilation:
Update Site references for OSGi plugins
Classpath JARs and Maven dependencies like jvm/lib/ext
Override the ODP’s ACL in the pom.xml
Add a template name and version on the fly
Set the ODS level to target

ODP Exporter
Takes an NSF and creates an ODP
Replicates the behavior of Designer’s source control support
Except it’s not incremental (at least not yet)
Can be used to export a local NSF file or a remote database
Automatically applies Swiper cleanup to exported DXL

ODP Exporter
Can be used in lieu of Designer’s export sync
It’s less convenient, but it’s also less fault-prone
Very useful when someone on your team doesn’t use source control
Useful to convert NSFs to processable text form
I use it for exactly this when doing IP checks for OpenNTF

NSF Deployment
Deploys a compiled NSF to a server, optionally replacing an existing
NSF’s design
Allows you to sign the database as the server
Provides for Continuous Deployment to a staging server
Warning: this component is effectively “beta”

Eclipse Extensions
Configures the Java classpath
Includes OSGi dependencies
Adds categories for design elements
with nice little pictures
Adds DXL autocomplete via the
schema files
(To whoever at HCL maintains those:
thank you)

Eclipse Extensions
ODP Java classes can directly
reference plugins in the workspace
Allows for refactoring across both the
ODP and plugins, avoiding out-of-step
bugs

Generally Applicable
The ODP is the “source of truth”
NSFs only exist as development areas or deployable builds
The build process versions and timestamps NTFs
The build process is consistent every time
Clean NSF output
No unintended residue
No “Copy Application” mis-clicks

Single Developer, Simple NSF
Keeps focus on good source-control habits
Maven configuration is very small
Good way to dip into Jenkins
Encourages versioning and discourages shoot-from-the-hip
development
Works with classic design elements, XPages or no

Multi-Person Team, XPages
Libraries
Maven makes the OSGi bundle build process more consistent
Any team member can make a full build
Eclipse support allows Java refactoring across OSGi bundles and in-
NSF Java classes
Eclipse XSP editing allows some tasks to be done fully outside
Designer

Team With Uncooperative Members
If not everyone is on board, use the Exporter to make ODP snapshots
The ODP becomes the source of truth
In my case, I have a script I run periodically that exports a bunch of
NSFs to ODPs
It’s not the best workflow, but it’s better than the old ways

NPM-based App Container
Kick off the NPM install/build with frontend-maven-plugin
Include the built resources inside the NSF in WebContent
Avoid worries of having to coax Designer into doing it
https://frostillic.us/blog/posts/2020/7/17/nsf-odp-tooling-3-1-0-
dynamically-including-web-resources

Maven Assembly Plugin
The Assembly plugin allows you to create a final
distribution ZIP
In my case, I gather several dozen built NSFs, a
couple update sites, support libraries, and
instructions
This happens at the end of every build, with a ZIP
ready to hand off to admins
I also use this in almost every one of my OpenNTF
projects
(Great way to get those LICENSE and NOTICE
files in there!)
(Saves your friendly IP manager some hassle!)

Automated Builds - Jenkins, etc.
With some setup, Jenkins can build
your apps with every commit
Pairs very well with Assembly projects
https://frostillic.us/blog/posts/2020/8/27/
nsf-odp-tooling-setting-up-jenkins-
builds

Potential Future Additions
Improvements to deployment
If anybody could get me the true “Replace Design” API call, I’d
appreciate it
Docker-based build runtime
Work against a live NSF (“Designer-style”)
Ability to edit agents in Eclipse
Unit tests for in-NSF code

CollabSphere 2020 - NSF ODP Tooling

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