Deploying Jenkins with Docker Compose and Automating Build Pipelines

Traditional method: Build the project into a JAR, upload the JAR to a Linux server, and run it with java -jar .

Automated method: Commit source code to a repository, set up a dedicated Jenkins server, configure JDK, Maven, and Git, let Jenkins pull the code, build a JAR, and run it via java -jar , Tomcat, or containerized approaches, optionally extending execution with custom shell scripts.

1. Deploy Jenkins with Docker Compose

Docker‑compose file ( docker-compose.yml ) content:

version: '3.1'

services:

jenkins:

image: jenkins/jenkins:2.346.3

volumes:

- /data/jenkins/:/var/jenkins_home

- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock

- /usr/bin/docker:/usr/bin/docker

- /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libltdl.so.7:/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libltdl.so.7

ports:

- "8080:8080"

expose:

- "8080"

- "50000"

privileged: true

user: root

restart: always

container_name: jenkins

environment:

JAVA_OPTS: '-Djava.util.logging.config.file=/var/jenkins_home/log.properties'

Run the compose file:

docker-compose up -d

2. Create data directory for Jenkins

mkdir -p /data/jenkins

3. Unlock Jenkins

Find the container ID and open a shell:

docker ps

docker exec -it jenkins /bin/bash

Read the initial admin password:

cat /var/jenkins_home/secrets/initialAdminPassword

Use the displayed password to complete the Jenkins setup UI.

4. Install additional plugins (e.g., Publish Over SSH) via the Jenkins plugin manager.

5. Global configuration – set up JDK and Maven installations under "Global Tool Configuration".

6. Build and release – configure a pipeline or freestyle job to pull code, build the JAR, and deploy it using the chosen method (direct java -jar , Tomcat webapps, or container deployment).

The article also provides a list of recommended reading links for deeper Kubernetes and CI/CD topics.