What are artifacts?

In the broadest sense, artifacts are objects or items created or modified by humans that have some cultural significance. Similarly, In the context of DevOps, artifacts are files or sets of files that are produced by the build process of a software development project.

You must have heard of JAR files, ZIP files or this one for sure - Docker Images. Yes, These are also Artifacts.

These files are usually generated by a build tool (such as Maven, Gradle, or Ant for Java projects), which takes the source code and turns it into an executable program that can be run on a target environment.

Artifact Repository :

An artifact repository is a tool used in software development that stores and manages artifacts produced during the software build process. It serves as a central repository for storing, sharing and distributing.

Note : every artifact format (ZIP, JAR, etc) needs a different artifact repository.

Now a project being built by large startups like RedHat, Civo, Zulip, or your next company will surely have files or artifacts written in multiple languages. Some in Java, some in Golang and some in Javascript. Therefore they will require different software for every Artifact repository will be really chaotic and complex for the Engineers. To solve this problem we have Artifact Repository Managers.

Artifact Repository Manager :

An artifact repository manager is a tool used to manage and store artifacts produced during the software development lifecycle. It is a type of artifact repository but with additional features and functionalities aimed at managing the artifact repository effectively.

Nexus is a very popular artifact repository manager. Artifactory and Apache Archiva are two more popular artifact repository managers.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, artifacts are files or sets of files produced during the software build process, which are stored and managed by artifact repository managers. This helps in effective management, sharing, and distribution of artifacts across the software development lifecycle. Popular artifact repository managers include Nexus, Artifactory, and Apache Archiva, each with their own unique features and capabilities aimed at managing artifact repositories effectively.

Thank you for reading.