Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Can the plugin automatically download and use the required version of protoc?
  2. Does the plugin support integration into Eclipse lifecycle?
Can the plugin automatically download and use the required version of protoc?
It depends on the version of protoc. Protocol Buffer Compiler is a native application and is distributed as a binary executable file. Previously, it was not distributed via Maven repository, but that policy has recently changed. Starting with versions 2.6.1 and 3.0.0-alpha-2, binary executables for all major operating systems are available as artifacts in Maven central, and these artifacts can be referenced in plugin configuration. For any prior versions the application developer will need to configure protoc executable location for the plugin, either explicitly with protocExecutable plugin configuration parameter, or, preferably, by using protobuf toolchain.

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Does the plugin support integration into Eclipse lifecycle?
There is a limited support in the plugin for integration with M2E 1.5 and later. Versions of M2E prior to 1.5 will fail to work with the plugin because of a class loading bug.

Also, if using os-maven-plugin to help resolve binary artifacts, please make sure that you have read these important notes.

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