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[[artifact-resolution]]
= Artifact Resolution

After constructing a dependency graph, Gradle performs *artifact resolution*, mapping the resolved graph to a set of artifacts that will be downloaded during the build.

[[sec:artifacts]]
== Artifacts

An *artifact* is a file that is produced or consumed during the build process.
*Artifacts* are typically files such as compiled libraries, JAR files, AAR files, DLLs, or ZIPs.

Let's look at the *metadata* for `org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib:1.8.10` which showcases several *variants* and *artifacts*:

[source,json]
.kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.module
----
{
  "variants": [
    {
      "name": "apiElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.category": "library",
        "org.gradle.dependency.bundling": "external",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8",
        "org.gradle.libraryelements": "jar",
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-api"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10-public.jar"
        },
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10-private.jar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "runtimeElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.category": "library",
        "org.gradle.dependency.bundling": "external",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8",
        "org.gradle.libraryelements": "jar",
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-runtime"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.jar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "jdk7ApiElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-api",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "7"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-jdk7-1.8.10.jar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "jdk8ApiElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-api",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-jdk8-1.8.10.jar"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
----

As we can see there are a number of *artifacts* available in the *metadata*:

[cols="1,2,2"]
|===
| Variant | Artifact(s) | Purpose

| `apiElements`
| `kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10-public.jar`, `kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10-private.jar`
| Standard Kotlin library APIs (public and private).

| `runtimeElements`
| `kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.jar`
| Standard Kotlin runtime (default).

| `jdk7ApiElements`
| `kotlin-stdlib-jdk8-1.8.10.jar`
| Provides additional APIs for Java 7 compatibility.

| `jdk8ApiElements`
| `kotlin-stdlib-jdk8-1.8.10.jar`
| Provides additional APIs for Java 8 compatibility.
|===

Typically, once a *variant* is selected, its associated *artifacts* can be automatically resolved.
However, there are specific reasons why *artifact* selection still happens _after_ *variant* selection.

For example, what if the metadata for `org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib:1.8.10` looked like this:

[source,json]
.kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.module
----
{
  "variants": [
    {
      "name": "runtimeElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.category": "library",
        "org.gradle.dependency.bundling": "external",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8",
        "org.gradle.libraryelements": "jar",
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-runtime"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.jar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "runtimeElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.category": "library",
        "org.gradle.dependency.bundling": "external",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8",
        "org.gradle.libraryelements": "classes",
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-runtime"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "build/classes/java/main/"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "runtimeElements",
      "attributes": {
        "org.gradle.category": "library",
        "org.gradle.dependency.bundling": "external",
        "org.gradle.jvm.version": "8",
        "org.gradle.libraryelements": "resources",
        "org.gradle.usage": "java-runtime"
      },
      "files": [
        {
          "name": "build/resources/main/"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

----

How would Gradle know which file to download?

[[sec:artifact_sets]]
== Artifact Sets

An *artifact set* is a group of *artifacts* that belong to a single *variant* of a *module*.

A single *variant* can include multiple *artifact sets*, each serving a different purpose.

Let's look at the `org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib:1.8.10` example:

[cols="2,1,~"]
|===
| Variant | Set | Artifacts in the Set

| `apiElements`
| 1
| jar → The packaged library JAR (`kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.jar`)

|
| 2
| tar → The packaged library TAR (`kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.tar`)

| `runtimeElements`
| 1
| jar → The packaged library JAR (`kotlin-stdlib-1.8.10.jar`)

|
| 2
| classes → The compiled .class files (`build/classes/java/main/`)

|
| 3
| resources → The associated resource files (`build/resources/main/`)

| `jdk8ApiElements`
| 1
| jar → The packaged library JAR (`kotlin-stdlib-jdk8-1.8.10.jar`)

| `jdk7ApiElements`
| 1
| jar → The packaged library JAR (`kotlin-stdlib-jdk7-1.8.10.jar`)
|===

The `apiElements` *variant* of `org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib:1.8.10` provides two *artifact sets*—`jar`, and `tar`—each representing the same distributable in a different form.
The `runtimeElements` *variant* of `org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib:1.8.10` provides three *artifact sets*—`jar`, `classes`, and `resources`—each representing the same distributable in a different form.

Gradle must now follow a specific process to determine the most appropriate *artifact set* for the build.

[[sec:artifact-selection]]
== Artifact Resolution Flow

*Artifact selection* operates on the dependency graph on a __node-by-node__ basis.

Each _node_ (i.e., *variant*) in the graph may expose multiple sets of *artifacts*, but only one of those sets may be selected.

image::dep-man-adv-4.png[]

For each _node_, or *variant*, in a graph, Gradle performs *attribute* matching over each set of *artifacts* exposed by that _node_ to determine the best *artifact set*.

If no *artifact sets* match the requested *attributes*, Gradle will attempt to construct an <<artifact_transforms.adoc#artifact-transforms,artifact transform>> chain to satisfy the request.

For more details on the *attribute* matching process, see the previous <<variant_aware_resolution.adoc#sec:understanding-variant-selection,section>>.

[[sec:available_apis]]
== Available APIs

Gradle APIs can be used to influence the process of *artifact selection*.

Gradle can then expose the results of artifact selection as an `ArtifactCollection`.
More commonly, the results are exposed as a `FileCollection`, which is a flat list of files.

[[sec:implicit-artifact-selection]]
=== Implicit Artifact Selection

By default, the *attributes* used for *artifact* selection are the same as those used for *variant* selection during graph resolution.
These *attributes* are specified by the link:{javadocPath}/org/gradle/api/attributes/HasAttributes.html#getAttributes()[`Configuration.getAttributes()`] property.

To perform *artifact* selection (and implicitly, graph resolution) using these default *attributes*, use the `FileCollection` and `ArtifactCollection` APIs.

NOTE: Files can also be accessed from the configuration's `ResolvedConfiguration`, `LenientConfiguration`, `ResolvedArtifact` and `ResolvedDependency` APIs.
However, these APIs are in maintenance mode and are discouraged for use in new development.
These APIs perform artifact selection using the default attributes.

[[sec:resolving_files]]
==== Resolving files

To resolve files, we first define a task that accepts a `ConfigurableFileCollection` as input:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/kotlin",files="build.gradle.kts[tags=file-resolution-task]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/groovy",files="build.gradle[tags=file-resolution-task]"]
====

Then, we can wire up a resolvable configuration's files to the task's input.
The `Configuration` directly implements `FileCollection` and can be wired directly:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/kotlin",files="build.gradle.kts[tags=implicit-file-resolution]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/groovy",files="build.gradle[tags=implicit-file-resolution]"]
====

Running the `resolveConfiguration` task produces:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/tests/resolve-files.out[]
----

[[sec:resolving_artifacts]]
==== Resolving artifacts

Instead of consuming the files directly from the implicit *artifact* selection process, we can consume the *artifacts*, which contain both the files and the metadata.

This process is slightly more complicated, as in order to maintain Configuration Cache compatibility, we need to split the fields of `ResolvedArtifactResult` into two task inputs:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/kotlin",files="build.gradle.kts[tags=artifact-resolution-task]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/groovy",files="build.gradle[tags=artifact-resolution-task]"]
====

This task is initialized similarly to the file resolution task:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/kotlin",files="build.gradle.kts[tags=implicit-artifact-resolution]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/groovy",files="build.gradle[tags=implicit-artifact-resolution]"]
====

Running this task, we can see that file metadata is included in the output:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/performingResolution-artifactResolution/tests/resolve-artifacts.out[]
----

[[sec:customizing-artifact-selection]]
=== Custom Artifact Selection

The link:{javadocPath}/org/gradle/api/artifacts/ArtifactView.html[`ArtifactView`] API operates on top of the resolved graph, defined by a {javadocPath}/org/gradle/api/artifacts/result/ResolutionResult.html[`ResolutionResult`].

The API provides flexible ways to access the resolved artifacts:

- link:{javadocPath}/org/gradle/api/file/FileCollection.html[`FileCollection`] - A flat list of files, which is the most commonly way to work with resolved artifacts.
- link:{javadocPath}/org/gradle/api/artifacts/ArtifactCollection.html[`ArtifactCollection`] - Offers access to both the metadata and the files of resolved artifacts, allowing for more advanced artifact handling.

When you call a configuration's `getFiles()`, Gradle selects *artifacts* based on the *attributes* used during _graph resolution_.
However, the  `ArtifactView` API is more flexible.
It allows you to resolve *artifacts* from the graph with _custom_ *attributes*.

[[sec:artifact_views]]
=== Artifact views

An `ArtifactView` allows you to:

1. *Query artifacts with different attributes*:
* Suppose the graph resolved a dependency's `runtime` *variant*. You can use an `ArtifactView` to extract artifacts from its `api` *variant* instead, even if they weren't originally part of the resolved graph.
2. *Extract specific types of artifacts*:
* You can request only the `.jar` files or a specific *artifact* type (e.g., sources, Javadoc) by specifying an attribute like `artifactType`.
3. *Avoid side effects*:
* Using an `ArtifactView` allows you to extract artifacts without changing the underlying dependency resolution logic or configuration state.

In the following example, a _producer_ project creates a library with typical Java library *variants* (`runtimeElements`, `apiElements`).
We also create a custom *variant* called `apiProductionElements` with the artifact `production.jar` and attribute `org.gradle.category:production`:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/kotlin",files="producer/build.gradle.kts[tags=artifact-views-lib]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/groovy",files="producer/build.gradle[tags=artifact-views-lib]"]
====

We can view the available *variants* of this library as well as their corresponding *artifacts* and *attributes* with a custom task called `checkProducerAttributes`.
Here is an abridged output showing the relevant *variants* of this library, along with their corresponding *artifacts* and *attributes*:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/tests/producer-attributes.out[]
----

A Java application is a consumer of this Java library:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/kotlin",files="consumer/build.gradle.kts[tags=artifact-views-app]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/groovy",files="consumer/build.gradle[tags=artifact-views-app]"]
====

By default, the application, as the consumer, will consume the expected *variant* when it is run.
We can verify this with another custom task called `checkResolvedVariant` that prints out the following:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/tests/consumer-attributes.out[]
----

As expected, for the `runtimeClasspath`, the application consumes the `runtimeElements` *variant* of the library which is available as the *artifact* `producer.jar`.
It uses the *attributes* `org.gradle.category:library` and `org.gradle.usage:java-runtime` to select this *variant*.

Now, let's create an `ArtifactView` to select one of the other *artifacts* provided by the library.
We do this by using an `ArtifactView` with the *attribute* `org.gradle.category:classes` so that instead of the jar file, we get the sources:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/kotlin",files="consumer/build.gradle.kts[tags=artifact-views-sel]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/groovy",files="consumer/build.gradle[tags=artifact-views-sel]"]
====

We run the task `artifactWithAttributeAndView` to see that we get the main *artifact* instead:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/tests/artifactview-attributes.out[]
----

Now, let's create an `ArtifactView` to select our custom *variant* `apiProductionElements` by specifying the attribute `org.gradle.category:production` and forcing Gradle to reselect a new *variant*:

====
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/kotlin",files="consumer/build.gradle.kts[tags=artifact-views-resel]"]
include::sample[dir="snippets/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/groovy",files="consumer/build.gradle[tags=artifact-views-resel]"]
====

As expected, the `apiProductionElements` variant is selected along with the `production.jar` artifact:

[source,text]
----
include::{snippetsPath}/reference/dependency-management/advanced/artifactViews-simple/tests/artifactview-attributes.out[]
----

TIP: Variant reselection operates on the components already in the resolved graph and does not follow `available-at` pointers in Gradle Module Metadata. See <<../controlling-dependency-resolution/artifact_views.adoc#sec:performing_variant_reselection, Performing variant reselection>> for details and a recommended workaround.
