Interactive Jenkins Jobs: Requesting User Input with Groovy and Shell Scripts

Discover how to create a Jenkins job that prompts users for input based on database comparisons. Learn step-by-step how to implement interactive scripts!
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Interactive Jenkins Jobs: Requesting User Input with Groovy and Shell Scripts

Running automated jobs on Jenkins is a powerful way to streamline your development process, but what happens when you need user input before proceeding? Imagine a scenario where a job pulls date information from a database and compares it to a file’s date. If the database date is newer, you may want to pause the job and ask for user confirmation. In this guide, we will guide you through how to achieve this in Jenkins using Groovy and shell scripts.

Problem Overview

In this example, you have a Jenkins job that needs to check the date in a database against a date in a file. If the database date is found to be newer, you want to prompt the user with a decision: should the job proceed or not? You require a solution that accomplishes the following steps:

The user selects parameters and initiates the job by clicking "Build with parameters."

A shell script checks the date and, if necessary, triggers a Groovy script.

The Groovy script prompts the user with a message: “The date in the database is newer than in the file. Do you really want to proceed? Press yes or no.”

If the user clicks "yes," a second shell script is executed.

Solution Breakdown

To create an interactive Jenkins job that meets these requirements, follow these detailed steps:

Step 1: Define Job Parameters

First, you need to set up the job to accept user input. You can define a parameter in your Jenkins pipeline as follows:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This snippet creates a string parameter named TEST_STRING that users can fill out when they initiate the job.

Step 2: Retrieve Current Date

Next, you can set up a shell script to retrieve the current date. This date can later be compared to the database date. Here’s how to do it in Jenkins:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

In this example, we’re using echo $(date) as a placeholder; you should replace it with your logic for fetching the database date.

Step 3: Compare Dates and Request User Input

Once you have the database date, you’ll want to perform a comparison to check if it is newer. If it is, you can prompt the user:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

In this block, CheckDate(date) should contain the logic to tell if the date from the database is newer. The input method creates a prompt in Jenkins with a message for the user.

Step 4: Execute the Second Shell Script

If the user confirms by clicking "Proceed," you can then execute your second shell script. Here’s how you could write that:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

The Complete Pipeline

Putting it all together, your complete Jenkins pipeline would look like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Conclusion

Using Jenkins with Groovy scripts allows for interactive builds that require user input, enhancing the decision-making process within your CI/CD pipeline. By implementing the steps outlined above, you ensure that your jobs can react intelligently based on real-time data. Now, create your interactive Jenkins job and embrace a new level of automation!

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