Gradle in Action

Appendix B. Groovy for Gradle users

Gradle’s core functionality is built with Java. On top of this functionality sits a domain-specific language (DSL) written in the dynamic programming language Groovy. When writing a Gradle build script, you automatically use the language constructs exposed by this DSL to express the desired build instructions. Gradle build scripts are executable Groovy scripts, but they can’t be run by the Groovy runtime. When the need to implement custom logic arises, you can use Groovy’s language features to build out the desired functionality directly in the Gradle build script. This appendix is a primer to Groovy and explains why it’s important for users of Gradle to learn the language. Later, I’ll also demonstrate how ...