Continuous Integration for Volt MX Iris

Introduction

CI Build allows the user to build and publish an app from the command line without any eclipse/installer dependency.

Prerequisites

Following are the prerequisites to install CI Build:

Ant must be installed on the system. The required version of Ant is specified in the externaldependencies.json file that is downloaded as part of the CI tool package.
Based on the version of the Volt MX Iris CI Tool, the required Ant versions are as follows:
- Ant Version 1.10.8 (or later) for Volt MX Iris V9 SP1.
- Ant Version 1.8.2 (or later) for Volt MX Iris V9.
Node must be installed on the system. The required version of Node is specified in the externaldependencies.json file that is downloaded as part of the CI tool package.
Based on the version of the Volt MX Iris CI Tool, the required Node versions are as follows:
- Node Version 13.10.1 (or later) for Volt MX Iris V9 SP1.
- Node Version 11.14.0 (or later) for Volt MX Iris V9.
Download and extract the zip file from the location:download.voltmx.com/iris_enterprise/citools//iris-ci-tool-.zip into the project location.
For example, for V9 SP2 FP37 the URL is https://download.hclvoltmx.com/visualizer_enterprise/citools/9.2.37/visualizer-ci-tool-9.2.37.zip
Copy plugindownload.js, package.json and build.js files from iris-ci-tool folder.
Open the command prompt in the project location and perform the npm install.
Update plugin.dir and javaloc properties in HeadlessBuild.properties file.

CI Build for Volt MX Iris

The following properties have a default value. You can configure them if required.

Property Name	Property Key	Default Value	Property File Name
Accessibility config	isA11yConfigEnabled	false	projectprop.xml
Android wear minimum sdk version	andwearminsdkkey	7.1 (25)	projectprop.xml
Android wear target sdk version	andweartargetsdkkey	7.1(25)	projectprop.xml
Android wear maximum sdk version	andwearmaxsdkkey	None	projectprop.xml
Android (mobile/tablet) minimum sdk version	andminsdkkey	4.0(14)	projectprop.xml
Android (mobile/tablet) target sdk version	andtargetsdkkey	4.0(14)	projectprop.xml
Android (mobile/tablet) maximum sdk version	andmaxsdkkey	None	projectprop.xml
iOS Deployment target version	mac.iosdeploymenttarget		HeadlessBuild.properties
Apple watch Deployment target version	mac.watchosdeploymenttarget		HeadlessBuild.properties
iOS swift version	mac.swiftversion		HeadlessBuild.properties
Splash screen related changes			splashscreenproperties.json

In case you want to modify any of the listed properties, you can find them in the following location: <workspace name>/<application name>.

Configure HeadlessBuild.Properties

HeadlessBuild.properties file is present in the project location.

New Entries

Entries	Description
protectedmodeenabled.ios	If the user wants to build for iOS in protected mode, change the value to true.
protectedmodeenabled.android	If the user wants to build for android in protected mode, change the value to true.
protectedmodeenabled .web	If the user wants to build a web application in the protected mode, change the value to true.
plugin.dir	Points to the directory, where the plugins required for the build are copied.
javaloc	Java home (provide the folder location consisting bin where the Java is installed.)Example: \VoltMXIrisEnterprise8.0\Java\jdk Note: From Iris versions 9.2.69/9.5.21 and above, point to Java version 11. Java version 8 is no longer supported.
androidHome	Android SDK path
For Proxy setup, the following new entries are applicable: proxy.host proxy.port proxy.username proxy.password	If you are running CI build on a system behind a proxy, provide proxy details.
vanity_domain	Add the vanity domain. Note: Vanity domain applies to only SPA and Responsive Web platforms.

Note: Any property which is in the projectProperties.json can be configured via the HeadlessBuild.properties file with the same key.

Existing Entries

Add the following existing entries in HeadlessBuild.properties file:

Key Name	Description
project.name	Project name
mode	Only modes 0, 1 and 2 are supported
build.mode	The mode of the build. Release or Debug.
appid	ID of the application
#cloud mode credentials cloud.username cloud.password<	Applicable only for cloud
#mobilefoundry specific details mobilefoundry.url environment.name accountd.id mf.appname [mf.app.version?]	Applicable only when you are trying to publish the app.
#environment to publish Example: qa cloud.environment	Applicable only when you are trying to publish the app.
#Platforms to build for #Mobile Channel iphone android spa.iphone spa.android #Tablet ipad androidtablet spa.ipad spa.androidtablet spa.windowstablet # Desktop Channel desktopweb # Wearables iphonewatch androidwearos	The value is either true or false. Enter true to build the platform else false.Please note that you cannot build Apple watch alone. When you build for Apple watch ensure that you build for iPhone as well.
#IPA generation details mac.ipaddress mac.username mac.password keychain.password development.team.id method genipaiphone (to generate IPA for iPhone) genipaipad (to generate IPA for iPad)	Enter true to generate IPA for iPhone and iPad.For the method, possible values supported are app-store, ad-hoc, enterprise, and development.
Universal build for iOS: universal.iPhone universal.android	Enter true to perform universal build for iPhone. Enter true to perform universal build for Android.
#Windows platform for headless build #Mobile Channel windowsphone10 #Tablet windows10 #Desktop Channel desktop_kiosk	Window platforms
binaries.location	Location, where the binaries are saved after the app is successfully built.
version default_locale android.packagename android.versioncode ios.bundleversion	Support has been added for the following items from V8 SP1 onwards.
keyAlias keyPassword keyStoreFilePath keyStorePassword	Support has provided for the Android signing keys from V8 SP1 onwards for signing.
context.path.identity context.path.workspace context.path.accounts context.path.console	Supported context paths for Volt MX Foundry components, if customized.
login.siteminder.url	Siteminder login URL if your on-premise Volt MX Foundry is protected by siteminder.
iosappextension	App extension of the iOS.
iosappextension	App extension of the iOS.

Important: There are many keys available in the HeadlessBuild.properties file. However, not all of them are applicable for the CI Build. The keys mentioned above are the only ones applicable for CI Build.

Important: If you do not want to store your password in the headless build.properties file, you can use mfcli to encrypt your password. You can download the mfcli.jar from https://hclsoftware-fno.flexnetoperations.com/flexnet/operations/startPage.

Ensure that you use the corresponding version of MFCLI as that of the Iris. i.e 7.x iris, 7.x mfcli, 8.x iris, 8.x mfcli.

To encrypt the password using mfcli (using default password.encryption.key),
java -jar mfcli.jar encrypt "VoltMX@1234" Encrypted password is: en1801f1abee7b9e12426c062509e1b18epd

Link Native iOS System Frameworks and Exclude built-in iOS Frameworks

As part of the CI/CD process of Iris builds, you must add a few System Frameworks to the VoltMXJS targets for the VMAppWithVoltMXlib Xcode project in a few scenarios. If you are using third-party NFIs, while linking the third-party NFIs to the VoltMXJS target, you must also link the target to the dependent system frameworks of the NFI.

For example, consider that you are using the AlertView NFI that depends on the views of the UIKit framework to display alerts. After you add the AlertView NFI to the VMAppWithVoltMXlib Xcode project, the build might fail depending on the Xcode version due to errors such as the UIKit symbols not being found, or the UIKit internal class symbols not being found. To resolve these errors, you must add the UIKit framework to the system frameworks list.

In addition to adding the third-party dependent system frameworks, you can also mention the built-in Volt MX iOS frameworks that need not be packaged into the application.

To add the system frameworks or exclude built-in Volt MX iOS frameworks in the application, follow these steps:

Navigate to the resources/common folder of the Iris project.
Create a json file, and name it voltmx_frameworks.json.
In the voltmx_frameworks.json file, do the following:
Add the dependent system frameworks in the systemframeworks parameter.
Add the built-in Volt MX iOS frameworks that need not be packaged into the application in the excludeFrameworks parameter.

Note: You cannot use the functionality of the built-in framework after you exclude it. If you invoke the dependent functionality of an excluded framework in the app, errors may occur and the app might stop responding. 4. Save and close the file.

Here is a sample voltmx_frameworks.json file:

{
    "systemframeworks" : [
        "UIKit.framework",
        "Security.framework"
    ],
    "excludeFrameworks":[
        "AR",
        "SignInWithApple"
    ]
}

Build the Application for Volt MX Iris

Follow these steps to build the application:

Open the command prompt in the project location.
Run the node command node build.js in any of the following formats. These commands will download the required plugins as well as build the application.
- node build.js --irisversion // This command will download the specified plugin version to'plugin.dir' location and build the app.
- node build.js // This command will build the app with existing plugins located in 'plugin.dir'.
- node build.js -clean // This command will re-extract the plugins from plugin.dir folder
Note: For Delta download or when the 'plugin.dir' location already has a set of plugins then, run the following command
node build.js -c --irisversion

This command will download the upgraded plugins and build the project.
If the app is built successfully, the binaries are saved in the location defined in the binaries section of HeadlessBuild.properties file.

Note: If the binary location is not specified in the file, the binaries are saved in the following default location:
<projectLocation>/Binaries.

Build .js Arguments

Command	Usage
--help -h	Help for the build.js arguments
--clean -c -clean	Cleans extracted bundles folder and extracts plugins again.
--irisversion -iv	To download plug-ins of specified Iris version.
--proxy	Forwards the request through the HTTP(s) proxy server if the script is running on a restricted network. You must provide proxy server details along with credentials if required.

Usage:node build.js --clean --irisversion 9.0.3 --proxy http://user_name:password@proxy.server.com:proxy_port

Error Codes

The error codes are indicative of failed stage or operation. The actual error messages differ from the description mentioned below:

Example: Error code 50 describes as one of the mandatory field is missing. Actual error message will list the fields missing.

Error Code	Description
50	One or more mandatory fields are missing in HeadlessBuild.properties.
51	At least one platform should be selected for the build in HeadlessBuild.properties.
52	Plugin extraction failed (or) one or more mandatory plugins are missing.
53	Publishing Volt Foundry application failed.
54	Volt Foundry configuration details are missing in HeadlessBuild.properties.Example: error message will be (cloudname, cloudpassword, envname, accountID, mfAppName) is (or) are missing.
55	Project porting failed.
56	There are no forms created to build the selected channels.Example: There are no forms created for: Desktop
57	JAVA_HOME not found in environment variables (or) expected Java version is not found.
58	ANT_HOME not found in environment variables (or) expected ant version is not found.
59	Expected node version not found.Example: node version mismatch: required 7.10.0, found 6.10.2.
60	Expected Xcode version not found.
61	Expected Finalizer version not found.
62	Build failed for one or more selected platforms.
64	Android Home not found
65	Codegen Failed
66	Package Failed
67	Upload of web binaries failed
68	Binary Generation failed
69	IPA Generation Failed

Platforms Supported

Following platforms are supported to build the CI application:

iPhone, iPad
Android mobile and tablet
SPA mobile, tablet and desktop web
SPA/DW publish
Windows mobile, tablet and kiosk
Apple watch and Android wear