Active Git Branches Parameter Plugin

A Jenkins plugin that provides a build parameter for selecting Git branches dynamically fetched from a remote repository, sorted by commit date (most recent first), with configurable filtering and limiting options.

Features

• Dynamic Branch Fetching: Automatically fetches branches from a Git repository at build time
• Sorted by Activity: Branches are sorted by commit date in descending order (most recent first)
• Configurable Limit: Limit the number of displayed branches (Top N)
• Regex Filtering: Filter branches using regular expressions
• Credentials Support: Integrates with Jenkins Credentials for private repositories
• No Script Approval Required: Pure Java implementation, no Groovy scripts or sandbox approval needed

Requirements

• Jenkins 2.387.3 or later
• Java 11 or later
• Git Plugin

Installation

From Source

1. Clone this repository
2. Build the plugin:

   mvn clean package

3. Install the generated .hpi file from target/active-git-branches-plugin.hpi via Jenkins Plugin Manager

From Jenkins Update Center

(Coming soon)

Usage

Pipeline (Declarative)

pipeline {
    agent any
    parameters {
        activeGitBranches(
            name: 'BRANCH',
            repositoryUrl: 'https://github.com/your-org/your-repo.git',
            credentialsId: 'github-credentials',
            maxBranchCount: 10,
            branchFilter: 'feature/.*',
            description: 'Select a branch to build'
        )
    }
    stages {
        stage('Build') {
            steps {
                echo "Building branch: ${params.BRANCH}"
                git branch: params.BRANCH, 
                    url: 'https://github.com/your-org/your-repo.git',
                    credentialsId: 'github-credentials'
            }
        }
    }
}

Pipeline (Scripted)

properties([
    parameters([
        activeGitBranches(
            name: 'BRANCH',
            repositoryUrl: 'https://github.com/your-org/your-repo.git',
            maxBranchCount: 15,
            description: 'Select a branch'
        )
    ])
])

node {
    stage('Build') {
        echo "Selected branch: ${params.BRANCH}"
    }
}

Freestyle Job

1. Go to your job's configuration page
2. Check "This project is parameterized"
3. Click "Add Parameter" and select "Active Git Branches Parameter"
4. Configure the following options:
   • Parameter Name: The name of the parameter (e.g., BRANCH)
   • Git Repository URL: The URL of your Git repository
   • Credentials: Select credentials for private repositories (optional)
   • Max Branch Count: Maximum number of branches to display (default: 10)
   • Branch Filter: Regular expression to filter branches (optional)
   • Default Value: Pre-selected branch (optional)

Configuration Options

Option	Required	Description
name	Yes	Parameter name
repositoryUrl	Yes	Git repository URL (HTTPS or SSH)
credentialsId	No	Jenkins credentials ID for private repositories
maxBranchCount	Yes	Maximum number of branches to display (1-100)
branchFilter	No	Regular expression to filter branch names
defaultValue	No	Default selected branch
description	No	Parameter description

Branch Filter Examples

Pattern	Description
.*	Match all branches
feature/.*	Only feature branches
release/.*	Only release branches
(main|master|develop)	Only main, master, or develop
(?!release/).*	Exclude release branches
hotfix-.*|bugfix-.*	Hotfix or bugfix branches

Development

Prerequisites

• JDK 11 or later
• Maven 3.8+

Building

mvn clean package

Running locally

mvn hpi:run

This will start a local Jenkins instance at http://localhost:8080/jenkins with the plugin installed.

Running tests

mvn test

How It Works

1. When the build parameter page loads, the plugin fetches remote branches from the configured Git repository
2. Branches are retrieved using JGit and sorted by commit date (descending)
3. The branch filter regex is applied (if configured)
4. The list is truncated to the configured maximum count
5. The filtered and sorted list is displayed as a dropdown

Troubleshooting

No branches displayed

• Verify the repository URL is correct
• Check that credentials are configured for private repositories
• Use the "Test Connection" button in the configuration

Performance issues

• Reduce the maxBranchCount value
• The first load may be slower as the repository is being cloned temporarily

Authentication errors

• Ensure credentials have read access to the repository
• For GitHub, use a Personal Access Token instead of password
• For SSH, ensure the SSH key is properly configured in Jenkins

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues and pull requests.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.