[java] [maven] [pom] what is Project Object Model (POM) file?

 

Maven projects, dependencies, builds, artifacts are modeled and described by an XML file called a Project Object Model. 

The POM tells Maven what sort of project it is dealing with and how to modify default behavior to generate output from source. 

In the same way a Java web application has a web.xml that describes, configures, and customizes the application, a Maven project is defined by the presence of a pom.xml. 

It is a descriptive declaration of a project for Maven; it is the figurative “map” that Maven needs to understand what it is looking at when it builds your project.

Reference:

Maven: The Complete Reference - 3.2. The POM

Maven Getting Started Guide

Introduction to Maven