Integrate SonarQube for Java Gradle project in GitLab CI/CD

In this article we will cover How to integrate SonarQube for Java Gradle Project in GitLab CI/CD.

What is SonarQube?

SonarQube is a widely used open-source platform for continuous inspection of code quality. It analyzes code for bugs, vulnerabilities, code smells, and other issues to ensure that your software adheres to coding standards and best practices. It provides detailed reports and metrics that help developers and teams improve code quality and maintainability.

When integrating SonarQube with a Gradle project in a GitLab CI/CD pipeline, you can automate code analysis as part of your development workflow

Prerequisites

Ubuntu 22.04 LTS with minimal Installation
SSH Access with sudo privileges
SonarQube Server Details

Table of Contents

Step #1:How to Install OpenJDK and Gradle on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

Update the system packages

sudo apt update

Install OpenJDK on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

sudo apt install openjdk-17-jdk

To check Java Version

java –version

To Install Gradle

Download the gradle setup in /tmp directory using below command,

cd /tmp

To download specific version of gradle use below syntax

wget https://services.gradle.org/distributions/gradle-7.4.2-bin.zip

Using ls command you can check downloadled zip file

Install unzip on Ubuntu if not installed

sudo apt install unzip

Extract Gradle Package:

sudo unzip -d /opt/gradle gradle-7.4.2-bin.zip

Set Environment Variables:

sudo nano /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh

Paste the following configuration:

export GRADLE_HOME=/opt/gradle/latest

export PATH=$PATH:/opt/gradle/gradle-7.4.2/bin

Note: using “Ctrl+x y then enter” you can save your configuration

Load the environment variable using below command

source /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh

Give the excutable permission to above script

sudo chmod +x /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh

Verify Gradle version:

gradle -v

Output:

Step #2:How to Install GitLab Runner on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

Add the Official GitLab Repository using below command, to check latest Gitlab Repository visit the official GitLab Runner page

curl -L "https://packages.gitlab.com/install/repositories/runner/gitlab-runner/script.deb.sh" | sudo bash

Install GitLab Runner on Ubuntu, Run below command to install latest GitLab Runner on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

sudo apt-get install gitlab-runner

To check status if GitLab Runner service is running or not

sudo gitlab-runner status

Step #3:How to Register GitLab-Runner

To Register GitLab-Runner run the below command:

sudo gitlab-runner register

Then enter the URL

To registration token from gitlab account:-

Go to the GitLab Account
Click on Project
Then click on setting and in below click on CI/CD
Click on Runner Expand and copy registration token
And paste on command

Then you can give any meaning full description

Then Enter tags for the runner (any tag)

Then choose any executor – shell , ssh , docker , etc.

Once you registered Runner for project then you will get runner as below,

Successfully, We have performed GitLab Runner Registration.

Error: This job is stuck because the project doesn’t have any runners online assigned to it. Go to Runners page.

Solution:

You have added tags while registering GitLab Runner however you have not added tags for your Job.

Follow below steps to add tags.

1. Navigate to Settings and click on CI/CD inside this click on Expand of Runners section

2. Go to Runners, click on edit and check on Indicates whether this runner can pick jobs without tags Box Click on run untagged jobs check box

Step #4:Add below code in build.gradle and setting.gradle

Add code in build.gradle

Add the sonarqube and java plugins in build.gradle

plugins {
        id 'java'
        id "org.sonarqube" version "4.3.0.3225"
}

Add the sonar properties in build.gradle

sonar {
  properties {
    property "sonar.projectKey", "sonaqube-gradle-gitlab"
    property "sonar.organization", "DevOpsHint"
    property "sonar.host.url", " SONAR_URL"
  }
}

Note: SONAR_URL is your “sonarqube server URL”.

Add code in setting.gradle

rootProject.name = 'sonarqube-java-gradle'

Step #5:How to Generate Token in sonarqube server

Go to your SonarQube server then go to administrator > my account

Go to security

Enter the name and type of token then click on generate, to generate tokens.

Copy the token in notepad for further use.

Step #6:How to Add variables in your repository

To add variable Go to setting section > CI/CD > Variables > click on add variable

SONAR_TOKEN: <Paste sonar token>

Uncheck the “Protect Variable” checkbox
Check the “Mask Variable” checkbox
Uncheck the “Expand variable reference” checkbox

Then you get SONAR_TOKEN variables available in variables.

Step #7:SonarQube integration for Java gradle Project in gitlab CI/CD

Below gitlab-ci.yml file for SonarQube Integration for Java gradle Project.

stages:
  - build
  - test

build-java-project:
  stage: build
  script:
   - gradle build

image: gradle:jre11-slim
sonarqube-check:
  stage: test
  script: gradle sonar -Dsonar.token=SONAR_TOKEN
  only:
      - main

Monitor the Pipeline:

Go to your GitLab repository’s build section to monitor the progress of the pipeline.

Step #8:Check your sonarqube server

Check your SonarQube server to analyzes code for bugs, vulnerabilities, code smells, and other issues like below.

Conclusion:

In this article we have covered SonarQube Integration for Java Gradle Project in GitLab CI/CD.