Why does only the first line of this Windows batch file execute but all three lines execute in a command shell?

190
votes

I have a batch file that executes three Maven commands, one after the other. Each command can be successfully executed in the script - by itself!. But when I add all three commands to the same file, only the first one executes before the script exits. Any idea why?

mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=base -Dversion=1.0 -Dfile=gdata-base-1.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true
mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=blogger -Dversion=2.0 -Dfile=gdata-blogger-2.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true
mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=blogger-meta -Dversion=2.0 -Dfile=gdata-blogger-meta-2.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true

Also, if I copy all three commands and paste them into a command shell (cmd.exe), they execute one after the other with no problem. So this is apparently some issue with the dos batch file.

6
windowsbatch-filecmdwindows-7
What a coincedent: I came here with the same problem and also the same commands in my batch file - multiple lines of "mvn install:install-file" :-D – fishbone
Possible duplicate of How to run multiple .BAT files within a .BAT file – Peter Mortensen
@fishbone and coincidently you and OP both have 1.3k reputation.. – p_champ

6 Answers

329
votes

Maven uses batch files to do its business. With any batch script, you must call another script using the call command so it knows to return back to your script after the called script completes. Try prepending call to all commands.

Another thing you could try is using the start command which should work similarly.

38
votes

Having call helps. However today it didn't.

This is how I solved it:

Bat file contents (if you want to stop batch when one of cmds errors)

cmd1 && ^
cmd2 && ^
cmd3 && ^
cmd4

Bat file contents (if you want to continue batch when one of cmds errors)

cmd1 & ^
cmd2 & ^
cmd3 & ^
cmd4
11
votes

To execute more Maven builds from one script you shall use the Windows call function in the following way:

call mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=base -Dversion=1.0 -Dfile=gdata-base-1.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true
call mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=blogger -Dversion=2.0 -Dfile=gdata-blogger-2.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true
call mvn install:install-file -DgroupId=gdata -DartifactId=blogger-meta -Dversion=2.0 -Dfile=gdata-blogger-meta-2.0.jar  -Dpackaging=jar -DgeneratePom=true
1
votes

It should be that the particular mvn command execs and does not return, thereby not executing the rest of the commands.

1
votes

Try writing the following batch file and executing it:

Echo one
cmd
Echo two
cmd
Echo three
cmd

Only the first two lines get executed. But if you type "exit" at the command prompt, the next two lines are processed. It's a shell loading another.

To be sure that this is not what is happening in your script, just type "exit" when the first command ends.

HTH!

0
votes

Dos commands in my batch file were running only when I type EXIT in command/DOS window. This problem solved when I removed CMD from batch file. No need of it.