--- title: adam bien's blog | daily.dev description: Multi-stage Docker builds are criticized as an antipattern for Java shops that already have a Maven or Gradle CI/CD pipeline compiling, testing, and versioning... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: adam bien's blog | daily.dev og:description: Multi-stage Docker builds are criticized as an antipattern for Java shops that already have a Maven or Gradle CI/CD pipeline compiling, testing, and versioning... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/0Nd2pyI2A.png og:image:alt: adam bien's blog og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # adam bien's blog **[Adam Bien](https://daily.dev/sources/adam-bien)** · 2 min read · 2 upvotes · 1 comments ## Summary Multi-stage Docker builds are criticized as an antipattern for Java shops that already have a Maven or Gradle CI/CD pipeline compiling, testing, and versioning artifacts. Rebuilding inside Docker means the image no longer contains the exact artifact that passed the pipeline's tests, just a similar rebuild sharing the same commit. The recommended alternative is a single-stage Dockerfile that copies the already-built jar into a minimal runtime image (e.g. eclipse-temurin:25-jre-alpine), reserving multi-stage builds for cases where Docker itself is the chosen build environment. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Should I use a multi-stage Dockerfile for a Java application that already has a CI/CD pipeline building it with Maven or Gradle? No, a single-stage Dockerfile is preferable when a CI/CD pipeline already compiles, tests, and versions the artifact in a controlled environment. Multi-stage builds recompile the source a second time inside Docker with a different JDK and cache, meaning the image no longer contains the exact artifact that passed tests. A single-stage Dockerfile that copies the already-built jar (e.g. into eclipse-temurin:25-jre-alpine) preserves build integrity. _Developers designing Docker packaging strategies can weigh trade-offs like this on daily.dev._ ### What is the risk of recompiling a Java application inside a Docker multi-stage build instead of using the CI pipeline's artifact? The risk is that the deployed image contains a rebuild rather than the exact artifact that passed the CI pipeline's tests. A multi-stage Docker build compiles the source again using a potentially different JDK version, a different local dependency repository, and a different build cache, so the resulting binary only shares the same commit as the tested artifact, not its verified bytes. _Teams debating build reproducibility in CI/CD can explore this reasoning on daily.dev._ ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@agustinbarrientos** · 0 upvotes > I think CI should promote the exact artifact it tested into the runtime image ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Why To Use A Multi-Stage Dockerfile](https://daily.dev/posts/why-to-use-a-multi-stage-dockerfile-ripe33vzt) · RUBYLAND · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Containerizing Java, Python, and JavaScript Apps - Multi-Stage Docker Builds, Non-Root Users, and Docker Hub Tagging](https://daily.dev/posts/containerizing-java-python-and-javascript-apps---multi-stage-docker-builds-non-root-users-and-do-ancbrg46f) · Medium · 22 upvotes · 0 comments - [Building the Perfect Docker Image for a Java app](https://daily.dev/posts/building-the-perfect-docker-image-for-a-java-app-wf0dbjzj1) · Vaadin · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Java Code Isn’t the Problem](https://daily.dev/posts/java-code-isn-t-the-problem-ekyxiyuk9) · Container Journal · 9 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#java](https://daily.dev/tags/java), [#architecture](https://daily.dev/tags/architecture), [#cicd](https://daily.dev/tags/cicd), [#docker](https://daily.dev/tags/docker), [#maven](https://daily.dev/tags/maven) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"adam bien's blog","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a"},"datePublished":"2026-08-18T13:20:11.239Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T08:21:05.189Z","description":"Multi-stage Docker builds are criticized as an antipattern for Java shops that already have a Maven or Gradle CI/CD pipeline compiling, testing, and versioning...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/d365e8cabb5d95ba36aaa092c23f211d?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/d365e8cabb5d95ba36aaa092c23f211d?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Adam Bien","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Adam Bien","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--CInnAL-q--/f_auto,q_auto/v1773644276/logos/adam-bien?_a=BAMAMiiu0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/adam-bien"},"commentCount":1,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":1}],"keywords":"java,architecture,cicd,docker,maven","timeRequired":"PT2M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Adam Bien","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/adam-bien"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"adam bien's blog"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"I think CI should promote the exact artifact it tested into the runtime image","datePublished":"2026-08-18T21:14:38.268Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/0Nd2pyI2A#c-gThgLiPth","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Agustin Barrientos","url":"https://daily.dev/agustinbarrientos","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--5ayxQnqn--/f_auto/v1788281802/avatars/avatar_wQYYVe5Tbj0NJ7C7qPoa8?_a=BAMAMicg0"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/adam-bien-s-blog-0nd2pyi2a#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Should I use a multi-stage Dockerfile for a Java application that already has a CI/CD pipeline building it with Maven or Gradle?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"No, a single-stage Dockerfile is preferable when a CI/CD pipeline already compiles, tests, and versions the artifact in a controlled environment. 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