What is build.gradle file?

You run a Gradle build using the gradle command. The gradle command looks for a file called build.gradle in the current directory. You can call this build.gradle file a build script, although strictly speaking it is a build configuration script. The build script defines a project and its tasks.

To try this out, create the following build script named build.gradle.

task hello {
        doLast {
                println 'Hello Java2Novice...'
        }
}

Move to the folder where build.gradle file placed and run command "gradle hello"

java2novice$ gradle hello
:hello
Hello Java2Novice...

BUILD SUCCESSFUL

Total time: 3.348 secs

This build script defines a single task, called hello, and adds an action to it. When you run gradle hello, Gradle executes the hello task, which in turn executes the action you've provided.

Reference: Gradle Documentation

Gradle configuration examples

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2. What is gradle project and task
3. What is build.gradle file?
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5. How to define default tasks in Gradle?
6. How to list all gradle tasks?
7. How to list gradle project properties?
8. How to declare a task that depends on other task?
9. How to create dynamic tasks in Gradle?
10. How to exclude a task in gradle?
11. How to create java project in gradle?