Cron-triggered Jenkins pipeline to send patches via email on available Maven dependency updates

Jenkinsfile

pipeline {
	agent any

	triggers {
		cron('00 23 * * 1-5')
	}

	stages {
		stage('Check dependency updates') {
			steps {
				script {
					String filename = 'dependency-updates.patch'
					String script = """
					mvn versions:use-latest-versions -B -U -DgenerateBackupPoms=false
					git diff --unified=0 --exit-code pom.xml > ${filename}
					"""
					int exitCode = sh script: script, returnStatus: true
					if (exitCode == 1) {
						emailext subject: 'Dependency updates available',
							body: "See attached patch: ${filename}",
							attachmentsPattern: "**/${filename}",
							to: 'alice@example.com, bob@example.com'
					}
				}
			}
		}
	}
}

The Maven Version Plugin is a beast! Also check out its other goals such as versions:update-properties to update your properties.