Automate plugin installation in Confluence
Platform Notice: Data Center Only - This article only applies to Atlassian apps on the Data Center platform.
Note that this KB was created for the Data Center version of the product. Data Center KBs for non-Data-Center-specific features may also work for Server versions of the product, however they have not been tested. Support for Server* products ended on February 15th 2024. If you are running a Server product, you can visit the Atlassian Server end of support announcement to review your migration options.
*Except Fisheye and Crucible
Summary
If you are looking to automate Confluence deployments, you may also like to include third-party apps that are used extensively by users. This article explains steps on how to automate plugin installation in Confluence.
Solution
Before copying a plugin's .jar file into the atlassian-bundled-plugins folder, check the plugin's Explore Marketplace solutions for Atlassian apps | Atlassian Marketplace listing page to confirm the version you are installing is compatible with your Confluence version. Back up the <Confluence-install>/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-plugins folder before adding the new JAR. Installing an incompatible plugin this way can prevent Confluence from starting, since bundled plugins are loaded earlier in the startup sequence than user-installed apps. If Confluence fails to start after adding a plugin, remove the new JAR from the folder and restore from backup.
Grab the .jar files of the plugins in concern from their Atlassian Marketplace page
If they are in .obr format, convert it to a zip file and extract the jar file from inside this folder.
Copy the jar file and paste it in
<Confluence-install>/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-pluginsfolderRestart Confluence
After restarting Confluence, confirm the plugin appears and is enabled under Cog icon > Manage apps, and that it is listed as a system app (not user-installed) — this confirms it installed correctly via the bundled-plugins folder rather than needing a manual re-upload.
Data Center clusters: The atlassian-bundled-plugins folder is in each node's install directory, not in the shared home — the .jar file must be copied to <Confluence-install>/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-plugins on every node in the cluster. For fleet-wide or repeated deployments, consider scripting this copy-and-restart process (e.g., via Ansible, Puppet, or a shell script) as part of your standard Confluence provisioning pipeline. Use rolling restarts — restarting one node at a time — to avoid full cluster downtime.
These plugins will be installed as system plugins. You can disable the plugin from the UI, but cannot uninstall it. If you need to uninstall it in the future, the .jar file needs to be removed from the atlassian-bundled-plugins folder followed by Clearing the plugins cache.
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