Best practice for portable flatc execution in Maven?

[jrivard]

How is one supposed to use flatc with Java Maven in a truly portable, non-system-dependent way? I’m struggling to find a "modern" approach that doesn't rely on every developer manually installing a system-wide binary.

I have explored two "working" approaches and one "non-working" approach, but all feel like compromises:

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1. The com.github.davidmoten:flatbuffers-compiler plugin

• Pros: It works out of the box and handles the binary for you.
• Cons: It is ancient—stuck on version 2.0.8 with no updates in years. Relying on a legacy compiler for a high-performance serialization library feels like a ticking time bomb.

2. The exec-maven-plugin (System Binary)

• Pros: Uses the latest flatc features.
• Cons: * Requires flatc to be pre-installed on every dev machine and CI runner.
  • Requires the local binary and the com.google.flatbuffers:flatbuffers-java dependency to be perfectly in sync.
  • Version drift is inevitable when building across different environments (Windows vs. Linux vs. macOS).

3. The "AI-Recommended" OS Detection Path (Non-Working)

I’ve seen AI-generated suggestions to use os-maven-plugin for platform detection combined with other plugins to pull flatc source from GitHub.

• The Issue: This often requires building flatc from source using a system C++ compiler during the Maven lifecycle. This is a massive headache for a Java project. I haven't found a clean way to simply download the pre-compiled native binaries.

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The Bigger Question

The absence of an official flatbuffers-maven-plugin is troubling. In my world, if a library isn't easily built with Maven or Gradle, it’s hard to justify using it in a "meaningful" project.

• Is FlatBuffers actually used in large-scale Java projects? If so, how are they handling the build?
• Is there a hidden "official" guide? I feel like I'm missing a standard workflow that everyone else knows about.
• Does anyone have a working POM example that pulls a specific flatc version and runs it without requiring system-level installation?

I’m hoping there’s a path forward that doesn't involve manual environment setup for every contributor.

Help! What am I missing?