Appian RPA - Custom Code developer [RPA Beginner]

Question

Hi Appian Solutions / Appian Community , 
 https://docs.appian.com/suite/help/24.4/rpa-9.16/java-module-ms-outlook.html 
 I'm working on creating a custom Java code for the Appian RPA MS Outlook module. While I've finished the Java component, I'm unsure how to integrate or put those into Appian RPA. 
 It would be great to get some insights on best practices and common challenges from someone with experience in this area. I tried to follow the Appian RPA documentation, but somewhere felt like lost. 
 Could anyone with experience incorporating custom Java code into Appian RPA offer some guidance? 
 
 Thanks, 
 Bharathwaj RK

naveenkumar11800 · Answer

I’ve been through this rabbit hole myself—setting up custom Java code for Appian RPA can feel a bit like taming Outlook itself

From the error log, it looks like Maven can’t locate the robot-archetype:3.7.0 from the Appian RPA repository. That usually means the custom repository isn’t properly recognized.

Here are a few quick things to check:

1. Make sure `settings.xml` is updated

You need to add the Appian Community repo explicitly in your Maven settings.xml. Here’s what it should include:

<profiles>
  <profile>
    <id>jidoka-repo</id>
    <repositories>
      <repository>
        <id>archetype</id>
        <url>https://us.appian.community/rpa/repo/</url>
      </repository>
    </repositories>
  </profile>
</profiles>

<activeProfiles>
  <activeProfile>jidoka-repo</activeProfile>
</activeProfiles>

2. Try without the -Pjidoka-repo flag initially
Sometimes Maven can behave better if you just include the repo in settings.xml and leave out the profile flag from the command.

If everything is set up right and you still hit a wall, let me know—happy to share a working settings.xml snippet or my own successful setup steps.

naveenkumar11800 · Answer

bharathwajrk command syntax look well- structured overall. The HTTP 401 Unauthorized is the key issue here — it means your credentials to access the Appian RPA Maven repo aren't being accepted. 1. Verify the credentials The username should be your Appian community username ( case- sensitive). The password should be your Appian RPA Maven Refresh Token , not your normal password. You can generate this from Appian RPA → Configuration → Maven Credentials . It's often labeled something like mavenSettingsRefreshKey . 2 Ensure the correct server ID In , you used: jidoka 3. Archetype repo ID mismatch Even though you've declared an id of archetype , the 401 is showing up from archetype , which suggests Maven is treating the archetype repo separately and doesn’t know to use the jidoka credentials. To fix this, try removing the block and just keep the jidoka repo and credentials. Alternatively, set the archetype repo ID to jidoka both in command line and settings.xml to unify credentials usage. mvn archetype:generate -B \ -DarchetypeGroupId=com.novayre.jidoka.robot \ -DarchetypeArtifactId=robot-archetype \ -DarchetypeVersion=3.7.0 \ -DgroupId=com.appian.robot \ -DartifactId=RKB_Outlook \ -Dversion=0.0.1 \ -DarchetypeRepository=https://us.appian.community/rpa/repo/ \ -Pjidoka-repo Use -DarchetypeRepository (not just -Drepository ) to ensure it targets the right one.

Appian RPA - Custom Code developer [RPA Beginner]

1. Make sure settings.xml is updated

1. Verify the credentials

3. Archetype repo ID mismatch

1. Verify the credentials

3. Archetype repo ID mismatch

1. Make sure `settings.xml` is updated