Using a Default Manifest File

If you use the following configuration, the file found in ${project.build.outputDirectory}/META-INF/MANIFEST.MF will be used as the manifest file in the jar.

<project>
  ...
  <build>
    <plugins>
      <plugin>
        <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
        <artifactId>maven-jar-plugin</artifactId>
        <version>2.4</version>
        <configuration>
          <useDefaultManifestFile>true</useDefaultManifestFile>
        </configuration>
        ...
      </plugin>
    </plugins>
  </build>
  ...
</project>