Where Is the Jenkins Home Directory?
JENKINS_HOME with jobs, plugins and config.xml on Linux and Windows, and why to back it up whole.
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Jenkins keeps everything (jobs, builds, plugins, users, secrets) under one home directory. Backing up that folder backs up the controller.
The path comes from packages on Linux and the installer on Windows. The system info page prints the live home when installs disagree.
Where Jenkins stores this, by platform
C:\ProgramData\Jenkins\.jenkins
MSI default. Secrets and credentials.xml live inside; stop the service before file copies.
/var/lib/jenkins
Package default owned by the jenkins user. Thin backups copy jobs plus config.xml files and reinstall plugins from lists.
Frequently asked questions
What must I back up in Jenkins?
The whole home ideally. At minimum: jobs dirs, users, secrets, credentials.xml, config.xml and the plugins list.
How do I move Jenkins to a new server?
Install the same version, stop both, copy home across, fix ownership, start. Version gaps break plugin data silently.
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