Do plugins download the files like dependencies do for Maven projects?

I am trying to use the PIT tool that is available online to mutation testing and I noticed that it uses a plugin tag for the pom.xml file for maven projects. I have looked at the maven repository to see but they never mention if the plugins download the files to your system. Do plugins download the files like the dependencies? Or does it not download the files?

If not, is there a way I can? I need to edit some of the files to allow for additional mutations for a class project.

Solution

You are probably looking out tom introduce in your pom.xml:-

<build>
    <plugins>
       <plugin>
           <groupId>org.pitest</groupId>
           <artifactId>pitest-maven</artifactId>
           <version>1.2.3</version>
       </plugin>
      .... other plugins
   </plugins>
</build>

Do plugins download the files like the dependencies? Or does it not download the files?

Yes, plugin would also be downloaded from the default Maven central of as specified in your settings.xml similar to how dependencies are downloaded during build.

Also, the quick-start by them can help you specify additional mutations or exclusions precisely.