jenkinsci/jenkins · warning · RestartRequiredException

{0} plugin doesn’t support dynamic loading. Jenkins needs to

Error message

{0} plugin doesn’t support dynamic loading. Jenkins needs to be restarted for the update to take effect.

What it means

RestartRequiredException is thrown when the plugin being deployed declares supportsDynamicLoad() == YesNoMaybe.NO in its manifest (typically the Jenkins-Version / supportsDynamicLoad header is absent or explicitly set to false). The plugin was not designed to be loaded after Jenkins startup, so a restart is mandatory.

Source

Thrown at core/src/main/java/hudson/PluginManager.java:956

                    for (Iterator<PluginWrapper> i = plugins.iterator(); i.hasNext();) {
                        pw = i.next();
                        if (sn.equals(pw.getShortName())) {
                            i.remove();
                            break;
                        }
                    }
                } else {
                    throw new RestartRequiredException(Messages._PluginManager_PluginIsAlreadyInstalled_RestartRequired(sn));
                }
            }
            if (!Lifecycle.get().supportsDynamicLoad()) {
                throw new RestartRequiredException(Messages._PluginManager_LifecycleDoesNotSupportDynamicLoad_RestartRequired());
            }
            if (p == null) {
                p = strategy.createPluginWrapper(arc);
            }
            if (p.supportsDynamicLoad() == YesNoMaybe.NO)
                throw new RestartRequiredException(Messages._PluginManager_PluginDoesntSupportDynamicLoad_RestartRequired(sn));

            // there's no need to do cyclic dependency check, because we are deploying one at a time,
            // so existing plugins can't be depending on this newly deployed one.

            plugins.add(p);
            if (p.isActive()) {
                activePlugins.add(p);
                ((UberClassLoader) uberClassLoader).clearCacheMisses();
            }

            // TODO antimodular; perhaps should have a PluginListener to complement ExtensionListListener?
            CustomClassFilter.Contributed.load();

            try {
                p.resolvePluginDependencies();
                strategy.load(p);

                if (batch != null) {

View on GitHub (pinned to 2e228ff40b)

Solutions

Restart Jenkins after installing the plugin instead of attempting dynamic load.
Update to a newer version of the plugin that supports dynamic loading.
If you own the plugin, add supportsDynamicLoad support or set the manifest header appropriately.

Example fix

// before
pluginManager.dynamicLoad(arc);

// after — check plugin capability
if (p.supportsDynamicLoad() == YesNoMaybe.NO) {
    // must restart; deploy without dynamic load
    updateCenter.getPlugin(sn).deploy(false, correlationId);
} else {
    pluginManager.dynamicLoad(arc);
}

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

if (p.supportsDynamicLoad() == YesNoMaybe.NO) {
    listener.getLogger().println("Plugin does not support dynamic load; restart required.");
    // use restart-based deployment
}

Type guard

public static boolean supportsDynamicLoad(PluginWrapper pw) {
    return pw.supportsDynamicLoad() != YesNoMaybe.NO;
}

Try / catch

try {
    pluginManager.dynamicLoad(arc);
} catch (RestartRequiredException e) {
    if (e.getMessage().contains("doesn't support dynamic loading")) {
        updateCenter.getPlugin(sn).deploy(false, correlationId);
    } else {
        throw e;
    }
}

Prevention

Check supportsDynamicLoad() on the plugin wrapper before dynamic deployment.
Update plugins to versions that declare dynamic load support.
If you own the plugin, ensure the manifest declares supportsDynamicLoad.

When it happens

Trigger: Attempting to dynamically load a plugin whose manifest does not declare dynamic load support (missing or false 'Plugin-Timestamp' / the plugin predates the dynamic-load era).

Common situations: Installing an older plugin that was built before dynamic loading was standardized, or a plugin that explicitly opts out of dynamic load. The plugin author set supportsDynamicLoad to NO in the POM/hpi manifest.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of jenkinsci/jenkins@2e228ff40b (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/578d0fd08b33b17a. Report an issue: GitHub.