diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-example-java8-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-example-java8-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
index dc88fe13f3..af777dd4a0 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-example-java8-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-example-java8-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
 <!--
 
-    Copyright (c) 2015, 2023 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
+    Copyright (c) 2015, 2024 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
 
     This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
     terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
@@ -127,6 +127,5 @@
     <properties>
         <java.version>1.8</java.version>
         <jersey.config.test.container.port>8080</jersey.config.test.container.port>
-        <war.mvn.plugin.version>3.4.0</war.mvn.plugin.version>
     </properties>
 </project>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/pom.xml
index 1baa9764ad..02e84bb7c7 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/pom.xml
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-resources-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>2.5</version>
+                <version>${resources.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <configuration>
                     <escapeString>\</escapeString>
                 </configuration>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
index d1073c9903..87a3936f0a 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-heroku-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>3.8.1</version>
+                <version>${compiler.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <inherited>true</inherited>
                 <configuration>
                     <source>1.8</source>
@@ -116,9 +116,6 @@
 
     <properties>
         <jersey.version>${project.version}</jersey.version>
-        <jetty.version>9.4.54.v20240208</jetty.version>
         <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
-        <surefire.mvn.plugin.version>3.2.5</surefire.mvn.plugin.version>
-        <war.mvn.plugin.version>3.4.0</war.mvn.plugin.version>
     </properties>
 </project>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/pom.xml
index ca8227bd41..60477a8770 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/pom.xml
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-resources-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>2.5</version>
+                <version>${resources.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <configuration>
                     <escapeString>\</escapeString>
                 </configuration>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml
deleted file mode 100644
index 8a4f9973a1..0000000000
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,29 +0,0 @@
-<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
-<!--
-
-    Copyright (c) 2010, 2018 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
-
-    This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
-    terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
-    http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-2.0.
-
-    This Source Code may also be made available under the following Secondary
-    Licenses when the conditions for such availability set forth in the
-    Eclipse Public License v. 2.0 are satisfied: GNU General Public License,
-    version 2 with the GNU Classpath Exception, which is available at
-    https://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/license.html.
-
-    SPDX-License-Identifier: EPL-2.0 OR GPL-2.0 WITH Classpath-exception-2.0
-
--->
-
-<archetype>
-  <id>jersey-quickstart-grizzly2</id>
-  <sources>
-    <source>src/main/java/Main.java</source>
-    <source>src/main/java/MyResource.java</source>
-  </sources>
-  <testSources>
-    <source>src/test/java/MyResourceTest.java</source>
-  </testSources>
-</archetype>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..54380e52c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<!--
+
+    Copyright (c) 2024 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
+
+    This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
+    terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
+    http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-2.0.
+
+    This Source Code may also be made available under the following Secondary
+    Licenses when the conditions for such availability set forth in the
+    Eclipse Public License v. 2.0 are satisfied: GNU General Public License,
+    version 2 with the GNU Classpath Exception, which is available at
+    https://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/license.html.
+
+    SPDX-License-Identifier: EPL-2.0 OR GPL-2.0 WITH Classpath-exception-2.0
+
+-->
+
+<archetype-descriptor
+        xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-archetype-plugin/archetype-descriptor/1.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/archetype-descriptor-1.0.0.xsd"
+        name="jersey-quickstart-webapp"
+        xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-archetype-plugin/archetype-descriptor/1.0.0"
+        xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
+    <fileSets>
+        <fileSet filtered="true" packaged="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/main/java</directory>
+            <includes>
+                <include>**/*</include>
+            </includes>
+        </fileSet>
+        <!--<fileSet filtered="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/main/webapp</directory>
+        </fileSet>-->
+        <fileSet filtered="true" packaged="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/test/java</directory>
+            <includes>
+                <include>**/*</include>
+            </includes>
+        </fileSet>
+    </fileSets>
+</archetype-descriptor>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
index 779f0802af..087417f001 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-grizzly2/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.junit.jupiter</groupId>
             <artifactId>junit-jupiter</artifactId>
-            <version>\${junit-jupiter.version}</version>
+            <version>\${junit5.version}</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
     </dependencies>
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>3.8.1</version>
+                <version>${compiler.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <inherited>true</inherited>
                 <configuration>
                     <source>1.8</source>
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.codehaus.mojo</groupId>
                 <artifactId>exec-maven-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>1.2.1</version>
+                <version>${exec.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <goals>
@@ -83,8 +83,7 @@
 
     <properties>
         <jersey.version>${project.version}</jersey.version>
-        <junit-jupiter.version>5.10.2</junit-jupiter.version>
+        <junit5.version>${junit5.version}</junit5.version>
         <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
-        <surefire.mvn.plugin.version>3.2.5</surefire.mvn.plugin.version>
     </properties>
 </project>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/pom.xml
index 4fab928319..21aa6b3d72 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/pom.xml
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-resources-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>2.5</version>
+                <version>${resources.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <configuration>
                     <escapeString>\</escapeString>
                 </configuration>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml
deleted file mode 100644
index cea1eea5e9..0000000000
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/archetype.xml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,29 +0,0 @@
-<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
-<!--
-
-    Copyright (c) 2010, 2018 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
-
-    This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
-    terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
-    http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-2.0.
-
-    This Source Code may also be made available under the following Secondary
-    Licenses when the conditions for such availability set forth in the
-    Eclipse Public License v. 2.0 are satisfied: GNU General Public License,
-    version 2 with the GNU Classpath Exception, which is available at
-    https://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/license.html.
-
-    SPDX-License-Identifier: EPL-2.0 OR GPL-2.0 WITH Classpath-exception-2.0
-
--->
-
-<archetype>
-  <id>jersey-quickstart-webapp</id>
-  <sources>
-    <source>src/main/java/MyResource.java</source>
-  </sources>
-  <resources>
-    <resource>src/main/webapp/index.jsp</resource>
-    <resource>src/main/webapp/WEB-INF/web.xml</resource>
-  </resources>
-</archetype>
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..bea65b3530
--- /dev/null
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/META-INF/maven/archetype-metadata.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<!--
+
+    Copyright (c) 2024 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
+
+    This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
+    terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
+    http://www.eclipse.org/legal/epl-2.0.
+
+    This Source Code may also be made available under the following Secondary
+    Licenses when the conditions for such availability set forth in the
+    Eclipse Public License v. 2.0 are satisfied: GNU General Public License,
+    version 2 with the GNU Classpath Exception, which is available at
+    https://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/license.html.
+
+    SPDX-License-Identifier: EPL-2.0 OR GPL-2.0 WITH Classpath-exception-2.0
+
+-->
+
+<archetype-descriptor
+        xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-archetype-plugin/archetype-descriptor/1.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/archetype-descriptor-1.0.0.xsd"
+        name="jersey-quickstart-webapp"
+        xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-archetype-plugin/archetype-descriptor/1.0.0"
+        xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
+    <fileSets>
+        <fileSet filtered="true" packaged="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/main/java</directory>
+        </fileSet>
+        <fileSet filtered="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/main/webapp</directory>
+            <includes>
+                <include>**/*</include>
+            </includes>
+        </fileSet>
+        <fileSet filtered="true" packaged="true" encoding="UTF-8">
+            <directory>src/test/java</directory>
+            <includes>
+                <include>**/*</include>
+            </includes>
+        </fileSet>
+    </fileSets>
+</archetype-descriptor>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
index fc70d51357..341fb67664 100644
--- a/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
+++ b/archetypes/jersey-quickstart-webapp/src/main/resources/archetype-resources/pom.xml
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>3.8.1</version>
+                <version>${compiler.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <inherited>true</inherited>
                 <configuration>
                     <source>1.8</source>
@@ -63,6 +63,5 @@
     <properties>
         <jersey.version>${project.version}</jersey.version>
         <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
-        <war.mvn.plugin.version>3.4.0</war.mvn.plugin.version>
     </properties>
 </project>
diff --git a/bundles/apidocs/pom.xml b/bundles/apidocs/pom.xml
index 3f7f7c0f9a..a0ea49a315 100644
--- a/bundles/apidocs/pom.xml
+++ b/bundles/apidocs/pom.xml
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.glassfish</groupId>
             <artifactId>javax.servlet</artifactId>
-            <version>3.1</version>
+            <version>3.1.1</version>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.glassfish.jersey.containers</groupId>
diff --git a/bundles/jaxrs-ri/pom.xml b/bundles/jaxrs-ri/pom.xml
index aae987cf25..442cc53318 100644
--- a/bundles/jaxrs-ri/pom.xml
+++ b/bundles/jaxrs-ri/pom.xml
@@ -424,7 +424,7 @@
                     <plugin>
                         <groupId>org.codehaus.mojo</groupId>
                         <artifactId>wagon-maven-plugin</artifactId>
-                        <version>1.0-beta-4</version>
+                        <version>2.0.2</version>
                         <inherited>false</inherited>
                         <executions>
                             <execution>
diff --git a/connectors/helidon-connector/pom.xml b/connectors/helidon-connector/pom.xml
index 63bd4bbadc..a34b2583f4 100644
--- a/connectors/helidon-connector/pom.xml
+++ b/connectors/helidon-connector/pom.xml
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>io.helidon.jersey</groupId>
             <artifactId>helidon-jersey-connector</artifactId>
-            <version>2.2.1</version>
+            <version>${helidon.connector.version}</version>
             <scope>provided</scope>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
diff --git a/core-common/pom.xml b/core-common/pom.xml
index 11d3977f5a..e93ca182d9 100644
--- a/core-common/pom.xml
+++ b/core-common/pom.xml
@@ -676,7 +676,6 @@
                     <plugin>
                         <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                         <artifactId>maven-source-plugin</artifactId>
-                        <version>3.0.1</version>
                         <executions>
                             <execution>
                                 <id>attach-sources</id>
diff --git a/core-server/pom.xml b/core-server/pom.xml
index 1fc66f1bde..5b32a1e99a 100644
--- a/core-server/pom.xml
+++ b/core-server/pom.xml
@@ -227,7 +227,13 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.jboss</groupId>
             <artifactId>jboss-vfs</artifactId>
-            <version>3.2.6.Final</version>
+            <version>${jboss.vfs.version}</version>
+            <scope>test</scope>
+        </dependency>
+        <dependency>
+            <groupId>org.jboss.logging</groupId>
+            <artifactId>jboss-logging</artifactId>
+            <version>${jboss.logging.version}</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
@@ -240,6 +246,15 @@
     </dependencies>
 
     <profiles>
+        <profile>
+            <id>jdk8</id>
+            <activation>
+                <jdk>1.8</jdk>
+            </activation>
+            <properties>
+                <jboss.vfs.version>${jboss.vfs.jdk8.version}</jboss.vfs.version>
+            </properties>
+        </profile>
         <profile>
             <id>jdk11+</id>
             <activation>
diff --git a/examples/extended-wadl-webapp/pom.xml b/examples/extended-wadl-webapp/pom.xml
index 051ade4546..0d1a933fd3 100644
--- a/examples/extended-wadl-webapp/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/extended-wadl-webapp/pom.xml
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.slf4j</groupId>
             <artifactId>slf4j-log4j12</artifactId>
-            <version>1.6.4</version>
+            <version>2.0.13</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
diff --git a/examples/groovy/pom.xml b/examples/groovy/pom.xml
index 201f35ac27..b527e8749c 100644
--- a/examples/groovy/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/groovy/pom.xml
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.junit.jupiter</groupId>
             <artifactId>junit-jupiter-engine</artifactId>
-            <version>5.8.2</version>
+            <version>${junit5.version}</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
     </dependencies>
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.codehaus.gmavenplus</groupId>
                 <artifactId>gmavenplus-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>1.12.1</version>
+                <version>3.0.0</version>
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <id>1</id>
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.codehaus.mojo</groupId>
                 <artifactId>build-helper-maven-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>3.0.0</version>
+                <version>${buildhelper.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <id>3</id>
diff --git a/examples/helloworld-spring-annotations/pom.xml b/examples/helloworld-spring-annotations/pom.xml
index ea11e81741..1723ca6665 100644
--- a/examples/helloworld-spring-annotations/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/helloworld-spring-annotations/pom.xml
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>commons-logging</groupId>
             <artifactId>commons-logging</artifactId>
-            <version>1.2</version>
+            <version>${commons.logging.version}</version>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.glassfish.jersey.test-framework.providers</groupId>
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>javax.servlet</groupId>
             <artifactId>javax.servlet-api</artifactId>
-            <version>3.0.1</version>
+            <version>${servlet3.version}</version>
         </dependency>
     </dependencies>
 
diff --git a/examples/java8-webapp/pom.xml b/examples/java8-webapp/pom.xml
index da28b44284..87098e8755 100644
--- a/examples/java8-webapp/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/java8-webapp/pom.xml
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@
                 <groupId>org.eclipse.jetty</groupId>
                 <artifactId>jetty-maven-plugin</artifactId>
                 <!-- TODO: Remove the version when JERSEY-2743 is resolved. -->
-                <version>9.2.6.v20141205</version>
+                <version>${jetty.version}</version>
                 <configuration>
                     <scanIntervalSeconds>5</scanIntervalSeconds>
                     <stopPort>9999</stopPort>
diff --git a/examples/jaxb/pom.xml b/examples/jaxb/pom.xml
index 275855d4bd..5a2b873d4b 100644
--- a/examples/jaxb/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/jaxb/pom.xml
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.codehaus.woodstox</groupId>
             <artifactId>woodstox-core-asl</artifactId>
-            <version>4.1.2</version>
+            <version>4.4.1</version>
 	    </dependency>
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.glassfish.jersey.media</groupId>
diff --git a/examples/osgi-http-service/functional-test/pom.xml b/examples/osgi-http-service/functional-test/pom.xml
index a1425e5db6..4bb826e3e2 100644
--- a/examples/osgi-http-service/functional-test/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/osgi-http-service/functional-test/pom.xml
@@ -145,7 +145,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.slf4j</groupId>
             <artifactId>slf4j-log4j12</artifactId>
-            <version>1.6.4</version>
+            <version>2.0.13</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
diff --git a/examples/pom.xml b/examples/pom.xml
index fd0009e590..596fde5347 100644
--- a/examples/pom.xml
+++ b/examples/pom.xml
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@
                 <plugin>
                     <groupId>org.commonjava.maven.plugins</groupId>
                     <artifactId>directory-maven-plugin</artifactId>
-                    <version>0.3.1</version>
+                    <version>1.0</version>
                     <executions>
                         <execution>
                             <id>directories</id>
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@
                 <plugin>
                     <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                     <artifactId>maven-resources-plugin</artifactId>
-                    <version>2.6</version>
+                    <version>${resources.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                     <!-- Add legal information, NOTICE.md and LINCENSE.md to jars -->
                     <executions>
                         <execution>
diff --git a/ext/microprofile/mp-rest-client/pom.xml b/ext/microprofile/mp-rest-client/pom.xml
index 34a1405245..560e58f3b0 100644
--- a/ext/microprofile/mp-rest-client/pom.xml
+++ b/ext/microprofile/mp-rest-client/pom.xml
@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>javax.enterprise</groupId>
             <artifactId>cdi-api</artifactId>
-            <version>2.0</version>
+            <version>${cdi.api.version}</version>
             <scope>provided</scope>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
diff --git a/ext/spring4/pom.xml b/ext/spring4/pom.xml
index 611b90547d..d003c719f2 100644
--- a/ext/spring4/pom.xml
+++ b/ext/spring4/pom.xml
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>commons-logging</groupId>
             <artifactId>commons-logging</artifactId>
-            <version>1.2</version>
+            <version>${commons.logging.version}</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
@@ -150,7 +150,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.aspectj</groupId>
             <artifactId>aspectjrt</artifactId>
-            <version>1.6.11</version>
+            <version>1.9.22.1</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
diff --git a/ext/spring5/pom.xml b/ext/spring5/pom.xml
index 64946def34..709d11f4fb 100644
--- a/ext/spring5/pom.xml
+++ b/ext/spring5/pom.xml
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>commons-logging</groupId>
             <artifactId>commons-logging</artifactId>
-            <version>1.2</version>
+            <version>${commons.logging.version}</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
@@ -154,7 +154,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.aspectj</groupId>
             <artifactId>aspectjrt</artifactId>
-            <version>1.6.11</version>
+            <version>1.9.22.1</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
diff --git a/incubator/declarative-linking/pom.xml b/incubator/declarative-linking/pom.xml
index 024e71d00f..1b6d5b029f 100644
--- a/incubator/declarative-linking/pom.xml
+++ b/incubator/declarative-linking/pom.xml
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.skyscreamer</groupId>
             <artifactId>jsonassert</artifactId>
-            <version>1.4.0</version>
+            <version>1.5.1</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
     </dependencies>
diff --git a/media/jaxb/pom.xml b/media/jaxb/pom.xml
index cb41dbcf15..38d987301a 100644
--- a/media/jaxb/pom.xml
+++ b/media/jaxb/pom.xml
@@ -82,21 +82,6 @@
                 <artifactId>build-helper-maven-plugin</artifactId>
                 <inherited>true</inherited>
             </plugin>
-            <plugin>
-                <groupId>de.jflex</groupId>
-                <artifactId>maven-jflex-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>1.4.3</version>
-                <executions>
-                    <execution>
-                        <goals>
-                            <goal>generate</goal>
-                        </goals>
-                        <configuration>
-                            <outputDirectory>${project.build.directory}/generated-sources/rsrc-gen</outputDirectory>
-                        </configuration>
-                    </execution>
-                </executions>
-            </plugin>
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.felix</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-bundle-plugin</artifactId>
diff --git a/media/moxy/pom.xml b/media/moxy/pom.xml
index 96042128d5..8744ebc0eb 100644
--- a/media/moxy/pom.xml
+++ b/media/moxy/pom.xml
@@ -62,21 +62,6 @@
                 </configuration>
             </plugin>
 
-            <plugin>
-                <groupId>de.jflex</groupId>
-                <artifactId>maven-jflex-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>1.4.3</version>
-                <executions>
-                    <execution>
-                        <goals>
-                            <goal>generate</goal>
-                        </goals>
-                        <configuration>
-                            <outputDirectory>${project.build.directory}/generated-sources/rsrc-gen</outputDirectory>
-                        </configuration>
-                    </execution>
-                </executions>
-            </plugin>
         </plugins>
     </build>
 
diff --git a/pom.xml b/pom.xml
index c2a22c2a70..0b83d1cf6d 100644
--- a/pom.xml
+++ b/pom.xml
@@ -2214,6 +2214,7 @@
         <guava.version>33.1.0-jre</guava.version>
         <hamcrest.version>2.2</hamcrest.version>
         <helidon.version>1.4.14</helidon.version>
+        <helidon.connector.version>2.2.1</helidon.connector.version>
         <xmlunit.version>2.10.0</xmlunit.version>
         <httpclient.version>4.5.14</httpclient.version>
         <httpclient5.version>5.3.1</httpclient5.version>
@@ -2223,6 +2224,9 @@
         <jersey1.version>1.19.3</jersey1.version>
         <jersey1.last.final.version>${jersey1.version}</jersey1.last.final.version>
         <jettison.version>1.3.7</jettison.version> <!-- TODO: 1.3.8 doesn't work; AbstractJsonTest complexBeanWithAttributes -->
+        <jboss.vfs.version>3.3.2.Final</jboss.vfs.version>
+        <jboss.vfs.jdk8.version>3.2.17.Final</jboss.vfs.jdk8.version>
+        <jboss.logging.version>3.6.0.Final</jboss.logging.version>
         <jmh.version>1.37</jmh.version>
         <jmockit.version>1.49</jmockit.version>
         <junit4.version>4.13.2</junit4.version>
@@ -2258,7 +2262,7 @@
         <graalvm.version>20.3.14</graalvm.version>
 
         <!-- do not need CQs -->
-        <cdi.api.version>1.2</cdi.api.version>
+        <cdi.api.version>2.0.SP1</cdi.api.version>
         <cdi2.api.version>2.0.2</cdi2.api.version>
         <cdi.osgi.version>javax.enterprise.*;version="[1,3)"</cdi.osgi.version>
         <ejb.version>3.2.6</ejb.version>
diff --git a/tests/e2e-tls/pom.xml b/tests/e2e-tls/pom.xml
index dfecf09378..b7657c5f59 100644
--- a/tests/e2e-tls/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/e2e-tls/pom.xml
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>io.specto</groupId>
             <artifactId>hoverfly-java-junit5</artifactId>
-            <version>0.14.0</version>
+            <version>0.18.1</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
diff --git a/tests/integration/JERSEY-2988/pom.xml b/tests/integration/JERSEY-2988/pom.xml
index e47be8324e..dc74f72b1d 100644
--- a/tests/integration/JERSEY-2988/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/integration/JERSEY-2988/pom.xml
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>javax.enterprise</groupId>
             <artifactId>cdi-api</artifactId>
-            <version>2.0</version>
+            <version>${cdi.api.version}</version>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.jboss.weld.servlet</groupId>
diff --git a/tests/integration/cdi-integration/cdi-resource-with-at-context/pom.xml b/tests/integration/cdi-integration/cdi-resource-with-at-context/pom.xml
index 6f0ef1bee0..21cce901ec 100644
--- a/tests/integration/cdi-integration/cdi-resource-with-at-context/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/integration/cdi-integration/cdi-resource-with-at-context/pom.xml
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>javax.enterprise</groupId>
             <artifactId>cdi-api</artifactId>
-            <version>2.0</version>
+            <version>${cdi.api.version}</version>
             <scope>provided</scope>
         </dependency>
         <dependency>
diff --git a/tests/integration/jersey-2776/pom.xml b/tests/integration/jersey-2776/pom.xml
index 51234decb8..be57cca805 100644
--- a/tests/integration/jersey-2776/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/integration/jersey-2776/pom.xml
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.apache.cxf</groupId>
             <artifactId>cxf-rt-rs-client</artifactId>
-            <version>3.0.3</version>
+            <version>3.5.8</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
diff --git a/tests/performance/runners/jersey-grizzly-runner/pom.xml b/tests/performance/runners/jersey-grizzly-runner/pom.xml
index 10ce415226..c5c265a36a 100644
--- a/tests/performance/runners/jersey-grizzly-runner/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/performance/runners/jersey-grizzly-runner/pom.xml
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-jar-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>2.4</version>
+                <version>${jar.mvn.plugin.version}</version>
                 <configuration>
                     <archive>
                         <index>true</index>
diff --git a/tests/performance/test-cases/monitoring/pom.xml b/tests/performance/test-cases/monitoring/pom.xml
index c4076c2a7d..d5b84bd93c 100644
--- a/tests/performance/test-cases/monitoring/pom.xml
+++ b/tests/performance/test-cases/monitoring/pom.xml
@@ -37,13 +37,13 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>com.yammer.metrics</groupId>
             <artifactId>metrics-core</artifactId>
-            <version>2.1.2</version>
+            <version>2.2.0</version>
         </dependency>
 
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.junit.jupiter</groupId>
             <artifactId>junit-jupiter</artifactId>
-            <version>5.9.1</version>
+            <version>5.10.2</version>
             <scope>test</scope>
         </dependency>
 
@@ -56,13 +56,13 @@
         <dependency>
             <groupId>commons-codec</groupId>
             <artifactId>commons-codec</artifactId>
-            <version>1.5</version>
+            <version>1.17.0</version>
         </dependency>
 
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.slf4j</groupId>
             <artifactId>slf4j-jdk14</artifactId>
-            <version>1.6.1</version>
+            <version>2.0.13</version>
         </dependency>
 
        <dependency>
@@ -97,11 +97,11 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                 <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
-                <version>3.1</version>
+                <version>3.13.0</version>
                 <inherited>true</inherited>
                 <configuration>
-                    <source>1.7</source>
-                    <target>1.7</target>
+                    <source>1.8</source>
+                    <target>1.8</target>
                     <showWarnings>false</showWarnings>
                     <fork>false</fork>
                 </configuration>
diff --git a/tests/release-test/src/test/java/org/glassfish/jersey/test/artifacts/ArchetypesTest.java b/tests/release-test/src/test/java/org/glassfish/jersey/test/artifacts/ArchetypesTest.java
index b42830ba54..5be312c314 100644
--- a/tests/release-test/src/test/java/org/glassfish/jersey/test/artifacts/ArchetypesTest.java
+++ b/tests/release-test/src/test/java/org/glassfish/jersey/test/artifacts/ArchetypesTest.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright (c) 2023 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
+ * Copyright (c) 2023, 2024 Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
  *
  * This program and the accompanying materials are made available under the
  * terms of the Eclipse Public License v. 2.0, which is available at
@@ -52,16 +52,21 @@ public void testPropertiesVersion() throws XmlPullParserException, IOException {
                     continue;
                 }
                 // Update the names with the ones in Jersey
-                Map.Entry<Object, Object> updatedEntry = updateEntry(pomEntry);
                 // Check the properties are there
-                if (properties.getProperty(updatedEntry.getKey().toString()) == null) {
+                final String key = pomEntry.getKey().toString();
+
+                if (properties.getProperty(key) == null) {
                     testResult.ok().append("Property ")
                             .append(pomEntry.getKey().toString())
                             .append(" from ").append(pom).println(" not in Jersey");
                     failed = true;
                 }
                 // check the values
-                else if (!properties.getProperty(updatedEntry.getKey().toString()).equals(updatedEntry.getValue())) {
+                else if (
+                        //archetype property value can be a variable from the main pom.xml - check and exclude if so
+                        !(properties.containsKey(key) && pomEntry.getValue().toString().contains(key))
+                        && !properties.getProperty(key).equals(pomEntry.getValue())
+                ) {
                     testResult.exception().append("The property ")
                             .append(pomEntry.getKey().toString())
                             .append(" in archetype pom ")
@@ -81,25 +86,4 @@ else if (!properties.getProperty(updatedEntry.getKey().toString()).equals(update
         }
     }
 
-    private Map.Entry<Object, Object> updateEntry(Map.Entry<Object, Object> pomEntry) {
-        if (pomEntry.getKey().equals("junit-jupiter.version")) {
-            return new Map.Entry<Object, Object>() {
-                @Override
-                public Object getKey() {
-                    return "junit5.version";
-                }
-
-                @Override
-                public Object getValue() {
-                    return pomEntry.getValue();
-                }
-
-                @Override
-                public Object setValue(Object value) {
-                    return value;
-                }
-            };
-        }
-        return pomEntry;
-    }
 }