diff --git a/Gemfile b/Gemfile
index eec32acf6..d2be4f22d 100644
--- a/Gemfile
+++ b/Gemfile
@@ -2,9 +2,9 @@
 # If you modify this file manually all comments and formatting will be lost.
 
 source "https://rubygems.org"
-gem "logstash-core", "5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3"
-gem "logstash-core-event-java", "5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3"
-gem "logstash-core-plugin-api", "2.1.9"
+gem "logstash-core", :path => "./logstash-core"
+gem "logstash-core-event-java", :path => "./logstash-core-event-java"
+gem "logstash-core-plugin-api", :path => "./logstash-core-plugin-api"
 gem "file-dependencies", "0.1.6"
 gem "ci_reporter_rspec", "1.0.0", :group => :development
 gem "simplecov", :group => :development
diff --git a/Gemfile.jruby-1.9.lock b/Gemfile.jruby-1.9.lock
index 6ca574dc7..124cfe663 100644
--- a/Gemfile.jruby-1.9.lock
+++ b/Gemfile.jruby-1.9.lock
@@ -1,3 +1,40 @@
+PATH
+  remote: ./logstash-core
+  specs:
+    logstash-core (5.0.0.pre.alpha4-java)
+      cabin (~> 0.8.0)
+      chronic_duration (= 0.10.6)
+      clamp (~> 0.6.5)
+      concurrent-ruby (= 1.0.0)
+      filesize (= 0.0.4)
+      gems (~> 0.8.3)
+      i18n (= 0.6.9)
+      jrjackson (~> 0.3.7)
+      jrmonitor (~> 0.4.2)
+      jruby-openssl (= 0.9.16)
+      logstash-core-event-java (= 5.0.0.pre.alpha4)
+      minitar (~> 0.5.4)
+      pry (~> 0.10.1)
+      puma (~> 2.16)
+      rubyzip (~> 1.1.7)
+      sinatra (~> 1.4, >= 1.4.6)
+      stud (~> 0.0.19)
+      thread_safe (~> 0.3.5)
+      treetop (< 1.5.0)
+
+PATH
+  remote: ./logstash-core-event-java
+  specs:
+    logstash-core-event-java (5.0.0.pre.alpha4-java)
+      jar-dependencies
+      ruby-maven (~> 3.3.9)
+
+PATH
+  remote: ./logstash-core-plugin-api
+  specs:
+    logstash-core-plugin-api (2.1.9-java)
+      logstash-core (= 5.0.0.pre.alpha4)
+
 GEM
   remote: https://rubygems.org/
   specs:
@@ -47,12 +84,12 @@ GEM
     domain_name (0.5.20160615)
       unf (>= 0.0.5, < 1.0.0)
     edn (1.1.1)
-    elasticsearch (1.0.17)
-      elasticsearch-api (= 1.0.17)
-      elasticsearch-transport (= 1.0.17)
-    elasticsearch-api (1.0.17)
+    elasticsearch (1.0.18)
+      elasticsearch-api (= 1.0.18)
+      elasticsearch-transport (= 1.0.18)
+    elasticsearch-api (1.0.18)
       multi_json
-    elasticsearch-transport (1.0.17)
+    elasticsearch-transport (1.0.18)
       faraday
       multi_json
     equalizer (0.0.10)
@@ -144,31 +181,6 @@ GEM
     logstash-codec-rubydebug (3.0.1)
       awesome_print
       logstash-core-plugin-api (~> 2.0)
-    logstash-core (5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3-java)
-      cabin (~> 0.8.0)
-      chronic_duration (= 0.10.6)
-      clamp (~> 0.6.5)
-      concurrent-ruby (= 1.0.0)
-      filesize (= 0.0.4)
-      gems (~> 0.8.3)
-      i18n (= 0.6.9)
-      jrjackson (~> 0.3.7)
-      jrmonitor (~> 0.4.2)
-      jruby-openssl (= 0.9.16)
-      logstash-core-event-java (= 5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3)
-      minitar (~> 0.5.4)
-      pry (~> 0.10.1)
-      puma (~> 2.16)
-      rubyzip (~> 1.1.7)
-      sinatra (~> 1.4, >= 1.4.6)
-      stud (~> 0.0.19)
-      thread_safe (~> 0.3.5)
-      treetop (< 1.5.0)
-    logstash-core-event-java (5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3-java)
-      jar-dependencies
-      ruby-maven (~> 3.3.9)
-    logstash-core-plugin-api (2.1.9-java)
-      logstash-core (= 5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3)
     logstash-devutils (1.0.2-java)
       fivemat
       gem_publisher
@@ -621,9 +633,9 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   logstash-codec-netflow
   logstash-codec-plain
   logstash-codec-rubydebug
-  logstash-core (= 5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3)
-  logstash-core-event-java (= 5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3)
-  logstash-core-plugin-api (= 2.1.9)
+  logstash-core!
+  logstash-core-event-java!
+  logstash-core-plugin-api!
   logstash-devutils
   logstash-filter-clone
   logstash-filter-csv
diff --git a/lib/bootstrap/bundler.rb b/lib/bootstrap/bundler.rb
index 1a7bb0572..13c04b58a 100644
--- a/lib/bootstrap/bundler.rb
+++ b/lib/bootstrap/bundler.rb
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ module LogStash
     # @return [String, Exception] the installation captured output and any raised exception or nil if none
     def invoke!(options = {})
       options = {:max_tries => 10, :clean => false, :install => false, :update => false, :local => false,
-                 :all => false, :package => false, :without => [:development]}.merge(options)
+                 :jobs => 12, :all => false, :package => false, :without => [:development]}.merge(options)
       options[:without] = Array(options[:without])
       options[:update] = Array(options[:update]) if options[:update]
 
diff --git a/logstash-core-event-java/lib/logstash-core-event-java_jars.rb b/logstash-core-event-java/lib/logstash-core-event-java_jars.rb
index 143d7a3e0..d45036714 100644
--- a/logstash-core-event-java/lib/logstash-core-event-java_jars.rb
+++ b/logstash-core-event-java/lib/logstash-core-event-java_jars.rb
@@ -1,6 +1,14 @@
 # this is a generated file, to avoid over-writing it just delete this comment
-require 'jar_dependencies'
+begin
+  require 'jar_dependencies'
+rescue LoadError
+  require 'com/fasterxml/jackson/core/jackson-core/2.7.1/jackson-core-2.7.1.jar'
+  require 'com/fasterxml/jackson/core/jackson-annotations/2.7.0/jackson-annotations-2.7.0.jar'
+  require 'com/fasterxml/jackson/core/jackson-databind/2.7.1-1/jackson-databind-2.7.1-1.jar'
+end
 
-require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-core', '2.7.1' )
-require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-annotations', '2.7.0' )
-require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-databind', '2.7.1-1' )
+if defined? Jars
+  require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-core', '2.7.1' )
+  require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-annotations', '2.7.0' )
+  require_jar( 'com.fasterxml.jackson.core', 'jackson-databind', '2.7.1-1' )
+end
diff --git a/logstash-core-event-java/logstash-core-event-java.gemspec b/logstash-core-event-java/logstash-core-event-java.gemspec
index c59c45320..ef8d2a2ba 100644
--- a/logstash-core-event-java/logstash-core-event-java.gemspec
+++ b/logstash-core-event-java/logstash-core-event-java.gemspec
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |gem|
   gem.test_files    = gem.files.grep(%r{^(test|spec|features)/})
   gem.name          = "logstash-core-event-java"
   gem.require_paths = ["lib"]
-  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_JAVA_VERSION.gsub(/-/, '.')
+  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_JAVA_VERSION
 
   gem.platform = "java"
 
diff --git a/logstash-core-event/lib/logstash-core-event/version.rb b/logstash-core-event/lib/logstash-core-event/version.rb
index e8c7b7d4f..04253b622 100644
--- a/logstash-core-event/lib/logstash-core-event/version.rb
+++ b/logstash-core-event/lib/logstash-core-event/version.rb
@@ -5,4 +5,4 @@
 # Note to authors: this should not include dashes because 'gem' barfs if
 # you include a dash in the version string.
 
-LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_VERSION = "5.0.0-alpha1"
+LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_VERSION = "5.0.0"
diff --git a/logstash-core-event/logstash-core-event.gemspec b/logstash-core-event/logstash-core-event.gemspec
index 88ac2ede4..9e0a757a8 100644
--- a/logstash-core-event/logstash-core-event.gemspec
+++ b/logstash-core-event/logstash-core-event.gemspec
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |gem|
   gem.test_files    = gem.files.grep(%r{^(test|spec|features)/})
   gem.name          = "logstash-core-event"
   gem.require_paths = ["lib"]
-  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_VERSION.gsub(/-/, '.')
+  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_EVENT_VERSION
 
   if RUBY_PLATFORM == 'java'
     gem.platform = RUBY_PLATFORM
diff --git a/logstash-core-plugin-api/lib/logstash-core-plugin-api/version.rb b/logstash-core-plugin-api/lib/logstash-core-plugin-api/version.rb
index 7e2dd6732..ca61727b5 100644
--- a/logstash-core-plugin-api/lib/logstash-core-plugin-api/version.rb
+++ b/logstash-core-plugin-api/lib/logstash-core-plugin-api/version.rb
@@ -1,3 +1,2 @@
 # encoding: utf-8
-# 2.1.9 tracks 5.0.0-alpha4.snapshot3
 LOGSTASH_CORE_PLUGIN_API = "2.1.9"
diff --git a/logstash-core-plugin-api/logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec b/logstash-core-plugin-api/logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec
index 18c85c91e..27da82969 100644
--- a/logstash-core-plugin-api/logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec
+++ b/logstash-core-plugin-api/logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |gem|
   gem.homepage      = "http://www.elastic.co/guide/en/logstash/current/index.html"
   gem.license       = "Apache License (2.0)"
 
-  gem.files         = Dir.glob(["logstash-core-event.gemspec", "lib/**/*.rb", "spec/**/*.rb"])
+  gem.files         = Dir.glob(["logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec", "lib/**/*.rb", "spec/**/*.rb"])
   gem.test_files    = gem.files.grep(%r{^(test|spec|features)/})
   gem.name          = "logstash-core-plugin-api"
   gem.require_paths = ["lib"]
diff --git a/logstash-core/lib/logstash/api/commands/system/basicinfo_command.rb b/logstash-core/lib/logstash/api/commands/system/basicinfo_command.rb
index 36edc3d1c..6eacdbd5b 100644
--- a/logstash-core/lib/logstash/api/commands/system/basicinfo_command.rb
+++ b/logstash-core/lib/logstash/api/commands/system/basicinfo_command.rb
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 # encoding: utf-8
 require 'logstash/api/commands/base'
 require "logstash/util/duration_formatter"
+require 'logstash/build'
 
 module LogStash
   module Api
@@ -9,7 +10,8 @@ module LogStash
         class BasicInfo < Commands::Base
 
           def run
-	    {} # Just return the defaults
+            # Just merge this stuff with the defaults
+            BUILD_INFO
           end
         end
       end
diff --git a/logstash-core/lib/logstash/build.rb b/logstash-core/lib/logstash/build.rb
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fb2132c22
--- /dev/null
+++ b/logstash-core/lib/logstash/build.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+# encoding: utf-8
+
+# DO NOT EDIT
+# this file acts as a placeholder for build information when executing
+# logstash in dev mode (outside of a package build)
+BUILD_INFO = {}
diff --git a/logstash-core/logstash-core.gemspec b/logstash-core/logstash-core.gemspec
index 8a8a3445f..afb8b7cd1 100644
--- a/logstash-core/logstash-core.gemspec
+++ b/logstash-core/logstash-core.gemspec
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |gem|
   gem.test_files    = gem.files.grep(%r{^(test|spec|features)/})
   gem.name          = "logstash-core"
   gem.require_paths = ["lib"]
-  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_VERSION.gsub(/-/, '.')
+  gem.version       = LOGSTASH_CORE_VERSION
 
   gem.add_runtime_dependency "logstash-core-event-java", "5.0.0.alpha4.snapshot3"
 
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/install.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/install.rb
index 13cb52036..afa8381bc 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/install.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/install.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require "fileutils"
 
 shared_examples "logstash install" do |logstash|
   before(:each) do
-    logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+    logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
   end
 
   after(:each) do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/list.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/list.rb
index 64e6cd1be..89336dc31 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/list.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/list.rb
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ require "fileutils"
 shared_examples "logstash list" do |logstash|
   describe "logstash-plugin list on #{logstash.hostname}" do
     before(:all) do
-      logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+      logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
     end
 
     after(:all) do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/uninstall.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/uninstall.rb
index d12bbb954..2fe6f9497 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/uninstall.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/uninstall.rb
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ require "fileutils"
 shared_examples "logstash uninstall" do |logstash|
   describe "logstash uninstall on #{logstash.hostname}" do
     before :each do
-      logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+      logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
     end
 
     after :each do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/update.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/update.rb
index 3aaaa3052..9506654a3 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/update.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash-plugin/update.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require "logstash/version"
 shared_examples "logstash update" do |logstash|
   describe "logstash update on #{logstash.hostname}" do
     before :each do
-      logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+      logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
     end
 
     after :each do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash/version.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash/version.rb
index 97a202706..0980e15e8 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash/version.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/cli/logstash/version.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require "logstash/version"
 shared_examples "logstash version" do |logstash|
   describe "logstash --version" do
     before :all do
-      logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+      logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
     end
 
     after :all do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/installed.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/installed.rb
index 940892321..8773dfa4d 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/installed.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/installed.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require          'logstash/version'
 RSpec.shared_examples "installable" do |logstash|
 
   before(:each) do
-    logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+    logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
   end
 
   it "is installed on #{logstash.hostname}" do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/running.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/running.rb
index 4c051dc8f..55d18507c 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/running.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/running.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require          'logstash/version'
 RSpec.shared_examples "runnable" do |logstash|
 
   before(:each) do
-    logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+    logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
   end
 
   it "is running on #{logstash.hostname}" do
diff --git a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/updated.rb b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/updated.rb
index 689a9d190..f6c9e8131 100644
--- a/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/updated.rb
+++ b/qa/acceptance/spec/shared_examples/updated.rb
@@ -11,12 +11,14 @@ RSpec.shared_examples "updated" do |logstash|
   end
 
   before(:each) do
-    logstash.install(LOGSTASH_LATEST_VERSION, "./") # make sure latest version is installed
+    options={:version => LOGSTASH_LATEST_VERSION, :snapshot => false, :base => "./" }
+    logstash.install(options) # make sure latest version is installed
   end
 
   it "can be updated an run on #{logstash.hostname}" do
+    expect(logstash).to be_installed
     # Performing the update
-    logstash.install(LOGSTASH_VERSION)
+    logstash.install({:version => LOGSTASH_VERSION})
     expect(logstash).to be_installed
     # starts the service to be sure it runs after the upgrade
     logstash.start_service
diff --git a/qa/rspec/commands.rb b/qa/rspec/commands.rb
index c4e739198..f90bc74cc 100644
--- a/qa/rspec/commands.rb
+++ b/qa/rspec/commands.rb
@@ -56,8 +56,9 @@ module ServiceTester
       client.stop_service(name, host)
     end
 
-    def install(version, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
-      package = client.package_for(version, base)
+    def install(options={})
+      base      = options.fetch(:base, ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
+      package   = client.package_for(filename(options), base)
       client.install(package, host)
     end
 
@@ -92,6 +93,13 @@ module ServiceTester
     def to_s
       "Artifact #{name}@#{host}"
     end
+
+    private
+
+    def filename(options={})
+      snapshot  = options.fetch(:snapshot, true)
+      "logstash-#{options[:version]}#{(snapshot ?  "-SNAPSHOT" : "")}"
+    end
   end
 
   # Factory of commands used to select the right clients for a given type of OS and host name,
diff --git a/qa/rspec/commands/debian.rb b/qa/rspec/commands/debian.rb
index 710ffc48d..aa722d558 100644
--- a/qa/rspec/commands/debian.rb
+++ b/qa/rspec/commands/debian.rb
@@ -16,14 +16,14 @@ module ServiceTester
       stdout.match(/^Status: install ok installed$/)
     end
 
-    def package_for(version, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
-      File.join(base, "logstash-#{version}.deb")
+    def package_for(filename, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
+      File.join(base, "#{filename}.deb")
     end
 
     def install(package, host=nil)
       hosts = (host.nil? ? servers : Array(host))
       at(hosts, {in: :serial}) do |_|
-        sudo_exec!("dpkg -i  #{package}")
+        cmd = sudo_exec!("dpkg -i  #{package}")
       end
     end
 
diff --git a/qa/rspec/commands/redhat.rb b/qa/rspec/commands/redhat.rb
index 8f0cf753c..67ec8143a 100644
--- a/qa/rspec/commands/redhat.rb
+++ b/qa/rspec/commands/redhat.rb
@@ -16,8 +16,8 @@ module ServiceTester
       stdout.match(/^logstash.noarch/)
     end
 
-    def package_for(version, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
-      File.join(base, "logstash-#{version}.rpm")
+    def package_for(filename, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
+      File.join(base, "#{filename}.rpm")
     end
 
     def install(package, host=nil)
diff --git a/qa/rspec/commands/suse.rb b/qa/rspec/commands/suse.rb
index 2a214a53b..028d9a5ca 100644
--- a/qa/rspec/commands/suse.rb
+++ b/qa/rspec/commands/suse.rb
@@ -13,8 +13,8 @@ module ServiceTester
       stdout.match(/^i | logstash | An extensible logging pipeline | package$/)
     end
 
-    def package_for(version, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
-      File.join(base, "logstash-#{version}.rpm")
+    def package_for(filename, base=ServiceTester::Base::LOCATION)
+      File.join(base, "#{filename}.rpm")
     end
 
     def install(package, host=nil)
diff --git a/rakelib/artifacts.rake b/rakelib/artifacts.rake
index 581d8c798..877b9ef82 100644
--- a/rakelib/artifacts.rake
+++ b/rakelib/artifacts.rake
@@ -2,6 +2,9 @@ require "logstash/version"
 
 namespace "artifact" do
 
+  SNAPSHOT_BUILD = ENV["RELEASE"] != "1"
+  PACKAGE_SUFFIX = SNAPSHOT_BUILD ? "-SNAPSHOT" : ""
+
   def package_files
     [
       "LICENSE",
@@ -13,6 +16,13 @@ namespace "artifact" do
       "lib/bootstrap/**/*",
       "lib/pluginmanager/**/*",
       "lib/systeminstall/**/*",
+      "logstash-core/lib/**/*",
+      "logstash-core/locales/**/*",
+      "logstash-core/*.gemspec",
+      "logstash-core-event-java/lib/**/*",
+      "logstash-core-event-java/*.gemspec",
+      "logstash-core-plugin-api/lib/**/*",
+      "logstash-core-plugin-api/*.gemspec",
       "patterns/**/*",
       "vendor/??*/**/*",
       # To include ruby-maven's hidden ".mvn" directory, we need to
@@ -55,18 +65,75 @@ namespace "artifact" do
     end.flatten.uniq
   end
 
-  task "all" => ["prepare"] do
+  desc "Generate rpm, deb, tar and zip artifacts"
+  task "all" => ["prepare", "build"]
+
+  desc "Build a tar.gz of default logstash plugins with all dependencies"
+  task "tar" => ["prepare", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:tar] Building tar.gz of default plugins")
+    build_tar
+  end
+
+  desc "Build a zip of default logstash plugins with all dependencies"
+  task "zip" => ["prepare", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:zip] Building zip of default plugins")
+    build_zip
+  end
+
+  desc "Build an RPM of logstash with all dependencies"
+  task "rpm" => ["prepare", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:rpm] building rpm package")
+    package("centos", "5")
+  end
+
+  desc "Build a DEB of logstash with all dependencies"
+  task "deb" => ["prepare", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:deb] building deb package")
+    package("ubuntu", "12.04")
+  end
+
+  desc "Generate logstash core gems"
+  task "gems" => ["prepare"] do
+    Rake::Task["artifact:build-logstash-core"].invoke
+    Rake::Task["artifact:build-logstash-core-event"].invoke
+    Rake::Task["artifact:build-logstash-core-plugin-api"].invoke
+  end
+
+  # "all-plugins" version of tasks
+  desc "Generate rpm, deb, tar and zip artifacts (\"all-plugins\" version)"
+  task "all-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all", "build"]
+
+  desc "Build a zip of all logstash plugins from logstash-plugins github repo"
+  task "zip-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:zip] Building zip of all plugins")
+    build_zip "-all-plugins"
+  end
+
+  desc "Build a tar.gz of all logstash plugins from logstash-plugins github repo"
+  task "tar-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all", "generate_build_metadata"] do
+    puts("[artifact:tar] Building tar.gz of all plugins")
+    build_tar "-all-plugins"
+  end
+
+  # Auxiliary tasks
+  task "build" => [:generate_build_metadata] do
+    Rake::Task["artifact:gems"].invoke unless SNAPSHOT_BUILD
     Rake::Task["artifact:deb"].invoke
     Rake::Task["artifact:rpm"].invoke
     Rake::Task["artifact:zip"].invoke
     Rake::Task["artifact:tar"].invoke
   end
 
-  task "all-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all"] do
-    Rake::Task["artifact:deb"].invoke
-    Rake::Task["artifact:rpm"].invoke
-    Rake::Task["artifact:zip"].invoke
-    Rake::Task["artifact:tar"].invoke
+  task "generate_build_metadata" do
+    return if defined?(BUILD_METADATA_FILE)
+    BUILD_METADATA_FILE = Tempfile.new('build.rb')
+    build_info = {
+      "build_date" => Time.now.iso8601,
+      "build_sha" => `git rev-parse HEAD`.chomp,
+      "build_snapshot" => SNAPSHOT_BUILD
+    }
+    metadata = [ "# encoding: utf-8", "BUILD_INFO = #{build_info}" ]
+    IO.write(BUILD_METADATA_FILE.path, metadata.join("\n"))
   end
 
   # We create an empty bundle config file
@@ -78,8 +145,8 @@ namespace "artifact" do
   end
 
   # locate the "gem "logstash-core" ..." line in Gemfile, and if the :path => "..." option if specified
-  # build and install the local logstash-core gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
-  task "install-logstash-core" do
+  # build the local logstash-core gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
+  task "build-logstash-core" do
     # regex which matches a Gemfile gem definition for the logstash-core gem and captures the :path option
     gem_line_regex = /^\s*gem\s+["']logstash-core["'](?:\s*,\s*["'][^"^']+["'])?(?:\s*,\s*:path\s*=>\s*["']([^"^']+)["'])?/i
 
@@ -90,15 +157,16 @@ namespace "artifact" do
     path = matches.first[gem_line_regex, 1]
 
     if path
-      Rake::Task["plugin:install-local-core-gem"].invoke("logstash-core", path)
+      Rake::Task["plugin:build-local-core-gem"].invoke("logstash-core", path)
     else
-      puts("[artifact:install-logstash-core] using logstash-core from Rubygems")
+      puts "The Gemfile should reference \"logstash-core\" gem locally through :path, but found instead: #{matches}"
+      exit(1)
     end
   end
 
   # # locate the "gem "logstash-core-event*" ..." line in Gemfile, and if the :path => "." option if specified
-  # # build and install the local logstash-core-event* gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
-  task "install-logstash-core-event" do
+  # # build the local logstash-core-event* gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
+  task "build-logstash-core-event" do
     # regex which matches a Gemfile gem definition for the logstash-core-event* gem and captures the gem name and :path option
     gem_line_regex = /^\s*gem\s+["'](logstash-core-event[^"^']*)["'](?:\s*,\s*["'][^"^']+["'])?(?:\s*,\s*:path\s*=>\s*["']([^"^']+)["'])?/i
 
@@ -110,15 +178,16 @@ namespace "artifact" do
     path = matches.first[gem_line_regex, 2]
 
     if path
-      Rake::Task["plugin:install-local-core-gem"].invoke(name, path)
+      Rake::Task["plugin:build-local-core-gem"].invoke(name, path)
     else
-      puts("[artifact:install-logstash-core] using #{name} from Rubygems")
+      puts "The Gemfile should reference \"logstash-core-event\" gem locally through :path, but found instead: #{matches}"
+      exit(1)
     end
   end
 
   # locate the "gem "logstash-core-plugin-api" ..." line in Gemfile, and if the :path => "..." option if specified
-  # build and install the local logstash-core-plugin-api gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
-  task "install-logstash-core-plugin-api" do
+  # build the local logstash-core-plugin-api gem otherwise just do nothing, bundler will deal with it.
+  task "build-logstash-core-plugin-api" do
     # regex which matches a Gemfile gem definition for the logstash-core gem and captures the :path option
     gem_line_regex = /^\s*gem\s+["']logstash-core-plugin-api["'](?:\s*,\s*["'][^"^']+["'])?(?:\s*,\s*:path\s*=>\s*["']([^"^']+)["'])?/i
 
@@ -129,86 +198,87 @@ namespace "artifact" do
     path = matches.first[gem_line_regex, 1]
 
     if path
-      Rake::Task["plugin:install-local-core-gem"].invoke("logstash-core-plugin-api", path)
+      Rake::Task["plugin:build-local-core-gem"].invoke("logstash-core-plugin-api", path)
     else
-      puts("[artifact:install-logstash-core-plugin-api] using logstash-core from Rubygems")
+      puts "The Gemfile should reference \"logstash-core-plugin-api\" gem locally through :path, but found instead: #{matches}"
+      exit(1)
     end
   end
 
-  task "prepare" => ["bootstrap", "plugin:install-default", "install-logstash-core", "install-logstash-core-event", "install-logstash-core-plugin-api", "clean-bundle-config"]
-
-  task "prepare-all" => ["bootstrap", "plugin:install-all", "install-logstash-core", "install-logstash-core-event", "install-logstash-core-plugin-api", "clean-bundle-config"]
-
-  desc "Build a tar.gz of default logstash plugins with all dependencies"
-  task "tar" => ["prepare"] do
-    puts("[artifact:tar] Building tar.gz of default plugins")
-    build_tar
+  task "prepare" do
+    if ENV['SKIP_PREPARE'] != "1"
+      ["bootstrap", "plugin:install-default", "artifact:clean-bundle-config"].each {|task| Rake::Task[task].invoke }
+    end
   end
 
-  desc "Build a tar.gz of all logstash plugins from logstash-plugins github repo"
-  task "tar-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all"] do
-    puts("[artifact:tar] Building tar.gz of all plugins")
-    build_tar "-all-plugins"
+  task "prepare-all" do
+    if ENV['SKIP_PREPARE'] != "1"
+      ["bootstrap", "plugin:install-all", "artifact:clean-bundle-config"].each {|task| Rake::Task[task].invoke }
+    end
   end
 
   def build_tar(tar_suffix = nil)
     require "zlib"
     require "archive/tar/minitar"
     require "logstash/version"
-    tarpath = "build/logstash#{tar_suffix}-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}.tar.gz"
+    tarpath = "build/logstash#{tar_suffix}-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}.tar.gz"
     puts("[artifact:tar] building #{tarpath}")
     gz = Zlib::GzipWriter.new(File.new(tarpath, "wb"), Zlib::BEST_COMPRESSION)
     tar = Archive::Tar::Minitar::Output.new(gz)
     files.each do |path|
-      stat = File.lstat(path)
-      path_in_tar = "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}/#{path}"
-      opts = {
-        :size => stat.size,
-        :mode => stat.mode,
-        :mtime => stat.mtime
-      }
-      if stat.directory?
-        tar.tar.mkdir(path_in_tar, opts)
-      else
-        tar.tar.add_file_simple(path_in_tar, opts) do |io|
-          File.open(path,'rb') do |fd|
-            chunk = nil
-            size = 0
-            size += io.write(chunk) while chunk = fd.read(16384)
-            if stat.size != size
-              raise "Failure to write the entire file (#{path}) to the tarball. Expected to write #{stat.size} bytes; actually write #{size}"
-            end
-          end
-        end
-      end
+      write_to_tar(tar, path, "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}/#{path}")
     end
+
+    # add build.rb to tar
+    metadata_file_path_in_tar = File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash", "build.rb")
+    path_in_tar = File.join("logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}", metadata_file_path_in_tar)
+    write_to_tar(tar, BUILD_METADATA_FILE.path, path_in_tar)
+
     tar.close
     gz.close
     puts "Complete: #{tarpath}"
   end
 
-  desc "Build a zip of default logstash plugins with all dependencies"
-  task "zip" => ["prepare"] do
-    puts("[artifact:zip] Building zip of default plugins")
-    build_zip
-  end
-
-  desc "Build a zip of all logstash plugins from logstash-plugins github repo"
-  task "zip-all-plugins" => ["prepare-all"] do
-    puts("[artifact:zip] Building zip of all plugins")
-    build_zip "-all-plugins"
+  def write_to_tar(tar, path, path_in_tar)
+    stat = File.lstat(path)
+    opts = {
+      :size => stat.size,
+      :mode => stat.mode,
+      :mtime => stat.mtime
+    }
+    if stat.directory?
+      tar.tar.mkdir(path_in_tar, opts)
+    else
+      tar.tar.add_file_simple(path_in_tar, opts) do |io|
+        File.open(path,'rb') do |fd|
+          chunk = nil
+          size = 0
+          size += io.write(chunk) while chunk = fd.read(16384)
+          if stat.size != size
+            raise "Failure to write the entire file (#{path}) to the tarball. Expected to write #{stat.size} bytes; actually write #{size}"
+          end
+        end
+      end
+    end
   end
 
   def build_zip(zip_suffix = "")
     require 'zip'
-    zippath = "build/logstash#{zip_suffix}-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}.zip"
+    zippath = "build/logstash#{zip_suffix}-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}.zip"
     puts("[artifact:zip] building #{zippath}")
     File.unlink(zippath) if File.exists?(zippath)
     Zip::File.open(zippath, Zip::File::CREATE) do |zipfile|
       files.each do |path|
-        path_in_zip = "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}/#{path}"
+        path_in_zip = "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}/#{path}"
         zipfile.add(path_in_zip, path)
       end
+
+      # add build.rb to zip
+      metadata_file_path_in_zip = File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash", "build.rb")
+      path_in_zip = File.join("logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}", metadata_file_path_in_zip)
+      path = BUILD_METADATA_FILE.path
+      Zip.continue_on_exists_proc = true
+      zipfile.add(path_in_zip, path)
     end
     puts "Complete: #{zippath}"
   end
@@ -221,6 +291,10 @@ namespace "artifact" do
 
     dir = FPM::Package::Dir.new
 
+    metadata_file_path = File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash", "build.rb")
+    metadata_source_file_path = BUILD_METADATA_FILE.path
+    dir.input("#{metadata_source_file_path}=/usr/share/logstash/#{metadata_file_path}")
+
     files.each do |path|
       next if File.directory?(path)
       # Omit any config dir from /usr/share/logstash for packages, since we're
@@ -246,7 +320,7 @@ namespace "artifact" do
 
     # produce: logstash-5.0.0-alpha1.deb"
     # produce: logstash-5.0.0-alpha1.rpm
-    package_filename = "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}.TYPE"
+    package_filename = "logstash-#{LOGSTASH_VERSION}#{PACKAGE_SUFFIX}.TYPE"
 
     case platform
       when "redhat", "centos"
@@ -350,15 +424,4 @@ namespace "artifact" do
     end
   end # def package
 
-  desc "Build an RPM of logstash with all dependencies"
-  task "rpm" => ["prepare"] do
-    puts("[artifact:rpm] building rpm package")
-    package("centos", "5")
-  end
-
-  desc "Build a DEB of logstash with all dependencies"
-  task "deb" => ["prepare"] do
-    puts("[artifact:deb] building deb package")
-    package("ubuntu", "12.04")
-  end
 end
diff --git a/rakelib/build.rake b/rakelib/build.rake
index 2b443add8..45aec1f9b 100644
--- a/rakelib/build.rake
+++ b/rakelib/build.rake
@@ -4,3 +4,6 @@ end
 directory "build/bootstrap" => "build" do |task, args|
   mkdir_p task.name unless File.directory?(task.name)
 end
+directory "build/gems" => "build" do |task, args|
+  mkdir_p task.name unless File.directory?(task.name)
+end
diff --git a/rakelib/plugin.rake b/rakelib/plugin.rake
index 0bc1b7089..79be84172 100644
--- a/rakelib/plugin.rake
+++ b/rakelib/plugin.rake
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ namespace "plugin" do
     task.reenable # Allow this task to be run again
   end
 
-  task "build-local-core-gem", [:name, :path]  do |task, args|
+  task "build-local-core-gem", [:name, :path] => ["build/gems"]  do |task, args|
     name = args[:name]
     path = args[:path]
 
@@ -89,10 +89,12 @@ namespace "plugin" do
 
     puts("[plugin:build-local-core-gem] Building #{File.join(path, name)}.gemspec")
 
+    gem_path = nil
     Dir.chdir(path) do
       spec = Gem::Specification.load("#{name}.gemspec")
-      Gem::Package.build(spec)
+      gem_path = Gem::Package.build(spec)
     end
+    FileUtils.cp(File.join(path, gem_path), "build/gems/")
 
     task.reenable # Allow this task to be run again
   end
diff --git a/rakelib/version.rake b/rakelib/version.rake
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..45655cd33
--- /dev/null
+++ b/rakelib/version.rake
@@ -0,0 +1,132 @@
+require 'yaml'
+
+def get_versions
+  yaml_versions = YAML.safe_load(IO.read("versions.yml"))
+  {
+    "logstash" => {
+      "location" => File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash", "version.rb"),
+      "yaml_version" => yaml_versions["logstash"],
+      "current_version" => get_version(File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash", "version.rb")),
+    },
+    "logstash-core" => {
+      "location" => File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash-core", "version.rb"),
+      "yaml_version" => yaml_versions["logstash-core"],
+      "current_version" => get_version(File.join("logstash-core", "lib", "logstash-core", "version.rb")),
+    },
+    "logstash-core-event" => {
+      "location" => File.join("logstash-core-event", "lib", "logstash-core-event", "version.rb"),
+      "yaml_version" => yaml_versions["logstash-core-event"],
+      "current_version" => get_version(File.join("logstash-core-event", "lib", "logstash-core-event", "version.rb")),
+    },
+    "logstash-core-event-java" => {
+      "location" => File.join("logstash-core-event-java", "lib", "logstash-core-event-java", "version.rb"),
+      "yaml_version" => yaml_versions["logstash-core-event-java"],
+      "current_version" => get_version(File.join("logstash-core-event-java", "lib", "logstash-core-event-java", "version.rb")),
+    },
+    "logstash-core-plugin-api" => {
+      "location" => File.join("logstash-core-plugin-api", "lib", "logstash-core-plugin-api", "version.rb"),
+      "yaml_version" => yaml_versions["logstash-core-plugin-api"],
+      "current_version" => get_version(File.join("logstash-core-plugin-api", "lib", "logstash-core-plugin-api", "version.rb")),
+    }
+  }
+end
+
+def get_version(file)
+  text = IO.read(file)
+  version = text.match(/^[A-Z_]+ = "(.+?)"/)
+  version[1]
+end
+
+namespace :version do
+
+  desc "check if the versions.yml is out of sync with .gemspecs and other references"
+  task :check do
+    out_of_sync = get_versions.select do |component, metadata|
+      metadata["yaml_version"] != metadata["current_version"]
+    end
+    if out_of_sync.any?
+      out_of_sync.each do |component, metadata|
+        puts "#{component} is out of sync. CURRENT: #{metadata['current_version']} | YAML: #{metadata['yaml_version']}"
+      end
+      exit(1)
+    end
+  end
+
+  desc "push versions found in versions.yml to all component version locations"
+  task :sync do
+    versions = get_versions
+    # update version.rb files
+    versions.select do |component, metadata|
+      next if metadata["yaml_version"] == metadata["current_version"]
+      puts "Updating \"#{component}\" from \"#{metadata['current_version']}\" to \"#{metadata['yaml_version']}\""
+      text = IO.read(metadata["location"])
+      IO.write(metadata["location"], text.gsub(metadata["current_version"], metadata["yaml_version"]))
+    end
+
+    # update dependencies
+    #
+    # logstash-core depends on logstash-core-event-java
+    # ./logstash-core/logstash-core.gemspec:  gem.add_runtime_dependency "logstash-core-event-java", "~> 5.0.0.dev"
+    logstash_core_gemspec = File.join("logstash-core", "logstash-core.gemspec")
+    logstash_core_event_java_version = versions['logstash-core-event-java']['yaml_version']
+    text = IO.read(logstash_core_gemspec)
+    IO.write(logstash_core_gemspec, text.sub(
+      /  gem.add_runtime_dependency \"logstash-core-event-java\", \".+?\"/,
+      "  gem.add_runtime_dependency \"logstash-core-event-java\", \"#{logstash_core_event_java_version}\""))
+
+    # logstash-core-event-java depends on logstash-code
+    # ./logstash-core-plugin-api/logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec:  gem.add_runtime_dependency "logstash-core", "5.0.0.dev"
+    logstash_core_plugin_api_gemspec = File.join("logstash-core-plugin-api", "logstash-core-plugin-api.gemspec")
+    logstash_core_version = versions['logstash-core']['yaml_version']
+    text = IO.read(logstash_core_plugin_api_gemspec)
+    IO.write(logstash_core_plugin_api_gemspec, text.sub(
+      /  gem.add_runtime_dependency \"logstash-core\", \".+?\"/,
+      "  gem.add_runtime_dependency \"logstash-core\", \"#{logstash_core_version}\""))
+  end
+
+  desc "show version of core components"
+  task :show do
+    Rake::Task["version:sync"].invoke; Rake::Task["version:sync"].reenable
+    get_versions.each do |component, metadata|
+      puts "#{component}: #{metadata['yaml_version']}"
+    end
+  end
+
+  desc "set version of logstash, logstash-core, logstash-core-event, logstash-core-event-java"
+  task :set, [:version] => [:validate] do |t, args|
+    hash = {}
+    get_versions.each do |component, metadata|
+      # we just assume that, usually, all components except
+      # "logstash-core-plugin-api" will be versioned together
+      # so let's skip this one and have a separate task for it
+      if component == "logstash-core-plugin-api"
+        hash[component] = metadata["yaml_version"]
+      else
+        hash[component] = args[:version]
+      end
+    end
+    IO.write("versions.yml", hash.to_yaml)
+    Rake::Task["version:sync"].invoke; Rake::Task["version:sync"].reenable
+  end
+
+  desc "set version of logstash-core-plugin-api"
+  task :set_plugin_api, [:version] => [:validate] do |t, args|
+    hash = {}
+    get_versions.each do |component, metadata|
+      if component == "logstash-core-plugin-api"
+        hash[component] = args[:version]
+      else
+        hash[component] = metadata["yaml_version"]
+      end
+    end
+    IO.write("versions.yml", hash.to_yaml)
+    Rake::Task["version:sync"].invoke; Rake::Task["version:sync"].reenable
+  end
+
+  task :validate, :version do |t, args|
+    unless Regexp.new('^\d+\.\d+\.\d+(?:-\w+\d+)?$').match(args[:version])
+      abort("Invalid version argument: \"#{args[:version]}\". Aborting...")
+    end
+  end
+
+end
diff --git a/versions.yml b/versions.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a7e6c26df
--- /dev/null
+++ b/versions.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+---
+logstash: 5.0.0
+logstash-core: 5.0.0
+logstash-core-event: 5.0.0
+logstash-core-event-java: 5.0.0
+logstash-core-plugin-api: 2.1.7