# Kick off a Jenkins pipeline

After integrating Cortex with [Jenkins](/ingesting-data-into-cortex/integrations/jenkins.md), you can use a Cortex [Workflow](/streamline/workflows.md) to kick off your pipeline directly through Cortex, rather than switching to Jenkins to launch a build.

For full instructions on creating and configuring Workflows, see the [Workflows documentation](/streamline/workflows.md).

## How to kick off a Jenkins pipeline in a Workflow

### Prerequisites

Before getting started:

* [Configure your Jenkins instance in Cortex](/ingesting-data-into-cortex/integrations/jenkins.md#still-need-help).

### Step 1: Create a workflow

1. In the main nav of Cortex, click **Workflows**.
2. Follow the steps of the [Workflows documentation](/streamline/workflows.md) to start creating a Workflow from scratch and configure its settings.
   * Give the Workflow a descriptive name such as "Kick off Jenkins pipeline."

### Step 2: Add blocks to the workflow

You can add a block to run a build with parameters, or you can add a block to run a build without parameters. See the Jenkins documentation for [more information on submitting parameterized jobs](https://wiki.jenkins.io/display/JENKINS/Parameterized+Build).

1. Click **+** to view the block library. 
2. Click **Jenkins**. 
   * To choose a a build without parameters, select **Run a build**. 
   * To choose a build with parameters, select **Run a build with parameters**.
3. Click **Insert** at the bottom of the library.<br>

   <div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/ZMJSl64sPSSEsE41SDnb" alt="Select the Jenkins &#x22;Run a build&#x22; block."><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
4. In the side panel, configure the block.&#x20;
   * **Block name**: Enter a name for the block (e.g., `Run a build in Jenkins`).
   * **Slug**: Enter a unique slug for the block.
   * **Alias**: Select the alias of your Jenkins instance.
   * **Job name**: Enter the name of the Jenkins job to run.
   * **Parameters**: For a build with parameters, you also need to configure valid JSON for the run job parameters.&#x20;
5. At the bottom of the side panel, click **Save**.


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