Spring Boot Crash Course Overview

Sep 24, 2024

Spring Boot Crash Course - Summary and Key Points

Introduction

  • Dan Vega, Spring Developer Advocate for VMware, presents a Spring Boot Crash Course.
  • Overview of Spring and Spring Boot.
  • Focus on building web applications with Spring Boot.

Prerequisites

  • Java Experience: Beginner to intermediate level.
  • Build Tools: Familiarity with Maven (we will use Maven).
  • Software Requirements:
    • Java 17 installed.
    • IDE or text editor (e.g., IntelliJ IDEA, Visual Studio Code).
    • API testing tool (e.g., Postman, Curl).
    • H2 database for development, potentially switching to Postgres for production.

Understanding Spring and Spring Boot

Spring Framework

  • A massive project used for various applications, including:
    • Building web applications (imperative style with Spring MVC).
    • Reactive stack with Spring WebFlux.
    • Microservices with Spring Cloud.
    • Serverless functions with Spring Cloud Function.
    • Event-driven architecture with Spring Batch.
    • Command-line interface applications with Spring Shell.

Spring Boot

  • Simplifies Spring development with:
    • Starters: Bundled dependencies (e.g., Spring Boot Starter Web).
    • Auto Configuration: Automatically configures necessary components based on classpath.
    • Production Ready Features: Spring Boot Actuator provides insights and metrics.

Building a Web Application

  • Application Overview: Building a content calendar web application.
  • Learning Outcomes: Setting up a Spring Boot application, using Maven, and exploring Spring Core Concepts.

Steps to Build the Application

  1. Create a Spring Boot Project: Use start.spring.io to bootstrap the application.
  2. Setup Dependencies: Define dependencies in pom.xml.
  3. Set Up Application Structure: Organize project folders for controllers, models, repositories.
  4. Implement Core Principles: Dependency Injection, MVC, REST APIs, and CRUD operations.
  5. Use JDBC for Database Access: Configure data sources and query data.
  6. Production Readiness: Preparation for deployment, including configuration management and using Spring Boot Actuator for monitoring.

Key Concepts Covered

Spring Core

  • IoC Container: Manages application components and their lifecycle.
  • Beans: Instances of classes managed by Spring.
  • Dependency Injection: Injecting dependencies into classes for better management.

MVC Framework

  • Controllers: Handle incoming requests and return responses.
  • Repositories: Abstract data access and provide CRUD functionalities.

Database Interaction

  • JDBC & Spring Data JDBC: Simplified database access, mapping Java objects to database records.
  • Using Command Line Runner: Load initial data at application startup.

Configuration Management

  • Using application.properties: Externalize configuration values.
  • Using Profiles: Manage environment-specific settings.
  • Configuration Properties: Type-safe configuration binding.

Production Deployment

  • Building Executable JARs: Create a runnable jar file.
  • Docker: Containerize the application for consistent deployment.
  • Spring Boot Actuator: Monitor application health and metrics in production.
  • Railway Deployment: Demonstrated deployment of the application to Railway.

Conclusion

  • Encouragement to apply learned concepts to new domains.
  • Resources for further learning provided.
  • Thank you for attending the crash course.