stuart.tokyo

Initializing a Spring Boot Project in VS Code

Getting started by generating a Gradled-based project.

2026-09-22

initialization
backend

Getting Started

VS Code Extension - Spring Initializr

Open VS Code extensions ( Cmd + Shift + X ) and install Spring Initializr Java Support.
Open Command Palette ( Cmd + Shift + P ) and select Spring Initializr: Create a Gradle Project.

Upon launching, Spring Initializr will ask a sequence of questions. These notes will use the following configuration:

Prompt	Selection	Notes
Spring Boot Version	4.1.1	Spring Boot platform and managed dependency versions.
Language	Java	Source language used by application.
Group ID	ご自由に	Base Java package, such as `com.example`. Should be lowercase
Artifact ID	同上	Human-readable project and generated folder name. Such as `demo`, resulting in `com.example.demo`.
Package name	同上	Auto-fills to combo of above two (i.e. `com.example.demo`). Not sure why this is here.
Packaging	JAR	Creates an executable JAR containing the application and embedded web server.
Java Version	21	Java language and runtime level used by the project.

Select Dependencies

Select the following dependencies when the picker displays.

Dependency	Role
Spring Boot Dev Tools	Module that "enhances the developer experience" with auto restarts, etc.
Spring Web	Spring MVC, REST controller support, JSON handling, and the embedded web server.
Lombok	Generates getters, setters, constructors, and builders during compilation.
Validation	Adds "Bean" validation annotations like `NotNull`, `NotBlank`, and `Size`.

After dependency selection, VS Code will prompt to select the folder into which it will generate the folder (named after the Artifact ID).

Spring Boot's Gradle plugin manages versions for dependencies within the build.gradle file at the root of the project. Upon project initialization, the file should look like the below. Expect to add to this as features are implemented later.

dependencies {
	implementation 'org.springframework.boot:spring-boot-starter-validation'
	implementation 'org.springframework.boot:spring-boot-starter-webmvc'
	compileOnly 'org.projectlombok:lombok'
	developmentOnly 'org.springframework.boot:spring-boot-devtools'
	annotationProcessor 'org.projectlombok:lombok'
	testImplementation 'org.springframework.boot:spring-boot-starter-validation-test'
	testImplementation 'org.springframework.boot:spring-boot-starter-webmvc-test'
	testCompileOnly 'org.projectlombok:lombok'
	testRuntimeOnly 'org.junit.platform:junit-platform-launcher'
	testAnnotationProcessor 'org.projectlombok:lombok'
}

This is a good time to install the Tasks extension (Extension ID: actboy168.tasks) to make it easier to launch the backend. Create a tasks.json within the .vscode directory containing the launch and end commands for a gradle project. Expand this tip for a JSON containing commands for MacOS and Windows.

{
  "version": "2.0.0",
 
  // Configure the backend port here
  "options": {
    "cwd": "${workspaceFolder}",
    "env": {
      "SERVER_PORT": "8080"
    }
  },
 
  "tasks": [
    {
      "label": "$(debug-start) Start Backend",
      "type": "process",
 
      "osx": {
        "command": "./gradlew",
        "args": ["bootRun"]
      },
 
      "windows": {
        "command": "cmd.exe",
        "args": ["/d", "/c", "gradlew.bat", "bootRun"]
      },
 
      "problemMatcher": [],
      "presentation": {
        "panel": "dedicated"
      }
    },
    {
      "label": "$(debug-stop) Stop Backend",
      "type": "process",
 
      "osx": {
        "command": "/bin/zsh",
        "args": [
          "-c",
          "pids=$(lsof -nP -tiTCP:\"$SERVER_PORT\" -sTCP:LISTEN); if [ -n \"$pids\" ]; then printf '%s\\n' \"$pids\" | xargs kill -TERM; echo \"Backend on port $SERVER_PORT stopped\"; else echo \"Backend is not running on port $SERVER_PORT\"; fi"
        ]
      },
 
      "windows": {
        "command": "powershell.exe",
        "args": [
          "-NoProfile",
          "-NonInteractive",
          "-Command",
          "$port = [int]$env:SERVER_PORT; $connections = Get-NetTCPConnection -LocalPort $port -State Listen -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; if ($connections) { $processIds = $connections.OwningProcess | Sort-Object -Unique; $processIds | ForEach-Object { Stop-Process -Id $_ -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue }; Write-Host \"Backend on port $port stopped\" } else { Write-Host \"Backend is not running on port $port\" }"
        ]
      },
 
      "problemMatcher": [],
      "presentation": {
        "reveal": "always",
        "panel": "shared"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Building a REST Controller and Endpoints

Making a thing you can ping

2026-09-23

rest-controller
backend
why-have-tags

Getting Started

The general project structure will eventually look like the following.

src/main/java/com/example/demo/
|-- DemoApplication.java
|-- controller/
|   `-- DemoController.java
|-- service/
|   `-- DemoService.java
|-- repository/
|   `-- DemoRepository.java
|-- model/
|   `-- Demo.java
|-- dto/
|-- exception/
`-- config/

src/main/resources/
`-- application.properties

Required Imports

import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.GetMapping;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.PathVariable;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RequestMapping;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RequestParam;
import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RestController;