In this article, we are going to learn about Spring and Spring Boot. We will walk you through the following topics: What is Spring, What is Spring Boot, the difference between Spring and Spring Boot, the difference between Spring Boot vs Spring MVC, and many more frequently asked questions about Spring and Spring Boot. At the end of this article, you will have a good understanding of the fundamentals of Spring and Spring Boot.
What is Spring?
Before understanding Spring let’s understand what is a Framework? The framework is a re-usable design platform for software systems, which provides support for code libraries and various scripting languages In simple words a framework is something that makes core programming easy. There are frameworks for PHP, Perl, Java, Python, Ruby, and many other languages. All Software Frameworks are built with the idea of reusability of the code and provide tools that help programmers develop and bind together different components of a software project.
Now, we know what a framework is so let’s jump to the definition of Spring. What is Spring? Spring is a lightweight application framework and we can say it is similar to the framework of frameworks because it provides support to various frameworks such as Struts, JSP, Hibernate, etc. The first version of the Spring framework was written by Rod Johnson in 2002 and the framework was first released in 2003 under the Apache license version 2.0.
What is Spring Boot?
Spring Boot makes it easy to create stand-alone, production-grade Spring based Applications. It’s a Java-based framework used to create a microservice ( microservice is defined as the small services that work together. The microservice defines an approach to the architecture that divides an application into a pool of loosely coupled services that implement business requirements).
Now let’s understand the definition of Spring Boot in simple words Spring Boot word is made up of 2 words Spring and Boot the first part of spring represents spring framework (The framework that let you write enterprise java applications) now second part boot that is bootstrap so combining both words Spring Boot means something that lets you bootstrap a spring application from the scratch.
In October 2012, a client, Mike Youngstrom, submitted a Jira ticket (Jira is a software application used for issue tracking and project management) requesting that the spring framework be bootstrapped so that it could be immediately launched. As a result, Spring Boot was developed in early 2013.
Key Differences
Now we have a complete idea about what is Spring and Spring Boot so let’s just go through the key differences between Spring and Spring Boot.
Basically, Spring is a lightweight application framework and we can say it is similar to the framework of frameworks because it provides support to various frameworks such as Struts, JSP, Hibernate, etc. and it’s used to build applications whereas Spring Boot is a spring-based framework that is mainly used to develop REST API’S.
The key difference or key feature of Spring is dependency injection and for spring boot it’s autoconfiguration, with the help of Spring Boot Framework developers can reduce development time, Developer Effort, and increase productivity.
Difference Between Spring and Spring Boot
| Basis | Spring | Spring Boot |
|---|---|---|
| Where it’s used? | Spring framework is a java EE framework that is used to build applications. | Spring Boot framework is mainly used to develop REST API’s |
| Key feature | The primary or most important feature of the Spring framework is dependency injection(Dependency Injection (DI) is a design technique that removes dependencies from computer code, making the application easier to maintain and test). | The main or primary feature of the Spring Boot is Autoconfiguration( Simply described, Spring Boot autoconfiguration is a method of automatically configuring a Spring application based on the dependencies found on the classpath.) Autoconfiguration can speed up and simplify development by removing the need to define some beans that are part of the auto-configuration classes. |
| Why it’s used | Its goal is to make Java EE (Enterprise Edition) development easier, allowing developers to be more productive. | Spring Boot provides the RAD(Rapid Application Development) feature to the Spring framework for faster application development. |
| Type of Application Development | Spring framework helps to create a loosely coupled application. | Spring Boot helps to create a stand-alone application. |
| Servers dependency | In the Spring framework to test the Spring Project, we need to set up the servers explicitly. | Spring Boot offers built-in or embedded servers such as Tomcat and jetty. |
| Deployment descriptor | To run a Spring application a deployment descriptor is required. | In Spring Boot there is no need for the Deployment descriptor. |
| In-memory database support | Spring framework does not provide support for the in-memory database. | Spring Boot provides support for the in-memory database such as H2. |
| Boilerplate code | Spring framework requires too many lines of code (boilerplate code) even for minimal tasks. | You avoid boilerplate code which reduces time and increases productivity. |
| Configurations | In the Spring framework, you have to build configurations manually. | In Spring Boot there are default configurations that allow faster bootstrapping. |
| Dependencies | Spring Framework requires a number of dependencies to create a web app. | Spring Boot, on the other hand, can get an application working with just one dependency. There are several more dependencies required during build time that is added to the final archive by default. |
| HTTP Authentication | HTTP Basic Authentication is for enabling security confirmations, it indicates that several dependencies and configurations need to be enabled to enable security. Spring requires both the standard spring-security-web and spring-security-config dependencies to set up security in an application. Next, we need to add a class that extends the WebSecurityConfigurerAdapter and makes use of the @EnableWebSecurity annotation. | Spring Boot also requires these dependencies to make it work, but we only need to define the dependency of spring-boot-starter-security as this will automatically add all the relevant dependencies to the classpath. |
| Testing | Testing in Spring Boot is difficult in comparison to Spring Boot due to a large amount of source code. | Testing in Spring Boot is easier due to the reduced amount of source code. |
| XML Configuration | In the Spring framework, XML Configuration is required. | No need for XML configuration in Spring Boot. |
| CLI Tools | Spring framework does not provide any CLI tool for developing and testing applications. | Spring Boot provides a CLI tool for developing and testing Spring Boot applications. |
| Plugins | Spring framework does not provide any plugin for maven, Gradle, etc. like Spring Boot. | Spring Boot provides build tool plugins for Maven and Gradle. The Plugins offer a variety of features, including the packaging of executable jars. |
Conclusion
By now, we have a good understanding of what Spring and SpringBoot are, even though they go hand in hand. To sum up Spring Boot contains all of the functionality of the standard Spring framework while also making application development much easier. When compared to Spring, you can get an application up and running in considerably less time because all Spring Boot attributes are auto-configured.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better to learn Spring or Spring Boot?
Spring Boot contains all of the functionality of the standard Spring framework while also making application development much easier. When compared to Spring, you can get an application up and running in considerably less time because all Spring Boot attributes are auto-configured. So the answer is Spring Boot.
What is Spring Boot best for?
Spring Boot means something that lets you bootstrap a spring application from scratch and the Spring Boot framework is mainly used to develop REST APIs.
Does spring boot replace spring?
Spring Boot isn’t meant to be a replacement for Spring; rather, it’s meant to make working with it faster and easier. As a result, the majority of the modifications required to migrate an application are configuration-related. Our bespoke controllers and other components will largely remain unchanged.
How much does it take to learn Spring?
The answer to this question varies from person to person as everyone has their own speed but on average you can learn spring in approximately 4 weeks ( a month). This free Spring Boot course with certification is all you need if you want to get started in Java Spring Boot.
When should you not use a Spring boot?
Spring Boot is not suitable for large-scale projects because Spring Boot creates a lot of unused dependencies, resulting in large deployment files.
