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Spring DevTools

Spring DevTools provides automatic app restarts when code changes. webforJ DevTools adds automatic browser refresh - when Spring restarts your app, the browser refreshes automatically through webforJ's LiveReload server.

Different file types trigger different reload behavior. Java code changes cause a full Spring restart and browser refresh. CSS and image changes update without a page reload, preserving form data and app state.

Understanding webforJ DevTools​

webforJ extends Spring DevTools with browser synchronization. When Spring detects file changes and restarts, webforJ DevTools automatically refreshes your browser.

Reload behavior​

Different file types trigger different reload strategies:

  • Java files - Full browser page reload after Spring restart
  • CSS files - Style updates without page reload
  • JavaScript files - Full browser page reload after Spring restart
  • Images - Refresh in place without page reload

Dependencies​

Add both Spring DevTools and webforJ DevTools to your project:

pom.xml
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
    <artifactId>spring-boot-devtools</artifactId>
    <optional>true</optional>
</dependency>

<dependency>
    <groupId>com.webforj</groupId>
    <artifactId>webforj-spring-devtools</artifactId>
    <version>${webforj.version}</version>
    <optional>true</optional>
</dependency>

Configuration​

Enable webforJ DevTools in your app properties:

application.properties
# Enable webforJ browser auto-reload
webforj.devtools.livereload.enabled=true

# Enable immediate shutdown for faster restarts
server.shutdown=immediate

Advanced configuration​

Configure WebSocket connection and reload behavior:

application.properties
# WebSocket server port (default: 35730)
webforj.devtools.livereload.websocket-port=35730

# WebSocket endpoint path (default: /webforj-devtools-ws)
webforj.devtools.livereload.websocket-path=/webforj-devtools-ws

# Heartbeat interval in milliseconds (default: 30000)
webforj.devtools.livereload.heartbeat-interval=30000

# Enable hot reload for static resources (default: true)
webforj.devtools.livereload.static-resources-enabled=true