README.md

Compose Spring boot

Compose Spring boot is a template project for building a GUI client with kotlin compose and spring boot to solve these problem:

• Electron can not fit your technology stack, you want to use jvm platform
• You want to build java backend together with the web pages into a single GUI client, which can use between multiplatform desktop OS
• Your web page required Chromium core which java swing does not support

What this project contains or not

1. The goal is desktop, no mobile support
2. Use Jetbrains runtime 17(named jbrsdk_jcef-17.*.tar.gz) to build this project because it has full support for jcef
3. Because of kotlin compose build native installer with jpackage, and jcef is not a standard java module, there is a gradle task to copy jetbrains runtime to native distribution, then it can not create Msi on windows, but macOS works well with Dmg
4. The main jar use the spring boot format, all classpath in BOOT-INF/lib instead of fat jar or copy all dependencies into app folder for jpackage
5. You can fully use kotlin compose to write GUI if you do not use web page. If not, kotlin compose just be like a jvm-electron container
6. Can not reduce the native installer disk size(500MB+). In theory it contains JDK 17 and Chrome, bigger than Electron

Features

• A basic kotlin spring boot project with gradle
• Entry gradle task releaseZip for multiplatform build with Jetbrains runtime
• A loading indicator during spring boot startup
• Exit with a confirmation dialog
• Custom MainToolBar with compose-jetbrains-theme
• Swagger page as default web page after start
• Support tabbed browser, or single page browser
• Support default shortcut key for browser
  • copy: ctrl/command + c
  • paste: ctrl/command + v
  • selectAll: ctrl/command + a
  • undo: ctrl/command + z
  • redo: ctrl/command + y