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This guide covers deploying the Iquea Commerce backend application built with Spring Boot 3.4.0 and Java 21.

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Building the Application

The backend uses Maven to build a standalone executable JAR file.
1

Navigate to backend directory

cd Iqüea_back
2

Build the JAR file

Use the Maven wrapper to build the application:
./mvnw clean package
On Windows:
mvnw.cmd clean package
This command:
  • Cleans previous builds
  • Compiles Java source code
  • Runs tests
  • Packages the application as an executable JAR
3

Locate the JAR file

The built JAR file will be in the target/ directory:
target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar

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Skip Tests (Optional)

To build without running tests: 
./mvnw clean package -DskipTests

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Running in Production

The generated JAR file is a fully executable Spring Boot application.

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Basic Execution

java -jar target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar

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With JVM Options

For production deployments, configure JVM memory and performance settings: 
java -Xms512m -Xmx2048m \
     -XX:+UseG1GC \
     -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 \
     -Dserver.port=8080 \
     -jar target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar
JVM Options explained:
  • -Xms512m - Initial heap size (512 MB)
  • -Xmx2048m - Maximum heap size (2 GB)
  • -XX:+UseG1GC - Use G1 garbage collector (recommended for Spring Boot)
  • -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 - Target maximum GC pause time

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Environment Variables

Never commit production credentials to version control. Always use environment variables or external configuration.

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Database Configuration

The application requires these database environment variables: 
export DB_USERNAME=your_db_user
export DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
export SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL=jdbc:mysql://your-db-host:3306/apiIquea

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Application Properties Override

You can override any Spring Boot property using environment variables or command-line arguments: 
# Using environment variables
export SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL=jdbc:mysql://production-db:3306/apiIquea
export SPRING_DATASOURCE_USERNAME=prod_user
export SPRING_DATASOURCE_PASSWORD=secure_password
export SPRING_JPA_HIBERNATE_DDL_AUTO=validate
export SERVER_PORT=8080

java -jar target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar

# Using command-line arguments
java -jar target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar \
  --spring.datasource.url=jdbc:mysql://production-db:3306/apiIquea \
  --spring.datasource.username=prod_user \
  --spring.datasource.password=secure_password \
  --spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=validate

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Production Configuration File

Create application-prod.properties in src/main/resources/: 
# Production profile
spring.datasource.url=${SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL}
spring.datasource.username=${DB_USERNAME}
spring.datasource.password=${DB_PASSWORD}

# Security: Don't auto-update schema in production
spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=validate

# Disable SQL logging in production
spring.jpa.show-sql=false

# Don't initialize database from data.sql in production
spring.sql.init.mode=never

# Connection pooling
spring.datasource.hikari.maximum-pool-size=10
spring.datasource.hikari.minimum-idle=5
spring.datasource.hikari.connection-timeout=20000
spring.datasource.hikari.idle-timeout=300000

# Actuator security
management.endpoints.web.exposure.include=health,info,metrics
management.endpoint.health.show-details=when-authorized
Run with the production profile: 
java -jar target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar --spring.profiles.active=prod

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Database Configuration

In production, always set spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=validate or none to prevent automatic schema changes.

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Connection Pool Settings

The application uses HikariCP (default in Spring Boot). Recommended production settings: 
# Maximum number of connections in the pool
spring.datasource.hikari.maximum-pool-size=10

# Minimum number of idle connections
spring.datasource.hikari.minimum-idle=5

# Connection timeout (20 seconds)
spring.datasource.hikari.connection-timeout=20000

# Maximum lifetime of a connection (30 minutes)
spring.datasource.hikari.max-lifetime=1800000

# Idle timeout (5 minutes)
spring.datasource.hikari.idle-timeout=300000

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Connection URL Format

jdbc:mysql://[host]:[port]/[database]?useSSL=true&requireSSL=true&serverTimezone=UTC
Example: 
jdbc:mysql://db.example.com:3306/apiIquea?useSSL=true&requireSSL=true&serverTimezone=UTC

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JVM Memory Settings

Recommended memory settings based on application load:

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Small Applications (< 100 concurrent users)

-Xms256m -Xmx512m

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Medium Applications (100-500 concurrent users)

-Xms512m -Xmx1024m

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Large Applications (500+ concurrent users)

-Xms1024m -Xmx2048m

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Monitoring Memory Usage

Enable Spring Boot Actuator (already included) to monitor memory: 
curl http://localhost:8080/actuator/metrics/jvm.memory.used

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Deployment Platforms

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AWS Elastic Beanstalk

1

Install EB CLI

pip install awsebcli
2

Initialize EB

eb init -p java-21 iquea-backend
3

Create environment

eb create production-env
4

Set environment variables

eb setenv DB_USERNAME=prod_user DB_PASSWORD=secure_password
5

Deploy

eb deploy

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Heroku

1

Create Heroku app

heroku create iquea-backend
2

Add MySQL addon

heroku addons:create jawsdb-maria:kitefin
3

Configure buildpack

heroku buildpacks:set heroku/java
4

Set environment variables

heroku config:set SPRING_PROFILES_ACTIVE=prod
5

Deploy

git push heroku main

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DigitalOcean Droplet

1

Create droplet

Create an Ubuntu 22.04 droplet with at least 2GB RAM
2

Install Java 21

sudo apt update
sudo apt install openjdk-21-jre-headless
3

Upload JAR file

scp target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar user@your-droplet:/opt/iquea/
4

Create systemd service

Create /etc/systemd/system/iquea.service:
[Unit]
Description=Iquea Commerce Backend
After=syslog.target network.target

[Service]
User=iquea
ExecStart=/usr/bin/java -Xms512m -Xmx1024m -jar /opt/iquea/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar
SuccessExitStatus=143
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
Environment="DB_USERNAME=prod_user"
Environment="DB_PASSWORD=secure_password"
Environment="SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL=jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/apiIquea"

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
5

Start service

sudo systemctl enable iquea
sudo systemctl start iquea
sudo systemctl status iquea

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Docker Deployment

Create a Dockerfile in the backend directory: 
FROM eclipse-temurin:21-jre-alpine
WORKDIR /app
COPY target/Biblioteca-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar app.jar
EXPOSE 8080
ENTRYPOINT ["java", "-Xms512m", "-Xmx1024m", "-jar", "app.jar"]
Build and run: 
# Build
docker build -t iquea-backend .

# Run
docker run -d -p 8080:8080 \
  -e DB_USERNAME=prod_user \
  -e DB_PASSWORD=secure_password \
  -e SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL=jdbc:mysql://host.docker.internal:3306/apiIquea \
  --name iquea-backend \
  iquea-backend

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Security Considerations

Always secure your production deployment with these essential measures.
  1. Use HTTPS - Configure SSL/TLS certificates (Let’s Encrypt, AWS Certificate Manager)
  2. Environment Variables - Never hardcode credentials
  3. Database Security - Use strong passwords and restrict network access
  4. JWT Secret - Use a strong, randomly generated secret key
  5. CORS Configuration - Restrict allowed origins to your frontend domain
  6. Actuator Endpoints - Secure or disable in production
  7. Regular Updates - Keep dependencies updated for security patches

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Monitoring and Logs

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Application Logs

Configure logging in application-prod.properties: 
# Log to file
logging.file.name=/var/log/iquea/application.log
logging.file.max-size=10MB
logging.file.max-history=30

# Log levels
logging.level.root=INFO
logging.level.edu.rico.rest=INFO
logging.level.org.springframework.web=WARN

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Health Checks

Use the actuator health endpoint: 
curl http://localhost:8080/actuator/health

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Performance Monitoring

Consider adding monitoring tools:
  • Spring Boot Admin
  • Prometheus + Grafana
  • New Relic
  • Datadog
  • AWS CloudWatch

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Troubleshooting

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Application Won’t Start

  • Check Java version: java -version (should be Java 21)
  • Verify database connectivity
  • Check logs for error messages
  • Ensure port 8080 is not already in use

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Out of Memory Errors

  • Increase heap size: -Xmx2048m or higher
  • Analyze memory usage with jmap and jhat
  • Check for memory leaks

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Database Connection Failures

  • Verify database is running and accessible
  • Check connection string format
  • Verify username and password
  • Check firewall rules
  • Test connection: telnet db-host 3306

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