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This guide covers all configuration options for the DriveX Backend API, including database connections, server settings, and JPA configuration.

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Application Properties

The main configuration file is located at src/main/resources/application.properties. All settings can be overridden using environment variables.

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Application Name

spring.application.name=DriveX-backend
Defines the application name used in Spring Boot’s internal configuration and logging.

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Database Configuration

1

Configure Database Connection

Set up your MySQL database connection parameters:
spring.datasource.url=jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/railway
spring.datasource.username=root
spring.datasource.password=your_password_here
spring.datasource.driver-class-name=com.mysql.cj.jdbc.Driver
Never commit sensitive credentials to version control. Use environment variables for production deployments.
2

Configure JPA/Hibernate Settings

The application uses Spring Data JPA with Hibernate as the ORM provider:
spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=update
spring.jpa.show-sql=true
spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=true
spring.jpa.database-platform=org.hibernate.dialect.MySQLDialect
The ddl-auto=update setting automatically updates the database schema based on your entity classes. Consider using validate in production environments.

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Server Configuration

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Port and Context Path

Configure the server port and base API path: 
server.servlet.context-path=/api
server.port=${PORT:8080}
server.address=0.0.0.0
PropertyDefaultDescription
server.port8080HTTP port the server listens on. Reads from PORT environment variable if available
server.servlet.context-path/apiBase path for all API endpoints
server.address0.0.0.0Network interface to bind to. 0.0.0.0 allows external access
All API endpoints will be prefixed with /api. For example, the vehicles endpoint will be accessible at /api/vehicles.

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Configuration Options Reference

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Database Properties

spring.datasource.url=jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/railway
spring.datasource.driver-class-name=com.mysql.cj.jdbc.Driver
spring.jpa.database-platform=org.hibernate.dialect.MySQLDialect

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JPA/Hibernate Properties

PropertyValueDescription
spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-autoupdateSchema generation strategy. Options: create, create-drop, update, validate, none
spring.jpa.show-sqltrueLog SQL statements to console
spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sqltrueFormat logged SQL for readability
spring.jpa.database-platformorg.hibernate.dialect.MySQLDialectHibernate dialect for MySQL optimization

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Environment-Specific Configuration

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Development

spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=update
spring.jpa.show-sql=true
spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=true
Development mode enables SQL logging and automatic schema updates for faster iteration.

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Production

spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=validate
spring.jpa.show-sql=false
spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=false
In production:
  • Use validate to prevent automatic schema changes
  • Disable SQL logging for better performance
  • Use environment variables for all sensitive configuration
  • Consider using Spring Profiles for environment-specific configs

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Using Environment Variables

All Spring Boot properties can be overridden with environment variables by converting the property name:
  1. Convert to uppercase
  2. Replace dots (.) with underscores (_)
  3. Replace hyphens (-) with underscores (_)
Examples:
PropertyEnvironment Variable
spring.datasource.urlSPRING_DATASOURCE_URL
spring.datasource.usernameSPRING_DATASOURCE_USERNAME
server.portSERVER_PORT
spring.jpa.show-sqlSPRING_JPA_SHOW_SQL

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Docker Example

docker run -p 8080:8080 \
  -e SPRING_DATASOURCE_URL=jdbc:mysql://mysql:3306/railway \
  -e SPRING_DATASOURCE_USERNAME=root \
  -e SPRING_DATASOURCE_PASSWORD=secret \
  -e PORT=8080 \
  drivex-backend:latest

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Dependencies

The following key dependencies are configured in pom.xml:
  • Spring Boot 4.0.0 - Application framework
  • Spring Data JPA - Database access and ORM
  • MySQL Connector/J - MySQL JDBC driver
  • Spring Security Crypto - Password hashing
  • Lombok 1.18.42 - Boilerplate reduction
  • Spring Boot DevTools - Development utilities

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Next Steps

Database Setup

Learn how to set up and configure the DriveX database schema

Deployment

Deploy the DriveX Backend API to production

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