Integrating React with Spring Boot for Fullstack Java Development

Fullstack development often requires combining powerful backend frameworks with modern, responsive frontend technologies. For Java developers, Spring Boot offers a robust and scalable backend solution, while React provides a dynamic and interactive user interface. Integrating these two technologies allows developers to build end-to-end applications using best-in-class tools. In this blog, we’ll walk through the essentials of integrating React with Spring Boot for fullstack Java development.

Why Use React with Spring Boot?

Combining React and Spring Boot gives you the best of both worlds:

• Spring Boot handles business logic, security, and data management.
• React provides a fast, component-based UI for a smooth user experience.

This architecture also promotes clear separation of concerns, making it easier to scale and maintain large applications.

Project Structure Overview

A typical fullstack project using React and Spring Boot can follow this structure:

bash

/fullstack-app

├── backend/            # Spring Boot application

│   └── src/

│       └── main/

│           └── java/

│           └── resources/

├── frontend/           # React application

│   └── src/

│   └── public/

Keeping frontend and backend in separate directories helps manage them independently and simplifies deployment.

Setting Up the Spring Boot Backend

Create a Spring Boot Application

Use Spring Initializr to bootstrap your project with dependencies like:

• Spring Web
• Spring Boot DevTools
• Spring Data JPA (if using a database)
• Spring Security (optional)

Create a REST Controller

java

@RestController

@RequestMapping("/api")

public class MessageController {

    @GetMapping("/message")

    public Map<String, String> getMessage() {

        return Map.of("message", "Hello from Spring Boot!");

    }

}

Start the backend server with mvn spring-boot:run, and your API should be available at http://localhost:8080/api/message.

Creating the React Frontend

Set up a React app using Vite or Create React App:

bash

npx create-react-app frontend

cd frontend

npm start

Fetch Data from Spring Boot

In your React component (e.g., App.js), use fetch or axios:

javascript

import { useEffect, useState } from 'react';

function App() {

  const [message, setMessage] = useState('');

  useEffect(() => {

    fetch('http://localhost:8080/api/message')

      .then(response => response.json())

      .then(data => setMessage(data.message));

  }, []);

  return <div>{message}</div>;

}

export default App;

Connecting Frontend and Backend

To allow React to communicate with Spring Boot during development:

• Enable CORS in your Spring Boot app:

java

@CrossOrigin(origins = "http://localhost:3000")

Or configure it globally using a WebMvcConfigurer bean.

Building for Production

When you're ready to deploy:

• Build the React app:

bash

npm run build

• Copy the contents of the build/ folder into Spring Boot’s src/main/resources/static/.

Spring Boot will then serve your React app on the same port as the backend (/), and you can access the fullstack application from a single URL.

Conclusion

Integrating React with Spring Boot creates a powerful fullstack development environment that balances frontend interactivity with robust backend capabilities. This setup enables teams to work independently on UI and API layers, promotes modularity, and simplifies deployment. With just a few configurations, you can build scalable, maintainable, and high-performing fullstack applications ready for production.

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Read more : Building REST APIs with Spring Boot for Fullstack Java Development

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