Comparing Native Java REST API Frameworks - Philadelphia JUG 2023

Use Spring Boot! No, use Micronaut!! Nooooo, Quarkus is the best!!! What about Helidon?

Many developers praise the hottest and fastest Java REST frameworks: Micronaut, Quarkus, Spring Boot, and Helidon. In this session, you'll learn how to do the following with each framework:

✅ Build a REST API
✅ Secure your API with OAuth 2.0
✅ Optimize for production with Docker and GraalVM

I'll also share some performance numbers and pretty graphs to compare community metrics.

GitHub repo: https://github.com/oktadev/auth0-java-rest-api-examples
Demo script: @oktadev/auth0-java-rest-api-examples/blob/main/demo.adoc

1. Matt Raible | @mraible October 17, 2023 Native Java REST API Comparison Micronaut, Quarkus, Spring Boot, and Helidon Photo by Dan Mall https://unsplash.com/photos/JsquWCJ4h9Y
2. @mraible Who is Matt Raible? Father, Husband, Skier, Mountain Biker, Whitewater Rafter Bus Lover Web Developer and Java Champion Developer Advocate Architect Blogger on raibledesigns.com and developer.okta.com/blog @mraible
6. developer.okta.com
7. developer.auth0.com
8. @mraible Today’s Agenda Why Java? Build { REST, GraphQL } APIs with Java Secure your APIs with OAuth 2.1 Build with Docker Go Native with GraalVM https://unsplash.com/photos/JsTmUnHdVYQ
9. @mraible Why Java? 25+ Years of use, abuse, and improvements Open Source code is available; many popular open source frameworks and tools Hugely Popular and widely used by many enterprises and web-scale companies
10. @mraible Download the Oracle builds of OpenJDK https://jdk.java.net/21 Or Eclipse builds from Adoptium https://adoptium.net Get Started with Java 21
11. @mraible Get Started with Java 21 Better yet, use SDKMAN! curl -s https://get.sdkman.io | bash 
 sdk install java 21-open
12. Java Releases and Features
13. https://developer.okta.com/blog/2020/01/09/java-rest-api-showdown Build REST APIs with Java
14. https://developer.okta.com/blog/2021/06/18/native-java-framework-comparison Build Native Java REST APIs
15. https://developer.okta.com/blog/2022/01/06/native-java-helidon Build REST APIs and Native Apps with Helidon
16. Serverless 💵 💸 https://unsplash.com/photos/glRqyWJgUeY
17. Use Cases for Native Images https://twitter.com/therealdanvega/status/1666098085616046081
18. @mraible sdk install micronaut mn create-app com.okta.rest.app \ -f security-jwt -f micronaut-aot Get Started with Micronaut
19. https://micronaut.io/launch
20. package com.okta.rest.controller; import io.micronaut.http.MediaType; import io.micronaut.http.annotation.Controller; import io.micronaut.http.annotation.Get; import io.micronaut.http.annotation.Produces; import io.micronaut.security.annotation.Secured; import io.micronaut.security.rules.SecurityRule; import java.security.Principal; @Controller("/hello") public class HelloController { @Get @Secured(SecurityRule.IS_AUTHENTICATED) @Produces(MediaType.TEXT_PLAIN) public String hello(Principal principal) { return "Hello, " + principal.getName() + "!"; } }
21. micronaut.security.token.jwt.signatures.jwks.okta.url= https://dev-1337.us.auth0.com/.well-known/jwks.json Micronaut JWT Security
22. micronaut.security.token.jwt.signatures.jwks.okta.url= https://dev-1337.us.auth0.com/.well-known/jwks.json Micronaut JWT Security https://micronaut-projects.github.io/micronaut-security/latest/guide/#jwt
23. Install HTTPie (a better cURL) $ <tool> install httpie https://httpie.org
24. Test Micronaut with HTTPie https://httpie.org gradle run http :8080/hello TOKEN=eyJraWQiOiJxOE1QMjFNNHZCVmxOSkxGbFFWNlN... http :8080/hello Authorization:"Bearer $TOKEN"
25. Verify Micronaut API with HTTPie
26. @mraible Get Started with Quarkus sdk install quarkus quarkus create app com.okta.rest:quarkus \ --extension="smallrye-jwt,resteasy-reactive" --gradle
27. @mraible mvn io.quarkus:quarkus-maven-plugin:3.4.3:create \ -DprojectGroupId=com.okta.rest \ -DprojectArtifactId=quarkus \ -DclassName="com.okta.rest.HelloResource" \ -Dpath="/hello" \ -Dextensions="smallrye-jwt,resteasy-reactive" Get Started with Quarkus
28. https://code.quarkus.io
29. package com.okta.rest; import io.quarkus.security.Authenticated; import jakarta.ws.rs.GET; import jakarta.ws.rs.Path; import jakarta.ws.rs.Produces; import jakarta.ws.rs.core.Context; import jakarta.ws.rs.core.MediaType; import jakarta.ws.rs.core.SecurityContext; import java.security.Principal; @Path("/hello") public class HelloResource { @GET @Authenticated @Produces(MediaType.TEXT_PLAIN) public String hello(@Context SecurityContext context) { Principal userPrincipal = context.getUserPrincipal(); return "Hello, " + userPrincipal.getName() + "!"; } }
30. mp.jwt.verify.issuer=https:// dev-1337.us.auth0.com/ mp.jwt.verify.publickey.location= ${mp.jwt.verify.issuer}.well- known/jwks.json MicroProfile JWT Security https://www.eclipse.org/community/eclipse_newsletter/2017/september/article2.php
31. mp.jwt.verify.issuer=https:// dev-1337.us.auth0.com/ mp.jwt.verify.publickey.location= ${mp.jwt.verify.issuer}.well- known/jwks.json MicroProfile JWT Security https://www.eclipse.org/community/eclipse_newsletter/2017/september/article2.php
33. Test Quarkus with HTTPie https://httpie.org gradle --console=plain quarkusDev http :8080/hello TOKEN=eyJraWQiOiJxOE1QMjFNNHZCVmxOSkxGbFFWNlN... http :8080/hello Authorization:"Bearer $TOKEN"
34. Verify Quarkus API with HTTPie
35. @mraible Get Started with Spring Boot https start.spring.io/starter.tgz \ dependencies==web,oauth2-resource-server,native \ packageName==com.okta.rest \ name==spring-boot \ baseDir==spring-boot | tar -xzvf -
36. https://start.spring.io https://start.spring.io
37. @mraible Use the Spring Boot CLI sdk install springboot spring init -d=web,oauth2-resource-server,native \ --group-id=com.okta.rest \ --package-name=com.okta.rest spring-boot
38. package com.okta.rest.controller; import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.GetMapping; import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.RestController; import java.security.Principal; @RestController public class HelloController { @GetMapping("/hello") public String hello(Principal principal) { return "Hello, " + principal.getName() + "!"; } }
39. The Okta Spring Boot Starter https://github.com/okta/okta-spring-boot okta.oauth2.issuer=https://dev-1337.us.auth0.com
40. Test Spring Boot with HTTPie https://httpie.org gradle bootRun http :8080/hello TOKEN=eyJraWQiOiJxOE1QMjFNNHZCVmxOSkxGbFFWNlN... http :8080/hello Authorization:"Bearer $TOKEN"
41. Verify Spring Boot API with HTTPie
42. @mraible Get Started with Helidon mvn -U archetype:generate -DinteractiveMode=false \ -DarchetypeGroupId=io.helidon.archetypes \ -DarchetypeArtifactId=helidon-quickstart-mp \ -DarchetypeVersion=3.2.2 \ -DgroupId=com.okta.rest \ -DartifactId=helidon \ -Dpackage=com.okta.rest
43. https://helidon.io/starter
44. Use the Helidon CLI sdk install helidon helidon init --flavor MP \ --groupid com.okta.rest \ --artifactid helidon \ --package com.okta.rest --batch
45. package com.okta.rest.controller; import io.helidon.security.Principal; import io.helidon.security.annotations.Authenticated; import jakarta.ws.rs.GET; import jakarta.ws.rs.Path; import jakarta.ws.rs.core.Context; @Path("/hello") public class HelloResource { @Authenticated @GET public String hello(@Context SecurityContext context) { return "Hello, " + context.userName() + "!"; } }
46. package com.okta.rest; import com.okta.rest.controller.HelloResource; import org.eclipse.microprofile.auth.LoginConfig; import jakarta.enterprise.context.ApplicationScoped; import jakarta.ws.rs.core.Application; import java.util.Set; @LoginConfig(authMethod = "MP-JWT") @ApplicationScoped public class HelloApplication extends Application { @Override public Set<Class<?>> getClasses() { return Set.of(HelloResource.class); } }
47. MicroProfile JWT Security mp.jwt.verify.issuer=https://dev-1337.us.auth0.com/ mp.jwt.verify.publickey.location=${mp.jwt.verify.issuer}.well- known/jwks.json https://download.eclipse.org/microprofile/microprofile-jwt-auth-2.0/microprofile-jwt-auth-spec-2.0.html <dependency> <groupId>io.helidon.microprofile.jwt</groupId> <artifactId>helidon-microprofile-jwt-auth</artifactId> </dependency>
48. Test Helidon with HTTPie https://httpie.org mvn package && java -jar target/helidon.jar http :8080/hello TOKEN=eyJraWQiOiJxOE1QMjFNNHZCVmxOSkxGbFFWNlN... http :8080/hello Authorization:"Bearer $TOKEN"
49. Verify Helidon API with HTTPie
50. @mraible Startup Performance Milliseconds 0 500 1000 1500 2000 Micronaut Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon 1,053 952 430 433 896 743 1,402 399 Dev Startup (gradle or mvn) Packaged Startup (java -jar)
51. @mraible What about GraphQL APIs? Why GraphQL? Does your favorite framework support GraphQL? Micronaut https://micronaut-projects.github.io/micronaut-graphql/latest/guide Quarkus https://quarkus.io/guides/smallrye-graphql Spring Boot https://spring.io/projects/spring-graphql Helidon https://helidon.io/docs/v3/#/mp/graphql
52. @mraible Secure your API with OAuth 2.1 https://aaronparecki.com/2019/12/12/21/its-time-for-oauth-2-dot-1
53. @mraible Secure your API with OAuth 2.1 https://oauth.net/2.1 PKCE is required for all clients using the authorization code flow Redirect URIs must be compared using exact string matching The Implicit grant is omitted from this specification The Resource Owner Password Credentials grant is omitted from this specification Bearer token usage omits the use of bearer tokens in the query string of URIs Refresh tokens for public clients must either be sender-constrained or one-time use
54. @mraible Authenticate with OpenID Connect (OIDC) What is OpenID Connect? Does your favorite framework support OIDC authentication? Micronaut https://guides.micronaut.io/latest/micronaut-oauth2-auth0.html Quarkus https://quarkus.io/guides/security-openid-connect-web-authentication Spring Boot https://docs.spring.io/spring-security/reference/servlet/oauth2/login Helidon https://helidon.io/docs/v3/#/mp/security/providers#OIDC-Provider
55. What about testing?
56. @mraible Build with Docker Create a Dockerfile 
 FROM openjdk:21-alpine ARG JAR_FILE=target/*.jar COPY ${JAR_FILE} app.jar EXPOSE 8080 ENTRYPOINT ["java","-jar","/app.jar"]
57. @mraible Build with Docker Build your image docker build -t <tag-name> . Run your image docker run -it -p 8080:8080 <tag-name>
58. @mraible Build with Docker: Jib Get Jibby with it! mvn verify jib:build gradle jib Or build directly to your Docker daemon mvn verify jib:dockerBuild gradle jibDockerbuild https://github.com/GoogleContainerTools/jib
59. @mraible Build with Docker Micronaut uses Jib, but you must configure plugins Quarkus generates four Docker-related files Dockerfile.jvm Dockerfile.legacy-jar Dockerfile.native Dockerfile.native-micro Quarkus + Jib mvn quarkus:add-extension -Dextensions="container-image-jib" gradle addExtension --extensions="container-image-jib"
60. @mraible Build with Docker Spring Boot 2.3+ has built-in support mvn -Pnative spring-boot:build-image 
 gradle bootBuildImage 
 Uses layered JARs for faster builds dependencies snapshot-dependencies resources application https://spring.io/blog/2020/01/27/creating-docker-images-with-spring-boot-2-3-0-m1
61. @mraible Build with Docker Helidon generates three Docker-related files Dockerfile Dockerfile.jlink Dockerfile.native Helidon + Jib Not available
62. @mraible Use Micronaut CLI mn create-app ... mvn package -Dpackaging=native-image gradle nativeImage gradle dockerBuildNative Go Native with GraalVM and Micronaut https://docs.micronaut.io/latest/guide/#graal
63. @mraible Go Native with GraalVM and Quarkus Create an executable without GraalVM installed mvn package -Dnative -Dquarkus.native.container-build=true gradle build -Dquarkus.package.type=native \ -Dquarkus.native.container-build=true Then, build the image docker build -f src/main/docker/Dockerfile.native -t \ <tag-name> . And run it docker run -it -p 8080:8080 <tag-name> https://quarkus.io/guides/building-native-image
64. @mraible Use start.spring.io to get plugins Go Native with GraalVM and Spring Boot <plugins> <plugin> <groupId>org.graalvm.buildtools</groupId> <artifactId>native-maven-plugin</artifactId> </plugin> <plugin> <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId> <artifactId>spring-boot-maven-plugin</artifactId> </plugin> </plugins> plugins { ... id 'org.graalvm.buildtools.native' version '0.9.27' }
65. @mraible Go Native with GraalVM and Spring Boot Build the native application mvn native:compile -Pnative gradle nativeCompile Build an image and Docker container mvn spring-boot:build-image -Pnative gradle bootBuildImage
66. @mraible Build the image docker build -f Dockerfile.native -t <tag-name> . And run it docker run --rm -p 8080:8080 <tag-name> Go Native with GraalVM and Helidon
67. @mraible Native Startup Performance (M1; time from console) Milliseconds 0 12 24 36 48 60 October 17, 2023 23.8 49.2 38.4 27.8 16 16.2 Micronaut 4.1.4 Micronaut (optimized) Quarkus 3.4.3 Spring Boot 3.1.4 Helidon 3.2.2* Helidon (optimized)
68. @mraible Native Startup Performance (M1; scripted) Milliseconds 0 25 50 75 100 October 17, 2023 59.8 58.6 66 56.4 51.6 49.4 Micronaut 4.1.4 Micronaut (optimized) Quarkus 3.4.3 Spring Boot 3.1.4 Helidon 3.2.2* Helidon (optimized)
69. @mraible Tests Run on a 2021 MacBook Pro M1 Max
70. @mraible t2.small: 1 vCPUs and 2 GiB RAM - Fails to build any projects t2.medium: 2 vCPUs and 4 GiB RAM - Quarkus and Spring Boot fail to build; Helidon took too long t2.large: 2 vCPUs and 8 GiB RAM 🌟 Building GraalVM images on AWS
71. @mraible Native Startup Performance (AWS EC2 t2.large) Milliseconds 0 20 40 60 80 100 October 17, 2023 94.6 41 42.4 41.2 Micronaut 4.1.4 Micronaut (optimized) Quarkus 3.4.3 Spring Boot 3.1.4
72. @mraible Native Memory Used after 5 requests (M1) Megabytes 0 30 60 90 120 150 October 17, 2023 123 117 84 53 64 64 Micronaut Micronaut (optimized) Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon Helidon (optimized)
73. @mraible Native Memory Used after 5 requests (EC2 t2.large) Megabytes 0 30 60 90 120 150 October 17, 2023 91 57 70 71 Micronaut Micronaut (optimized) Quarkus Spring Boot
74. @mraible Demo Time! https://github.com/oktadev/auth0-java-rest-api-examples
75. Community
76. @mraible Stack Overflow Tags 0 45,000 90,000 135,000 180,000 October 17, 2023 139 144,464 4,112 1,704 Micronaut Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon
77. @mraible GitHub Stars 0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 October 17, 2023 3,200 69,700 12,400 5,800 Micronaut Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon
78. https://star-history.t9t.io/#micronaut-projects/micronaut-core&quarkusio/quarkus&spring-projects/spring-boot&oracle/helidon GitHub Star Growth
79. @mraible Jobs on Indeed (US) 0 2,500 5,000 October 17, 2023 15 3,985 65 48 Micronaut Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon
80. @mraible Twitter Followers 0 30,000 60,000 90,000 120,000 October 17, 2023 4,531 103,300 18,400 13,300 Micronaut Quarkus Spring Boot Helidon
81. @mraible JHipster Support 🤓 Spring Boot 3 - JHipster 8.0.0-rc1, 8.0.0 coming soon! Micronaut blueprint - github.com/jhipster/generator-jhipster-micronaut - v2.0.0 for Micronaut 3, 19 releases, 20 contributors, 495 commits - v3.0.0 with Micronaut 4 with JHipster 8 is next! Quarkus blueprint - github.com/jhipster/generator-jhipster-quarkus - v2.0.0 for Quarkus 2, 7 releases, 18 contributors, 653 commits - v3.0.0 with Quarkus 3 is on the horizon!
82. https://auth0.com/blog/full-stack-java-with-react-spring-boot-and-jhipster
83. @mraible 🏆 Quarkus provides the best developer joy and memory usage 🚀 Micronaut is consistently competitive and 4.0 starts the fastest! 🌱 Spring Boot has the strongest community, ecosystem, and growth 🔮 Helidon has a lot of catching up to do ⚡ Spring Boot 3 not as fast as expected My Thoughts
84. @mraible Action! New to Java? Try Spring Boot Know Spring? Trial migration paths Testing is important, invest early and often Design your apps with security in mind Use OpenID Connect and OAuth 2.1 https://unsplash.com/photos/JsTmUnHdVYQ
85. developer.auth0.com developer.okta.com @oktadev
86. Subscribe to our Zero Index newsletter! a0.to/nl-signup/java
87. git clone https://github.com/oktadeveloper/okta-spring-web fl ux-react-example.git https://github.com/oktadev/auth0-java-rest-api-examples Use the Source, Luke!
89. Thanks! Keep in Touch raibledesigns.com @mraible Presentations speakerdeck.com/mraible Code github.com/oktadev developer.okta.com developer.auth0.com