Use when generating or modifying any Spring Boot class — controllers, services, repositories, DTOs, mappers, or configuration. Enforces strict layer separation and prevents business logic from leaking across boundaries.
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---
name: layered-architecture
description: >
Use when generating or modifying any Spring Boot class — controllers, services, repositories,
DTOs, mappers, or configuration. Enforces strict layer separation and prevents business logic
from leaking across boundaries.
---
# Layered Architecture
## Layer Rules
```
@RestController ← HTTP only. No business logic. No JPA entities in responses.
↓ DTOs
@Service ← All business logic lives here. Orchestrates repositories.
↓ Domain objects / Entities
@Repository ← Data access only. No business logic. Returns entities or projections.
↓ JPA / JDBC
Database
```
## Controller Layer
- Handles HTTP: parsing requests, validating input (`@Valid`), returning responses
- Calls ONE service method per endpoint — no orchestration in controllers
- Never returns `@Entity` classes directly — always map to response DTOs
- Never injects `@Repository` — always goes through a `@Service`
- Exception handling via `@ControllerAdvice`, never try/catch in controllers
```java
// ✅ GOOD
@PostMapping("/orders")
public ResponseEntity<OrderResponse> createOrder(@Valid @RequestBody CreateOrderRequest request) {
Order order = orderService.createOrder(request);
return ResponseEntity.status(HttpStatus.CREATED).body(OrderResponse.from(order));
}
// ❌ BAD — business logic in controller
@PostMapping("/orders")
public ResponseEntity<Order> createOrder(@RequestBody CreateOrderRequest request) {
if (request.getItems().isEmpty()) throw new RuntimeException("No items");
Order order = orderRepository.save(new Order(request)); // direct repo access
return ResponseEntity.ok(order); // returning entity
}
```
## Service Layer
- Contains all business logic, validation rules, and orchestration
- `@Transactional` lives here, not in controllers or repositories
- Constructor injection only — never `@Autowired` field injection
- One service per aggregate root (OrderService, not OrderAndPaymentService)
- Returns domain objects or DTOs — never `HttpServletRequest` / `HttpServletResponse`
- Retries and concurrency caps on service methods via Framework 7's `@Retryable` / `@ConcurrencyLimit`
(enable with `@EnableResilientMethods`) — no spring-retry dependency
```java
// ✅ GOOD
@Service
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class OrderService {
private final OrderRepository orderRepository;
private final InventoryService inventoryService;
@Transactional
public Order createOrder(CreateOrderRequest request) {
inventoryService.reserve(request.getItems());
Order order = Order.from(request);
return orderRepository.save(order);
}
}
// ❌ BAD — field injection, HTTP concern in service
@Service
public class OrderService {
@Autowired private OrderRepository orderRepository;
public ResponseEntity<Order> createOrder(...) { ... } // HTTP type in service
}
```
## Repository Layer
- Extends `JpaRepository<Entity, ID>` or `CrudRepository`
- Custom queries via `@Query` or query derivation — no raw SQL unless unavoidable
- Returns entities or Spring Data Projections — never raw `Object[]`
- No business logic — pure data access
## DTOs
- Separate Request / Response DTOs — never use the same class for both
- Validation annotations (`@NotNull`, `@Size`, etc.) on Request DTOs only
- Static factory method `ResponseDto.from(Entity entity)` for mapping
- Use records for immutable DTOs (Java 16+)
```java
// ✅ GOOD
public record OrderResponse(UUID id, String status, List<LineItemResponse> items) {
public static OrderResponse from(Order order) {
return new OrderResponse(order.getId(), order.getStatus().name(),
order.getItems().stream().map(LineItemResponse::from).toList());
}
}
```
## Mapper Pattern
- Keep mapping logic out of controllers and services — use dedicated mapper classes or static factory methods
- Mapper is a plain class or utility — not a Spring bean unless it needs injected dependencies
- Entity → Response DTO: static method on the response DTO (`OrderResponse.from(order)`)
- Request DTO → Entity: static factory on the entity (`Order.from(request)`) or a mapper class
- Collection mapping: use `.stream().map(OrderResponse::from).toList()` — never manual loops
```java
// ✅ GOOD — dedicated mapper for complex mappings
public class OrderMapper {
public static OrderResponse toResponse(Order order) {
return new OrderResponse(
order.getId(),
order.getStatus().name(),
order.getItems().stream().map(OrderMapper::toLineItem).toList(),
order.getCreatedAt()
);
}
public static Order toEntity(CreateOrderRequest request, User user) {
Order order = Order.create(request.customerEmail(), user);
request.items().forEach(item ->
order.addItem(item.productId(), item.quantity()));
return order;
}
private static LineItemResponse toLineItem(OrderItem item) {
return new LineItemResponse(item.getProductId(), item.getQuantity(), item.getPrice());
}
}
```
## Configuration Layer
- `@Configuration` classes live in a `config/` package — never in `service/` or `controller/`
- Configuration never imports service or controller classes
- Use `@ConfigurationProperties` for type-safe config — never raw `@Value` for groups of related settings
- Bean definitions for infrastructure concerns only (RestClient, JsonMapper, SecurityFilterChain)
## Cross-Cutting Concerns
- Logging: use `@Slf4j` — never `System.out.println`
- Validation: `@Valid` on controller parameters, custom validators as `@Component`
- Exception handling: single `@RestControllerAdvice` class, never try/catch in controllers
- Auditing: `@CreatedDate` / `@LastModifiedDate` with `@EnableJpaAuditing`
## Gotchas
- Agent tends to put `@Transactional` on controllers — move it to services
- Agent uses `@Autowired` field injection — always use constructor injection (`@RequiredArgsConstructor`)
- Agent returns `List<Entity>` from controllers — always map to `List<ResponseDto>`
- Agent creates `OrderAndInventoryService` god classes — split by aggregate
- Agent puts mapping logic inside controllers — extract to mapper class or DTO factory method
- Agent creates `@Configuration` classes that depend on `@Service` beans — configuration should only wire infrastructure
- Agent defines an `ObjectMapper` bean to customize JSON — Boot 4 uses Jackson 3 (`tools.jackson`): define `JsonMapper` beans, and `@JsonComponent` is now `@JacksonComponent`
- Agent adds spring-retry for service-level retries — built into Framework 7 (`@Retryable`, `@EnableResilientMethods`)