Java 21+ features for Spring Boot - records, sealed classes, pattern matching, virtual threads, text blocks. Use when user asks about modern Java, Java 21 features, or when modernizing existing code.
84%
Does it follow best practices?
Run evals on this skill
Adds up to 20 points to the overall score
Passed
No findings from the security scan
Java 21+ language features and how to use them in Spring Boot applications.
// ✅ Records for request/response DTOs
public record ProductRequest(
@NotBlank String name,
@DecimalMin("0.0") BigDecimal price
) {}
public record ProductResponse(
Long id,
String name,
BigDecimal price,
LocalDateTime createdAt
) {
public static ProductResponse from(Product entity) {
return new ProductResponse(
entity.getId(),
entity.getName(),
entity.getPrice(),
entity.getCreatedAt()
);
}
}// ✅ Records for config properties (Spring Boot 4.x)
@ConfigurationProperties(prefix = "app.notification")
public record NotificationProperties(
boolean enabled,
String fromEmail,
Duration timeout,
Retry retry
) {
public record Retry(int maxAttempts, Duration delay) {}
}// ✅ Restrict payment types at compile time
public sealed interface PaymentResult
permits PaymentSuccess, PaymentFailure, PaymentPending {
}
public record PaymentSuccess(String transactionId, BigDecimal amount)
implements PaymentResult {}
public record PaymentFailure(String errorCode, String message)
implements PaymentResult {}
public record PaymentPending(String referenceId)
implements PaymentResult {}
// Usage in service
public PaymentResult processPayment(PaymentRequest request) {
try {
String txId = gateway.charge(request);
return new PaymentSuccess(txId, request.amount());
} catch (InsufficientFundsException e) {
return new PaymentFailure("INSUFFICIENT_FUNDS", e.getMessage());
}
}public sealed interface OrderEvent
permits OrderCreated, OrderShipped, OrderCancelled {
Long orderId();
LocalDateTime timestamp();
}
public record OrderCreated(Long orderId, LocalDateTime timestamp, Long customerId)
implements OrderEvent {}
public record OrderShipped(Long orderId, LocalDateTime timestamp, String trackingNumber)
implements OrderEvent {}
public record OrderCancelled(Long orderId, LocalDateTime timestamp, String reason)
implements OrderEvent {}// ❌ Old style
if (obj instanceof String) {
String s = (String) obj;
return s.length();
}
// ✅ Pattern matching
if (obj instanceof String s) {
return s.length();
}// ✅ Exhaustive switch with sealed types - compiler enforces all cases
public String handlePayment(PaymentResult result) {
return switch (result) {
case PaymentSuccess s -> "Paid: " + s.transactionId();
case PaymentFailure f -> "Failed: " + f.message();
case PaymentPending p -> "Pending: " + p.referenceId();
};
}
// ✅ Guarded patterns
public BigDecimal calculateDiscount(Order order) {
return switch (order) {
case Order o when o.getTotal().compareTo(new BigDecimal("100")) > 0 ->
o.getTotal().multiply(new BigDecimal("0.10"));
case Order o when o.isLoyaltyMember() ->
o.getTotal().multiply(new BigDecimal("0.05"));
default -> BigDecimal.ZERO;
};
}// Replacing if-else chains with pattern matching
public String processNotification(Object event) {
return switch (event) {
case OrderCreated o when o.total().compareTo(BigDecimal.valueOf(1000)) > 0 ->
sendPriorityNotification(o);
case OrderCreated o -> sendStandardNotification(o);
case OrderCancelled c -> sendCancellationNotification(c);
case PaymentReceived p -> sendPaymentConfirmation(p);
default -> throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unknown event: " + event);
};
}
// Pattern matching with instanceof — no more casting
public BigDecimal calculateShipping(Address address) {
if (address instanceof DomesticAddress d) {
return d.isExpressZone() ? DOMESTIC_EXPRESS : DOMESTIC_STANDARD;
} else if (address instanceof InternationalAddress i) {
return BASE_INTERNATIONAL.multiply(i.distanceFactor());
}
throw new IllegalArgumentException("Unknown address type");
}@RestControllerAdvice
public class GlobalExceptionHandler {
@ExceptionHandler(Exception.class)
public ProblemDetail handle(Exception ex) {
return switch (ex) {
case EntityNotFoundException e ->
ProblemDetail.forStatusAndDetail(HttpStatus.NOT_FOUND, e.getMessage());
case DataIntegrityViolationException e ->
ProblemDetail.forStatusAndDetail(HttpStatus.CONFLICT, "Duplicate entry");
case ConstraintViolationException e ->
ProblemDetail.forStatusAndDetail(HttpStatus.BAD_REQUEST, "Invalid request");
default ->
ProblemDetail.forStatusAndDetail(HttpStatus.INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR, "Unexpected error");
};
}
}# application.yml - enables virtual threads for all request handling
spring:
threads:
virtual:
enabled: trueThis single property:
@Async methods use virtual threads// ✅ Blocking code scales with virtual threads - no code changes needed
@Service
@Transactional(readOnly = true)
public class ReportService {
private final OrderRepository orderRepository;
private final RestClient externalApi;
public ReportService(OrderRepository orderRepository, RestClient externalApi) {
this.orderRepository = orderRepository;
this.externalApi = externalApi;
}
public Report generate(Long customerId) {
// Both blocking calls - on virtual threads this scales to thousands of concurrent requests
List<Order> orders = orderRepository.findByCustomerId(customerId);
CustomerData data = externalApi.get()
.uri("/customers/{id}", customerId)
.retrieve()
.body(CustomerData.class);
return new Report(orders, data);
}
}Do NOT use with virtual threads:
synchronized blocks holding across blocking calls (use ReentrantLock instead)// ✅ JPQL queries
@Query("""
SELECT p FROM Product p
WHERE p.active = true
AND p.price BETWEEN :minPrice AND :maxPrice
ORDER BY p.name
""")
List<Product> findActiveInPriceRange(
@Param("minPrice") BigDecimal min,
@Param("maxPrice") BigDecimal max);
// ✅ JSON in tests
mockMvc.perform(post("/api/v1/products")
.contentType(MediaType.APPLICATION_JSON)
.content("""
{
"name": "Widget",
"price": 10.00
}
"""))
.andExpect(status().isCreated());SequencedCollection adds getFirst(), getLast(), and reversed() to ordered collections.
// ❌ Before Java 21
String first = list.get(0);
String last = list.get(list.size() - 1);
// ✅ Java 21+
String first = list.getFirst();
String last = list.getLast();
// Reversed view (no copy)
for (var item : list.reversed()) {
process(item);
}
// Works with all ordered collections: List, Deque, SortedSet, LinkedHashSet, LinkedHashMap
SortedSet<User> users = userRepository.findTopByOrderByCreatedAtDesc();
User newest = users.getFirst();
User oldest = users.getLast();| Feature | Use For | Avoid When |
|---|---|---|
| Records | DTOs, config, value objects | JPA entities, mutable state |
| Sealed classes | Closed type hierarchies, domain events | Open extension needed |
| Pattern matching switch | Handling sealed types, replacing if-else chains | Simple equality checks |
| Virtual threads | High-concurrency blocking I/O | CPU-bound work, synchronized over I/O |
| Text blocks | JPQL queries, JSON test data, SQL | Single-line strings |
| SequencedCollections | First/last access on ordered collections | Unordered sets/maps |
piomin/claude-ai-spring-boot
31fe1d5
If you maintain this skill, you can claim it as your own. Once claimed, you can manage eval scenarios, bundle related skills, attach documentation or rules, and ensure cross-agent compatibility.