Welcome to the AWS CodeStar sample web application

This sample code helps get you started with a simple Java web application deployed by AWS Elastic Beanstalk and AWS CloudFormation.

What's Here

This sample includes:

• README.md - this file
• .ebextensions/ - this directory contains the Java configuration file that allows AWS Elastic Beanstalk to deploy your Java application
• buildspec.yml - this file is used by AWS CodeBuild to build the web application
• pom.xml - this file is the Maven Project Object Model for the web application
• src/main - this directory contains your Java service source files
• src/test - this directory contains your Java service unit test files
• template.yml - this file contains the description of AWS resources used by AWS CloudFormation to deploy your infrastructure
• template-configuration.json - this file contains the project ARN with placeholders used for tagging resources with the project ID

Getting Started

These directions assume you want to develop on your development environment or a Cloud9 environment, and not from the Amazon EC2 instance itself. If you're on the Amazon EC2 instance, the virtual environment is already set up for you, and you can start working on the code.

To work on the sample code, you'll need to clone your project's repository to your local computer. If you haven't, do that first. You can find instructions in the AWS CodeStar user guide at https://docs.aws.amazon.com/codestar/latest/userguide/getting-started.html#clone-repo.

1. Install maven. See https://maven.apache.org/install.html for details.

2. Install tomcat. See https://tomcat.apache.org/tomcat-8.0-doc/setup.html for details.

3. Build the application.

    $ mvn -f pom.xml compile
    $ mvn -f pom.xml package
   

4. Copy the built application to the Tomcat webapp directory. The actual location of that directory will vary depending on your platform and installation.

    $ cp target/ROOT.war <tomcat webapp directory>
   

5. Restart your tomcat server

6. Open http://127.0.0.1:8080/ in a web browser to view your application.

What Do I Do Next?

Once you have a virtual environment running, you can start making changes to the sample Java web application. We suggest making a small change to /src/main/webapp/WEB-INF/views/index.jsp first, so you can see how changes pushed to your project's repository are automatically picked up and deployed to the Amazon EC2 instance by AWS Elastic Beanstalk. (You can watch the progress on your project dashboard.) Once you've seen how that works, start developing your own code, and have fun!

To run your tests locally, go to the root directory of the sample code and run the mvn clean compile test command, which AWS CodeBuild also runs through your buildspec.yml file.

To test your new code during the release process, modify the existing tests or add tests to the tests directory. AWS CodeBuild will run the tests during the build stage of your project pipeline. You can find the test results in the AWS CodeBuild console.

Learn more about Maven's Standard Directory Layout.

Learn more about AWS CodeBuild and how it builds and tests your application here: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/codebuild/latest/userguide/concepts.html

Learn more about AWS CodeStar by reading the user guide. Ask questions or make suggestions on our forum.

User Guide: http://docs.aws.amazon.com/codestar/latest/userguide/welcome.html

Forum: https://forums.aws.amazon.com/forum.jspa?forumID=248

How Do I Add Template Resources to My Project?

To add AWS resources to your project, you'll need to edit the template.yml file in your project's repository. You may also need to modify permissions for your project's worker roles. After you push the template change, AWS CodeStar and AWS CloudFormation provision the resources for you.

See the AWS CodeStar user guide for instructions to modify your template: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/codestar/latest/userguide/how-to-change-project.html#customize-project-template

What Should I Do Before Running My Project in Production?

AWS recommends you review the security best practices recommended by the framework author of your selected sample application before running it in production. You should also regularly review and apply any available patches or associated security advisories for dependencies used within your application.

Best Practices: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/codestar/latest/userguide/best-practices.html?icmpid=docs_acs_rm_sec