What is the difference between putting a property on application.yml or bootstrap.yml in spring boot?

🚀 The Difference Between application.yml and bootstrap.yml in Spring Boot

Are you confused about where to put your properties in Spring Boot? 🤔 Don't worry, you're not alone! In this blog post, we'll explore the differences between the application.yml and bootstrap.yml files and how they can affect the behavior of your Spring Boot application.

Understanding the Context

The context around this question lies in the case of logging.config. It seems that the application behaves differently depending on whether this property is placed in application.yml or bootstrap.yml. Let's dive into this topic and understand why.

What are application.yml and bootstrap.yml?

Both application.yml and bootstrap.yml are configuration files used in Spring Boot applications to define properties. These files allow you to externalize configuration and make your application more flexible.

• application.yml: This file is typically used for application-specific configuration. It contains properties that are specific to your application and its various components.

• bootstrap.yml: This file is used for configuring the Spring Boot infrastructure and external dependencies before the application context is created.

Understanding the Difference

The main difference between application.yml and bootstrap.yml lies in their loading order during the application startup process.

When a Spring Boot application starts, it reads the properties in the following order:

1. bootstrap.yml
2. application.yml

This order is significant because properties defined in bootstrap.yml are loaded before those in application.yml. This allows you to configure the underlying infrastructure and dependencies before your application-specific properties are loaded.

The logging.config Case

The specific case mentioned in the context is related to the logging.config property. The logging.config property is used to specify the location of the logging configuration file.

If you define the logging.config property in your application.yml, it will be loaded after the Spring Boot infrastructure has been configured. This means that any changes you make to the logging configuration will take effect for your application-specific logging.

However, if you define the logging.config property in your bootstrap.yml, it will be loaded before the Spring Boot infrastructure is configured. This can be useful if you need to override the default logging configuration provided by Spring Boot or if you want to configure the logging for external dependencies.

Easy Solution

To solve the issue and ensure that your logging configuration is applied correctly, follow these steps:

1. If you want to configure the logging for your application-specific components, place the logging.config property in the application.yml file.

2. If you need to override the logging configuration for Spring Boot infrastructure or external dependencies, place the logging.config property in the bootstrap.yml file.

By following these guidelines, you can ensure that your logging configuration is applied correctly based on your specific requirements.

Conclusion

Understanding the difference between application.yml and bootstrap.yml is essential when working with Spring Boot. The order in which properties are loaded can affect the behavior of your application, especially in cases like the logging.config example we discussed.

Remember to place your properties in the appropriate file based on their purpose and when they need to be loaded. This will help you control the configuration of your Spring Boot application and avoid any surprises when it comes to behavior and dependencies.

Feel free to experiment with different configurations and explore more about how Spring Boot utilizes these configuration files to give you more flexibility in your application development.

If you found this guide helpful, don't forget to share it with your fellow Spring Boot enthusiasts. Let's spread the knowledge! 💪🌟

Share your thoughts and experiences with application.yml and bootstrap.yml in the comments below. We would love to hear from you! 😃📝