clean-architecture

Clean Architecture, Hexagonal Architecture & DDD for Spring Boot

Overview

This skill provides comprehensive guidance for implementing Clean Architecture, Hexagonal Architecture (Ports & Adapters), and Domain-Driven Design tactical patterns in Java 21+ Spring Boot 3.5+ applications. It ensures clear separation of concerns, framework-independent domain logic, and highly testable codebases through proper layering and dependency management.

When to Use

• Architecting new Spring Boot applications with clear separation of concerns
• Refactoring tightly coupled code into testable, layered architectures
• Implementing domain logic independent of frameworks and infrastructure
• Designing ports and adapters for swappable implementations
• Applying Domain-Driven Design tactical patterns (entities, value objects, aggregates)
• Creating testable business logic without Spring context dependencies

Instructions

1. Understand the Core Concepts

Clean Architecture Layers (Dependency Rule)

Dependencies flow inward. Inner layers know nothing about outer layers.

| Layer | Responsibility | Spring Boot Equivalent |

|-------|---------------|----------------------|

| Domain | Entities, value objects, domain events, repository interfaces | domain/ - no Spring annotations |

| Application | Use cases, application services, DTOs, ports | application/ - @Service, @Transactional |

| Infrastructure | Frameworks, database, external APIs | infrastructure/ - @Repository, @Entity |

| Adapter | Controllers, presenters, external gateways | adapter/ - @RestController |

Hexagonal Architecture (Ports & Adapters)

• Domain Core: Pure Java business logic, no framework dependencies
• Ports: Interfaces defining contracts (driven and driving)
• Adapters: Concrete implementations (JPA, REST, messaging)

Domain-Driven Design Tactical Patterns

• Entities: Objects with identity and lifecycle (e.g., Order, Customer)
• Value Objects: Immutable, defined by attributes (e.g., Money, Email)
• Aggregates: Consistency boundary with root entity
• Domain Events: Capture significant business occurrences
• Repositories: Persistence abstraction, implemented in infrastructure

2. Organize Package Structure

Follow this feature-based package organization:

com.example.order/
├── domain/
│   ├── model/              # Entities, value objects
│   ├── event/              # Domain events
│   ├── repository/         # Repository interfaces (ports)
│   └── exception/          # Domain exceptions
├── application/
│   ├── port/in/            # Driving ports (use case interfaces)
│   ├── port/out/           # Driven ports (external service interfaces)
│   ├── service/            # Application services
│   └── dto/                # Request/response DTOs
├── infrastructure/
│   ├── persistence/        # JPA entities, repository adapters
│   └── external/           # External service adapters
└── adapter/
    └── rest/               # REST controllers

3. Implement the Domain Layer (Framework-Free)

The domain layer must have zero dependencies on Spring or any framework.

• Use Java records for immutable value objects with built-in validation
• Place business logic in entities, not services (Rich Domain Model)
• Define repository interfaces (ports) in the domain layer
• Use strongly-typed IDs to prevent ID confusion
• Implement domain events for decoupling side effects
• Use factory methods for entity creation to enforce invariants

4. Implement the Application Layer

• Create use case interfaces (driving ports) in application/port/in/
• Create external service interfaces (driven ports) in application/port/out/
• Implement application services with @Service and @Transactional
• Use DTOs for request/response, separate from domain models
• Publish domain events after successful operations

5. Implement the Infrastructure Layer (Adapters)

• Create JPA entities in infrastructure/persistence/
• Implement repository adapters that map between domain and JPA entities
• Use MapStruct or manual mappers for domain-JPA conversion
• Configure conditional beans for swappable implementations
• Keep infrastructure concerns isolated from domain logic

6. Implement the Adapter Layer (REST)

• Create REST controllers in adapter/rest/
• Inject use case interfaces, not implementations
• Use Bean Validation on DTOs
• Return proper HTTP status codes and responses
• Handle exceptions with global exception handlers

7. Apply Best Practices

1. Dependency Rule: Domain has zero dependencies on Spring or other frameworks
2. Immutable Value Objects: Use Java records for value objects with built-in validation
3. Rich Domain Models: Place business logic in entities, not services
4. Repository Pattern: Domain defines interface, infrastructure implements
5. Domain Events: Decouple side effects from primary operations
6. Constructor Injection: Mandatory dependencies via final fields
7. DTO Mapping: Separate domain models from API contracts
8. Transaction Boundaries: Place @Transactional in application services
9. Factory Methods: Use Entity.create() for invariant enforcement during construction
10. Separate JPA Entities: Keep domain entities separate from JPA entities with mappers

8. Validate Architecture Compliance

After implementing each layer, verify the dependency rules are respected:

• Domain Layer Check: Run grep -r "@Service\|@Component\|@Autowired" domain/ to ensure zero Spring imports
• ArchUnit Test: Add dependency tests to verify no infrastructure imports in domain layer:

  noClasses().that().resideInPackage("..domain..")
      .should().accessClassesThat().resideInAnyPackage("..spring..", "..infrastructure..");

• Entity Exposure Check: Verify JPA entities are never returned from domain services
• Transaction Check: Confirm @Transactional only on application layer services, never on domain

9. Write Tests

• Domain Tests: Pure unit tests without Spring context, fast execution
• Application Tests: Unit tests with mocked ports using Mockito
• Infrastructure Tests: Integration tests with @DataJpaTest and Testcontainers
• Adapter Tests: Controller tests with @WebMvcTest

Examples

Example 1: Domain Layer - Entity with Domain Events

// domain/model/Order.java
public class Order {
    private final OrderId id;
    private final List<OrderItem> items;
    private Money total;
    private OrderStatus status;
    private final List<DomainEvent> domainEvents = new ArrayList<>();

    private Order(OrderId id, List<OrderItem> items) {
        this.id = id;
        this.items = new ArrayList<>(items);
        this.status = OrderStatus.PENDING;
        calculateTotal();
    }

    public static Order create(List<OrderItem> items) {
        validateItems(items);
        Order order = new Order(OrderId.generate(), items);
        order.domainEvents.add(new OrderCreatedEvent(order.id, order.total));
        return order;
    }

    public void confirm() {
        if (status != OrderStatus.PENDING) {
            throw new DomainException("Only pending orders can be confirmed");
        }
        this.status = OrderStatus.CONFIRMED;
    }

    public List<DomainEvent> getDomainEvents() {
        return List.copyOf(domainEvents);
    }

    public void clearDomainEvents() {
        domainEvents.clear();
    }
}

Example 2: Domain Layer - Value Object with Validation

// domain/model/Money.java (Value Object)
public record Money(BigDecimal amount, Currency currency) {
    public Money {
        if (amount.compareTo(BigDecimal.ZERO) < 0) {
            throw new DomainException("Amount cannot be negative");
        }
    }

    public static Money zero() {
        return new Money(BigDecimal.ZERO, Currency.getInstance("EUR"));
    }

    public Money add(Money other) {
        if (!this.currency.equals(other.currency)) {
            throw new DomainException("Currency mismatch");
        }
        return new Money(this.amount.add(other.amount), this.currency);
    }
}

Example 3: Domain Layer - Repository Port

// domain/repository/OrderRepository.java (Port)
public interface OrderRepository {
    Order save(Order order);
    Optional<Order> findById(OrderId id);
}

Example 4: Application Layer - Use Case and Service

// application/port/in/CreateOrderUseCase.java
public interface CreateOrderUseCase {
    OrderResponse createOrder(CreateOrderRequest request);
}

// application/dto/CreateOrderRequest.java
public record CreateOrderRequest(
    @NotNull UUID customerId,
    @NotEmpty List<OrderItemRequest> items
) {}

// application/service/OrderService.java
@Service
@RequiredArgsConstructor
@Transactional
public class OrderService implements CreateOrderUseCase {
    private final OrderRepository orderRepository;
    private final PaymentGateway paymentGateway;
    private final DomainEventPublisher eventPublisher;

    @Override
    public OrderResponse createOrder(CreateOrderRequest request) {
        List<OrderItem> items = mapItems(request.items());
        Order order = Order.create(items);

        PaymentResult payment = paymentGateway.charge(order.getTotal());
        if (!payment.successful()) {
            throw new PaymentFailedException("Payment failed");
        }

        order.confirm();
        Order saved = orderRepository.save(order);
        publishEvents(order);

        return OrderMapper.toResponse(saved);
    }

    private void publishEvents(Order order) {
        order.getDomainEvents().forEach(eventPublisher::publish);
        order.clearDomainEvents();
    }
}

Example 5: Infrastructure Layer - JPA Entity and Adapter

// infrastructure/persistence/OrderJpaEntity.java
@Entity
@Table(name = "orders")
public class OrderJpaEntity {
    @Id
    private UUID id;
    @Enumerated(EnumType.STRING)
    private OrderStatus status;
    private BigDecimal totalAmount;
    @OneToMany(cascade = CascadeType.ALL, orphanRemoval = true)
    private List<OrderItemJpaEntity> items;
}

// infrastructure/persistence/OrderRepositoryAdapter.java
@Component
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class OrderRepositoryAdapter implements OrderRepository {
    private final OrderJpaRepository jpaRepository;
    private final OrderJpaMapper mapper;

    @Override
    public Order save(Order order) {
        OrderJpaEntity entity = mapper.toEntity(order);
        return mapper.toDomain(jpaRepository.save(entity));
    }

    @Override
    public Optional<Order> findById(OrderId id) {
        return jpaRepository.findById(id.value()).map(mapper::toDomain);
    }
}

Example 6: Adapter Layer - REST Controller

// adapter/rest/OrderController.java
@RestController
@RequestMapping("/api/orders")
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class OrderController {
    private final CreateOrderUseCase createOrderUseCase;

    @PostMapping
    public ResponseEntity<OrderResponse> createOrder(
            @Valid @RequestBody CreateOrderRequest request) {
        OrderResponse response = createOrderUseCase.createOrder(request);
        URI location = ServletUriComponentsBuilder
            .fromCurrentRequest()
            .path("/{id}")
            .buildAndExpand(response.id())
            .toUri();
        return ResponseEntity.created(location).body(response);
    }
}

Example 7: Domain Tests (No Spring Context)

class OrderTest {
    @Test
    void shouldCreateOrderWithValidItems() {
        List<OrderItem> items = List.of(
            new OrderItem(new ProductId(UUID.randomUUID()), 2, new Money("10.00", EUR))
        );

        Order order = Order.create(items);

        assertThat(order.getStatus()).isEqualTo(OrderStatus.PENDING);
        assertThat(order.getDomainEvents()).hasSize(1);
    }
}

Example 8: Application Tests (Unit with Mocks)

@ExtendWith(MockitoExtension.class)
class OrderServiceTest {
    @Mock OrderRepository orderRepository;
    @Mock PaymentGateway paymentGateway;
    @Mock DomainEventPublisher eventPublisher;

    @InjectMocks OrderService orderService;

    @Test
    void shouldCreateAndConfirmOrder() {
        when(paymentGateway.charge(any())).thenReturn(new PaymentResult(true, "tx-123"));
        when(orderRepository.save(any())).thenAnswer(i -> i.getArgument(0));

        OrderResponse response = orderService.createOrder(createRequest());

        assertThat(response.status()).isEqualTo(OrderStatus.CONFIRMED);
        verify(eventPublisher).publish(any(OrderCreatedEvent.class));
    }
}

Best Practices

• Domain purity: Keep the domain layer free of Spring annotations and framework imports — zero dependencies on outer layers
• Feature-based packages: Organize by business capability (order/, customer/) rather than technical role, with each feature containing all four layers
• Immutable value objects: Use Java records for value objects with built-in validation in compactors — immutable by design
• Rich domain models: Place business logic in entities and aggregates, not in application services — services orchestrate, entities encapsulate
• Always map: Separate JPA entities from domain models using MapStruct or manual mappers; never expose JPA entities outside infrastructure
• Domain events for decoupling: Use DomainEventPublisher to decouple cross-aggregate side effects instead of direct service calls
• Transaction boundaries in application layer: Place @Transactional only on application services, never on domain classes
• Factory methods for invariants: Use Entity.create(...) static methods to enforce invariants at construction time
• Enforce with ArchUnit: Add ArchUnit tests in the test suite to verify no Spring or infrastructure imports reach the domain layer
• Strongly-typed IDs: Use record OrderId(UUID value) instead of raw UUID to prevent ID confusion across aggregates

Constraints and Warnings

Critical Constraints

• Domain Layer Purity: Never add Spring annotations (@Entity, @Autowired, @Component) to domain classes
• Dependency Direction: Dependencies must only point inward (domain <- application <- infrastructure/adapter)
• Framework Isolation: All framework-specific code must stay in infrastructure and adapter layers

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

• Anemic Domain Model: Entities with only getters/setters, logic in services - place business logic in entities
• Framework Leakage: @Entity, @Autowired in domain layer - keep domain framework-free
• Lazy Loading Issues: Exposing JPA entities through domain model - use mappers to convert
• Circular Dependencies: Between domain aggregates - use IDs instead of direct references
• Missing Domain Events: Direct service calls instead of events for cross-aggregate communication
• Repository Misplacement: Defining repository interfaces in infrastructure - they belong in domain
• DTO Bypass: Exposing domain entities directly in API - always use DTOs for external contracts

Performance Considerations

• Separate JPA entities from domain models to avoid lazy loading issues
• Use read-only transactions for query operations
• Consider CQRS for complex read/write scenarios

References

• references/java-clean-architecture.md - Java-specific patterns (records, sealed classes, strongly-typed IDs)
• references/spring-boot-implementation.md - Spring Boot integration (DI patterns, JPA mapping, transaction management)