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Kotlin Academy · Lesson

Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers

Move business logic and data access to commonMain for maximum reuse.

Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers is a free Kotlin Academy lesson on CoddyKit — lesson 3 of 4. You can read the complete lesson below for free — then practise it hands-on in the browser with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the Kotlin Academy learning path, one of 4 lessons in the course, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app.

Architecture Goal

In KMP, the goal is to push as much logic as possible into commonMain: domain models, repository interfaces, use cases, and ViewModels. Only platform I/O stays in platform source sets.

// Target architecture:
// commonMain:
//   domain/    - data classes, interfaces
//   data/      - repository implementations using shared clients
//   usecase/   - business logic, composing repositories
// androidMain / iosMain:
//   DI wiring, platform drivers (DB, network)

Domain Layer in commonMain

Define domain entities and repository interfaces in commonMain. No platform imports.

// commonMain/domain/User.kt
data class User(val id: String, val name: String, val email: String)

// commonMain/domain/UserRepository.kt
interface UserRepository {
    suspend fun getUser(id: String): User?
    suspend fun getAllUsers(): List<User>
    suspend fun saveUser(user: User)
}

Shared Repository Implementation with Ktor

Implement the repository in commonMain using Ktor client (multiplatform). The actual HTTP engine is provided per platform.

// commonMain/data/RemoteUserRepository.kt
import io.ktor.client.*
import io.ktor.client.call.*
import io.ktor.client.request.*
class RemoteUserRepository(private val client: HttpClient) : UserRepository {
    override suspend fun getUser(id: String): User? =
        client.get("https://api.example.com/users/$id").body()
    override suspend fun getAllUsers(): List<User> =
        client.get("https://api.example.com/users").body()
    override suspend fun saveUser(user: User) {
        client.post("https://api.example.com/users") { setBody(user) }
    }
}

Use Case Layer

Use cases (interactors) orchestrate repositories and contain business logic. They are pure Kotlin with no platform dependencies.

// commonMain/usecase/GetUserUseCase.kt
class GetUserUseCase(private val repo: UserRepository) {
    suspend operator fun invoke(id: String): Result<User> =
        runCatching { repo.getUser(id) ?: error("User not found: $id") }
}

// commonMain/usecase/SaveUserUseCase.kt
class SaveUserUseCase(private val repo: UserRepository) {
    suspend operator fun invoke(user: User): Result<Unit> =
        runCatching { repo.saveUser(user) }
}

Shared ViewModel

ViewModels can live in commonMain using kotlinx-coroutines and StateFlow. Android uses it directly; iOS wraps it in SwiftUI.

// commonMain/viewmodel/UserViewModel.kt
import kotlinx.coroutines.*
import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.*
class UserViewModel(private val getUser: GetUserUseCase) {
    private val scope = CoroutineScope(Dispatchers.Main + SupervisorJob())
    private val _user = MutableStateFlow<User?>(null)
    val user = _user.asStateFlow()
    fun load(id: String) {
        scope.launch { _user.value = getUser(id).getOrNull() }
    }
    fun clear() = scope.cancel()
}

Ktor HttpClient Configuration

Create the Ktor HttpClient in commonMain with shared configuration. The engine (OkHttp / Darwin) is injected or created per platform.

// commonMain/network/HttpClientFactory.kt
import io.ktor.client.*
import io.ktor.client.plugins.contentnegotiation.*
import io.ktor.serialization.kotlinx.json.*
fun createHttpClient(engine: io.ktor.client.engine.HttpClientEngine? = null) =
    HttpClient(engine ?: io.ktor.client.engine.cio.CIO) {
        install(ContentNegotiation) { json() }
    }

SQLDelight for Shared Persistence

SQLDelight generates type-safe Kotlin queries for all platforms from .sq files in commonMain. The actual DB driver is platform-specific.

// commonMain/db/UserQueries.sq:
// CREATE TABLE User (id TEXT NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT NOT NULL);
// selectAll:
// SELECT * FROM User;

// Usage in commonMain:
// val db = UserDatabase(driver)
// val users = db.userQueries.selectAll().executeAsList()

Platform DI Wiring

Wire everything together in a platform-specific DI module. The interface is common; only the constructor arguments differ.

// androidMain:
val androidModule = module {
    single { AndroidSqliteDriver(UserDatabase.Schema, androidContext(), "users.db") }
    single { UserDatabase(get()) }
    single<UserRepository> { RemoteUserRepository(get()) }
    single { GetUserUseCase(get()) }
    viewModel { UserViewModel(get()) }
}

// iosMain:
// Same pattern with NativeSqliteDriver

Testing Use Cases in commonTest

Use cases have no platform dependencies, making them easy to unit test in commonTest with a fake repository.

// commonTest/usecase/GetUserUseCaseTest.kt
import kotlin.test.Test
import kotlin.test.assertEquals
class FakeUserRepo : UserRepository {
    override suspend fun getUser(id: String) = if (id == "1") User("1", "Alice", "a@b.com") else null
    override suspend fun getAllUsers() = emptyList<User>()
    override suspend fun saveUser(user: User) {}
}
class GetUserUseCaseTest {
    private val useCase = GetUserUseCase(FakeUserRepo())
    @Test
    fun testGetExistingUser() = kotlinx.coroutines.runBlocking {
        val result = useCase("1")
        assertEquals("Alice", result.getOrNull()?.name)
    }
}

Error Handling in Use Cases

Use Result or sealed class returns from use cases to propagate errors without exceptions crossing the shared/platform boundary.

// commonMain:
sealed class UserResult {
    data class Success(val user: User) : UserResult()
    data class NotFound(val id: String) : UserResult()
    data class Error(val cause: Throwable) : UserResult()
}
class SafeGetUser(private val repo: UserRepository) {
    suspend operator fun invoke(id: String): UserResult = try {
        val user = repo.getUser(id)
        if (user != null) UserResult.Success(user) else UserResult.NotFound(id)
    } catch (e: Exception) { UserResult.Error(e) }
}

Sharing Without Sacrificing Platform Idioms

Share logic, not UI. Android uses Compose; iOS uses SwiftUI. Both observe the same shared ViewModel state via platform-specific bindings.

// Android (Compose):
// val user by viewModel.user.collectAsState()

// iOS (SwiftUI):
// @State var user = viewModel.user.value
// viewModel.load(id: "1")

// Shared ViewModel:
// _user.value = ... (commonMain)
fun main() { println("Share logic; use platform UI frameworks") }

Quick Check

Which layer should NOT have platform-specific imports in a well-structured KMP project?

Recap

Place domain models, repository interfaces, use cases, and shared ViewModels in commonMain. Use Ktor (network) and SQLDelight (database) with platform engines injected at the DI layer. Test business logic in commonTest with fake repositories.

Frequently asked questions

Is the “Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers” lesson free?

Yes — the full text of “Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers” is free to read here on the web, and the Kotlin Academy course includes 4 lessons in total. To practise it interactively (a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor) and unlock the rest of the Kotlin Academy course, upgrade to CoddyKit PRO.

What will I learn in “Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers”?

Move business logic and data access to commonMain for maximum reuse. You practise Kotlin Academy with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.

Do I need any experience to start Kotlin Academy?

No prior experience is required. Kotlin Academy on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners; this is — lesson 3 of 4, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace.

How long does the “Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers” lesson take?

Most CoddyKit lessons take about 5–10 minutes. Each one is bite-sized and interactive, so you make steady progress and pick up exactly where you left off across the web and the app.

Can I write and run code in this Kotlin Academy lesson?

Yes. Every Kotlin Academy lesson includes a built-in code editor, so you write and run real code right in your browser and get instant AI feedback — no local setup required.

All lessons in this course

  1. KMP Project Structure: commonMain, androidMain, iosMain
  2. expect/actual Mechanism for Platform APIs
  3. Sharing Repository and Use Case Layers
  4. Dependency Injection in KMP with Koin
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