Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs · Lesson

Performing CRUD Operations

Implement Create, Read, Update, and Delete operations using Spring Data JPA's powerful repository methods.

Performing CRUD Operations is a free Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs lesson on CoddyKit — lesson 6 of 6. 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 Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs learning path, one of 6 lessons in the course, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app.

CRUD Operations: The Core

Welcome to the heart of data management! Today, we'll master CRUD operations with Spring Data JPA. CRUD is a fundamental concept for almost any application that interacts with a database.

Create: Adding new data.
Read: Retrieving existing data.
Update: Modifying existing data.
Delete: Removing data.

Spring Data JPA provides powerful, easy-to-use methods for all of these!

Our Example Setup: Product

To demonstrate CRUD, we'll use a simple Product entity and its corresponding repository. You would have learned to set these up in previous lessons.

Here's our basic Product entity and ProductRepository interface:

import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;

@Entity
public class Product {

    @Id
    @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;

    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name;
        this.price = price;
    }

    // Getters and Setters (omitted for brevity)
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }

    @Override
    public String toString() {
        return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}";
    }
}

// ProductRepository.java
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;

@Repository
public interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {
}

Creating New Data (C)

To create new data, we use the save() method from our repository. If the entity's ID is null (or 0 for primitive types), Spring Data JPA knows it's a new entry and will insert it into the database.

Try creating a new product:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        Product newProduct = new Product("Laptop", 1200.00);
        Product savedProduct = productRepository.save(newProduct);
        System.out.println("Created: " + savedProduct);
    }
}

Reading Data by ID (R)

To read a specific item, you often need its unique identifier (ID). The findById(ID id) method is perfect for this. It returns an Optional, which helps handle cases where the item might not exist.

Let's find the product we just created:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;
import java.util.Optional;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        Product newProduct = new Product("Keyboard", 75.00);
        Product savedProduct = productRepository.save(newProduct);
        System.out.println("Created: " + savedProduct);

        Optional<Product> foundProduct = productRepository.findById(savedProduct.getId());
        foundProduct.ifPresent(p -> System.out.println("Found: " + p));
    }
}

Reading All Data (R)

What if you want to see all the products in your database? The findAll() method does exactly that! It returns a List of all entities of that type.

Let's retrieve all products:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;
import java.util.List;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        productRepository.save(new Product("Mouse", 25.00));
        productRepository.save(new Product("Monitor", 300.00));

        List<Product> allProducts = productRepository.findAll();
        System.out.println("All Products:");
        allProducts.forEach(System.out::println);
    }
}

Updating Existing Data (U)

To update an existing item, you first retrieve it, modify its properties, and then call save() again. Spring Data JPA detects that the entity already has an ID, so it performs an update instead of an insert.

Let's update a product's price:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        Product existingProduct = new Product("Headphones", 150.00);
        productRepository.save(existingProduct);
        System.out.println("Original: " + existingProduct);

        existingProduct.setPrice(120.00); // Update the price
        Product updatedProduct = productRepository.save(existingProduct);
        System.out.println("Updated: " + updatedProduct);
    }
}

Deleting Data by ID (D)

To delete an item, you can use its ID with the deleteById(ID id) method. This is a common way to remove a specific record from the database.

Let's delete a product by its ID:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        Product productToDelete = new Product("Webcam", 50.00);
        productRepository.save(productToDelete);
        System.out.println("Product to delete: " + productToDelete);

        productRepository.deleteById(productToDelete.getId());
        System.out.println("Is product deleted? " + !productRepository.existsById(productToDelete.getId()));
    }
}

Deleting an Entity Object (D)

Alternatively, you can delete an entity by passing the actual entity object to the delete(T entity) method. This is useful if you've already retrieved the object and want to remove it.

Let's delete a product using its object:

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;
import org.springframework.context.ApplicationContext;
import jakarta.persistence.Entity;
import jakarta.persistence.GeneratedValue;
import jakarta.persistence.GenerationType;
import jakarta.persistence.Id;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Repository;

@Entity
class Product {
    @Id @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private double price;
    public Product() {}
    public Product(String name, double price) {
        this.name = name; this.price = price;
    }
    public Long getId() { return id; }
    public void setId(Long id) { this.id = id; }
    public String getName() { return name; }
    public void setName(String name) { this.name = name; }
    public double getPrice() { return price; }
    public void setPrice(double price) { this.price = price; }
    @Override
    public String toString() { return "Product{id=" + id + ", name='" + name + "', price=" + price + "}"; }
}

@Repository
interface ProductRepository extends JpaRepository<Product, Long> {}

@SpringBootApplication
public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        ApplicationContext context = SpringApplication.run(Main.class, args);
        ProductRepository productRepository = context.getBean(ProductRepository.class);

        Product productToRemove = new Product("Microphone", 80.00);
        productRepository.save(productToRemove);
        System.out.println("Product to remove: " + productToRemove);

        productRepository.delete(productToRemove);
        System.out.println("Is product removed? " + !productRepository.existsById(productToRemove.getId()));
    }
}

Beyond Basic: Derived Query Methods

While findById() and findAll() are great, Spring Data JPA offers even more! You can define custom derived query methods directly in your repository interface.

Spring automatically generates the query based on the method name.
For example, findByName(String name) will find products by their name.
This simplifies common read operations without writing SQL!

We'll explore more complex custom queries in a future lesson.

Quick Check: CRUD Actions

Which of the following Spring Data JPA repository methods are used for reading existing data?

Recap: Mastering CRUD

Congratulations! You've learned how to perform the essential CRUD operations using Spring Data JPA. These methods are the backbone of almost any data-driven application.

Create/Update: Use repository.save(entity).
Read: Use repository.findById(id) for single items and repository.findAll() for all items.
Delete: Use repository.deleteById(id) or repository.delete(entity).

With these powerful repository methods, you can efficiently manage your application's data!

Frequently asked questions

Is the “Performing CRUD Operations” lesson free?

Yes — the full text of “Performing CRUD Operations” is free to read here on the web, and the Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs course includes 6 lessons in total. To practise it interactively (a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor) and unlock the rest of the Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs course, upgrade to CoddyKit PRO.

What will I learn in “Performing CRUD Operations”?

Implement Create, Read, Update, and Delete operations using Spring Data JPA's powerful repository methods. You practise Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs 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 Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs?

No prior experience is required. Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners; this is — lesson 6 of 6, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace.

How long does the “Performing CRUD Operations” 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 Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs lesson?

Yes. Every Spring Boot 4 Microservices & REST APIs 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.

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