Setting Up Java Web Development Environment for CS5220

This guide is for setting up a Java web development environment for CS5220 on Windows. The same can be done on Linux or Mac in a similar way.

Java

JDK 8 or above is required for this class. If you don't have JDK 8+ or prefer a newer version, I recommend using OpenJDK instead of Oracle's JDK. Functionally these two are actually the same. The differences are there's no official support for OpenJDK (which you probably won't need anyway), but there's also no restriction on how you use it, while Oracle's JDK is limited to non-commercial use unless you buy a commercial license.

Note that if you already have a JDK installed, you should remove it before installing a new version.

Tomcat

Download the latest Tomcat 8.5 binary release from the Apache Tomcat Project. Note that there are several packages available for download. You should download the ZIP file under the "Core" distribution. After downloading the file, unzip it to a local directory, e.g. c:\apache-tomcat-8.5.x.

Eclipse

Download the latest Eclipse IDE for Enterprise Java Developers from Eclipse.org. There is now an Eclipse Installer, but personally I prefer the zip package as it does not require internet access or admin privilege during installation. Unzip the package to a local directory, e.g. c:\eclipse, then start up Eclipse by double-click on eclipse.exe under the Eclipse folder. If you are using Eclipse for the first time, you will be asked to choose a folder to be Eclipse's workspace where your projects will be stored.

Also in Eclipse, click Window -> Preferences -> Maven, check Download repository index updates on startup. Restart Eclipse to download Maven repository index. Downloading Maven repository index for the first time may take a few minutes, so make sure you have a reliable internet connection. You can see the progress at the bottom right corner of the Eclipse window.