An interactive terminal UI for scaffolding Spring Boot projects, powered by the start.spring.io API. Built with TamboUI, a declarative Java TUI framework.
I had an idea to improve my personal workflow for scaffolding Spring Boot projects, so I made a video about it. This is the code that goes along with that video.
- Screenshots
- Features
- Supported Platforms
- Requirements
- Build & Run
- Setting Up Shell Access
- Keyboard Shortcuts
- Themes
- Open in Terminal
- Post-Generate Hook
- About TamboUI
- Project Structure
- Tech Stack
- Contributing
- License
The app launches with a Spring-styled ASCII art logo and a progress bar while it fetches metadata from the start.spring.io API.
The main configuration form lets you set your project type, language, Spring Boot version, group, artifact, description, packaging, Java version, and more. Below the form is a searchable, categorized dependency picker where you can browse and toggle dependencies.
Preview your generated build file before downloading. Switch between pom.xml, build.gradle, and build.gradle.kts with syntax-highlighted content and line numbers. Your current project settings are displayed at the top for reference.
After generation, the project is extracted to your chosen directory. The app auto-detects installed IDEs (IntelliJ IDEA, VS Code, etc.) and lets you open the project directly, open in your terminal, generate another, or quit.
A quick-reference help overlay showing all keyboard shortcuts organized by screen — Main Screen, Explore Screen, and Generate Screen.
- Configure Spring Boot projects entirely from your terminal (group, artifact, Boot version, Java version, packaging, language)
- Search and select dependencies with a categorized picker and fuzzy search
- Filter dependencies by category and surface rec 8000 ently used dependencies
- Explore generated build files with syntax highlighting before downloading
- Switch between
pom.xml,build.gradle, andbuild.gradle.ktspreviews - Generate and extract projects to the current working directory
- Auto-detect and launch IDEs (IntelliJ IDEA, VS Code, Cursor, Eclipse, NetBeans)
- "Open in Terminal" option prints the project path and a ready-to-copy
cdcommand - Cross-platform support (macOS, Linux, Windows)
- Remembers your preferences between sessions
- macOS (aarch64)
- Linux (x86_64)
- Windows (x86_64)
- JDK 25 (LTS)
- Maven 3.9+
- GraalVM 25 (optional, for native image)
mvn compile exec:javamvn package -DskipTests
java --enable-preview -jar target/spring-initializr-tui-0.1.1.jarBuild a self-contained JAR with all dependencies bundled:
mvn package -Pshade -DskipTests
java --enable-preview -jar target/spring-initializr-tui-0.1.1.jarCompile to a standalone native binary for instant startup:
mvn clean -Pnative package -DskipTests
./target/spring-initializr-tuiRequires GraalVM 25 as your
JAVA_HOME. If using SDKMAN:sdk use java 25.0.2-graalce
For quick access from any directory, set up an alias or add the binary to your PATH.
Add an alias to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc:
alias spring='/path/to/spring-initializr-tui'Then reload your shell:
source ~/.zshrcAdd the directory containing spring-initializr-tui.exe to your PATH, or create a doskey alias:
doskey spring="C:\path\to\spring-initializr-tui.exe" $*To make it permanent, add the binary's directory to your system PATH via Settings > System > About > Advanced system settings > Environment Variables, or use PowerShell:
$binDir = "C:\path\to"
$path = [Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("Path", "User")
[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("Path", "$path;$binDir", "User")Once configured, create a new project from anywhere:
mkdir my-project && cd my-project
springThe generated project will be extracted into the current working directory.
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
Tab / Shift+Tab |
Navigate between fields |
Left / Right |
Cycle field options |
/ |
Search dependencies |
Space / Enter |
Toggle dependency |
c |
Cycle category filter |
x |
Clear all dependencies |
? |
Help |
e |
Explore build file |
g |
Generate project |
Ctrl+C |
Quit |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
Up / Down |
Scroll |
Page Up / Page Down |
Scroll by page |
Tab / Shift+Tab |
Switch build file format |
1 / 2 / 3 |
Jump to pom.xml / build.gradle / build.gradle.kts |
Enter |
Generate project |
Esc |
Back |
The TUI supports color themes. The default is spring (the classic Spring green palette). To switch themes, edit ~/.spring-initializr/config.json and set the theme field:
{
"theme": "catppuccin-mocha"
}| Theme | Description | Preview |
|---|---|---|
spring |
Default Spring green palette | |
catppuccin-mocha |
Catppuccin Mocha — a warm blue-toned dark theme | |
dracula |
Dracula — vibrant purple and cyan dark theme | |
nord |
Nord — cool, minimal frost-blue palette | |
gruvbox-dark |
Gruvbox Dark — warm, retro orange and yellow palette | |
tokyo-night |
Tokyo Night — modern blue and cyan dark theme | |
synthwave-84 |
Synthwave '84 — cool, neon cyberpunk dark theme |
The theme is loaded at startup. To switch, change the value in config.json and relaunch the app. If the theme field is missing or unrecognized, it defaults to spring.
After project generation, the IDE/editor selection list includes an "Open in Terminal" option as its last entry. When selected, the TUI exits and prints the project directory path along with a ready-to-copy cd command so you can navigate there immediately. If a post-generate hook is configured, it still runs after the TUI exits.
The footer hint updates dynamically to show [Enter] Open in Terminal when this option is highlighted.
You can configure a command to run automatically in the generated project directory after the TUI exits. This is useful for launching tools like Claude Code right after scaffolding a project.
Edit ~/.spring-initializr/config.json and add a postGenerateCommand:
{
"postGenerateCommand": "claude",
...
}When set, the generate screen will show the hook in the footer (e.g., [Enter] Open + run claude). After you select an IDE and press Enter, the TUI exits, the IDE opens, and then the configured command runs in the project directory with full terminal control.
Set postGenerateCommand to an empty string "" (or remove it) to disable the hook.
This project is built with TamboUI, a declarative TUI framework for Java. TamboUI provides an immediate-mode rendering model where the UI is always a function of state, similar to how modern web frameworks work but for the terminal.
Key concepts used in this project:
- Toolkit DSL -- static methods like
text(),row(),column(),panel(),tabs(),gauge(), andspinner()compose into a tree of elements - Immediate-mode rendering -- the
render()method is called on every frame and returns the full UI based on current state - Event handling -- keyboard events are handled via
onKeyEvent()callbacks - Widgets -- built-in components like
TabsState,TextInputState, andFormStatemanage interactive state
src/main/java/dev/danvega/initializr/
├── SpringInitializrTui.java # Main app entry point
├── api/
│ ├── InitializrClient.java # HTTP client for start.spring.io
│ └── InitializrMetadata.java # API response model (records)
├── model/
│ └── ProjectConfig.java # Project configuration state
├── ui/
│ ├── SplashScreen.java # ASCII logo + loading progress
│ ├── MainScreen.java # Configuration form + dependency picker
│ ├── DependencyPicker.java # Searchable, categorized dependency list
│ ├── ExploreScreen.java # Build file preview with syntax highlighting
│ ├── GenerateScreen.java # Download progress + IDE launcher
│ ├── Theme.java # Semantic color theme record
│ └── ThemeManager.java # Global theme registry
└── util/
├── IdeLauncher.java # IDE detection and launch
├── OsIdeLocator.java # Platform-specific IDE locator interface
├── MacOsIdeLocator.java # macOS IDE detection
├── WindowsIdeLocator.java # Windows IDE detection
└── ConfigStore.java # Preferences persistence
- JDK 25 -- Latest LTS with preview features
- TamboUI 0.2.0-SNAPSHOT -- Declarative TUI framework
- Jackson 3.0 -- JSON parsing for the Spring Initializr API
- java.net.http.HttpClient -- HTTP communication (no external HTTP library)
- GraalVM 25 -- Native image compilation for instant startup
Contributions are welcome! Here's how to get started:
- Fork the repository
- Create a feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/my-feature) - Make your changes
- Run the app to verify (
mvn compile exec:java) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add my feature') - Push to your branch (
git push origin feature/my-feature) - Open a Pull Request
If you find a bug or have a feature request, please open an issue.
This project is licensed under the Apache License 2.0.