Integration of Shenandoah GC in different Java development frameworks

10 Oct 2023

Shenandoah

Java developers know the importance of efficient garbage collection (GC) to ensure the smooth execution and performance of their applications. Shenandoah GC, introduced in JDK 12, is a low-latency garbage collector that can significantly reduce pause times, making it a popular choice for high-performance Java applications. In this article, we will explore how to integrate Shenandoah GC into different Java development frameworks.

Introduction to Shenandoah GC
Integration with Spring Boot
Integration with Apache Maven
Integration with Jakarta EE
Integration with Micronaut
Conclusion

Introduction to Shenandoah GC

Shenandoah GC is a concurrent garbage collector that aims to reduce the time spent in pause phases during garbage collection. It accomplishes this by performing major GC operations concurrently with the application threads, resulting in shorter pause times compared to other collectors like CMS.

To enable Shenandoah GC in your Java application, you need to use a compatible JDK version (JDK 12 or later) and add the appropriate JVM flags to your application startup.

Integration with Spring Boot

Spring Boot is a popular Java framework for developing microservices and web applications. To integrate Shenandoah GC with Spring Boot, you can start by specifying the JVM flags in either the JAVA_OPTS environment variable or in the application.properties file:

JAVA_OPTS="-XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions -XX:+UseShenandoahGC"

By adding these flags, you enable Shenandoah GC as the garbage collector for your Spring Boot application.

Integration with Apache Maven

Apache Maven is a widely used build automation and dependency management tool for Java projects. To configure Shenandoah GC for your Maven build, you can modify the Maven compiler plugin configuration in your pom.xml file as follows:

<build>
    <plugins>
        <plugin>
            <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
            <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
            <configuration>
                <compilerArgs>
                    <arg>-XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions</arg>
                    <arg>-XX:+UseShenandoahGC</arg>
                </compilerArgs>
            </configuration>
        </plugin>
    </plugins>
</build>

With these configuration changes, Maven will use Shenandoah GC as the garbage collector during the compilation process.

Integration with Jakarta EE

Jakarta EE (formerly known as Java EE) is a set of specifications that define the standard for developing enterprise applications in Java. To integrate Shenandoah GC with a Jakarta EE application server, you can set the JVM flags in the server startup script.

For example, in a Tomcat server, you can add the following lines to the catalina.sh or catalina.bat script:

CATALINA_OPTS="$CATALINA_OPTS -XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions -XX:+UseShenandoahGC"

These flags instruct the server to use Shenandoah GC as the garbage collector for the Jakarta EE application.

Integration with Micronaut

Micronaut is a lightweight, JVM-based framework for building modular and cloud-native applications. To integrate Shenandoah GC with Micronaut, you can set the JVM flags in the micronaut-env file at the root of your Micronaut project.

Add the following lines to the micronaut-env file:

JVM_OPTS="-XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions -XX:+UseShenandoahGC"

This configuration enables Shenandoah GC as the garbage collector for your Micronaut application.

Conclusion

Shenandoah GC is a powerful garbage collector that can significantly reduce pause times in Java applications. By integrating Shenandoah GC into popular Java development frameworks like Spring Boot, Apache Maven, Jakarta EE, and Micronaut, you can take advantage of its low-latency characteristics and improve the performance of your applications.

#hashtags #Java #Shenandoah

Table of Contents