What's the difference between @Component, @Rep

Question

Can @Component, @Repository and @Service annotations be used interchangeably in Spring or do they provide any particular functionality besides acting as a notation device?

In other words, if I have a Service class and I change the annotation from @Service to @Component, will it still behave the same way?

Or does the annotation also influence the behavior and functionality of the class?

Answer 1

@Component: you annotate a class @Component, it tells hibernate that it is a Bean.

@Repository: you annotate a class @Repository, it tells hibernate it is a DAO class and treat it as DAO class. Means it makes the unchecked exceptions (thrown from DAO methods) eligible for translation into Spring DataAccessException.

@Service: This tells hibernate it is a Service class where you will have @Transactional etc Service layer annotations so hibernate treats it as a Service component.

Plus @Service is advance of @Component. Assume the bean class name is CustomerService, since you did not choose XML bean configuration way so you annotated the bean with @Component to indicate it as a Bean. So while getting the bean object CustomerService cust = (CustomerService)context.getBean("customerService"); By default, Spring will lower case the first character of the component – from ‘CustomerService’ to ‘customerService’. And you can retrieve this component with name ‘customerService’. But if you use @Service annotation for the bean class you can provide a specific bean name by

@Service("AAA")
public class CustomerService{

and you can get the bean object by

CustomerService cust = (CustomerService)context.getBean("AAA");

Answer 2

@Component, @ Repository, @ Service, @Controller:

@Component is a generic stereotype for the components managed by Spring @Repository, @Service, and @Controller are @Component specializations for more specific uses:

• @Repository for persistence
• @Service for services and transactions
• @Controller for MVC controllers

Why use @Repository, @Service, @Controller over @Component? We can mark our component classes with @Component, but if instead we use the alternative that adapts to the expected functionality. Our classes are better suited to the functionality expected in each particular case.

A class annotated with "@Repository" has a better translation and readable error handling with org.springframework.dao.DataAccessException. Ideal for implementing components that access data (DataAccessObject or DAO).

An annotated class with "@Controller" plays a controller role in a Spring Web MVC application

An annotated class with "@Service" plays a role in business logic services, example Facade pattern for DAO Manager (Facade) and transaction handling

Answer 3

A @Service to quote spring documentation,

Indicates that an annotated class is a "Service", originally defined by Domain-Driven Design (Evans, 2003) as "an operation offered as an interface that stands alone in the model, with no encapsulated state." May also indicate that a class is a "Business Service Facade" (in the Core J2EE patterns sense), or something similar. This annotation is a general-purpose stereotype and individual teams may narrow their semantics and use as appropriate.

If you look at domain driven design by eric evans,

A SERVICE is an operation offered as an interface that stands alone in the model, without encapsulating state, as ENTITIES and VALUE OBJECTS do. SERVICES are a common pattern in technical frameworks, but they can also apply in the domain layer. The name service emphasizes the relationship with other objects. Unlike ENTITIES and VALUE OBJECTS, it is defined purely in terms of what it can do for a client. A SERVICE tends to be named for an activity, rather than an entity—a verb rather than a noun. A SERVICE can still have an abstract, intentional definition; it just has a different flavor than the definition of an object. A SERVICE should still have a defined responsibility, and that responsibility and the interface fulfilling it should be defined as part of the domain model. Operation names should come from the UBIQUITOUS LANGUAGE or be introduced into it. Parameters and results should be domain objects. SERVICES should be used judiciously and not allowed to strip the ENTITIES and VALUE OBJECTS of all their behavior. But when an operation is actually an important domain concept, a SERVICE forms a natural part of a MODEL-DRIVEN DESIGN. Declared in the model as a SERVICE, rather than as a phony object that doesn't actually represent anything, the standalone operation will not mislead anyone.

and a Repository as per Eric Evans,

A REPOSITORY represents all objects of a certain type as a conceptual set (usually emulated). It acts like a collection, except with more elaborate querying capability. Objects of the appropriate type are added and removed, and the machinery behind the REPOSITORY inserts them or deletes them from the database. This definition gathers a cohesive set of responsibilities for providing access to the roots of AGGREGATES from early life cycle through the end.

Answer 4

@Repository @Service and @Controller are serves as specialization of @Component for more specific use on that basis you can replace @Service to @Component but in this case you loose the specialization.

1. **@Repository**   - Automatic exception translation in your persistence layer.
2. **@Service**      - It indicates that the annotated class is providing a business service to other layers within the application.

Answer 5

Explanation of stereotypes :

• @Service - Annotate all your service classes with @Service. This layer knows the unit of work. All your business logic will be in Service classes. Generally methods of service layer are covered under transaction. You can make multiple DAO calls from service method, if one transaction fails all transactions should rollback.
• @Repository - Annotate all your DAO classes with @Repository. All your database access logic should be in DAO classes.
• @Component - Annotate your other components (for example REST resource classes) with component stereotype.
• @Autowired - Let Spring auto-wire other beans into your classes using @Autowired annotation.

@Component is a generic stereotype for any Spring-managed component. @Repository, @Service, and @Controller are specializations of @Component for more specific use cases, for example, in the persistence, service, and presentation layers, respectively.

Originally answered here.

Answer 6

In spring framework provides some special type of annotations,called stereotype annotations. These are following:-

@RestController- Declare at controller level.
@Controller – Declare at controller level.
@Component – Declare at Bean/entity level.
@Repository – Declare at DAO level.
@Service – Declare at BO level.

above declared annotations are special because when we add <context:component-scan> into xxx-servlet.xml file ,spring will automatically create the object of those classes which are annotated with above annotation during context creation/loading phase.