The commercetools SDK Developer — Java training

Welcome. Over three days you will build the backend of a real storefront — a BFF (Backend-for-Frontend) on commercetools — one method at a time, with an AI coding assistant as your co-pilot. Every task you complete unlocks a capability, and a section of the live storefront lights up.

This repository is read-only for participants: clone it and work locally. You never need to push anything here — your progress is tracked by the course dashboard, not by git.

Branches

Branch	What it is
main	The starter — this is where you work. Repository methods are stubbed (they return 501 Not Implemented); you implement them.
solution	The reference answers. Peek only if you're stuck — try it yourself first.

git clone https://github.com/commercetools/commercetools-sdk-developer-java-training.git
cd commercetools-sdk-developer-java-training   # you're on main (the starter)
git switch solution                           # to see the answers
git switch main                               # back to your work

Because the repository is read-only, keep your work local. If you like to commit as you go, create a branch of your own (git switch -c my-work) — nothing has to leave your laptop.

What's inside

Folder	What it is	You edit it?
bff-java/	The BFF you build — a layered ("hexagonal") Spring Boot service.	Yes — the tasks live here.
commerce-canvas/	Your progress dashboard + "Try It" console — shows tasks, capabilities, and live requests.	No — run it.
storefront/	The live store that lights up as your capabilities unlock.	No — run it.

Related repositories (Day 3 — commercetools Connect)

Sessions 8 and 9 move the Session-7 handlers onto commercetools Connect. The connectors live in their own repositories because Connect deploys a repository at a git tag, with connect.yaml at the root. They are read-only too: the trainer walks the code through and deploys it once into the shared project; you clone and run them locally.

Repository	What it is	Session
lhc-order-flow-connector	The cart-rules Service app (an API Extension's production home) and the order-events Event app (a Subscription-fed handler).	8 · 9
lhc-price-feed-connector	The nightly price-feed Job app (CSV → Import API).	8 · 9

Prerequisites

• JDK 17 and Maven · Node 18+ and npm · Git
• A commercetools project + Merchant Center access (provided for the course)
• An AI coding tool (Claude Code, Codex, Copilot, Cursor or similar) with the commercetools plugin (installed in Session 1) — every task also works without one.
• You've completed the Platform Foundations prerequisite.

Setup (in order)

1. Clone this repository (you land on main, the starter).
2. Create your API client in Merchant Center (Settings → Developer settings → API clients). Name it with your own name — that's your identity in the progress tracker. Copy the credentials (shown once).
3. Configure .env: in bff-java/, copy .env.example to .env and paste your credentials.
4. Install the AI toolchain: in your editor, add the commercetools plugin (see bff-java/README.md).

Run it (three terminals)

# 1 · the BFF            → http://localhost:8081
cd bff-java && mvn -pl app spring-boot:run

# 2 · Commerce Canvas    → http://localhost:5173   (your dashboard + Try It)
cd commerce-canvas && npm install && npm run dev

# 3 · the Storefront     → http://localhost:3000   (lights up as you build)
cd storefront/site && npm install && npm run dev

How you work through a task

1. Open Commerce Canvas, pick the next task.
2. Implement the one stubbed method in bff-java — ground it on the Knowledge MCP; never guess the API.
3. Hit Try It in Canvas → the endpoint returns 200 → the capability unlocks → the storefront section lights up. (From Session 4 the tasks are writes — Try It sends a pre-filled JSON body you can edit.)
4. Explain it back in your own words. Stuck? Compare with the solution branch.

Per-project detail: bff-java/README.md · commerce-canvas/README.md · storefront/README.md.