@entity annotation in spring boot

The @Entity annotation in Spring Boot is used to indicate that a Java class is an entity, which means it represents a table in a relational database. Each instance of the class represents a row in the table, and the attributes of the class represent the columns in the table.

Here are the steps to use the @Entity annotation in Spring Boot:

  1. Create a Java class that represents the entity: Start by creating a Java class that represents the entity you want to map to a database table. This class should have attributes that correspond to the columns in the table.

  2. Add the @Entity annotation: Add the @Entity annotation to the class declaration. This annotation tells Spring Boot that the class is an entity and should be mapped to a database table.

  3. Specify the table name (optional): By default, Spring Boot will use the entity class name as the table name. If you want to use a different name for the table, you can specify it using the @Table annotation.

  4. Specify the primary key (optional): If the entity has a primary key, you can specify it using the @Id annotation. By default, Spring Boot assumes that the primary key is an auto-generated numerical value.

  5. Map the attributes to columns: Use the appropriate annotations to map the attributes of the entity class to the columns in the database table. For example, use the @Column annotation to specify the column name, data type, and other constraints.

  6. Define relationships (optional): If the entity has relationships with other entities, you can define them using annotations such as @OneToOne, @OneToMany, @ManyToOne, or @ManyToMany.

  7. Configure the database connection: Make sure you have configured the database connection in your Spring Boot application. This includes providing the necessary credentials, connection URL, and other properties.

  8. Run the application: Once you have completed the above steps, you can run your Spring Boot application. Spring Boot will automatically create the necessary database tables based on the entity classes and their annotations.

By following these steps, you can effectively use the @Entity annotation in Spring Boot to map Java classes to database tables and perform CRUD operations on them.