MapStruct for automatic mapping in Spring Boot - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to declare a MapStruct mapper interface.

Spring Boot

import org.mapstruct.Mapper;

@Mapper
public interface [1] {
    // mapping methods
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

AUserController

BUserService

CUserRepository

DUserMapper

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using service or controller names instead of mapper interface names.

Forgetting to annotate the interface with @Mapper.

The interface annotated with @Mapper should be named as a Mapper, like UserMapper.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to define a mapping method from UserEntity to UserDTO.

Spring Boot

UserDTO [1](UserEntity userEntity);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amap

Bconvert

Csave

Ddelete

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using method names like 'save' or 'delete' which are unrelated to mapping.

Using generic names that do not indicate mapping.

MapStruct mapping methods are often named 'map' to indicate conversion.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the mapper implementation retrieval code.

Spring Boot

UserMapper mapper = [1].INSTANCE;

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

AUserMapperImpl

BUserMapper

CMapperFactory

DMapperInstance

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Trying to access INSTANCE from the implementation class name.

Using unrelated class names to get the mapper instance.

MapStruct generates an INSTANCE field in the mapper interface for accessing the implementation.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to define a mapper with component model 'spring' and specify unmapped target policy to ignore.

Spring Boot

@Mapper(componentModel = "[1]", unmappedTargetPolicy = ReportingPolicy.[2])
public interface UserMapper {
    UserDTO map(UserEntity userEntity);
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aspring

Bdefault

CIGNORE

DWARN

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'default' instead of 'spring' for componentModel when integrating with Spring.

Using WARN instead of IGNORE for unmappedTargetPolicy when you want to suppress warnings.

Setting componentModel to 'spring' allows Spring to manage the mapper bean. Setting unmappedTargetPolicy to IGNORE suppresses warnings for unmapped fields.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a mapping method that maps 'name' from source to 'fullName' in target and ignores 'age'.

Spring Boot

@Mapping(source = "[1]", target = "[2]")
@Mapping(target = "[3]", ignore = true)
UserDTO map(UserEntity userEntity);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

BfullName

Cage

Did

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Mixing up source and target field names.

Forgetting to ignore the 'age' field properly.

The 'name' field from source maps to 'fullName' in target. The 'age' field is ignored in mapping.

Practice

1. What is the main purpose of using MapStruct in a Spring Boot application?

easy

A. To create user interface components

B. To manage database connections

C. To automatically map data between different object types

D. To handle HTTP requests and responses

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand MapStruct's role

   MapStruct is a tool designed to copy data between objects automatically, reducing manual coding.

2. Step 2: Compare with other options

   Options A, B, and C relate to other parts of Spring Boot, not object mapping.

3. Final Answer:

   To automatically map data between different object types -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   MapStruct = automatic object mapping [OK]

Hint: MapStruct = automatic copying between objects [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing MapStruct with database or web handling
• Thinking MapStruct creates UI components
• Assuming MapStruct manages HTTP requests

2. Which annotation is used to define a MapStruct mapper interface in Spring Boot?

easy

A. @Component

B. @Mapper

C. @Service

D. @Repository

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the correct MapStruct annotation

   MapStruct uses @Mapper to mark interfaces for automatic mapping generation.

2. Step 2: Understand Spring stereotypes

   @Component, @Service, and @Repository are Spring annotations for beans but not for MapStruct mapping.

3. Final Answer:

   @Mapper -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   MapStruct interface = @Mapper [OK]

Hint: MapStruct interfaces use @Mapper annotation [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using @Component instead of @Mapper
• Confusing Spring stereotypes with MapStruct annotations
• Omitting the @Mapper annotation

3. Given the following mapper interface:

@Mapper(componentModel = "spring")
public interface UserMapper {
    UserDto toDto(User user);
}

What happens when you inject UserMapper in a Spring Boot service and call toDto(user)?

medium

A. It converts the User object to a UserDto automatically

B. It throws a NullPointerException because no implementation exists

C. It returns the original User object without changes

D. It requires manual implementation to work

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand componentModel = "spring"

   This setting tells MapStruct to generate a Spring bean implementation automatically.

2. Step 2: Effect of calling toDto(user)

   The generated implementation copies matching fields from User to UserDto automatically.

3. Final Answer:

   It converts the User object to a UserDto automatically -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   componentModel spring = auto bean + mapping [OK]

Hint: componentModel spring means auto Spring bean mapper [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking manual implementation is needed
• Assuming it returns original object
• Expecting runtime errors without implementation

4. Consider this mapper interface:

@Mapper
public interface ProductMapper {
    ProductDto toDto(Product product);
}

When you try to inject ProductMapper in a Spring Boot service, you get an error. What is the likely cause?

medium

A. Missing componentModel = "spring" to register mapper as a Spring bean

B. The method name toDto is invalid

C. MapStruct does not support mapping Product to ProductDto

D. The interface must be a class, not an interface

Solution

1. Step 1: Check mapper registration in Spring context

   Without componentModel = "spring", MapStruct does not create a Spring bean for the mapper.

2. Step 2: Understand injection failure

   Spring cannot inject the mapper because it is not registered as a bean, causing an error.

3. Final Answer:

   Missing componentModel = "spring" to register mapper as a Spring bean -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Missing spring componentModel = no bean injection [OK]

Hint: Add componentModel spring to enable Spring bean injection [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking method name causes error
• Believing MapStruct can't map certain classes
• Confusing interface with class requirement

5. You have two classes:

public class Employee {
    private String name;
    private int age;
    private String department;
    // getters and setters
}

public class EmployeeDto {
    private String name;
    private int age;
    // getters and setters
}

You want to map Employee to EmployeeDto using MapStruct but ignore the department field. Which mapper method signature and annotation is correct?

hard

A. @Mapper
public interface EmployeeMapper {
EmployeeDto toDto(Employee employee);
}

B. @Mapper(componentModel = "spring")
public interface EmployeeMapper {
EmployeeDto toDto(Employee employee);
}

C. @Mapper
public interface EmployeeMapper {
@Mapping(source = "department", target = "department")
EmployeeDto toDto(Employee employee);
}

D. @Mapper(componentModel = "spring")
public interface EmployeeMapper {
@Mapping(target = "department", ignore = true)
EmployeeDto toDto(Employee employee);
}

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify ignoring a field in MapStruct

   To ignore a field during mapping, use @Mapping(target = "fieldName", ignore = true) on the method.

2. Step 2: Check componentModel for Spring bean

   Using componentModel = "spring" allows Spring to manage the mapper bean automatically.

3. Final Answer:

   @Mapper(componentModel = "spring") public interface EmployeeMapper { @Mapping(target = "department", ignore = true) EmployeeDto toDto(Employee employee); } -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Ignore field with @Mapping(target, ignore=true) + spring bean [OK]

Hint: Use @Mapping(target, ignore=true) to skip fields [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Not using @Mapping to ignore fields
• Forgetting componentModel = "spring" for bean
• Incorrectly mapping ignored fields