anchor.diff:  = Spring Initializr
  -
  -Spring Initializr is a configurable service to generate quickstart project. You can see our default
  -instance at https://start.spring.io
  -
  -NOTE: Check the link:CHANGELOG.adoc[changelog] for the list of changes
  -
  -== Prerequisites
  +:wiki: https://github.com/spring-io/initializr/wiki
  +:boot-doc: http://docs.spring.io/spring-boot/docs/current/reference/htmlsingle
  +:code: https://github.com/spring-io/initializr/blob/master
  +
  +Spring Initializr is a configurable service to generate a quickstart project. You can see
  +our default instance at link:https://start.spring.io[]. It provides a simple web UI to
  +configure the project to generate and endpoints that you can use via plain HTTP.
  +
  +Spring Initializr also exposes an endpoint that serves its
  +{wiki}/Metadata-format[meta-data] in a well-known format to allow third-party
  +clients to provide the necessary assistance. {boot-doc}/#cli-init[Spring Boot CLI] is
  +using this mechanism to offer a command-line project generator; STS uses it in a similar
  +way to offer a project creation wizard.
  +
  +Finally, Initializr offers a configuration structure to define all the aspects related
  +to the project to generate: list of dependencies, supported java and boot versions, etc. Check
  +the {code}/initializr-service/application.yml[configuration of our instance] for an example. Such
  +configuration is {wiki}/Configuration-format[also described in details on the wiki].
  +
  +NOTE: We use the continuous deployment technique to manage our instance; check the
  +link:CHANGELOG.adoc[changelog] for an overview of changes
  +
  +== Generating a project
  +
  +There are many ways you can use to generate a project using Spring Initializr. You can
  +obviously use the https://start.spring.io[embedded web UI] available from the root
  +context. Recent versions of STS provide a wizard to assist you in the creation
  +of your new project. As from Spring Boot 1.2, the CLI has an `init` command to create
  +a new project from the command-line. Using the <<meta-data,meta-data>>, one can easily create
  +its own client.
  +
  +If you click on "Generate Project" on the web ui of our instance, it will download a project
  +archive with a Maven-based project and the necessary infrastructure to start a basic Spring
  +Boot app.
  +
  +You could achieve the same result with a simple `curl` command
  +
  +[source,bash]
  +----
  +$ curl https://start.spring.io/starter.zip >> demo.zip
  +----
  +
  +The following request attributes are supported:
  +
  +* Basic information for the generated project: `groupId`, `artifactId`, `version`, `name`,
  +`description` and `packageName`
  +** The `name` attribute is also used to generate a default application name. The logic is
  +that the name of the application is equal to the `name` attribute with an `Application`
  +suffix (unless said suffix is already present). Of course, if the specified name contains
  +an invalid character for a java identifier, `Application` is used as fallback.
  +** The `artifactId` attribute not only defines the identifier of the project in the build but
  +also the name of the generated archive.
  +* `dependencies` (or `style`): the identifiers of the dependencies to add to the project. Such
  +identifiers are defined through configuration and are exposed in the <<meta-data,meta-data>>.
  +* `type`: the _kind_ of project to generate (e.g. `maven-project`). Again, each service
  +exposes an arbitrary number of supported types and these are available in the
  +<<meta-data,meta-data>>.
  +* `javaVersion`: the language level (e.g. `1.8`).
  +* `bootVersion`: the Spring Boot version to use (e.g. `1.2.0.RELEASE`).
  +* `language`: the programming language to use (e.g. `java`).
  +* `packaging`: the packaging of the project (e.g. `jar`).
  +* `applicationName`: the name of the application class (inferred by the `name` attribute by
  +default).
  +* `baseDir`: the name of the base directory to create in the archive. By default, the project
  +is stored in the root.
  +
  +This command generates an `another-project` directory holding a Gradle web-based
  +Groovy project using the actuator:
  +
  +[source,bash]
  +----
  +$ curl https://start.spring.io/starter.tgz -d dependencies=web,actuator \
  +-d language=groovy -d type=gradle-project -d baseDir=another-project | tar -xzvf -
  +----
  +
  +NOTE: The `/starter.tgz` endpoint offers the same feature as `/starter.zip` but  generates
  +a compressed tarball instead.
  +
  +You could use this infrastructure to create your own client since the project is generated
  +via a plain HTTP call.
  +
  +[[meta-data]]
  +== Service meta-data
  +
  +The service meta-data is used by the web UI and is exposed to ease the creation of
  +third-party clients. You can grab the meta-data by _curling_ the root
  +
  +[source,bash]
  +----
  +$ curl https://start.spring.io
  +----
  +
  +The meta-data basically lists the _capabilities_ of the service, that is the available options
  +for all request parameters (`dependencies`, `type`, `bootVersion`, etc.) The web UI
  +uses that information to initialize the select options and the tree of available dependencies.
  +
  +The meta-data also lists the default values for simple _text_ parameter (i.e. the default
  +`name` for the project).
  +
  +NOTE: More details about the structure of the meta-data are {wiki}/Metadata-format[available
  +on the wiki].
  +
  +== Running your own instance
  +
  +You can easily run your own instance. Spring Initializr defines a _library_ that provides all
  +the default features. The library uses Spring Boot so when it is added to a project, it will
  +trigger the necessary auto-configuration to deploy the service.
  +
  +You first need to create or update your configuration to define the necessary attributes that
  +your instance will use. Again, check the wiki for a {wiki}/Configuration-format[description
  +of the configuration] and {code}/initializr-service/application.yml[review our own config] for
  +a sample.
  +
  +You can integrate the library in a traditional Java-based project or by writing the super-simple
  +script below
  +
  +[source,groovy]
  +----
  +package org.acme.myapp
  +
  +@Grab('io.spring.initalizr:initializr:1.0.0.BUILD-SNAPSHOT')
  +class YourInitializrApplication { }
  +----
  +
  +NOTE: Spring Initializr is not available on Maven central yet so you will have to build
  +the library <<build,from source>> in order to use it in your own environment.
  +
  +Once you have created that script (`my-instance.groovy`), place your configuration in the same
  +directory and simply execute this command to start the service:
  +
  +[source,bash]
  +----
  +$ spring run my-instance.groovy
  +----
  +
  +You may also want to <<run-app,run the default instance locally>>.
  +
  +
  +[[build]]
  +== Building from Source
   
   You need Java (1.6 or better) and a bash-like shell.
   
  
positive.code: download the http://start.spring.io/spring.zip[zip file] and unpack
  it yourself.
  
  == Project structure
  
  Initializr is a library that provides all the default features and a service with a very simple script
  that uses the auto-configuration feature of Spring Boot. All you need is _grabbing_ the library and
  create a proper configuration file with the following script:
  
  [indent=0]
  ----
    package org.acme.myapp
  
    @Grab('io.spring.initalizr:initializr:1.0.0.BUILD-SNAPSHOT')
    class InitializerService { }
  ----
  
  As a reference, `initializr-service` represents the _default_ service that runs at http://start.spring.io
  
  [[run-app]]
  == Running the app locally
  
  NOTE: Initializr currently uses a milestone release of `spring-test-htmlunit` that is available from
  the http://repo.spring.io/milestone[spring.io milestone repository]. If you use a repository
  manager, please make sure to configure it accordingly. For your convenience, the project defines
  a `springMilestone` that you should activate if you haven't defined that repository yourself.
  
  First make sure that you have built the library:
  
  [indent=0]
  ----
  
negative.code:     $ mvn clean install -PspringMilestone
  ----
  
  
  [[run-app]]
  === Running the app locally
  
  Once you have <<building, built the library>>, you can easily start the app using the `spring` command
  from the `initializr-service` directory:
  
  [indent=0]
  ----
  	$ cd initializr-service
      $ spring run app.groovy
  ----
  
  