Which dependency enables an automatic restart of the application as code is changed during development of a Spring boot configuration on a web application? (Choose the best answer.)

Question

Options

• Aspring-boot-devtools
• Bspring-boot-initializr
• Cspring-boot-starter-devtools
• Dspring-boot-restart

• A
  87% (26)
• B
  3% (1)
• C
  3% (1)
• D
  7% (2)

Explanation

spring-boot-devtools is the correct Maven/Gradle dependency that enables automatic application restarts when source files change during development - it monitors the classpath and triggers a fast restart whenever files are modified, making the dev loop much tighter.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• B. spring-boot-initializr - Initializr (start.spring.io) is a project scaffolding tool, not a runtime dependency; it generates project skeletons, not restarts.
• C. spring-boot-starter-devtools - This looks plausible but is a fabricated name; Spring Boot uses devtools directly without the starter- prefix (unlike, say, spring-boot-starter-web).
• D. spring-boot-restart - This artifact does not exist in the Spring ecosystem at all.

Memory tip: Spring Boot starter dependencies follow the pattern spring-boot-starter-*, but devtools is special - it's a standalone tool, not a "starter," so it drops the starter- segment. Think: dev tools are tools, not starters.

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