Development (Docker)

Requirements

To run ALEX, install the following software on your machine:

Linux

• Docker (v20.10.*) and
• Docker Compose (v1.28.*)

Windows / Mac

• Docker for Windows

Installation

Windows, Linux, Mac (Intel)

1. Clone the repository.
2. Run docker-compose -f docker-compose.develop.yml pull.
3. Run docker-compose -f docker-compose.develop.yml up.
4. Open http://127.0.0.1:4200 in a web browser to access the frontend.

Mac (ARM)

1. Clone the repository.
2. Run docker-compose -f docker-compose.develop.yml -f docker-compose.overrides.m1.yml pull.
3. Run docker-compose -f docker-compose.develop.yml -f docker-compose.overrides.m1.yml up.
4. Open http://127.0.0.1:4200 in a web browser to access the frontend.

Credentials

After the first start, you can log in as an admin using the account below:

Email: admin@alex.example
Password: admin

Services

Port	Service
4200	Frontend (with live reload)
8000	API
5005	API Debug Port
4444	Selenium Hub
7901	Chrome VNC (open in browser)
7901	Firefox VNC (open in browser)

For both, the Chrome and the Firefox VNC server, you can use the password secret.

Backend debugging

You can debug the backend of ALEX from within Docker. In this case, we use IntelliJ to connect to the remote debugger. Therefore, create a new run configuration. Go to Run, Edit Configurations..., add a new configuration of type Remote JVM Debug and configure it according the following image:

Then, start ALEX via the docker-compose.develop.yml, wait until the application is started and run the created configuration.

Backend live reload

Thanks to Spring devtools, we can leverage the live reload capability to restart the application automatically as soon as the code changes. Therefore, create a new run configuration. Go to Run, Edit Configurations..., add a new configuration of type Application and configure it according the following image:

Then, start ALEX via the docker-compose.develop.yml, wait until the application is started and run the created configuration. Now you can make changes in the Java files, rebuild the module (e.g. via STRG+Shift+F9) and the application is rebuild inside the container.