Getting set up for CorDapp development

Before you start developing CorDapps, you need to download four pieces of software: the Java 8 JDK, IntelliJ IDEA, Git, and Gradle.

Install the Java 8 JDK. Corda requires at least version 8u171, but does not currently support Java 9 or higher.

Corda has been tested against the following Java builds:

If you are using Windows, you must also add Java to the PATH environment variable by following the instructions in the Oracle documentation.

IntelliJ IDEA is an integrated development environment (IDE) that offers strong support for Kotlin and Java development.

Install the IntelliJ IDEA Community Edition. Corda supports IntelliJ IDEA versions 2017.x, 2018.x, 2019.x, and 2020.x; and Kotlin plugin version 1.2.71.

To install IntelliJ IDEA in a Ubuntu environment, go to the Jetbrains IntelliJ snap package.

We use Git to host our sample CorDapp and provide version control.

To install Git, go to Git and install the version for your operating system.

Gradle is a build automation tool for multi-language software development. It controls the development process in the tasks of compilation and packaging to testing, deployment, and publishing.

  • If you run the sample CorDapp, the included gradlew script installs Gradle automatically when you open the sample CorDapp in IntelliJ.
  • If you plan to start developing your own CorDapp straight away, install Gradle manually. Go to Gradle, then locate and install Gradle version 5.6.4. Corda requires a Gradle version between 5.1 and 5.6.4, and does not support Gradle 6.x.

You now have everything you need to develop CorDapps. If you encounter any issues, please ask on Stack Overflow or via our Slack channels.

R3 recommends running a sample CorDapp to see Corda in action before you start developing.

For more developer resources, open-source projects, and CorDapp templates, check out R3’s Developer Portal.

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Propose documentation improvements directly

Help us to improve the docs by contributing directly. It's simple - just fork this repository and raise a PR of your own - R3's Technical Writers will review it and apply the relevant suggestions.