Getting set up

We have tried to make access to Corda as relatively simple as possible, using industry standard established tools. Although it is possible to replace any of the recommendations below, we will find it a lot easier to support your efforts if you follow our guidelines. Saying that, we are also interested in problems that arise due to different configurations.

A JVM

Corda runs in a JVM and is written predominantly in Kotlin with some example use cases demonstrated in Java that we have incorporated to demonstrate that Kotlin and Java can work seamlessly together. We recommend the most recent production version of Java 8. The JDK can be obtained from Oracle. Other implementations of the JVM are not actively supported, but as mentioned, we are interested in finding out any issues you do have with them.

Note

If you are using a JVM implementation other than Oracle’s you may get errors similar to Unresolved reference: javafx. This means JavaFX is not bundled with the JVM and you will need to install it separately (e.g. OpenJFX is needed with OpenJDK).

IntelliJ

We strongly recommend the use of IntelliJ’s Development Environment known as IDEA. Download it for free from JetBrains. The primary reason we recommend this particular IDE is that it integrates very well with our choice of language for Corda, “Kotlin”, as JetBrains also support the development of Kotlin.

Warning

When opening the Corda project for the first time from the IntelliJ splash screen, please use “Open” and then agree to import the Gradle project from the popup bubble. Don’t pick “Import” on the splash screen, because a bug in IntelliJ will cause the pre-packaged run configurations to be erased. If you see this warning too late, it’s no problem, just use git checkout .idea/runConfiguration or the version control tab in IntelliJ to undelete the files.

Kotlin

Kotlin is available as a downloadable plugin to IntelliJ. Refer to IntelliJ’s instructions on getting Started with Kotlin and IntelliJ. Additionally, if you would like to start getting to grips with the Kotlin language, then we strongly recommend you work through some of the tutorials (known as “koans”) as well. Also see our Further notes on Kotlin.

Version control via Git

We use git to version control Corda. The authoritative place to obtain git is from the main git website but it may be the case that your operating system provides git with a supported utility (e.g. for Apple, git is provided along with XCode - their free development environment). If this is the case, we would recommend you obtain git via that supported route.

You will need the command line package installed which you can then use natively (via the command line) or via IntelliJ (in which case you may need to configure IntelliJ to recognise where git has been installed on your system). IntelliJ and git configuration are quite seamless although the first time you use it, you will have to configure IntelliJ the location of your git command installation. More details regarding this can be found on the JetBrains website

Gradle

Gradle is our primary means of building Corda and managing dependencies. IntelliJ has its own view of this and occasionally may need to be resynced from time to time. This can be done within IntelliJ by pressing the “gradle refresh” icon located on the gradle tab (generally found on the right hand side), or by following the gradle commands specific for the task you are performing (details expounded later). Whenever prompted about gradle, accept the defaults suggested by IntelliJ.

Corda source code

You can check out the Corda platform source code from this repository:

and a template app that you can use as a basis for experimenting with app development from:

You can catch up with the latest code by selecting “VCS -> Update Project” in the IntelliJ menu.

Troubleshooting

See Troubleshooting, or get in touch with us either on the forums or via slack.