Dropwizard vs Quarkus: What are the differences?

Key Differences between Dropwizard and Quarkus

Introduction:

Dropwizard and Quarkus are both frameworks used for building Java applications, but they have key differences that set them apart. In this article, we will highlight six major differences between Dropwizard and Quarkus.

1. Runtime Efficiency: Dropwizard is known for its lightweight and fast runtime. It allows developers to create production-ready services quickly, but it lacks ahead-of-time (AOT) compilation capabilities. On the other hand, Quarkus leverages AOT compilation and GraalVM to achieve impressive runtime efficiency. This feature enables Quarkus to start and consume less memory, making it ideal for serverless and cloud-native architectures.

2. Microservices vs. Monolith: Dropwizard is designed for developing monolithic applications where all services are packaged together. It provides a comprehensive stack of libraries, including Jetty for web services and Jackson for JSON processing. In contrast, Quarkus embraces the microservices architecture. It offers a modular and lightweight runtime to support the development of microservices and cloud-native applications. Developers can choose the exact set of extensions they need, reducing the memory footprint and startup time.

3. Build and Deployment: Dropwizard uses the Maven build system and creates fat JARs that contain all dependencies. Deploying a Dropwizard application is as simple as running the JAR file. Quarkus, on the other hand, employs its own build tool called Gradle. It creates native images using GraalVM, resulting in a significantly smaller container image size and faster startup time. Quarkus applications can be deployed as lightweight containers with a minimal footprint.

4. Language Support: Dropwizard is primarily focused on Java, allowing developers to utilize the vast Java ecosystem and libraries. Quarkus, on the other hand, supports multiple languages, including Java, Kotlin, and Scala. This flexibility allows developers to choose the language they are most comfortable with and leverage the rich set of libraries available for each language.

5. Development Mode: Dropwizard provides hot reloading by default, allowing developers to make changes to the code without restarting the application. However, due to its monolithic nature, the reloading process can be slower for larger applications. Quarkus excels in this area by offering fast and efficient hot reloading, even for large applications. Developers can rely on Quarkus's dev mode, which instantly applies code changes without the need for application restart.

6. Community and Ecosystem: Dropwizard has been around since 2011 and has built a strong community around it. It has a large and mature ecosystem with various plugins and libraries readily available. Quarkus, although relatively new compared to Dropwizard, has gained significant traction recently. It has an active and growing community that provides continuous support and contributes new extensions and integrations to the ecosystem.

In summary, Dropwizard and Quarkus differ in terms of runtime efficiency, architectural approach, build and deployment processes, language support, development mode, and community/ecosystem. Choosing between the two depends on factors such as application requirements, project size, and individual developer preferences.