🔥 SwingSync

A lightning-fast, UI Hot-Reloader for Java Swing.

SwingSync fundamentally changes how you build Java Swing applications. Instead of restarting your entire application every time you tweak a button's color or adjust a layout constraint, SwingSync watches your file system, dynamically intercepts the JVM's memory Metaspace, and rebuilds your active UI component in real-time.

✨ Features

• Zero-Restart UI Development: Save your .java file and watch the screen update instantly.
• Deep State Preservation: Edits to your UI don't destroy your backend data. If you are connected to a server or holding active game states, those memory pointers are perfectly preserved across the hot-swap.
• Frictionless Integration: No complex configurations. Wrap your JFrame and JPanel in one line of code and start building.
• Smart Dependency Cascading: Edit a deeply nested child component, and SwingSync automatically forces the root panel to rebuild and fetch the newest versions of all its children.

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🚀 Quick Start Guide

1. Installation

Manual Upload

1. Go to the Releases page and download the latest swingsync-1.0.jar.
2. Drop the .jar file into a lib folder inside your Java project.
3. Add the .jar to your IDE's referenced libraries (In VS Code, open the "Java Projects" sidebar, find "Referenced Libraries", click the +, and select the jar).

Gradle

1. Add JitPack Repo to your build file

dependencyResolutionManagement {
    repositoriesMode.set(RepositoriesMode.FAIL_ON_PROJECT_REPOS)
    repositories {
        mavenCentral()
        maven { url 'https://jitpack.io' }
    }
}

2. Add SwingSync as a dependency (Replace Tag with version)

dependencies {
        implementation 'com.github.samdeitz:SwingSync:Tag'
}

Maven

1. Add JitPack Repo to your build file

<repositories>
    <repository>
        <id>jitpack.io</id>
        <url>https://jitpack.io</url>
    </repository>
</repositories>

2. Add SwingSync as a Dependency (Replace Tag with version)

<dependency>
    <groupId>com.github.samdeitz</groupId>
    <artifactId>SwingSync</artifactId>
    <version>Tag</version>
</dependency>

2. The Golden Rule of SwingSync

SwingSync uses a custom orphan ClassLoader to bypass Java's default memory cache. For this to work safely, your UI classes must be inside a named package. Do not use the "default" (unnamed) package at the root of your src folder.

3. Implementation

Initialize your application exactly as you normally would, then hand your JFrame and any state variables over to the SwingSyncer.

import javax.swing.JFrame;
import SwingSync.SwingSyncer;
import backend.PlayerState;
import ui.MainLobby;

public class AppLauncher {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        JFrame frame = new JFrame("My Application");
        frame.setSize(1200, 700);
        
        // 1. Initialize your dynamic data
        String roomName = "Room Alpha";
        PlayerState state = new PlayerState();

        // 2. Set up the initial screen
        MainLobby lobby = new MainLobby(roomName, state);

        // 3. Attach the Hot-Reloader!
        // Pass the frame, panel, followed by the EXACT variables your UI constructor (JPanel) needs.
        // SwingSync will save these pointers and reuse them every time the UI rebuilds.
        Syncher syncher = new Syncher(frame, lobby, roomName, state); // SwingSync will add your panel to your frame
        syncher.start() // start thread for reloading

        frame.pack();
        frame.setVisible(true);
        frame.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
    }
}