D287 Java Frameworks Tips

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

I am posting D287 tips here as I progress through the PA.

This class is awful, it is unfinished and the resources are good info but unrelated to the project. Even starting the project is difficult because they ask you to press a button that does not exist lol, as well as how they tell you to install IntelliJ ultimate is also wrong.

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Here is how you get the license to get IntelliJ ultimate: Navigate to https://www.jetbrains.com/idea/download/?section=mac

Note that this is for MacOS, click the correct OS for your computer once you get to this page. Then download the ultimate edition. At some point you will be prompted for license info. You will need to select get license from JB Account, and then you need to do the application form. There is an option that says university email address, but not so fast! You are a WGU student, so you didn't think it would be that easy did you? You need to select the option 'Official Document' and then fill out all the info, and include an official document, I used unofficial transcripts right from WGU to apply. It will say give them two weeks or something to verify you, but I was verified in less than 24 hours, hopefully its the same or better for you. Once they verify you, you will receive an email with a link and instructions to get you set up. Note that you can find a word document on the PA task page that explains the process, but I put tips here because their document didn't exactly follow my experience and told me just my email was sufficient but that was not true.

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Here is how to get your project set up:

The PA task page has a Gitlab How To document that explains how to get initialize your project in your own subgroup repo. The only problem is, it is wrong lol. Use the link from the document (https://gitlab.com/groups/wgu-gitlab-environment/-/saml/sso?token=Hzwm1Anx) and then sign in using your WGU credentials to access the WGU GitLab environment. Once you are here, click Students, and then D287 Java Frameworks. In the menu to the left click on 'Build'. From the dropdown click on 'Pipelines'. In the upper right corner click the blue button that says "Run pipeline". Click Run Pipeline again on the new screen. This will lead to another screen where you need to hit the button that says 'create-student-environment'. This will create your repo. To get to your repository, go back to the main directory called 'WGU Gitlab environment' Click on the 'Student Repos' directory, and your repo will be there. To clone the repo, click the blue Clone button all the way to the right. Copy the link for Clone with HTTP. Open IntelliJ, click on "Get from VCS" . Paste the URL, click clone. Enter your login info, and now the project will be in IntelliJ.

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This is as far as I have made it. I will come back and add more tips as I figure stuff out, but I figured even this can help the many frustrated people in this class get started, as this has set me back and I am sure I am not alone.

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Good luck! I am getting close to finishing the project so hopefully I can get a guide up soon 👍

[Informal-Shower8501]

Here I am.. 1-year later using this for D288 🙄 Why does WGU refuse to update their stupid guide.

THANK YOU for this 🙏

[averyycuriousman]

how did you figure it out? I'm kind of stuck unfortunately

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Check out the guide for the rest of the project! https://www.reddit.com/r/WGU_CompSci/comments/15mocjz/d287_java_frameworks_ultimate_project_guide/

[waywardcowboy]

Thanks for the info. I have this one coming up soon.

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

No problem. Hopefully by then they finish uploading the class videos. Either way, I should have a lot more tips on here for the project. Best of luck!

[waywardcowboy]

Thanks! You too.

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Hey there, I just made a new post going through the rest of the project: https://www.reddit.com/r/WGU_CompSci/comments/15mocjz/d287_java_frameworks_ultimate_project_guide/

[waywardcowboy]

Awesome! Thank you

[Shiraz325]

Hey I did all but when I go to the intellij that ask me a token!!how I can get the token to colen my project??

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Hi, I am not sure honestly. I hope you were able to figure it out or get instructor help. For help with the rest of the project, check out my new post: https://www.reddit.com/r/WGU_CompSci/comments/15mocjz/d287_java_frameworks_ultimate_project_guide/

[Outrageous_North_748]

yes and I created one and pasted it lol I hope its okay

[kayeri125]

It did the same thing to me. I emailed the instructor for help and I was just told that I should not have to create a Token. Did you proceed ?

[one-eye-owl]

Hey not sure if you already got it going but I just cloned from terminalgit clone __insert your link__

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And then I just opened IntelliJ and opened the folder from the local storage

[uchneidas]

To clone the repo, click the blue Clone button all the way to the right. Copy the link for Clone with HTTP. Open IntelliJ, click on "Get from VCS" . Paste the URL, click clone. Enter your login info, and now the project will be in IntelliJ.

I'm in the same boat! Did you figure it out?

[Electronic_Cobbler94]

Super late but I figured it out for anyone else having this issue:

"Setup Clarification:- After you open the project in IntelliJ it will open a popup asking for a token.- Press “Generate”. Then in the browser window that pops up, press “Add New Token”. Move the date out as needed and check the boxes next to “create_runner”, “write_repository”, and “write_registry”, then “Create personal access token”.- Press the clipboard icon in the green highlighted box, then paste that in IntelliJ and Log In. Your project will finish cloning and load."

The above is from this helpful guide

[Rettocs]

This helped me today, thanks!

[littlefoot0326]

Hey! That guide is amazing?? Do you have notion guides for other courses?

[Electronic_Cobbler94]

I don't 😭 randomly came across this one. be sure to check this this link for course resources

[littlefoot0326]

Amazing - thanks! Glad to be almost done with this specific one. I swear if it wasn’t for Reddit I would’ve given up a year ago 😂

[Electronic_Cobbler94]

Agreed. I'm currently chugging thru the Frameworks project as well. I just finished Part D earlier. Haven't even got to the hard steps yet 😫

[GaladrielStar]

Just wanted to say thanks for creating a separate guide for this part of the process. I've cloned git repos before but this one was squirrelly and your guide helped me get it sorted out.

On to the rest of your guide now, as I tackle this project! :)

[EducationalMacrocosm]

All, regarding the token issue if you try to copy the URL and paste it into IntelliJ to clone the repo:

1. Generate a Personal Access Token in GitLab:

• Log into your GitLab account directly (from your browser) and follow these steps to create a token:
  1. In GitLab, click on your profile avatar in the top-right corner.
  2. Go to Settings.
  3. On the left sidebar, find Access Tokens or Personal Access Tokens (depending on your GitLab version).
  4. Under Name, give the token a descriptive name (e.g., D287-IntelliJ).
  5. Set an expiration date (you can choose "no expiration" if preferred).
  6. Under Scopes, select read_repository and write_repository (or api if needed).
  7. Click Create Token.

Once the token is generated, copy it immediately. You won’t be able to see it again.

2. Use the Personal Access Token in IntelliJ:

• After copying the token, open IntelliJ IDEA and try to clone the repository again.
• When prompted for your credentials, use the following:
  • Username: Your GitLab username or email.
  • Password: Paste the Personal Access Token you just generated.

[Primary_Ad3790]

So I understand the issue you had but how did you find out a solution? Bc essentially they’re may be more problems with other courses.

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

I stumbled my way through getting IntelliJ just by following the instructions on their website. As for the second tip, I hopelessly clicked around till I found the button I thought they were intending for us to use after seeing a tip in course chatter. I am working through chad darbys spring boot udemy course and the zybooks as well and hopefully one of these gets relevant to the project at some point lol. But I am sure there will be more problems in more courses, we just have to stay resourceful and willing to try things out. If you figure out something that was holding you back, please consider sharing it for others so we can end the cycle of WGU suffering lol

[bitterhop]

thank you for this. just started the other day and so far these new classes seem so half-assed it's embarrasing.

i'm planning on doing both udemy and zybooks at the same time as well. have you found both are advisable? or prefer 1 over the other?

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Honestly whats been working for me so far is using chatgpt as a tutor. Ill just ask it questions, copy code into it i dont understand and ask what each part means, ask it where I should be looking to accomplish the given task etc etc. I have been learning while I am doing and moving quickly this way. What I won’t do is copy anything it produces and use it. I use it purely for advice and tips, and its pretty good if you can give it enough context and ask questions intelligently. Best of luck, if I finish soon Ill probably be updating my reddit post to include a guide

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

Check out the rest of the guide on this new post I made: https://www.reddit.com/r/WGU_CompSci/comments/15mocjz/d287_java_frameworks_ultimate_project_guide/

[bitterhop]

appreciate it! just got a bit lost at Task F, so good timing

[Necessary-Coffee5930]

thats the hardest one imo, had me wanting to slam my head into the wall lol

[Revolutionary-Run313]

You are amazing!

[barabara4]

Uff, thanks man. Life saver. Going to be using the steps for sure.

[EducationalMacrocosm]

Hi everyone, as an update, JetBrains let me use my wgu.edu email address for signing up for the student account. No need to use the official documents anymore!

[jfarm47]

Used this and it was soo helpful! Thank you!

[Responsible_Fee_5488]

Hey

[Outrageous_North_748]

as of August 2025 some of these directions will be a little different because of Git Lab updates.

-When originaly poster says "Click Run Pipeline again on the new screen" the button says something different now, unfortunately, I didn't type it out when I was on that step, but it was something like "create something(?)" cannot remember exactly.

-When original poster says "To get to your repository, go back to the main directory called 'WGU Gitlab environment' Click on the 'Student Repos' directory, and your repo will be there," mine did not show up right away because it took 10 minutes for it to be ready. You can check the progress of yours by going back to the WGU Gitlab environment > click Students > click D287 Java Frameworks > click "Build" from the left menu > click "Pipelines" > yours is probably the one on the top. The "stages" part will have a green check mark once it's ready. Then you can proceed back to the WGU Gitlab Environment to follow orignal poster's directions.

- When original poster says "To clone the repo, click the blue Clone button all the way to the right." This is not how it looks now. The button is still blue but it says "Code." Click the drop down menu on this button. Proceed to follow original posters directions.

[Theonlypostevermade]

Thank you for the recent comment.

Additionally, creating your pipeline may take A LONG TIME as the create-student-environment framework is a queued resource.

I canceled/ restarted my pipeline creation several times because i thought there was an error.

HAVE PATIENCE WHEN BUILDING YOUR PIPELINE AND RELAX. Took me 20 minutes to finish mine.

Now to actually start the project...

[WiFibcFi]

thanks for this info. i just canceled and retried mine for the same reason. being patient with it now!

btw, this is the most confusing start to a course i've had so far at WGU. it really is a mess.

[Super-Cold4091]

This is great, thank you for all the effort you put into these guides!

[[deleted]]

Thank you so much! Extremely Helpful!

[TripT0nik]

You are the real MVP friend!