Logging SQL Queries in Spring Boot with Derby

October 01, 2025

This guide shows how to log SQL queries executed by Spring Boot when using the Apache Derby database for debugging and monitoring.

1. Add Dependencies

In pom.xml:

<dependency>
  <groupId>org.apache.derby</groupId>
  <artifactId>derby</artifactId>
  <scope>runtime</scope>
</dependency>

<dependency>
  <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
  <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-data-jpa</artifactId>
</dependency>

2. Enable SQL Logging

In application.properties:

spring.datasource.url=jdbc:derby:memory:demoDB;create=true
spring.datasource.driver-class-name=org.apache.derby.jdbc.EmbeddedDriver
spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=update

# show SQL in console
spring.jpa.show-sql=true

# format queries for readability
spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=true

# enable parameter binding logging
logging.level.org.hibernate.type.descriptor.sql=TRACE

3. Create Sample Entity

import jakarta.persistence.*;

@Entity
public class Customer {
    @Id
    @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.IDENTITY)
    private Long id;
    private String name;
    private String email;

    // getters and setters
}

4. Repository

import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;

public interface CustomerRepository extends JpaRepository<Customer, Long> {
}

5. REST Controller

import org.springframework.web.bind.annotation.*;
import java.util.List;

@RestController
@RequestMapping("/customers")
public class CustomerController {
    private final CustomerRepository repo;

    public CustomerController(CustomerRepository repo) {
        this.repo = repo;
    }

    @PostMapping
    public Customer add(@RequestBody Customer c) {
        return repo.save(c);
    }

    @GetMapping
    public List<Customer> all() {
        return repo.findAll();
    }
}

6. Run and Check Logs

Start Spring Boot:

mvn spring-boot:run

When you hit endpoints, SQL queries will be printed:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/customers -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"name":"Alice","email":"a@mail.com"}'
curl http://localhost:8080/customers

Console output shows generated SQL with parameter values.