๐ข Imagine this scenario:
Normally, in Spring Boot (MVC), when you write:
@GetMapping("/hello")
public String sayHello() {
return "Hello World!";
}
๐ Here, the method returns a String directly.
The request โ executes the method โ response is returned immediately.
๐ก Now, what if the response will come later?
Sometimes data doesnโt come instantly (e.g., fetching from DB, calling another API, adding a delay).
Instead of blocking the thread, we want to return a โpromiseโ that will complete later.
Thatโs where Mono comes in.
Think of Mono as a box that will contain ONE value in the future.
๐น Example 1: Basic Mono
@GetMapping("/hello")
public Mono<String> sayHello() {
return Mono.just("Hello Reactive World!");
}
๐ Here:
Mono.just("Hello Reactive World!") means:
"I promise I will give you this string โ just not necessarily right now."
When the browser calls /hello, Spring WebFlux unwraps the Mono and sends the string.
๐น Example 2: Mono with Delay
@GetMapping("/delayed")
public Mono<String> delayedHello() {
return Mono.just("Hello after delay!")
.delayElement(Duration.ofSeconds(2)); // respond after 2 seconds
}
๐ Here:
The response comes after 2 seconds, but the server doesnโt block the thread during the wait.
That means the server can serve other requests meanwhile.
๐น Example 3: Mono with an Object
record User(String id, String name) {}
@GetMapping("/user")
public Mono<User> getUser() {
User user = new User("101", "Alice");
return Mono.just(user);
}
}
๐ Browser Response:
{
"id": "101",
"name": "Alice"
}
}
๐ข Very Simple Analogy
Think of Mono as:
A parcel delivery service ๐ฆ
You place an order โ you get a tracking ID immediately (Mono).
The actual parcel (data) may come later.
When it arrives, you open it and see the item.
So, Mono = โa container for ONE thing that comes now or later.โ
โ Use Mono when:
Your API returns a single item asynchronously.
You want non-blocking performance in Spring WebFlux.
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