SpringSource provides a set of plug-ins for the Eclipse IDE that streamline the development lifecycle of OSGi bundles and PAR applications. The Application Platform Tools built on top of the Eclipse Web Tools Platform (WTP) and Spring IDE, the open-source Spring development tool set.
The AP Tools support the creation of new OSGi bundle and PAR projects within Eclipse, convert existing projects, deploy and debug those projects on a running Application Platform right from within Eclipse.
Currently the AP Tools support Eclipse 3.3 with corresponding version of WTP. Downloading and unzipping the Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers is the easiest way to start.
Execute the following steps to install the AP Tools into your Eclipse.
Install Spring IDE 2.0.5 Beta from http://springide.org/updatesite-weekly using the Eclipse Update Manager.
![[Note]](images/note.gif)
Note Spring IDE version 2.0.5 is not officially released yet but will be very soon. Install Application Platform Tools 1.0 Beta from http://static.springsource.com/projects/sts-ap/update/ using the Eclipse Update Manager.