1.1 A Servlet s Job

1.1 A Servlet's Job

Servlets are Java programs that run on Web or application servers, acting as a middle layer between requests coming from Web browsers or other HTTP clients and databases or applications on the HTTP server. Their job is to perform the following tasks , as illustrated in Figure 1-1.

1. Read the explicit data sent by the client.

   The end user normally enters this data in an HTML form on a Web page. However, the data could also come from an applet or a custom HTTP client program. Chapter 4 discusses how servlets read this data.

2. Read the implicit HTTP request data sent by the browser.

   Figure 1-1 shows a single arrow going from the client to the Web server (the layer where servlets and JSP execute), but there are really two varieties of data: the explicit data that the end user enters in a form and the behind-the-scenes HTTP information. Both varieties are critical. The HTTP information includes cookies, information about media types and compression schemes the browser understands, and so forth; it is discussed in Chapter 5.

3. Generate the results.

   This process may require talking to a database, executing an RMI or EJB call, invoking a Web service, or computing the response directly. Your real data may be in a relational database. Fine. But your database probably doesn't speak HTTP or return results in HTML, so the Web browser can't talk directly to the database. Even if it could, for security reasons, you probably would not want it to. The same argument applies to most other applications. You need the Web middle layer to extract the incoming data from the HTTP stream, talk to the application, and embed the results inside a document.

4. Send the explicit data (i.e., the document) to the client.

   This document can be sent in a variety of formats, including text (HTML or XML), binary (GIF images), or even a compressed format like gzip that is layered on top of some other underlying format. But, HTML is by far the most common format, so an important servlet/JSP task is to wrap the results inside of HTML.

5. Send the implicit HTTP response data.

   Figure 1-1 shows a single arrow going from the Web middle layer (the servlet or JSP page) to the client. But, there are really two varieties of data sent: the document itself and the behind-the-scenes HTTP information. Again, both varieties are critical to effective development. Sending HTTP response data involves telling the browser or other client what type of document is being returned (e.g., HTML), setting cookies and caching parameters, and other such tasks. These tasks are discussed in Chapters 6 and 7.

Figure 1-1. The role of Web middleware.