The Application Server

An application server provides the services that connect applications and databases, and it generally has development tools that work with it. It should provide a framework to link the Web site to existing applications and data. The application server should provide these services at the fastest speed possible.

Many criteria, including the following, should be used when selecting an application server:

• The language used and the learning curve for its use

• Database connectivity options and throughput

• Load-balancing and fail-over options

• Supported operating systems and Web servers

• Availability of development tools

• Ability to work with various industry standards

• Security options

ColdFusion can be used as an application server (via the integrated JRun), or can be used with a J2EE application server of your choice. High-end J2EE servers feature scalability and performance options that ColdFusion can leverage in that environment.