EJB 3RD EDITION -Richard Monson-Haefel Authors?Note In the winter of 1997 I was working on a distributed object project using Java RMI. Not ingly, the project failed miserably because Java RMI didnt address performance, scalability, fail-over, security, and transactions; qualities of service that are so vital in a production environment. Although that lesson was not new for me-I had seen the same thing happen with CORBA-the timing of the project was especially interesting. It was at that same time Enterprise Javabeans first introduced by Sun Microsystems had Enterprise available earlier, that same project probably would have At the time I was working on that ill-fated Java RMI project, I was also writing a column for JavaReport Online called the"The Cutting Edge. The column covered what were then, new Java technologies like Java Naming and Directory Interface (NDI)and the JavaMail API. I was actually looking for a new topic for the edition of"The Cutting Edge, when I discovered the first public draft of Enterprise JavaBeans, version 0.8. I had first heard about this technology in 1996, but this was the first time anything public has been available. Having worked CORBA, Java RMI and other distributed object technologies, I knew a good thing when I saw it and immediately began writing an article about this new Enterprise JavaBeans". Although the article in question has long since been lost in the ether of the internet it was at that time the first article ever written on Enterprise JavaBeans That seems like eons ago. Since I published that article in March 1998, literally hundreds of articles have been written on Enterprise JavaBeans and several books have come and gone on the subject. Over the past three years this book has kept pace with three versions of the EJB specification and in its edition is considered by many, to my enormous satisfaction, to be the best book on Enterprise JavaBeans. As the newest version of the specification takes flight and a slew of new books on the subject day bew I cant help but remember the days when the words" Enterprise Java Beans"drew blank looks from just about everyone. I'm glad those days are over Copyright(c)2001 OReilly Associates
DRAFT, 10/21/017/6/2001 Copyright (c) 2001 O'Reilly & Associates 1 EJB 3RD EDITION - Richard Monson-Haefel Authors’ Note In the winter of 1997 I was working on a distributed object project using Java RMI. Not surprisingly, the project failed miserably because Java RMI didn’t address performance, scalability, fail-over, security, and transactions; qualities of service that are so vital in a production environment. Although that lesson was not new for me—I had seen the same thing happen with CORBA—the timing of the project was especially interesting. It was at that same time Enterprise JavaBeans was first introduced by Sun Microsystems – had Enterprise JavaBeans been available earlier, that same project probably would have succeeded. At the time I was working on that ill-fated Java RMI project, I was also writing a column for JavaReport Online called the “The Cutting Edge”. The column covered what were then, new Java technologies like Java Naming and Directory Interface (JNDI) and the JavaMail API. I was actually looking for a new topic for the 3rd edition of “The Cutting Edge”, when I discovered the first public draft of Enterprise JavaBeans, version 0.8. I had first heard about this technology in 1996, but this was the first time anything public has been available. Having worked on CORBA, Java RMI and other distributed object technologies, I knew a good thing when I saw it and immediately began writing an article about this new “Enterprise JavaBeans”. Although the article in question has long since been lost in the ether of the Internet, it was at that time the first article ever written on Enterprise JavaBeans. That seems like eons ago. Since I published that article in March 1998, literally hundreds of articles have been written on Enterprise JavaBeans and several books have come and gone on the subject. Over the past three years this book has kept pace with three versions of the EJB specification and in its 3rd edition is considered by many, to my enormous satisfaction, to be the best book on Enterprise JavaBeans. As the newest version of the specification takes flight and a slew of new books on the subject daybew I can’t help but remember the days when the words “Enterprise JavaBeans” drew blank looks from just about everyone. I’m glad those days are over
What Is Enterprise Java Beans? When JavaM was first introduced in the summer of 1995, most of the IT industry focused on its graphical user interface characteristics and the competitive advantage it offered in terms of distribution and platform independence. Those were interesting times. The Applet was king, and only a few of us were attempting to use it on the server side. I reality we spent about half our time coding and the other half trying to convince management that Java was not a Today, the focus has broadened considerably: Java has been recognized as an excellent platform for creating enterprise solutions, specifically for developing distributed server-side applications. This shift has much to do with Javas emerging role as a universal language for producing implementation-independent abstractions for common enterprise technologies. The JDBCTM API is the first and most familiar example JDBC provides a vendor-independent Java interface for accessing SQL relational databases. This abstraction has been so successful that it's difficult to find a relational database vendor that doesnt support JDBC Java abstractions for enterprise technologies have expanded considerably to include JNDI (Java Naming and Directory Interface M) for abstracting directory services, JTA (Java Transaction APD) for abstracting access to transaction managers, JMSTM (Java Messaging Service) for abstracting access to different message-oriented middleware products, and so on. Enterprise JavaBeansTM was first introduced as a draft specification in late 1997 and has since established itself as one of the most important Java enterprise technologies provided by Sun Microsystems. Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) provides an abstraction for component transaction monitors (CTMs) Component transaction monitors represent the convergence of two technologies traditional transaction processing monitors, such as CICS, TUXEDO, and Encina, and distributed object services, such as CORBA(Common Object Request Broker Architecture), DCOM, and native Java RMI. Combining the best of both technologies, component transaction monitors provide a robust, component- based environment that simplifies distributed development while automatically managing the most complex aspects of enterprise computing, such as object brokering, transaction management, security, persistence, and concurrency Enterprise JavaBeans(EJB)defines a server-side component model that allows business objects to be developed and moved from one brand of EJB container to another. A component(an enterprise bean) presents a simple programming model that allows the developer to focus on its business purpose. An EJB server is responsible for making the component a distributed object and for managing services such as transactions, persistence, concurrency, and security. In addition to defining the beans business logic, the developer defines the beans runtime attributes in a way that is similar to choosing the display properties of visual widgets. The transactional, persis tence, and security behaviors of a component can be defined by choosing from a list of properties. The end result is Copyright(c)2001 OReilly Associates 2
DRAFT, 10/21/017/6/2001 Copyright (c) 2001 O'Reilly & Associates 2 What Is Enterprise JavaBeans? When Java™ was first introduced in the summer of 1995, most of the IT industry focused on its graphical user interface characteristics and the competitive advantage it offered in terms of distribution and platform independence. Those were interesting times. The Applet was king, and only a few of us were attempting to use it on the server side. I reality we spent about half our time coding and the other half trying to convince management that Java was not a fad. Today, the focus has broadened considerably: Java has been recognized as an excellent platform for creating enterprise solutions, specifically for developing distributed server-side applications. This shift has much to do with Java’s emerging role as a universal language for producing implementation-independent abstractions for common enterprise technologies. The JDBC™ API is the first and most familiar example. JDBC provides a vendor-independent Java interface for accessing SQL relational databases. This abstraction has been so successful that it’s difficult to find a relational database vendor that doesn’t support JDBC. Java abstractions for enterprise technologies have expanded considerably to include JNDI (Java Naming and Directory Interface™) for abstracting directory services, JTA (Java Transaction API) for abstracting access to transaction managers, JMS™ (Java Messaging Service) for abstracting access to different message-oriented middleware products, and so on. Enterprise JavaBeans™ was first introduced as a draft specification in late 1997 and has since established itself as one of the most important Java enterprise technologies provided by Sun Microsystems. Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) provides an abstraction for component transaction monitors (CTMs). Component transaction monitors represent the convergence of two technologies: traditional transaction processing monitors, such as CICS, TUXEDO, and Encina, and distributed object services, such as CORBA (Common Object Request Broker Architecture), DCOM, and native Java RMI. Combining the best of both technologies, component transaction monitors provide a robust, componentbased environment that simplifies distributed development while automatically managing the most complex aspects of enterprise computing, such as object brokering, transaction management, security, persistence, and concurrency. Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) defines a server-side component model that allows business objects to be developed and moved from one brand of EJB container to another. A component (an enterprise bean) presents a simple programming model that allows the developer to focus on its business purpose. An EJB server is responsible for making the component a distributed object and for managing services such as transactions, persistence, concurrency, and security. In addition to defining the bean’s business logic, the developer defines the bean’s runtime attributes in a way that is similar to choosing the display properties of visual widgets. The transactional, persistence, and security behaviors of a component can be defined by choosing from a list of properties. The end result is
that Enterprise JavaBeans makes developing distributed component systems that are managed in a robust transactional environment much easier For developers and corporate IT shops that have struggled with the complexities of delivering mission-critical, high-performance distributed systems using CORBA, DCOM,or Java RMI, Enterprise JavaBeans provides a far simpler and more productive platform on which to base development efforts When Enterprise JavaBeans 1.0 was finalized in 1998, it quickly become a de facto industry standard. Many vendors announced their support even before the ecification was finalized. Since that time Enterprise JavaBeans has been enhanced twice: The specification was first updated in 1999 to version 1. 1, which was covered by the 2 edition. The most recent revision to the specification version 2.0, is covered by this, the 3 edition of O'Reilly's eJB book. This 3 edition also covers EJB 1. 1, which is for the most part a subset of functionality offered by EJB 2.0 Products that conform to the EJB standard have come from every sector of the IT ndustry, including the TP monitor, CORBA ORB, application server, relational database, object database, and web server industries. Some of these products are based on proprietary models that have been adapted to EJB; many more wouldnt even exist without EJB In short, Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1.1 provides a standard distributed deployed on a different vendors EJB server. This book will provide you with the foundation you need to develop vendor-independent EJB solutions Who should read this book? his book explains and demonstrates the fundamentals of the Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1. I architecture. Although EJB makes distributed computin much simpler, it is still a complex technology that requires a great deal of time to master. This book provides a straightforward, no-nonsense explanation of the underlying technology, Java classes and interfaces, component model, and runtime behavior of Enterprise JavaBeans. It includes material that is backward compatible with EJB 1.1 and provides special notes and chapters when there are significant differences between 1. 1 and 2.0 Although this book focuses on the fundamentals. it's no "dummies book Enterprise JavaBeans embodies an extremely complex and ambitious enterprise technology. While using EJB may be fairly simple, the amount of work required to truly understand and master EJB is significant. Before reading this book, you should be fluent with the Java language and have some practical experience developing business solutions. Experience with distributed object systems is not a must, but you will need some experience with JDBC (or at least an Copyright(c)2001 OReilly Associates 3
DRAFT, 10/21/017/6/2001 Copyright (c) 2001 O'Reilly & Associates 3 that Enterprise JavaBeans makes developing distributed component systems that are managed in a robust transactional environment much easier. For developers and corporate IT shops that have struggled with the complexities of delivering mission-critical, high-performance distributed systems using CORBA, DCOM, or Java RMI, Enterprise JavaBeans provides a far simpler and more productive platform on which to base development efforts. When Enterprise JavaBeans 1.0 was finalized in 1998, it quickly become a de facto industry standard. Many vendors announced their support even before the specification was finalized. Since that time Enterprise JavaBeans has been enhanced twice: The specification was first updated in 1999 to version 1.1, which was covered by the 2nd edition. The most recent revision to the specification, version 2.0, is covered by this, the 3rd edition of O’Reilly’s EJB book. This 3rd edition also covers EJB 1.1, which is for the most part a subset of functionality offered by EJB 2.0. Products that conform to the EJB standard have come from every sector of the IT industry, including the TP monitor, CORBA ORB, application server, relational database, object database, and web server industries. Some of these products are based on proprietary models that have been adapted to EJB; many more wouldn’t even exist without EJB. In short, Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1.1 provides a standard distributed component model that greatly simplifies the development process and allows beans that are developed and deployed on one vendor’s EJB server to be easily deployed on a different vendor’s EJB server. This book will provide you with the foundation you need to develop vendor-independent EJB solutions. Who Should Read This Book? This book explains and demonstrates the fundamentals of the Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1.1 architecture. Although EJB makes distributed computing much simpler, it is still a complex technology that requires a great deal of time to master. This book provides a straightforward, no-nonsense explanation of the underlying technology, Java classes and interfaces, component model, and runtime behavior of Enterprise JavaBeans. It includes material that is backward compatible with EJB 1.1 and provides special notes and chapters when there are significant differences between 1.1 and 2.0. Although this book focuses on the fundamentals, it’s no “dummies” book. Enterprise JavaBeans embodies an extremely complex and ambitious enterprise technology. While using EJB may be fairly simple, the amount of work required to truly understand and master EJB is significant. Before reading this book, you should be fluent with the Java language and have some practical experience developing business solutions. Experience with distributed object systems is not a must, but you will need some experience with JDBC (or at least an
understanding of the basics) to follow the examples in this book. If you are unfamiliar with the Java language, I recommend that you pick up a copy of Learning Java M by Patrick Neimeyer and Jonathan Knudsen, formerly Exploring Java TM,(O'Reilly). If you are unfamiliar with JDBC, I recommend Database Programming with JDBCTM and Java TM ition by George Reese (OReilly). If you need a stronger background in distributed computing, I recommend Java M Distributed Computing by Jim Farley(O'Reilly) Organization Here's how the book is structured. The first three chapters are largely background material, placing Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1. 1 in the context of related technologies, and explaining at the most abstract level how the EJB technology works and what makes up an enterprise bean. Chapters 4 through 13 go into detail about developing enterprise beans of various types. Chapters 14 and 15 could be considered" advanced topics, except that transactions Chapter 14)are essential to everything that happens in enterprise computing, and design strategies( Chapter 15) help you deal with a number of real-world issues that influence bean design. Chapter 16 describes in detail the XML deployment descriptors used in EJB 2.0 and 1. 1. Finally, Chapter 17 is an overview of the JavaTM 2, Enterprise Edition(J2EE) includes Servlets, JSP and EJB Chapter 1, Introduction This chapter defines component transaction monitors and explains how they form the underlying technology of the Enterprise Java Beans component model Chapter 2, Architectural Overview This chapter defines the architecture of the Enterprise JavaBeans component model and examines the difference between the three basic types of enterprise beans: entity beans, session beans, and message-driven beans. Chapter 3, Resource Management and the Primary Services This chapter explains how the EJB-compliant server manages an enterprise Chapter 4, Developing Your First Enterprise Beans This chapter walks the reader through the development of some simple Chapter 5, The Client View This chapter explains in detail how enterprise beans are accessed and used by a remote client application Chapter 6, EJB 2.0 CMP: Basic Persistence This chapter provides an explanation of how to develop basic container managed entity beans in EJB 2.0 Copyright(c)2001 OReilly Associates
DRAFT, 10/21/017/6/2001 Copyright (c) 2001 O'Reilly & Associates 4 understanding of the basics) to follow the examples in this book. If you are unfamiliar with the Java language, I recommend that you pick up a copy of Learning Java™ by Patrick Neimeyer and Jonathan Knudsen, formerly Exploring Java™, (O’Reilly). If you are unfamiliar with JDBC, I recommend Database Programming with JDBC™ and Java™, 2nd Edition by George Reese (O’Reilly). If you need a stronger background in distributed computing, I recommend Java™ Distributed Computing by Jim Farley (O’Reilly). Organization Here’s how the book is structured. The first three chapters are largely background material, placing Enterprise JavaBeans 2.0 and 1.1 in the context of related technologies, and explaining at the most abstract level how the EJB technology works and what makes up an enterprise bean. Chapters 4 through 13 go into detail about developing enterprise beans of various types. Chapters 14 and 15 could be considered “advanced topics,” except that transactions (Chapter 14) are essential to everything that happens in enterprise computing, and design strategies (Chapter 15) help you deal with a number of real-world issues that influence bean design. Chapter 16 describes in detail the XML deployment descriptors used in EJB 2.0 and 1.1. Finally, Chapter 17 is an overview of the Java™ 2, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) includes Servlets, JSP and EJB. Chapter 1, Introduction This chapter defines component transaction monitors and explains how they form the underlying technology of the Enterprise JavaBeans component model. Chapter 2, Architectural Overview This chapter defines the architecture of the Enterprise JavaBeans component model and examines the difference between the three basic types of enterprise beans: entity beans, session beans, and message-driven beans. Chapter 3, Resource Management and the Primary Services This chapter explains how the EJB-compliant server manages an enterprise bean at runtime. Chapter 4, Developing Your First Enterprise Beans This chapter walks the reader through the development of some simple enterprise beans. Chapter 5, The Client View This chapter explains in detail how enterprise beans are accessed and used by a remote client application. Chapter 6, EJB 2.0 CMP: Basic Persistence This chapter provides an explanation of how to develop basic containermanaged entity beans in EJB 2.0
Chapter 7, EJB 2.0 CMP: Entity Relationships This chapter picks up where Chapter 6 left off, expanding your understanding of container-managed persistence to complex bean-to-bean relationships Chapter 8, EJB 2.0 CMP: EJB QL This chapter addresses the Enterprise JavaBeans Query Language(EJB QL), which is used to query EJBs and locate specific entity beans in EJB 2.0 Chapter 9, EJB 1.1: Container-Managed Persistence This chapter covers EJB 1. 1 container-managed persistence, which is supported in EJB 2.0 for backward compatibility. Read this chapter only if you need to support legacy EJB applications Chapter 10, Bean-Managed Persistence This chapter covers the development of bean-managed persistence beans including when to store, load, and remove data from the database Chapter 11, Entity-Container Contract This chapter covers the general protocol between an entity bean and its container at runtime and applies to container-managed persistence in EJB 2.0 and 1. 1, as well as bean-managed persistence Chapter 12, Session Beans This chapter shows how to develop stateless and stateful session beans Chapter 13, Message-Driven Beans This chapter shows how to develop message-driven beans in EJB 2.0 Chapter 14, Transactions This chapter provides an in-depth explanation of transactions and describes the transactional model defined by Enterprise JavaBeans Chapter 15, Design Strategies This chapter provides some basic design strategies that can simplify your EJB development efforts and make your EJB system more efficient. Chapter 16, XML Deployment Descriptors This chapter provides an in-depth explanation of the XML deployment descriptors used in EJB 1. I and 2.0 Chapter 17, Java 2, Enterprise Edition This chapter provides an overview of the Java 2, Enterprise Edition 1.3 and explains how 2.0 fits into this new platform. Appendix A, The Enterprise JavaBeans API This appendix provides a quick reference to the classes and interfaces defined in the EJB packag A ppendix B, State and Sequence Diagrams This appendix provides diagrams that clarify the life cycle of enterprise beans at runtime Appendix C, EJB Vendors This appendix provides information about the vendors of EJB servers Copyright(c)2001 OReilly Associates
DRAFT, 10/21/017/6/2001 Copyright (c) 2001 O'Reilly & Associates 5 Chapter 7, EJB 2.0 CMP: Entity Relationships This chapter picks up where Chapter 6 left off, expanding your understanding of container-managed persistence to complex bean-to-bean relationships Chapter 8, EJB 2.0 CMP: EJB QL This chapter addresses the Enterprise JavaBeans Query Language (EJB QL), which is used to query EJBs and locate specific entity beans in EJB 2.0 container-managed persistence. Chapter 9, EJB 1.1: Container-Managed Persistence This chapter covers EJB 1.1 container-managed persistence, which is supported in EJB 2.0 for backward compatibility. Read this chapter only if you need to support legacy EJB applications. Chapter 10, Bean-Managed Persistence This chapter covers the development of bean-managed persistence beans including when to store, load, and remove data from the database. Chapter 11, Entity-Container Contract This chapter covers the general protocol between an entity bean and its container at runtime and applies to container-managed persistence in EJB 2.0 and 1.1, as well as bean-managed persistence. Chapter 12, Session Beans This chapter shows how to develop stateless and stateful session beans. Chapter 13, Message-Driven Beans This chapter shows how to develop message-driven beans in EJB 2.0. Chapter 14, Transactions This chapter provides an in-depth explanation of transactions and describes the transactional model defined by Enterprise JavaBeans. Chapter 15, Design Strategies This chapter provides some basic design strategies that can simplify your EJB development efforts and make your EJB system more efficient. Chapter 16, XML Deployment Descriptors This chapter provides an in-depth explanation of the XML deployment descriptors used in EJB 1.1 and 2.0. Chapter 17, Java 2, Enterprise Edition This chapter provides an overview of the Java 2, Enterprise Edition 1.3 and explains how 2.0 fits into this new platform. Appendix A, The Enterprise JavaBeans API This appendix provides a quick reference to the classes and interfaces defined in the EJB packages. Appendix B, State and Sequence Diagrams This appendix provides diagrams that clarify the life cycle of enterprise beans at runtime. Appendix C, EJB Vendors This appendix provides information about the vendors of EJB servers