To support using Apache Ant with Java 2 Platform, Enterprise
Edition (J2EE) applications running on the application server, the
product provides a copy of the Ant tool and a set of Ant tasks that
extend the capabilities of Ant to include product-specific functions.
Ant has become a very popular tool among Java programmers.
About this task
Apache Ant is a Java-based build tool. In theory, it is similar
to Make, but Ant is different. Instead of a model in which it is extended
with shell-based commands, Ant is extended using Java classes. Instead
of writing shell commands, XML-based configuration files are used.
These files reference a target tree in which various tasks are run.
Each task is run by an object that implements a particular Task interface.
Avoid trouble: Calling the WebSphere_Ant (WsAnt)
scripts outside of the ws_ant launcher is not supported
or recommended.
gotcha
ws_ant.sh/bat (or ws_ant on
i5/OS) is a wrapper around Apache Ant that sets up a WebSphere specific
environment and includes classpath, WebSphere Ant tasks, and environment
variables. It allows the same command line options as Apache Ant.
For example, a simple invocation of a build file named myBuildFile.xml could
be called as: ws_ant.sh -f myBuildFile.xml. The
following example uses a build file named build.xml by
default: ./ws_ant.sh
Note: In order to run, ws_ant needs
either an explicit profile or a default profile.
By combining
the following tasks with those provided by Ant, you can create build
scripts that compile, package, install, and test your application
on the application server:
- Install and uninstall applications
- Start and stop servers in a base configuration
- Run administrative scripts or commands
- Run the Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) deployment tool
- Run the JavaServer Pages (JSP) file precompilation tool
For more detailed information about Ant, refer to the Apache organization
Web site.
- To run Ant and have it automatically see the WebSphere
classes, use the ws_ant command.
The ws_ant command
is provided with the Apache Ant tool.
See
the app_server_root/bin/ws_ant.bat|sh
file for the Apache Ant tool.
- Use Ant tasks for deployment and server operation.
The Apache Ant tasks for the product reside in the Java package: com.ibm.websphere.ant.tasks.
The API documentation for this package contains detailed information
about all of the Ant tasks that are provided and how to use them.
See com.ibm.websphere.ant.tasks API
documentation in the Reference section of the information center.
- Use Ant tasks for building application code by using the
Application Server Toolkit (which is a CD included with WebSphere
Application Server as a separately installable toolkit)
Within the Application Server Toolkit product documentation,
open the section Working with Ant. You can locate the topic
by searching for Working with Ant, or from the navigation view,
select Help > Help Contents > Application Server Toolkit > J2EE
applications > Working with Ant.
- Use the Apache Struts framework to create an extensible
development environment for your application, based on published standards
and proven design patterns.
Apache struts is a framework
that is supported by the open source community.
IBM WebSphere
Application Server provides the Apache Struts JAR file in the install_root/optionalLibraries/Apache/Struts/1.1
directory of your product installation. If using Struts in your application
or Application Server, you need to configure a Shared Library that
points to the Struts library JAR file.
The Struts framework
provides the invisible underpinnings every professional Web application
needs to survive. The core of Struts is a flexible control layer based
on standard technologies such as Java Servlets, JavaBeans, ResourceBundles,
and Extensible Markup Language (XML).
Struts encourages application
architectures based on the Model 2 approach, a variation of the classic
Model-View-Controller (MVC) design paradigm. Struts provides its own
Controller component and integrates with other technologies to provide
the Model and the View. For the Model, Struts can interact with any
standard data access technology, including Enterprise Java Beans (EJB)
components, and JDBC. For the View, Struts works well with JavaServer
Pages (JSP) files, XSLT, or other presentation systems.