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Table of Contents

Part 1  Getting started    1

1 Understanding Java servlets    3

1.1 What is a servlet?  3

Server responsibilities 3 F Server extensions 4

1.2 What is a servlet container?  5

The big picture 5 F Understanding servlet containers 6 F Using Tomcat 7

1.3 Hello World servlet  8

Code 8 F Compilation 9 F Deployment 9 F Execution 9

1.4 The relationship between a servlet container and the Servlet API  9

The javax.servlet package 10 F The javax.servlet.http package 11 F Advantages and disadvantages of the Servlet API 12

1.5 Summary  12

2 Understanding JavaServer Pages   14

2.1 What is a JSP page?  14

Server-side includes 15

2.2 Hello User  15

The HTML code 15 F The servlet code 16 F The JSP code 16

2.3 Servlet or JSP?  17

2.4 JSP architecture models  17

The Model 1 architecture 17 F The Model 2 architecture 18

2.5 A note about JSP syntax  19

2.6 Summary  20

3 Web application and HTTP basics   21

3.1 What is a web application? 22

Active and passive resources 22 F Web applications and the web application server 22

3.2 Understanding the HTTP protocol 23

HTTP basics 24 F The structure of an HTTP request 24 F The structure of an HTTP response 26

3.3 Summary 27

Part 2  Servlets   29

4 The Servlet model   31

4.1 Sending requests: Web browsers and HTTP methods 32

Comparing HTTP methods 33

4.2 Handling HTTP requests in an HttpServlet 34

4.3 Analyzing the request 36

Understanding ServletRequest 36 F Understanding HttpServletRequest 37

4.4 Sending the response 39

Understanding ServletResponse 39 F Understanding HttpServletResponse 42

4.5 Servlet life cycle 45

Loading and instantiating a servlet 45 F Initializing a servlet 46 F Servicing client requests 47 F Destroying a servlet 47 F Unloading a servlet 47 F Servlet state transition from the servlet containerís perspective 47

4.6 ServletConfig: a closer look 49

ServletConfig methods 49 F Example: a servlet and its deployment descriptor 50

4.7 ServletContext: a closer look 52

4.8 Beyond servlet basics 54

Sharing the data (attribute scopes) 55 F Coordinating servlets using RequestDispatcher 56 F Putting it all together: A simple banking application 58

4.9 Summary 61

4.10 Review questions 62

5 Structure and deployment   66

5.1 Directory structure of a web application 67

Understanding the document root directory 68 F Understanding the WEB-INF directory 68 F The web archive (WAR) file 69 F The default web application 69

5.2 The deployment descriptor: an overview 70

Example: A simple deployment descriptor 71 F Using the <servlet> element 72 F Using the <servlet-mapping> element 73 F Mapping a URL to a servlet 74

5.3 Summary 78

5.4 Review questions 78

6 The servlet container model   81

6.1 Initializing ServletContext 82

6.2 Understanding application events and listeners 83

javax.servlet.ServletContextListener 84 F javax.servlet.ServletContextAttributeListener 85 F javax.servlet.http.HttpSessionAttributeListener 86

6.3 Configuring a web application 86

6.4 Web applications in a distributed environment 88

Behavior of a ServletContext 89 F Behavior of an HttpSession 90

6.5 Summary 90

6.6 Review questions 91

7 Handling server-side exceptions   94

7.1 Handling exceptions programmatically 95

Handling business logic exceptions 97

7.2 Handling exceptions declaratively 99

Using declarative exception handling 99 F Using servlets and JSP pages as exception handlers 101

7.3 Using RequestDispatcher to handle exceptions 105

Handling exceptions thrown by RequestDispatcher 106

7.4 Logging 107

7.5 Summary 108

7.6 Review questions 109

8 Session management   113

8.1 Understanding state and sessions 114

8.2 Using HttpSession 115

Working with an HttpSession 116 F Handling session events with listener interfaces 118 F Expunging a session 123

8.3 Understanding session timeout 124

8.4 Implementing session support 125

Supporting sessions using cookies 126 F Supporting sessions using URL rewriting 127

8.5 Summary 129

8.6 Review questions 130

9 Developing secure web applications   133

9.1 Basic concepts 134

Authentication 134 F Authorization 134 F Data integrity 135 F Confidentiality or data privacy 135 F Auditing 135 F Malicious code 135 F Web site attacks 135

9.2 Understanding authentication mechanisms 136

HTTP Basic authentication 137 F HTTP Digest authentication 139 F HTTPS Client authentication 139 F FORM-based authentication 139 F Defining authentication mechanisms for web applications 140

9.3 Securing web applications declaratively 142

display-name 143 F web-resource-collection 143 F auth-constraint 144 F user-data-constraint 145 F Putting it all together 145

9.4 Securing web applications programmatically 149

9.5 Summary 151

9.6 Review questions 152

10 Developing thread-safe servlets   156

10.1 Understanding the multithreaded servlet model 157

10.2 Understanding the single-threaded model 159

The javax.servlet.SingleThreadModel interface 160

10.3 Variable scopes and thread safety 162

Local variables 163 F Instance variables 164 F Class (or static) variables 166

10.4 Attribute scopes and thread safety 166

Context scope 167 F Session scope 168 F Request scope 170

10.5 Summary 170

10.6 Review questions 171

Part 3  Java Server Pages   173

11 The JSP technology modelóthe basics   175

11.1 JSP syntax elements 176

Directives 177 F Declarations 178 F Scriptlets 179 F Expressions 180 F Actions 181 F Comments 182

11.2 The JSP page life cycle 184

JSP pages are servlets 184 F Understanding translation units 184 F JSP life-cycle phases 184 F JSP life-cycle example 188

11.3 Understanding JSP page directive attributes 191

The import attribute 192 F The session attribute 192 F The errorPage and isErrorPage attributes 192 F The language and extends attributes 194 F The buffer and autoFlush attributes 194 F The isThreadSafe attribute 194 F The info attribute 196 F The contentType and pageEncoding attributes 196

11.4 Summary 197

11.5 Review questions 198

12 The JSP technology modelóadvanced topics   200

12.1 Understanding the translation process 201

Using scripting elements 202 F Using conditional and iterative statements 203 F Using request-time attribute expressions 206 F Using escape sequences 206

12.2 Understanding JSP implicit variables and JSP implicit objects 210

application 212 F session 212 F request and response 213 F page 214 F pageContext 214 F out 215 F config 216 F exception 217

12.3 Understanding JSP page scopes 218

Application scope 219 F Session scope 219 F Request scope 220 F Page scope 221

12.4 JSP pages as XML documents 223

The root element 224 F Directives and scripting elements 225 F Text, comments, and actions  225

12.5 Summary 227

12.6 Review questions 227

13 Reusable web components   231

13.1 Static inclusion 232

Accessing variables from the included page 233 F Implications of static inclusion 234

13.2 Dynamic inclusion 234

Using jsp:include 235 F Using jsp:forward 236 F Passing parameters to dynamically included components 237 F Sharing objects with dynamically included components 239

13.3 Summary 243

13.4 Review questions 244

14 Using JavaBeans   248

14.1 JavaBeans: a brief overview 249

JavaBeans from the JSP perspective 249 F The JavaBean advantage 250 F Serialized JavaBeans 252

14.2 Using JavaBeans with JSP actions 255

Declaring JavaBeans using <jsp:useBean> 255 F Mutating properties using <jsp:setProperty> 263 F Accessing properties using <jsp:getProperty> 266

14.3 JavaBeans in servlets 268

14.4 Accessing JavaBeans from scripting elements 271

14.5 More about properties in JavaBeans 273

Using non-string data type properties 273 F Using indexed properties 275

14.6 Summary 277

14.7 Review questions 278

15 Using custom tags   282

15.1 Getting started 283

New terms 283 F Understanding tag libraries 284

15.2 Informing the JSP engine about a custom tag library 285

Location of a TLD file 286 F Associating URIs with TLD file locations 287 F Understanding explicit mapping 287 F Resolving URIs to TLD file locations 288 F Understanding the prefix 290

15.3 Using custom tags in JSP pages 290

Empty tags 291 F Tags with attributes 292 F Tags with JSP code 293 F Tags with nested custom tags 294

15.4 Summary 295

15.5 Review questions 295

16 Developing custom tag libraries   298

16.1 Understanding the tag library descriptor 300

The <taglib> element 301 F The <tag> element 303 F The <attribute> element 304 F The <body-content> element 306

16.2 The Tag Extension API 308

16.3 Implementing the Tag interface 310

Understanding the methods of the Tag interface 311 F An empty tag that prints HTML text 314 F An empty tag that accepts an attribute 316 F A non-empty tag that includes its body content 317

16.4 Implementing the IterationTag interface 319

Understanding the IterationTag methods 319 F A simple iterative tag 321

16.5 Implementing the BodyTag interface 323

Understanding the methods of BodyTag 323 F A tag that processes its body 324

16.6 Extending TagSupport and BodyTagSupport 327

The TagSupport class 328 F The BodyTagSupport class 328 F Accessing implicit objects 329 F Writing cooperative tags 332

16.7 Whatís more? 337

16.8 Summary 338

16.9 Review questions 339

Part 4  Patterns and filters   343

17 Design patterns   345

17.1 Design patterns: a brief history 346

The civil engineering patterns 346 F The Gang of Four patterns 346 F The distributed design patterns 348 F The J2EE patterns 349

17.2 Patterns for the SCWCD exam 352

The pattern template 352 F Value Object 354 F Model-View-Controller (MVC) 358 F Data Access Object (DAO) 360 F Business Delegate 364 F Front Controller 368 F Putting it all together 371

17.3 Summary 373

17.4 Review questions 373

18 Using filters   376

18.1 What is a filter? 377

How filtering works 378 F Uses of filters 379 F The Hello World filter 379

18.2 The Filter API 381

The Filter interface 382 F The FilterConfig interface 384 F The FilterChain interface 384 F The request and response wrapper classes 385

18.3 Configuring a filter 385

The <filter> element 385 F The <filter-mapping> element 386 F Configuring a filter chain 386

18.4 Advanced features 389

Using the request and response wrappers 389 F Important points to remember about filters 395 F Using filters with MVC 395

18.5 Summary 396

Appendices

A   Installing Tomcat 4.0.1   397

B   An introduction to XML   402

C   A sample web.xml file   411

D   Review Q & A   415

E   Exam Quick Prep   475

index 521
CD-ROM contents 531

DESCRIPTION

With the tremendous penetration of J2EE in the enterprise, passing the Sun Certified Web Component Developer exam has become an important qualification for Java developers. To pass the SCWCD exam (Exam Number: 310-080) you need to answer 60 questions in 90 minutes and get 61% of them right. You also need $150, and this book.

SCWCD Exam Study Kit helps you learn all the concepts, large and small, that you must know to pass the exam. In this must-have book, you can be sure that no exam topics are missed.

The exam is for Sun Certified Java Programmers who have a certain amount of experience with Servlets and JSPs, but for those who do not, the book starts with three introductory chapters on these topics. Although SCWCD Exam Study Kit has one purpose, to help you get certified, you will find yourself returning to it as a reference after passing the exam.

The CD includes three bonus practice exams from the popular test simulator, JWebPlus, which helps you reinforce key concepts. All questions are followed with detailed explanations. It also includes Tomcat, the Servlet/JSP specifications, related RFCs and a convenient, searchable electronic version of the book.

The ebook version includes the same contents as the CD: a searchable version of the book and the full JWebPlus application/test simulator, as well as instructions on downloading Tomcat.

What's Inside:

• Exception handling
• Session management
• Security
• Custom tags
• Design patterns
• Filters
• All exam objectives, carefully explained
• 120 review questions
• Quick Prep section for last-minute cramming
• CD contains:
• JWebPlus simulator (3 practice tests, 180 additional questions)
• Searchable PDFs of entire book
• Tomcat
• Servlet/JSP specifications

WHAT THE READERS SAY ABOUT THIS BOOK...

"SCWCD Exam study kit book from manning is GOOD. Forget the other one, too many errors, if you are not interested to burn your money and read a long-long list of errata plus errata for erratas."
--A reader from Java Programmer Certification Exam And Training

"I also purchased the book by Sybex for the SCWCD. After reading two chapters in that book, I switched to this book and never looked back."
-- An Amazon reader

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS...

Hanumant Deshmukh develops Java certification software for Enthuware.com and manages JDiscuss.com, a site for Java certification aspirants. He lives in Iselin, New Jersey.

Jignesh Malavia is a senior technical architect at SourceCode, Inc. who writes Enthuware.com SCWCD exams. He lives in Ardsley, New York..

Related Titles

• SCWCD Exam Study Kit Second Edition Java Web Component Developer Certification Hanumant Deshmukh, Jignesh Malavia, and Matthew Scarpino - SCWCD Exam 310-081

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