Specifications

VMware and BEA WebLogic Solutions Deployment Guide
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1.2 BEA WebLogic Server Architecture
The WebLogic Server 9.2 is a complete implementation of the Sun Microsystems J2EE 1.4 specification that
provides a standard set of APIs for creating distributed Java applications that can access a wide variety of
services, such as databases, messaging services, and connections to external enterprise systems. End-user
clients access these applications using Web browser clients or Java clients.
In addition to the J2EE implementation, WebLogic Server enables enterprises to deploy mission-critical
applications in a robust, secure, highly available, and scalable environment. These features allow
enterprises to configure clusters of WebLogic Server instances to distribute load, and provide extra capacity
in case of hardware or other failures. New diagnostic tools allow system administrators to monitor and tune
the performance of deployed applications and the WebLogic Server environment itself. You can also
configure WebLogic Server to monitor and tune application throughput automatically without human
intervention. Extensive security features protect access to services, keep enterprise data secure, and
prevent malicious attacks
BEA WebLogic Server
®
provides the core services that ensure a reliable, available, scalable, and high-
performing execution environment for your application. It includes Apache Beehive, a cross-container
framework that provides a consistent, abstract, and easily toolable programming model, providing a way
for developers to build applications more productively.
WebLogic Server implements Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) version 1.4 technologies. J2EE is
the standard platform for developing multi-tier Enterprise applications based on the Java programming
language. The technologies that make up J2EE were developed collaboratively by Sun Microsystems and
other software vendors, including BEA Systems.
WebLogic Server J2EE applications are based on standardized, modular components. WebLogic Server
provides a complete set of services for those modules and handles many details of application behavior
automatically, without requiring programming.
J2EE defines module behaviors and packaging in a generic, portable way, postponing run-time configuration
until the module is actually deployed on an application server.
J2EE includes deployment specifications for Web applications, EJB modules, Web Services, Enterprise
applications, client applications, and connectors. J2EE does not specify how an application is deployed on
the target server—only how a standard module or application is packaged.
For each module type, the specifications define the files required and their location in the directory structure.
Java is platform independent, so you can edit and compile code on any platform, and test your applications
on development WebLogic Servers running on other platforms. For example, it is common to develop
WebLogic Server applications on a PC running Windows or Linux, regardless of the platform where the
application is ultimately deployed.