ServletWebServer or WebServer ?

Question

What is the advantage of using org.apache.xmlrpc.webserver.ServletWebServer instead of or.apache.xmlrpc.webserver.WebServer when working with XMLRPC in JAVA?

Can I use functions that return array of primitives types or nulls with ServletWebServer?

Answer 1

The documentation sais, that if you use the ServletWebServer you will have the possibility to migrate to another servlet based webserver like Tomcat. I didn't experience any other advantages over the WebServer superclass.

If you still insist in using the WebServer, it is recommended to use its subclass, the ServletWebServer instead, which offers a minimal subset of the servlet API. In other words, you keep yourself the option to migrate to a real servlet engine later.

Answer 2

I recall using WebServer to launch a standalone RPC Server in a Swing application. My guess is that when using ServletWebServer you'll need the servlet-api jars.(see @Daff answer)

• If you're using the library in a non Web application, go for WebServer class, it will probably suit your needs.
• If you're using Apache XMLRPC in a Web application, why not use their servlet and register your handlers?

Read the Apache XMLRPC documentation to see which type you're able to return and how to add extensions(if needed).