6.5 Application Component Provider Tasks

The task of an Application Component Provider assumes different levels of complexity and effort depending on whether the programming model used is based on the J2EE application programming model or not. In either case, an Application Component Provider has to write the business and application logic for the application.

In the absence of J2EE platform support, the Component Provider faces significant complexity when programming access to enterprise information system resources (data and functions managed by an enterprise information system). This complexity comes from dealing with security, transaction, and application programming models that are specific to an enterprise information system. A Component Provider has to manage transactions using a transaction demarcation API specific to an enterprise information system, such as the transaction demarcation API defined in the java.sql.Connection interface in the JDBC 2.0 API. In the application, the Application Component Provider has to explicitly code security checks to restrict enterprise information system access to valid users.

Using the J2EE application programming model, an Application Component Provider faces reduced complexity by relying on the Web and EJB containers to handle transactions, security, and scalability related to enterprise information system access. The Application Component Provider can focus on the task of writing business and application logic and use a simple client-oriented API for accessing the enterprise information system. The task of accessing enterprise information system resources from the application code is made even easier through the use of enterprise application development tools.

By letting J2EE containers manage transactions, security, and scalability, Application Component Providers focus on what they do the best: writing business and application logic. The J2EE platform vendors focus on their core strengths: multiuser, secure, transactional, scalable implementations of J2EE platform that enable different enterprise information systems to plug into the J2EE platform. Together Application Component Providers and J2EE Platform Providers succeed in ensuring that enterprises can rely on J2EE applications to extend their enterprise information systems without compromising the information stored in these systems.