I had the opportunity to attend a Red Hat training class on JBoss Application Administration in the LABVANTAGE training center located in Somerset, NJ. Before this class, I’d only worked with the Oracle Application Server 10g. I was quite impressed with the capabilities of the JBoss Application server.

First, I want to mention that the LABVANTAGE training center is wonderful. The classroom is configured well for PC training classes, well-stocked with snacks, drinks and coffee, therefore creating a very inviting learning environment. I appreciated the one cup at a time coffee maker, those of you who know me know that I am a “coffee achiever” and run on a high-grade dark roast coffee. This requirement was well satisfied the whole week. The desks and computers were comfortable to work on as there was plenty of room for both the keyboard and manual on the desk, which can easily make many PC training classes awkward.

JBoss is an open-source Java EE-based application server from Red Hat. JBoss implements the full Java EE part of Java. Also, because it is Java-based, the JBoss application server operates cross-platform, running on any OS that supports Java. I was quite impressed with the capabilities of JBoss and how easy it is to install and configure. The install is essentially to unzip the distribution onto the server. I also found it quite easy to deploy applications. In addition, once installed and configured it is also simple to backup and restore.

Unlike other application servers, JBoss is not an integrated environment. There is no development environment, JVM or database built into the application server. Instead, each of these can be supplied by your in-house standard installations or a preferred vendor.

The current JBoss application server is fully featured, and supports SSL, LDAP and clustering. The app server has a new GUI, called JConsole, that displays the application server processes and work in progress.

The class exercises were quite complete and provided a chance to work with all the major features discussed in the class. These included the installation of the Java JVM, the JBoss application server, configuring and connecting via LDAP, setting up encrypted passwords, SSL and configuring clustering to name a few.

While I do not feel like a fully seasoned JBoss administrator just yet, I do feel like I have a solid foundation to install, configure and deploy applications in a JBoss application server. I also whole-heartedly recommend installing applications on this robust app server.

About LABVANTAGE

LABVANTAGE Solutions, Inc. is headquartered in Somerset, NJ, with offices around the world. We offer a comprehensive portfolio of products and solutions for the laboratory, including Laboratory Information Management Solutions (LIMS), quality electronic laboratory notebook (ELN) and business intelligence. www.labvantage.com.