SpringSource Leverages Apache Tomcat for New App Server

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. -- On the heels of its recent application server news, SpringSource has announced yet another application server offering, this time it is an enterprise version of Apache Tomcat, known as the SpringSource tc Server.

SpringSource, the company behind the Spring Framework, announced the new SpringSource tc Server at the company’s annual developer conference, SpringOne Americas 2008, held here.

“SpringSource tc Server is essentially Tomcat, except it’s better,” said Rod Johnson, CEO of SpringSource, during his keynote.

Tomcat is the most widely used Java application server, analysts say. SpringSource tc Server is hardened for enterprise use and coupled with mission-critical operational capabilities and support that systems administrators and developers require from the industry’s leading Tomcat support provider.

According to a recent extensive Evans Data research study, nearly 70 percent of respondents reported that Tomcat is in production within their organizations.

In October, SpringSource announced the SpringSource dm Server, which is a modular Open Services Gateway Initiative (OSGi) based Java application server that is designed to run enterprise Java applications and Spring-powered applications with a new degree of flexibility and reliability. Now the company that was founded to revolutionize the Java application server market comes right back two months later with a new application server solution.

“SpringSource tc Server is suited for organizations using Spring and who are considering migrating off more expensive and heavyweight application servers, as well as for current Tomcat users who need additional enterprise-class server capabilities,” said Peter Cooper-Ellis, senior vice president of engineering and product management for SpringSource. “If your application is purely a Web application, meaning that it is developed using servlets and JSPs [JavaServer Pages], and you require distributed management capabilities, advanced diagnostics and enterprise-level support, SpringSource tc Server provides these capabilities and enables support for Web applications at a significantly lower cost and with a powerful and lightweight solution.”

SpringSource tc Server includes Apache Tomcat-enhanced operational management capabilities and advanced server and application diagnostics. The server is packaged and certified on a wide variety of environments and supported by enterprise-level, mission-critical support, SpringSource officials said.