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SourceLabs is rolling out the latest version of its open-source distribution of key application services for business applications, SASH 2.
Seattle-based SourceLabs also announced Aug. 1 that SASH 2 features integrated support for Apache Tomcat.
SourceLabs CEO Byron Sebastian said SASH 2 is composed of the most widely deployed open-source Java technologies used by the Global 2000. The distribution includes Spring, Axis, Struts, Hibernate and Tomcat, along with all software dependencies and patches. The application services include a container for business logic, data abstraction, building blocks for SOA (service-oriented architectures) and Web interfaces. SASH stands for Spring, Axis, Struts, Hibernate.
“Large enterprises have had to choose between proprietary solutions that are deemed reliable but in reality are bloated and overpriced, or open-source solutions that are considered too risky,” Sebastian said. “SourceLabs eliminates this tradeoff by providing the best of both worlds—stable, certified and fully integrated open-source technology that is backed by reliable product support.”
Much of the functionality in a standard J2EE application server is not used by most customers and applications, Sebastian told eWEEK in an interview.
“Servlet containers are core to all the applications deployed on app servers, but features like the EJB [Enterprise JavaBeans] container and distributed transaction processing are often unused overhead that is paid for not only in terms of license dollars, but also in terms of developers time to conquer the added complexity,” he said. “For the most part, this heavily hyped technology is overkill for modeling business logic, and open source projects like Spring have provided superior solutions using the plain old Java object—or POJO—model.”
Moreover, SASH 2 is a major step forward for SASH because its a complete open-source Java deployment platform, bringing together all the key open source Java technologies together into a single tested and supported solution, Sebastian said. In addition, the SASH application server platform comes instrumented with diagnostic probes, he said
“In the past buying an application server has been like buying a car without a fuel tank indicator or engine temperature gauge—theres not technology to warn you when something has gone wrong, or is about to,” Sebastian said. “Weve changed that. If something goes wrong, well tell you right away, and well jump on the support case, using our automated technology. No more scouring through log files the morning after.”
Sebastian also points out that the Spring and Hibernate open-source solutions “are not found together in any other solutions in this space, but they are two of the most widely used and popular open-source Java projects. Bringing these together, and making them available integrated together with Tomcat, is a big step forward for the industry and for us.”
SASH 2 provides fully supported environments for IBMs WebSphere, BEA Systems WebLogic, and Apaches Tomcat. To download a free evaluation kit of the core software in SASH 2, users can go to http://www.sourcelabs.org/sash.html. Meanwhile, a SASH 2 developer license is available for $299 with technical support, proactive alert probes and notification service.