Apache Axis2 is a web service engine. It is a complete redesign and re-write of the widely used

Apache Axis Apache Axis (Apache eXtensible Interaction System) is an open-source, XML based Web service framework. It consists of a Java and a C++ implementation of the SOAP server, and various utilities and APIs for generating and deploying Web service appl ...

SOAP Soap is a salt of a fatty acid used in a variety of cleansing and lubricating products. In a domestic setting, soaps are surfactants usually used for washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping. In industrial settings, soaps are use ...

stack. Implementations of Axis2 are available in

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

and C. Axis2 provides the capability to add Web services interfaces to

Web application A web application (or web app) is application software that is accessed using a web browser. Web applications are delivered on the World Wide Web to users with an active network connection. History In earlier computing models like client-serve ...

s. It can also function as a standalone

application server An application server is a server that hosts applications or software that delivers a business application through a communication protocol. An application server framework is a service layer model. It includes software components available to a ...

Why Apache Axis2

A new architecture for Axis2 was introduced during the August 2004 Axis2 Summit in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Some concepts from Axis 1.x, like handlers etc., have been preserved in the new architecture. Apache Axis2 supports SOAP 1.1 and SOAP 1.2, and it has integrated support for the

REST Rest or REST may refer to: Relief from activity * Sleep ** Bed rest * Kneeling * Lying (position) * Sitting * Squatting position Structural support * Structural support ** Rest (cue sports) ** Armrest ** Headrest ** Footrest Arts and entert ...

style of Web services. The same business-logic implementation can offer both a WS-* style interface as well as a

POX Pox may refer to: Diseases *Poxviridae, a family of viruses *Buffalopox, a disease of buffaloes *Camelpox, a disease of camels *Canarypox, a disease of wild and captive birds *Chickenpox, a highly contagious illness caused by a primary infection ...

style interface simultaneously. Axis2/Java has support for

Spring Framework The Spring Framework is an application framework and inversion of control container for the Java platform. The framework's core features can be used by any Java application, but there are extensions for building web applications on top of the Java ...

. Axis2/C is a high-performance Web services implementation. It has been implemented with portability and ability to be embedded or hosted in Apache Httpd, Microsoft IIS or Axis Http Server
See article about Apache Axis2/C Performance (2008)
Latest release occurred on 2009 . Axis2 came with many new features, enhancements and industry specification implementations. Key features offered include:

Axis2 Features

Apache Axis2 includes support for following standards: * WS - ReliableMessaging - * WS - Coordination - Via Apache Kandula2 * WS - AtomicTransaction - Via Apache Kandula2 * WS - SecurityPolicy - Via Apache Rampart * WS - Security - Via Apache Rampart * WS - Trust - Via Apache Rampart * WS - SecureConversation - Via Apache Rampart * SAML 1.1 - Via Apache Rampart *

SAML 2.0 Security Assertion Markup Language 2.0 (SAML 2.0) is a version of the SAML standard for exchanging authentication and authorization identities between security domains. SAML 2.0 is an XML-based protocol that uses security tokens conta ...

- Via Apache Rampart * WS - Addressing - Module included as part of Axis2 core Below a list of features and selling points cited from the Apache axis site: *Speed - Axis2 uses its own object model and StAX (Streaming API for XML) *Low memory foot print - Axis2 was designed ground-up keeping low memory foot print in mind. *AXIOM - Axis2 comes with its own light-weight object model
AXIOM
*Hot Deployment - Axis2 is equipped with the capability of deploying Web services and handlers while the system is up and running. *Asynchronous Web services - Axis2 now supports asynchronous Web services and asynchronous Web services invocation using non-blocking clients and transports. *MEP Support - Axis2 now comes handy with the flexibility to support Message Exchange Patterns (MEPs) with in-built support for basic MEPs defined in

WSDL The Web Services Description Language (WSDL ) is an XML-based interface description language that is used for describing the functionality offered by a web service. The acronym is also used for any specific WSDL description of a web service (also ...

2.0. *Flexibility - The Axis2 architecture gives the developer complete freedom to insert extensions into the engine for custom header processing, system management, and anything else you can imagine. *Stability - Axis2 defines a set of published interfaces *Component-oriented Deployment - You can define reusable networks of Handlers to implement common patterns of processing for your applications, or to distribute to partners. *Transport Framework - We have a clean and simple abstraction for integrating and using Transports (i.e., senders and listeners for SOAP over various protocols such as SMTP, FTP,

message-oriented middleware Message-oriented middleware (MOM) is software or hardware infrastructure supporting sending and receiving messages between distributed systems. MOM allows application modules to be distributed over heterogeneous platforms and reduces the complex ...

, etc.), and the core of the engine is completely transport-independent. *WSDL support - Axis2 supports the

Web Services Description Language The Web Services Description Language (WSDL ) is an XML-based interface description language that is used for describing the functionality offered by a web service. The acronym is also used for any specific WSDL description of a web service (also ...

, version 1.1 and 2.0, which allows you to easily build stubs to access remote services, and also to automatically export machine-readable descriptions of your deployed services from Axis2. *Add-ons - Several Web services specifications have been incorporated includin
WSS4J
for security (Apache Rampart), Sandesha for reliable messaging, Kandula which is an encapsulation of

WS-Coordination WS-Coordination is a Web Services specification developed by BEA Systems, IBM, and Microsoft and accepted bOASIS Web Services Transaction TCin it It describes an extensible framework for providing protocols that coordinate the actions of distribut ...

WS-AtomicTransaction Web Service Atomic Transaction is an OASIS standard. To achieve all-or-nothing property for a group of services, it defines three protocols (completion, volatile two-phase commit, and durable two-phase commit), and a set of services. These protoco ...

and WS-BusinessActivity. *Composition and Extensibility - Modules and phases improve support for composability and extensibility. Modules support composability and can also support new WS-* specifications in a simple and clean manner. They are however not hot deployable as they change the overall behavior of the system.

Axis2 Modules

Axis2 modules provide QoS features like security, reliable messaging, etc. *

Apache Rampart module Apache Rampart is an implementation of the WS-Security standard for the Axis2 Web services engine by the Apache Software Foundation. It supplies security features to web services by implementing the following specifications: * WS-Security * WS- ...

- Apache Rampart modules adds

WS-Security Web Services Security (WS-Security, WSS) is an extension to SOAP to apply security to Web services. It is a member of the Web service specifications and was published by OASIS. The protocol specifies how integrity and confidentiality can be enfor ...

features to Axis2 engine *Apache Sandesha module - An implementation of

WS-ReliableMessaging WS-ReliableMessaging describes a protocol that allows SOAP messages to be reliably delivered between distributed applications in the presence of software component, system, or network failures. The original specification was written by BEA Syste ...

specification

Related technologies

Apache CXF Apache CXF is an open source software project developing a Web services framework. It originated as the combination of Celtix developed by IONA Technologies and XFire developed by a team hosted at Codehaus in 2006. These two projects were combin ...

, other Apache web services framework (old

XFire Xfire (pronounced "X-Fire") was a proprietary freeware instant messaging service for gamers that also served as a game server browser with various other features. It was available for Microsoft Windows. Xfire was originally developed by Ult ...

& Celtix) *

Java Web Services Development Pack The Java Web Services Development Pack (JWSDP) is a free software development kit (SDK) for developing Web Services, Web applications and Java applications with the newest technologies for Java. Oracle replaced JWSDP with GlassFish. All component ...

, web services framework *

XML Interface for Network Services XML Interface for Network Services (XINS) is an open-source technology for definition and implementation of internet applications, which enforces a specification-oriented approach. Specification-oriented approach The specification-oriented appr ...

, RPC/web services framework *

Web Services Invocation Framework The Web Services Invocation Framework (WSIF) supports a simple and flexible Java API for invoking any Web Services Description Language (WSDL)-described service. Using WSIF, WSDL can become the centerpiece of an integration framework for accessing ...

, Java API for invoking Web services

Axis2 Books

*Axis 2 knowledge base

References

Axis2 Apache Axis2 is a web service engine. It is a complete redesign and re-write of the widely used Apache Axis SOAP stack. Implementations of Axis2 are available in Java and C. Axis2 provides the capability to add Web services interfaces to Web ...