Chapter 9. Geronimo Plugins

Apache Geronimo provides a mechanism for users to extend its functionality through plugins. In this chapter, we will explore how to extend the functionality of Apache Geronimo, by using Geronimo plugins. In fact, all of the Java EE functionality in Apache Geronimo is installed as plugins. For example, the web services functionality is provided through the Axis, Axis2, and CXF plugins. EJB functionality is provided through the OpenEJB plugin, and so on. Therefore, if you want to extend the server to provide new functionality, such as job scheduling, then you can write a plugin to integrate a scheduler (such as Quartz) into Apache Geronimo. There are also a large number of plugins available for Apache Geronimo already. We will also cover the custom server assemblies feature in this chapter. This feature will enable you to export custom server assemblies, from either the server's Administration Console or the command-line shell. In this chapter, you will learn about:

• Developing and installing Apache Geronimo plugins

• Extending the Administration Console through plugins

• Creating custom server assemblies