Tutorials : Simplify Your Java Configurations:

Simplify Your Java Configurations

by Keld H. Hansen

There are many ways to configure Java applications: through Java's Properties files, XML files, databases, and even from the command line. Each of these methods has its own advantages—and its drawbacks, but unfortunately they all offer different ways to access the data values Wouldn't it be nice if there was a uniform API for all of these methods? Something like:

String waitTime = config.getString("waitTime");

In the Apache Commons project, you can find a rather anonymous package that will help you achieve these features. It's called Commons Configuration. This article provides a short introduction to the package, with several coding examples.

It's Simple to Use

package hansen.playground;

import org.apache.commons.configuration.Configuration;
import org.apache.commons.configuration.ConfigurationException;
import org.apache.commons.configuration.PropertiesConfiguration;

public class MyFirstTry {

   public static void main(String[] args) throws ConfigurationException {

      // Using a properties file
      Configuration config = new PropertiesConfiguration
("myfirsttry.properties");
      String day = config.getString("day");
      System.out.println(day + ", " + dayInt);
   }

}

day = 13

• XMLConfiguration: This implementation handles parameters from XML files.
• DatabaseConfiguration: This implementation consists of parameters from a database.
• JNDIConfiguration: This implementation uses a JNDI datasource.
• SystemConfiguration: This implementation obtains system properties, e.g. from the command line.
• ServletContextConfiguration: This implementation receives the init parameters for the servlet context.

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