Apache Tomcat is a web container, or application server developed at the Apache Software Foundation. Tomcat implements the Java Servlet and the JavaServer Pages (JSP) specifications from Sun Microsystems, providing an environment for Java Code to run in cooperation with a web server. Tomcat: The Definitive Guide was written to help you understand how and why Tomcat was developed.

Tomcat: The Definitive Guide has been updated to work with the latest version of Tomcat. In this second edition, you will find details on running Tomcat on all major platforms such as Windows, Linux, OS X, Solaris, and FreeBSD. Tomcat: The Definitive Guide is 476 pages in length and is divided into 11 chapters.

Chapter 1, "Getting Started with Tomcat," begins by giving you the knowledge to make informed decisions on the choices that are available when installing Tomcat. This chapter focuses on installation and setup. Chapter 2, "Configuring Tomcat," describes when you should use Tomcat as a standalone web server and when it should be used as a servlet container. You will learn how to turn on and turn off the auto-reloading of servlets, how to relocate the webapps directory, as well as other topics such as how to enable common gateway interface scripting. This chapter finishes up with an introduction to Tomcat administration.

Chapter 3, "Deploying Servlet and JSP Web Applications in Tomcat," explains the layout of a web application, how to deploy a web application, and how to deploy individual servlets and JSP pages. Chapter 4, "Tomcat Performance Tuning," shows you how to measure and improve your Tomcat performance. You will adjust the number of processor threads, JVM, and OS performance issues as they relate to Tomcat. You will also learn how capacity planning can affect performance.

Chapter 5, "Integration with Apache Web Server," examines that even though Tomcat can perform as a standalone Web Server, it can "thrive" in front of, or behind Apache httpd web server. Chapter 6, "Tomcat Security," will help you protect your site from being attacked from those who think it is OK to exploit vulnerabilities in your server software.