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Learn How to Create and Run Cloud-Native Java Microservices with Open Liberty



How to Download Open Liberty




Are you looking for a lightweight open framework for building fast and efficient cloud-native Java microservices? If so, you might want to check out Open Liberty, an open source project that provides a flexible and modular server runtime for Java developers. In this article, we will show you how to download Open Liberty and get started with developing, deploying, and monitoring your microservices in any cloud environment.


What is Open Liberty?




Open Liberty is an open framework for the Java ecosystem that allows developing microservices using features of the Eclipse MicroProfile and Jakarta EE platforms. It is a flexible, fast, and lightweight Java runtime that seems promising for cloud-native microservices development. The framework allows you to configure only the features your app needs, resulting in a smaller memory footprint during startup. Also, it is deployable on any cloud platform using containers like Docker and Kubernetes. It supports rapid development by live reloading of the code for quick iteration. It also offers zero migration, meaning that you can focus on what's important, not the APIs changing under you.




download open liberty




Why use Open Liberty?




There are many reasons why Open Liberty is an ideal choice for developing and deploying microservices. Here are some of them:


  • It is open source and community-driven, so you can benefit from the latest innovations and best practices.



  • It is compatible with the latest standards and APIs, such as Jakarta EE 9 and MicroProfile 5.



  • It is modular and flexible, so you can add or remove features as needed.



  • It is fast and lightweight, so you can start up quickly and use less resources.



  • It is cloud-native and container-friendly, so you can deploy and scale easily on any cloud.



  • It is developer-friendly and productive, so you can code faster and test easier.



Prerequisites




To download and use Open Liberty, you need to have the following prerequisites:


  • A Java Development Kit (JDK) version 8 or higher.



  • A build tool such as Maven or Gradle.



  • A code editor or IDE such as Eclipse or Visual Studio Code.



  • A Docker engine if you want to use Docker containers.



  • A Kubernetes cluster if you want to use Kubernetes orchestration.



Get Started with Open Liberty




There are three ways to get started with Open Liberty: create a starter application, add to an existing application, or download package.


Create a starter application




The easiest way to create a starter application for developing cloud-native Java applications on Open Liberty that use Jakarta EE and MicroProfile APIs is to use the . This tool allows you to select the development tools that you prefer to use, such as Maven or Gradle, Java SE version, Jakarta EE and MicroProfile versions, and the features that you want to include in your application. Then, you can download a zip file that contains the starter project, which you can import into your code editor or IDE and start coding.


Add to an existing application




If you already have an existing Java application that you want to run on Open Liberty, you can add the Open Liberty Maven Plugin or Gradle Plugin to your project's build file. These plugins allow you to easily build, test, and deploy your application on Open Liberty. They also provide a dev mode that enables hot reload and deployment, unit testing, integration testing, and debugging.


Download package




If you want to download the Open Liberty runtime package directly, you can go to the page and choose the package that suits your needs. There are different types of packages available, such as:


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  • Open Liberty Runtime: This is the core runtime package that contains the Open Liberty server and the default features.



  • All GA Features: This is an extended runtime package that contains all the features that are generally available for production use.



  • Java EE 8 Web Profile: This is a runtime package that contains only the features required for the Java EE 8 Web Profile specification.



  • Java EE 8 Full Platform: This is a runtime package that contains all the features required for the Java EE 8 Full Platform specification.



After downloading the package, you can unzip it and start using the Open Liberty server.


Develop Cloud-Native Java Microservices with Open Liberty




Once you have downloaded Open Liberty and created or added your application, you can start developing cloud-native Java microservices using the features of Jakarta EE and MicroProfile. Here are some tips on how to use these features effectively:


Use features




Open Liberty features are modular components that provide specific functionality for your application. For example, there are features for web applications, RESTful services, security, persistence, messaging, fault tolerance, health checks, metrics, and more. You can enable or disable features by adding or removing them from your server.xml configuration file. For example, if you want to use CDI, JAX-RS, JSON-P, and JSON-B in your application, you can add the following feature to your server.xml:



cdi-2.0


jaxrs-2.1


jsonp-1.1


jsonb-1.0


You can also use convenience features that group together related features for easier configuration. For example, if you want to use all the features required for the Jakarta EE 8 Web Profile specification, you can add the following feature to your server.xml:



webProfile-8.0


Use convenience features




Open Liberty also provides convenience features that simplify the development and testing of your application. For example, there are convenience features for:


  • Servlet: This feature enables servlet support and automatically adds features such as CDI, JSP, EL, and JSF.



  • JDBC: This feature enables JDBC support and automatically adds features such as connection pooling and transaction management.



  • JPA: This feature enables JPA support and automatically adds features such as persistence providers and bean validation.



  • Jakarta RESTful Web Services: This feature enables JAX-RS support and automatically adds features such as JSON-P and JSON-B.



  • Jakarta Contexts and Dependency Injection: This feature enables CDI support and automatically adds features such as interceptors and decorators.



  • Jakarta Authorization: This feature enables authorization support and automatically adds features such as security annotations and role mapping.



  • Jakarta Authentication: This feature enables authentication support and automatically adds features such as security annotations and identity stores.



  • Jakarta Batch: This feature enables batch processing support and automatically adds features such as job operators and listeners.



  • Jakarta Bean Validation: This feature enables bean validation support and automatically adds features such as validation providers and constraints.



  • Jakarta Enterprise Beans: This feature enables EJB support and automatically adds features such as timers and remote interfaces.



  • Jakarta Expression Language: This feature enables EL support and automatically adds features such as lambda expressions and collection operations.



  • Jakarta JSON Binding: This feature enables JSON-B support and automatically adds features such as adapters and serializers.



  • Jakarta JSON Processing: This feature enables JSON-P support and automatically adds features such as parsers and generators.



  • Jakarta Mail: This feature enables mail support and automatically adds features such as SMTP, IMAP, and POP3 protocols.



  • Jakarta Messaging: This feature enables JMS support and automatically adds features such as queues, topics, and listeners.



  • Jakarta Persistence: This feature enables JPA support and automatically adds features such as entity managers and query languages.



  • Jakarta Server Faces: This feature enables JSF support and automatically adds features such as facelets, validators, and converters.



  • Jakarta Server Pages: This feature enables JSP support and automatically adds features such as tag libraries and expression language.



  • Jakarta Transactions: This feature enables JTA support and automatically adds features such as transaction managers and user transactions.



  • Jakarta WebSocket: This feature enables WebSocket support and automatically adds features such as endpoints, encoders, and decoders.



Use dev mode for fast iteration




One of the most useful convenience features of Open Liberty is the dev mode. This feature allows you to run your application in a continuous development mode that automatically detects changes in your source code or configuration files and recompiles and redeployes your application. It also enables hot testing, meaning that you can run unit tests or integration tests on demand or automatically after every change. Moreover, it supports hot debugging, meaning that you can attach a debugger to your application and set breakpoints, watch variables, and step through your code.


To use the dev mode, you need to have the Open Liberty Maven Plugin or Gradle Plugin in your project's build file. Then, you can run the following command in your terminal:


mvn liberty:dev


or


gradle libertyDev


This will start the Open Liberty server in dev mode and watch for changes in your project. You can also use the following options to customize the dev mode behavior:


  • -DhotTests: This option will run tests automatically after every change.



  • -DskipTests: This option will skip tests altogether.



  • -DskipUTs: This option will skip unit tests only.



  • -DskipITs: This option will skip integration tests only.



  • -Ddebug.port: This option will specify the port for debugging.



Deploy and Monitor Open Liberty Applications in Containers to Any Cloud




After developing your cloud-native Java microservices with Open Liberty, you can deploy and monitor them in containers to any cloud platform of your choice. Here are some tips on how to do that:


Use Docker




Docker is a popular tool for creating, running, and managing containers. You can use Docker to package your Open Liberty application into a container image that can be deployed anywhere. To use Docker with Open Liberty, you need to have a Dockerfile that defines how to build your container image. You can use the as a base for your Dockerfile, or you can create your own from scratch. Here is an example of a simple Dockerfile that uses the Open Liberty base image:


FROM openliberty/open-liberty:kernel-java8-openj9-ubi COPY --chown=1001:0 src/main/liberty/config /config/ COPY --chown=1001:0 target/my-app.war /config/dropins/ RUN configure.sh


This Dockerfile copies the server.xml configuration file and the application WAR file to the container image, and then runs the configure.sh script to install the required features and optimize the server. You can then build your container image by running the following command in your terminal:


docker build -t my-app .


This will create a container image named my-app based on your Dockerfile. You can then run your container by running the following command in your terminal:


docker run -d -p 9080:9080 -p 9443:9443 my-app


This will start a container from your image in detached mode, and map the ports 9080 and 9443 of the container to the same ports of the host machine. You can then access your application by visiting or in your browser.


Use Kubernetes




Kubernetes is a popular tool for orchestrating and managing containers at scale. You can use Kubernetes to deploy, scale, and update your Open Liberty applications in clusters of nodes that can span multiple clouds or regions. To use Kubernetes with Open Liberty, you need to have a Kubernetes cluster that you can connect to using the kubectl command-line tool. You also need to have Kubernetes manifests that define the resources and configurations for your application, such as deployments, services, ingresses, configmaps, secrets, and more. You can use the to simplify the creation and management of these manifests, or you can create your own using YAML or JSON files. Here is an example of a simple deployment manifest that deploys your Open Liberty container image to a Kubernetes cluster:


apiVersion: apps/v1 kind: Deployment metadata: name: my-app spec: replicas: 3 selector: matchLabels: app: my-app template: metadata: labels: app: my-app spec: containers: - name: my-app image: my-app ports: - containerPort: 9080 - containerPort: 9443


This manifest creates a deployment named my-app that runs three replicas of your container image, and exposes the ports 9080 and 9443 of the container. You can then apply this manifest by running the following command in your terminal:


kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml


This will create the deployment resource in your cluster. You can then create other resources, such as services, ingresses, configmaps, secrets, and more, to expose your application to the outside world, configure your application settings, and secure your application access.


Use Open Liberty Operator




Open Liberty Operator is a Kubernetes operator that automates the deployment and management of Open Liberty applications on Kubernetes. It provides a custom resource definition (CRD) called OpenLibertyApplication that allows you to specify the properties and features of your application in a declarative way. It also provides convenience features such as service binding, service monitoring, single sign-on, and day-2 operations. To use Open Liberty Operator with Open Liberty, you need to install the operator in your cluster by following the . Then, you can create an OpenLibertyApplication manifest that defines your application. Here is an example of a simple OpenLibertyApplication manifest that deploys your Open Liberty container image to a Kubernetes cluster:


apiVersion: openliberty.io/v1beta1 kind: OpenLibertyApplication metadata: name: my-app spec: applicationImage: my-app expose: true service: port: 9080 portName: http targetPort: 9080 certificateSecretRef: my-tls-secret


This manifest creates an OpenLibertyApplication named my-app that uses your container image, exposes your application using an ingress resource, and secures your application using a TLS secret. You can then apply this manifest by running the following command in your terminal:


kubectl apply -f openlibertyapplication.yaml


This will create the OpenLibertyApplication resource and the associated resources in your cluster. You can then use the operator to manage your application lifecycle, such as scaling, updating, rolling back, and deleting.


Use observability tools




Observability is an essential aspect of running cloud-native applications in production. It allows you to monitor the performance, availability, and behavior of your applications and troubleshoot any issues that may arise. Open Liberty provides several tools and features that enable observability for your applications, such as:


  • Metrics: This feature allows you to collect and expose metrics about your application and the Open Liberty server using the MicroProfile Metrics API and the Prometheus format.



  • Health: This feature allows you to check and report the health status of your application and the Open Liberty server using the MicroProfile Health API and the Liveness and Readiness probes.



  • Tracing: This feature allows you to trace and correlate requests across your application and other services using the MicroProfile OpenTracing API and the Jaeger or Zipkin format.



  • Logging: This feature allows you to log messages from your application and the Open Liberty server using various formats and destinations, such as JSON, logstashCollector, console, or file.



  • Dashboards: This feature allows you to visualize and analyze the metrics, health, tracing, and logging data from your application and the Open Liberty server using tools such as Grafana, Kiali, or Logstash.



Conclusion




In this article, we have shown you how to download Open Liberty and get started with developing, deploying, and monitoring cloud-native Java microservices on any cloud platform. We have covered how to use features of Jakarta EE and MicroProfile to create microservices, how to use convenience features to simplify the development and testing of your application, how to use Docker and Kubernetes to deploy and manage your application in containers, and how to use observability tools to monitor and troubleshoot your application. We hope that this article has helped you to learn more about Open Liberty and how to use it for your cloud-native Java projects.


Next steps




If you want to learn more about Open Liberty and how to use it for your cloud-native Java projects, here are some resources that you can explore:


  • : This is the official documentation of Open Liberty that covers everything from getting started to advanced topics.



  • : These are interactive and hands-on guides that teach you how to use Open Liberty features and technologies in various scenarios.



  • : This is the official blog of Open Liberty that provides updates, news, tips, and best practices about Open Liberty.



  • : This is the official GitHub repository of Open Liberty that contains the source code, issues, pull requests, and releases of Open Liberty.



FAQs




Here are some frequently asked questions about Open Liberty:


  • What is the difference between Open Liberty and WebSphere Liberty?



Open Liberty is the open source version of WebSphere Liberty, which is the commercial version. WebSphere Liberty provides additional features and support that are not available in Open Liberty, such as Java EE 7 Full Platform support, IBM J9 JVM support, and IBM Support services.


  • How can I migrate my existing Java applications to Open Liberty?



Open Liberty provides a migration toolkit that helps you to analyze your existing Java applications and identify any potential issues or changes that are required to run them on Open Liberty. You can also use the binary scanner tool that scans your application binaries and generates a server.xml file with the required features for your application.


  • How can I contribute to Open Liberty?



Open Liberty is an open source project that welcomes contributions from anyone who is interested. You can contribute by reporting issues, submitting pull requests, writing documentation, creating guides, or joining the community forums and chats.


  • How can I get help or support for Open Liberty?



Open Liberty provides several channels for getting help or support for your questions or issues. You can use the directly for any feedback or suggestions.


  • How can I stay updated with the latest developments and news about Open Liberty?



You can follow the to stay updated with the latest developments and news about Open Liberty.


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