appNG is a web application platform and a web application framework, based on Apache Tomcat and the Spring Framework.
With appNG, you can build your own applications and deploy them to the platform within minutes.
appNG is very well suited to create and operate your own application platform as a service (aPaaS).
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Clear separation of concerns following the MVC paradigm
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Declarative UI definition using schema-safe XML files
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Writing business logic by implementing a handful of interfaces
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Automatic parameter-binding and type conversion
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Built-in support for paging, filtering sorting
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Out-of-the-box support for JPA and Spring Data
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Built-In connection pooling using HikariCP
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Database schema migrations powered by Flyway
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Built-In role based access control, which allows using field-based access
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Easily provide your own SOAP or REST based webservices
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Fully supports internationalization (i18n)
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Easy deployment by providing a repository mechanism
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Configurable caching powered by Ehcache
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Cluster support and horizontal scaling
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Powerful administration tools, including a graphical user interface (GUI), but also a command line interface (CLI) and a REST-client
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Supports the Bean Validation API
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Supports indexing and searching, powered by Lucene
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Customizable templating mechanism
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Configurable and extendable authentication mechanism (local, LDAP etc.)
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Provides job scheduling powered by Quartz
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Provides tooling for common tasks like resizing images, sending emails, geo-locating, report generation etc.
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Provides a large set of commonly used libraries such as Apache Commons or Jackson
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Can serve JSP-content that can make use of the appNG tag library
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Multi-tenancy allows to separate or group applications
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Rapid protoyping enables you to design your user interface without writing one line of Java code
appNG is available as a standalone version, suitable for evaluation and testing purposes.
The standalone version also comes with appNGizer, the REST-based administration tool for appNG.
The standalone version can be found here: https://appng.org/appng/builds/stable/appng-standalone-1.14.3.zip
Unzip the file, change into the extracted folder and run
java -jar appng-standalone-1.14.3.jar -i -uWait a few seconds, until the console output stops, then visit http://localhost:8080/manager in your browser.
Sign-in with the username admin and the password s3cr3t.
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Note
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When executing the jar for the next time, you must omit the parameters |
Using the appNG Maven Archetype, you can easily create your first own application.
Therefore, the following command must be used (replace mygroupid and myartifactid with the desired values):
mvn archetype:generate -DgroupId=mygroupid -DartifactId=myartifactid -DarchetypeGroupId=org.appng -DarchetypeArtifactId=appng-archetype-application -DarchetypeVersion=1.14.3 -DinteractiveMode=falseNext, change into the created project folder and run mvn package.
In the target folder, a file named myartifactid-1.0-SNAPSHOT-<yyyyMMdd-HHmm>.zip should have been generated.
This file is the application archive.
The next step is to deploy the application through a local repository, e.g. the application archives are served from the local file system.
During installation of the appNG standalone version, a local repository has been created at /path/to/appng-standalone-1.14.3/repository/.
So the first step is to copy myartifactid-1.0-SNAPSHOT-<yyyyMMdd-HHmm>.zip to this location.
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Tip
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You can also build the application archive directly in the repository folder by using the Maven option |
Next, we use the appNG CLI to install the application and to activate it for the site manager (that has been created during installation).
In /path/to/appng-standalone-1.14.3/appng/WEB-INF/bin, execute the following commands:
./appng install-application -n myartifactid -v 1.0-SNAPSHOT -r Local
./appng activate-application -s manager -a myartifactidBoth commands should return without any message, meaning they where successful.
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Note
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You can also use the appNG Manager or the appNGizer to install and activate an application. To see a list of available CLI commands, execute If you configure the appNGizer Maven Plugin for your project, you can automatically install and activate your application after the build. |
The final step is to reload the site manager. Therefore, login at http://localhost:8080/manager and click on the reload-icon shown next to the site in the overview. A message "Site has been reloaded." should appear.
After a re-login (see details below), a new navigation item named MYAPPLICATION should appear on the site’s navigation on the left. When clicking it, you see the results of your very first appNG application. Congratulations!
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Note
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During installation, the application’s role For the following updates of your application, this step is therefore not necessary. |
You should import the Maven project into your favorite IDE. Then start browsing the code to get an idea of how an appNG application works. You should also take a look at the Developer Guide.
You may also want to check out appNGizer at http://localhost:8080/appNGizer. The user manual can be found here: https://appng.org/appng/docs/1.14.4-SNAPSHOT/appngizer/html/appngizer-user-manual.html
| Name | Type | Description |
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Web application |
The appNG platform. |
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Web application |
Provides the appNG REST API. The appNGizer is part of the appng Git Repository. During the build a separate appNGizer WAR file is packaged. |
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Standalone version with bundled Tomcat |
Includes the applications: Manager, Authentication and Scheduler and also the appNG Template |
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appNG core application |
Provides a web-based interface to administer appNG and to access other appNG applications. |
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appNG core application |
Provides different authentication mechanisms for appNG. |
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appNG core application |
Provides job scheduling services. |
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appNG template |
The classic XSLT based template, used in conjunction with the appNG Manager. |
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Note
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The appNG and appNGizer web applications run in Apache Tomcat, while appNG applications run on the appNG platform. appNG core applications have elevated permissions to access and control the appNG platform. appNG templates define the visual appearance of appNG applications. |
| Component | Version | Format |
|---|---|---|
appNG |
1.14.4-SNAPSHOT |
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appNGizer |
1.14.4-SNAPSHOT |
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Standalone |
1.14.4-SNAPSHOT |
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Warning
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Snapshots reflect the current development status. We do not recommend to use snapshots in production and might not be able to help, if you are running cutting-edge appNG. However, if you want to take a look at the latest features, feel free to download a copy and try it out. |
Please ask your question at Stack Overflow and make sure to add the appng tag to your question.
If you think you found a bug or want to propose a new feature, please create a ticket in our issue tracker.
If you require an Enterprise Support Plan, please contact aiticon GmbH for further information. aiticon also offers trainings, consulting, development and hosting for appNG.
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Maven Repository - Stable
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Maven Repository - Snapshot
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appNG Application Repository - Stable
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appNG Application Repository - Snapshot
appNG is licensed under the Apache License 2.0.