Spring MVC Notes
1 Spring MVC Introduction
1.1 What is Spring MVC?
• A web framework under the Spring Framework.
• Follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) design pattern.
• Used for building Java-based web applications.
• Powered by Servlets and JavaServer Pages (JSP).
1.2 Key Components
• Model: Java object (POJO) used to store data.
• View: JSP file used to display results to the user.
• Controller: Java class that handles HTTP requests.
1.3 DispatcherServlet
• Acts as the front controller.
• Routes all HTTP requests to appropriate controllers.
2 Creating a Spring MVC Project
2.1 Steps to Create
• Create a Dynamic Web Project in Eclipse.
• Add Maven Nature and create pom.xml.
• Add Spring MVC dependency:
1 < dependency >
2 < groupId > org . springframework </ groupId >
3 < artifactId > spring - webmvc </ artifactId >
4 < version > 5.3.22 </ version >
5 </ dependency >
• Create folder structure:
1
– /src/main/java: Java files (Controller, Model).
– /src/main/webapp/WEB-INF: web.xml, telusko-servlet.xml.
– /views: JSP files.
• Add JSTL and Servlet dependencies if needed.
3 Running Tomcat in Eclipse
3.1 Steps
• Download and configure Apache Tomcat in Eclipse.
• Go to Servers tab → Right click → New → Server.
• Choose Tomcat version (e.g., 9.0).
• Deploy project by dragging into server.
• Start server (green play button) and access via:
1 http :// localhost :8080/ YourAppName
4 DispatcherServlet
4.1 Role
• Handles all incoming HTTP requests.
• Mapped in web.xml.
• Loads its configuration file (e.g., telusko-servlet.xml).
4.2 web.xml Configuration
1 < servlet >
2 < servlet - name > telusko </ servlet - name >
3 < servlet - class > org . springframework . web . servlet .
DispatcherServlet </ servlet - class >
4 </ servlet >
5 < servlet - mapping >
6 < servlet - name > telusko </ servlet - name >
7 <url - pattern >/ </ url - pattern >
8 </ servlet - mapping >
Note: telusko-servlet.xml is searched inside /WEB-INF/.
2
5 Configuring the DispatcherServlet
5.1 telusko-servlet.xml
1 < ctx : component - scan base - package = " com . telusko " / >
2 < mvc : annotation - driven / >
3 < bean class = " org . springframework . web . servlet . view .
InternalResourceViewResolver ">
4 < property name = " prefix " value = " / views / " / >
5 < property name = " suffix " value = " . jsp " / >
6 </ bean >
5.2 What it does
• Scans for @Controller classes.
• Enables annotations (@RequestMapping, etc.).
• Configures how view names map to .jsp files:
– return "result" → /views/result.jsp.
6 Internal Resource View Resolver
6.1 Purpose
• Converts logical view names into physical JSP paths.
• Example:
1 return " result " ;
→ /views/result.jsp (based on prefix/suffix in config).
6.2 Configuration
1 < property name = " prefix " value = " / views / " / >
2 < property name = " suffix " value = " . jsp " / >
Note: Eliminates the need to hardcode .jsp or full paths in controllers.
7 Summary
• Spring MVC: Java web framework based on MVC.
• DispatcherServlet: Front controller that routes requests.
• web.xml: Maps DispatcherServlet and URL patterns.
• telusko-servlet.xml: Configures controller scanning and view resolver.
• Controller: Annotated with @Controller, maps URLs using @RequestMapping.
3
• Model (Alien.java): Simple Java object populated from form data.
• View (JSP): Uses Expression Language ($) to display model data.
• View Resolver: Maps view names (e.g., "result") to /views/result.jsp.
