While the JBoss open-source J2EE application server already is hugely popular with developers for use in commercial deployments, some think a fully compliant product from Apache could inspire even more support for using an open-source application server in enterprise-scale applications.
For one, Apache is a nonprofit, whereas JBoss Inc., the company that oversees the JBoss project, has a business model to derive revenue from providing services using its application server, said Winston Damarillo, president of application infrastructure ISV Gluecode, Los Angeles. "Some vendors prefer [to acquire] open-source software from a nonprofit community," he said.
For another, Apache is a "responsible organization" that has proven it can work successfully with the all-important ISV community, said Joe Lindsay, CTO of Costa Mesa, Calif.-based solution provider eBuilt.
"I think Apache has proven a better partner for ISVs [than JBoss]," Lindsay said. "They've proven they can work better with ISV community. They have managed to have Oracle, Sun [Microsystems] and IBM embed their products. I think what Apache is doing is very healthy."
The use of open-source software above the operating system layer is on the rise, a fact that has forced commercial J2EE application server vendors such as BEA Systems and IBM to diversify their core app server businesses. However, some feel that commercial application servers will never be completely obsolete because customers want the safety net of vendor support for enterprise software infrastructure.
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