Feature |
Struts 1 |
Struts 2 |
Action classes |
Struts 1 requires Action classes to extend an
abstract base class. A common problem in Struts 1 is programming to
abstract classes instead of interfaces. |
An Struts 2 Action may implement an Action
interface, along with other interfaces to enable optional and custom
services. Struts 2 provides a base ActionSupport class to implement
commonly used interfaces. Albeit, the Action interface is not required. Any POJO object with a execute signature can be used as an Struts 2 Action object. |
Threading Model |
Struts 1 Actions are singletons and must be
thread-safe since there will only be one instance of a class to handle
all requests for that Action. The singleton strategy places
restrictions on what can be done with Struts 1 Actions and requires
extra care to develop. Action resources must be thread-safe or
synchronized. |
Struts 2 Action objects are instantiated for
each request, so there are no thread-safety issues. (In practice,
servlet containers generate many throw-away objects per request, and
one more object does not impose a performance penalty or impact garbage
collection.) |
Servlet Dependency |
Struts 1 Actions have dependencies on the servlet API since the HttpServletRequest and HttpServletResponse is passed to the execute method when an Action is invoked. |
Struts 2 Actions are not coupled to a
container. Most often the servlet contexts are represented as simple
Maps, allowing Actions to be tested in isolation. Struts 2 Actions can
still access the original request and response, if required. However,
other architectural elements reduce or eliminate the need to access the
HttpServetRequest or HttpServletResponse directly. |
Testability |
A major hurdle to testing Struts 1 Actions is that the execute method exposes the Servlet API. A third-party extension, Struts TestCase, offers a set of mock object for Struts 1. |
Struts 2 Actions can be tested by
instantiating the Action, setting properties, and invoking methods.
Dependency Injection support also makes testing simpler. |
Harvesting Input |
Struts 1 uses an ActionForm object to capture
input. Like Actions, all ActionForms must extend a base class. Since
other JavaBeans cannot be used as ActionForms, developers often create
redundant classes to capture input. DynaBeans can used as an
alternative to creating conventional ActionForm classes, but, here too,
developers may be redescribing existing JavaBeans.
|
Struts 2 uses Action properties as input
properties, eliminating the need for a second input object. Input
properties may be rich object types which may have their own
properties. The Action properties can be accessed from the web page via
the taglibs. Struts 2 also supports the ActionForm pattern, as well as
POJO form objects and POJO Actions. Rich object types, including
business or domain objects, can be used as input/output objects. The
ModelDriven feature simplifies taglb references to POJO input objects.
|
Expression Language |
Struts 1 integrates with JSTL, so it uses the
JSTL EL. The EL has basic object graph traversal, but relatively weak
collection and indexed property support. |
Struts 2 can use JSTL, but the framework also
supports a more powerful and flexible expression language called
"Object Graph Notation Language" (OGNL). |
Binding values into views |
Struts 1 uses the standard JSP mechanism for binding objects into the page context for access. |
Struts 2 uses a "ValueStack" technology so
that the taglibs can access values without coupling your view to the
object type it is rendering. The ValueStack strategy allows reuse of
views across a range of types which may have the same property name but
different property types.
|
Type Conversion |
Struts 1 ActionForm properties are usually all
Strings. Struts 1 uses Commons-Beanutils for type conversion.
Converters are per-class, and not configurable per instance. |
Struts 2 uses OGNL for type conversion. The framework includes converters for basic and common object types and primitives. |
Validation |
Struts 1 supports manual validation via a validate
method on the ActionForm, or through an extension to the Commons
Validator. Classes can have different validation contexts for the same
class, but cannot chain to validations on sub-objects. |
Struts 2 supports manual validation via the validate
method and the XWork Validation framework. The Xwork Validation
Framework supports chaining validation into sub-properties using the
validations defined for the properties class type and the validation
context. |
Control Of Action Execution |
Struts 1 supports separate Request Processors
(lifecycles) for each module, but all the Actions in the module must
share the same lifecycle. |
Struts 2 supports creating different
lifecycles on a per Action basis via Interceptor Stacks. Custom stacks
can be created and used with different Actions, as needed. |