Java – Best view layer with simple URLs for an EJB3 application

ejb-3.0javajpatemplates

I would like to get your input on what would be the most fitting view layer for EJB 3.0 [1] Java application for me.

JSF is no good because it is a mess when it comes to web URIs. I would like a view framework which would help with automating html form submission and validation while using clean URIs like example.com/story/1 or example.com/?story=1 (using GET method).

My first guess was to go with Spring MVC. Spring is great but it feels like an overkill since JPA plus EJB already does the heavy lifting. I only need couple of things, well, four of them actually:

  1. JPA, EJB 3.0 for business layer
  2. Clean URIs: example.com/story/1 preferably
  3. HTML form helpers (validation, converters, etc)
  4. Templating similar to Apache Tiles or JSF's ui:composition

So, which one would you pick?

Ad [1]: It's used mainly for JPA and stateless/stateful local session beans

Best Solution

My first guess was to go with Spring MVC. Spring is great but it feels like an overkill since JPA plus EJB already does the heavy lifting.

I disagree with this statement. Spring need not be an "all or none" proposition. I see nothing wrong with using Spring web MVC if that's all you need.

I'd put your EJBs and JPA behind Spring service interfaces and let the web tier deal with those, using the usual Spring idiom.

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