Java Enterprise in a Nutshell, Third Edition

Servlet Filters

Version 2.3 of the Servlet API introduced a new method of handling requests using the javax.servlet.Filter class. When filters are used, the servlet container creates a filter chain, which consists of zero or more Filter objects and a destination resource, either a servlet or another resource available on the web server (such as an HTML or JSP file).

Filters are installed in the server and associated with particular request paths (just like servlets). When a filtered resource is requested, the servlet constructs a filter chain and calls the doFilter() method of the first filter in the filter chain, passing a ServletRequest, a ServletResponse, and the FilterChain object. The filter can then perform processing on the request. Filters are often used to implement logging, control security, or set up connection-specific objects. A filter can also wrap the ServletRequest and ServletResponse classes with its own versions, overriding particular methods. For instance, one of the example filters included with the Tomcat server adds support for returning compressed output to browsers that support it.

After the filter has processed the response, it can call the doFilter() method of the FilterChain to invoke the next filter in the sequence. If there are no more filters, the request is passed on to its ultimate destination. After calling doFilter(), the filter can perform additional processing on the response received from farther down the chain.

In the event of an error, the filter ...