VMware vFabric tc Server
The Best Place to Build and Run Java Spring Applications

Overview:

Optimized for Spring

Quickly diagnose the root cause of performance problems for Java applications built with the Spring Framework, Spring Java applications, whether in development or production, using Spring Insight.

Ideal for Virtual and Cloud

With a memory footprint of just 10MB and Elastic Memory for Java (EM4J) enabling dynamic memory sharing among Java Virtual Machines (JVMs), tc Server lets you deploy more virtual machines per VMware vSphere® ESXi host and economically scale out your Java tier.

Commercial Tomcat

VMware is the leader in Apache Tomcat support, with more than 400 of the world's largest organizations relying on our Tomcat experts. A significant proportion of Tomcat code is committed by VMware employees.

VMware Overview

VMware vFabric™ tc Server is the runtime server at the heart of the VMware vFabric Cloud Application Platform. Available in Spring Edition, Standard Edition and Developer Edition, tc Server is the best place to build and run your Spring applications. With a lightweight footprint, it is ideally suited for virtual and cloud environments. As an enterprise version of Apache Tomcat, tc Server is enhanced with core capabilities that increase developer efficiency, operational control and deployment flexibility—all backed by 24/7/365 support.

Spring has replaced the heavyweight Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) container to become the de facto standard for the majority of enterprise Java applications. Spring has also been a key driver in the adoption of Tomcat, now used by more than 70 percent of organizations, according to Evans Data.* Today, the Spring– Tomcat stack powers many of the world's most demanding applications across retail, banking, manufacturing, health care and other industries.

tc Server provides the powerful, lightweight benefits of Tomcat along with important enterprise-class features that organizations require. It is ideal for enterprises currently using Spring with legacy Java Enterprise Edition (EE) servers but looking for a lean and affordable alternative. It is also good for Tomcat users who need additional operational management and diagnostic capabilities with enterprise support.

Key Features:

tc Server supports the entire application life cycle with a lightweight platform ideally suited for building and running modern applications.

Developer Efficiency

tc Server includes core capabilities that enhance the efficiency of developers using Spring, the world's most popular Java development framework:

• The Spring Insight console provides a dashboard view of real-time Spring application performance metrics. Without changing code, developers can detect, analyze and diagnose application performance issues right from their desktops.
• tc Server is immediately familiar to developers, because it is based on the popular Tomcat server in use at nearly 70 percent of organizations today.*

Operations Management

From a single console, tc Server provides management and monitoring of servers and applications for a single instance or across many nodes. Capabilities include:

Application management

• Perform fine-grained application monitoring in production using native Spring instrumentation.
• List all applications running in a distributed collection of server instances.
• Target, deploy and undeploy applications to distributed server instances.
• Control application parameters such as caching and JavaServer Pages (JSP) behavior.

Server management

• Control configuration of remote server instances.
• Define virtual hosts, access logs and Web server integration.
• Configure JVM parameters such as Java heap size and garbage collection.
• Dynamically control and resize thread pools without server restart.
• Define server groups to quickly administer multiple tc Server instances.

Advanced Server Diagnostics

tc Server provides advanced diagnostics, such as thread lock detection and automatic and on-demand failure logging, to for swift isolation, diagnosis and repair of issues. Features include

• Application thread lock detection to warn when threads compete for restricted resources in a way that threaten application integrity.
• Configurable automatic and on-demand thread and heap dumping for failure and exception analysis.
• Thread to URL association for faster diagnosis when analyzing problems with request processing.

Deployment Flexibility

Deploy your applications to physical or virtual hosts:

• Lightweight (10 MB) server ideal for virtual and cloud environments.
• Template-driven server instance creation to simplify and accelerate deployment.

Elastic Memory Management

• Dynamically share memory across JVMs to accommodate burst workloads.
• Reduce memory allocations for each JVM to increase the number of Java applications per vSphere host and improve server density.

* Evans Data Study, November 2008

How To Buy:

• vFabric tc Server Developer Edition

  Developer Edition is free to download and use and is bundled within SpringSource Tool Suite, which is also available as a free download.

• vFabric tc Server Standard Edition

  Designed to be a drop in replacement for Apache Tomcat 6, vFabric tc Server Standard Edition provides enterprise users with the lightweight server they want paired with the operational management, advanced diagnostics, and mission-critical support capabilities businesses need.

• vFabric tc Server Spring Edition

  vFabric tc Server Spring Edition, with its native Spring Instrumentation, enables fine grain monitoring of deployed applications and unparalleled visibility into the execution of Spring-powered applications. With pre-built advanced application management and reporting for Spring applications, vFabric tc Server Spring Edition provides the application operator with the top-down insight required to ensure Spring applications are performing as expected.

Compare Editions

Feature	Developer Edition	Standard Edition	Spring Edition
Apache Tomcat compatible
Multi-server configuration
Secure remote server administration
Command line control and scripting
Comprehensive integrated monitoring
Spring Application control (start/stop/restart)
Native Spring Instrumentation
Elastic Memory for Java (EM4J)			*
Detailed Spring App Performance Reporting

* Elastic Memory for Java is available only when tc Server Spring Edition is purchased as part of vFabric Standard or vFabric Advanced.

Understanding vFabric tc Server Pricing

vFabric tc Server Spring Edition can be purchased as part of the complete vFabric Cloud Application Platform, in a choice of versions: vFabric Standard or vFabric Advanced.

Learn more about pricing for the vFabric Cloud Application Platform.

VMware vFabric tc Server, available in Standard or Spring Edition, may be purchased as either an annual subscription—an annual contract with service and support built-in; or a perpetual license—a one-time license under which service and support contracts can be renewed annually.

Support:

VMware Production Support & Subscription

Technical Support, 24 Hour Sev 1 Support -- 7 days a week.

Focused, 24-Hour Support For Production Environments

• Global, 24x7 support for Severity 1 issues
• Fast response times for critical issues
• Unlimited number of support requests
• Remote Support
• Online access to documentation and technical resources, knowledge base, discussion forums
• Product updates and upgrades

Overview

VMware Production Support is designed with your production environments in mind. Our global support centers are staffed around the clock to provide you access to our industry-leading expertise in virtualization and years of experience supporting virtual infrastructure products in real-world customer environments. We are committed to delivering enterprise-class, worldwide support with a single objective in mind: your success.

VMware Basic Support & Subscription Service

Technical Support, 12 Hours/Day, per published Business Hours, Mon. thru Fri.

Weekday Support for Test, Dev and Non-Critical Deployments

• Global, 12x5 access to support
• Unlimited number of support requests
• Remote Support
• Online access to documentation and technical resources, knowledge base, discussion forums
• Product updates and upgrades

Overview

VMware Basic Support is designed for non-critical applications and platforms that require support during normal business hours. Our global support centers have been strategically placed to provide you with fast and efficient access to the support center in your region. Each center is staffed with engineers that can provide industry-leading expertise in virtualization and years of experience supporting virtual infrastructure products in real-world customer environments. We are committed to delivering enterprise-class, worldwide support with a single objective in mind: your success.

Feature	Production Support	Basic Support
Hours of Operation	24 Hrs/Day 7 Days/Wk 365 Days/Yr 1	12 Hrs/Day Mon–Fri 1
Length of Service	1 or 3 Years	1 or 3 Years
Product Updates	Yes	Yes
Product Upgrades	Yes	Yes
Products Supported	All Products (excluding VMware Fusion and Player)	All Products (excluding VMware Fusion and Player)
Method of Access	Telephone/ Web	Telephone/ Web
Response Method	Telephone/ Email	Telephone/ Email
Remote Support	Yes	Yes
Access to VMware Web site	Yes	Yes
Access to VMware Discussion Forums and Knowledge Base	Yes	Yes
Max Number of Support Admins per Contract	6	4
Number of Support Requests	Unlimited	Unlimited
Target Response Times Critical (Severity 1 Major (Severity 2) Minor (Severity 3) Cosmetic (Severity 4)	30 minutes or less: 24x7 4 business hours 8 business hours 12 business hours	4 business hours 8 business hours 12 business hours 12 business hours
Business Hours North America and Latin America Alaska, Hawaii South America (NASA) Europe, Middle East, Africa (EMEA Asia, Pacific Rim, Japan (APJ) Australia/New Zealand	Monday - Friday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (local time zone) 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (PST/PDT) 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (EST/EDT) 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (GMT/GMT+1) 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (Singapore Time) 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Sydney AET)	Monday - Friday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (local time zone) 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (PST/PDT) 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (EST/EDT) 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (GMT/GMT+1) 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (Singapore Time) 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Sydney AET)

1Hours of operation for Gemstone are Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (PST/PDT) globally.
1Hours of operation for VMware Go Pro and vCenter Protect products are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (CST/CDT), except holidays.
1Hours of operation for VMware IT Business Management and IT Financial Management are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (EST/EDT/GMT) except holidays.
1Hours of operation for Socialcast are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (PST/PDT).

Documentation:

Download the VMware vFabric tc Server Datasheet (PDF).