Validator

1
Validator

• A plugin for struts 1.1
• Provides a fairly complete list of pre-written
  validations for forms
• Extensible to write your own validations
• By default it does server-side validation but it
  can also handle client side javascript
• Can handle wizard web pages

2
Basic idea

• In an external XML file..
• You declare a form
• Then you declare a field
• Then you state which validations to apply
• Then it all works

3
How to implement

• Your ActionForms now extend ValidatorForm
• You need to put entries in validation.xml
• Declare the formbean
• Declare the field
• Declare the validations
• Enter the error message in application.properties

4
Types of validation available

• Required
• Requiredif
• Minlength
• Maxlength
• Mask
• Byte
• Short
• Integer

• Long
• Float
• Double
• Date
• intRange
• floatRange
• Credit card
• Email

5
Abilities we wont cover

• Enabling javascript
• Writing your own custom validator
• Multi-page forms (wizards)
• Multi-lingual error messages
• Using commons-validator outside of struts

6
Decent resources

• http//jakarta.apache.org/struts/userGuide/dev_val
  idator.html (talks about javascript,
  Internationalization, and custom validators
• http//jakarta.apache.org/struts/userGuide/buildin
  g_view.html (very basic)
• http//www.manning.com/husted/chap12.pdf (sample
  chapter from struts in action)
• http//javaboutique.internet.com/resources/books/s
  trutsAction/struts6_1.html (good for how to use
  each type of validator)
• The best is to take the example webapp apart

7
Validator Lab

• We are going to make a new form that gathers
  information from the user
• New ValidatorForm
• New Action
• New pieces to application.properties
• New JSP pages
• Modify struts-config

8
Quick intro to Ant

• Basically an xml file that species what to do
  during the process of making an application
• Everything is in a file called build.xml
• Can do almost anything you want
• Checkout from VCS
• Compile your entire project
• Start and stop tomcat
• Make a deploy file
• Filter and replace in your files
• SCP or SFTP between machines
• Validate your xml
• Many many more

9
How to use ant

• You define properties
• You define tasks
• They can depend on other tasks
• They can be executed by themselves
• Then you run it
• The default task
• Specific task
• In netbeans, you can just press f6 while the
  build.xml is highlighted
• Should we look at it together?