Deploying and migrating JavaEE applications is hard work. Specifically, it's work that's error-prone, repetitive, and time consuming because of the complexity of setting up or tweaking Web application servers. The result is lost man/hours, soaring costs, and potential problems associated with hidden or unseen configuration issues that might pop up at a later time. Furthermore the situation is often muddied by the "fog of war" - technical personnel and their managers don't really have any easy way to take an accurate snapshot of current application server configurations, and no easy way to make decisions regarding those assets and how they can (or can't) support an enterprise's line of business.

Frankly, the situation can sometimes seem like a big house of cards right before a catastrophic tremor. One day everything is fine, the next maybe not so fine. The tipping point itself can be something benign (upgrading various servers with a new patch) or complex (bringing new servers online to support marketing or sales efforts), but throughout the exercise there's a sense of unease driven by how opaque and fast-changing the environment can be. In response to this environment, what is needed is a new approach that accelerates the deployment of JavaEE applications. One that can eliminate the error-prone, repetitive processes and headaches associated with the set-up and migration of software running on Web application servers - regardless of vendor or version (e.g., IBM WebSphere, BEA WebLogic, JBoss/Tomcat, Oracle OAS).