A New Toolbox for Big Websites: What is Jakarta EE 11?
Hello everyone, John here! Today, we’re diving into something that powers many of the large-scale websites and services you use every day, even if you’ve never heard of it. The Eclipse Foundation just released a major update called Jakarta EE 11. Now, that might sound a bit technical, but don’t worry! We’re going to break it all down together.
Lila: “Hi John! Okay, I have to ask right away… what exactly is ‘Jakarta EE’? It sounds like a place!”
That’s a great question, Lila! Think of it this way: if you’re building a small personal blog, you might use a simple set of tools, like a hammer and some nails. But if you’re building a skyscraper—or in our case, a huge online banking system, a major e-commerce site, or a global logistics network—you need a much more powerful and professional set of tools. Jakarta EE (which stands for Enterprise Edition) is that professional-grade toolbox for programmers building these massive, reliable applications using the Java programming language.
This new version, number 11, is all about making that toolbox simpler, faster, and more efficient for modern needs.
The Star of the Show: Making Data Easy with “Jakarta Data”
One of the biggest and most exciting new features in Jakarta EE 11 is something called Jakarta Data. Every big application needs to store and retrieve information, whether it’s customer profiles, product inventories, or bank transactions. This information is usually kept in something called a database.
Historically, getting the application to “talk” to the database could be quite complicated. Programmers had to write a lot of repetitive, detailed instructions for every little thing they wanted to do.
Lila: “So what does Jakarta Data do differently?”
Excellent question! Imagine you have a massive library. The old way was like having to learn the library’s complex filing system yourself every time you wanted a book. You’d have to know which aisle, which shelf, and which specific spot to look in.
Jakarta Data is like having a super-smart librarian. You just walk up to the desk and say, “Please get me this book,” or “Please add this new book to the collection.” You don’t need to know the details; the librarian handles it all. Jakarta Data provides a simple, standard way for programmers to interact with their data without writing tons of “boilerplate code” (that’s the repetitive, boring stuff).
It standardizes a popular concept called the repository pattern and comes with built-in commands for the most common tasks.
Lila: “You just mentioned ‘repository pattern’ and ‘common tasks.’ What kind of tasks are we talking about?”
Of course! In the programming world, these common tasks are often called CRUD operations.
- Create: Adding new information (e.g., a new user signs up).
- Read: Looking up existing information (e.g., finding a customer’s order history).
- Update: Changing existing information (e.g., a user changes their shipping address).
- Delete: Removing information (e.g., deleting an old, expired product from the store).
Jakarta Data makes performing these CRUD operations incredibly straightforward, which means developers can work faster and make fewer mistakes.
Getting a Speed Boost with the Latest Java
Another huge update is that Jakarta EE 11 is now fully compatible with the latest versions of Java, specifically Java 17 and Java 21. These are what we call LTS (Long-Term Support) releases, meaning they are stable, reliable, and will be supported with security updates for many years. It’s like building your skyscraper on the most modern, solid foundation available.
But the most exciting part of this is the support for something in Java 21 called virtual threads.
Lila: “Virtual threads? That sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie. What do they do?”
Haha, it does sound futuristic! Let’s use another analogy. Imagine a busy coffee shop. The old way of handling customers (or tasks in a program) was to have one barista dedicated to each customer. That barista takes the order, makes the coffee, and delivers it before moving to the next person. If there are a lot of customers, you need a lot of baristas, which gets expensive and crowded behind the counter.
Virtual threads are like having one super-efficient barista who can juggle hundreds of orders at once. He can take one customer’s order, start their espresso machine, and while it’s brewing, take the next person’s order, and so on. He’s handling many tasks concurrently without needing hundreds of “real” baristas. For an application, this means it can handle a massive number of users or requests at the same time without slowing down. It’s a game-changer for building highly scalable, cloud-native applications.
Lila: “You just said ‘cloud-native.’ Does that just mean it’s for apps that run on the internet?”
Pretty much! “Cloud-native” means an application is designed from the ground up to run in the cloud (like on services from Amazon, Google, or Microsoft). These applications need to be flexible, scalable, and efficient, and features like virtual threads are perfect for that environment.
Spring Cleaning: Simplifying the Toolbox
A big part of this Jakarta EE 11 release isn’t just about adding new things, but also about cleaning up and modernizing the old ones. A good craftsperson knows when to throw out old, rusty tools to make room for better ones. Here are a few things they improved:
- A Better Quality Checklist (TCK): They’ve updated the official testing kit, called the Technology Compatibility Kit or TCK. Think of it as the official exam that any software must pass to be certified as “Jakarta EE 11 compatible.” They’ve made this exam more modern and easier to use.
- Removing Old Parts: They’ve gotten rid of some older, more confusing ways of doing things (like something called “Managed Beans”) to push developers towards a simpler, more modern programming style.
- Upgrading the Build Tools: They’ve switched to newer, more popular tools like JUnit 5 (for testing) and Apache Maven (for managing the project’s parts and pieces). This is like a workshop upgrading from old, manual saws to new, automated power tools.
Who’s on Board?
This isn’t just a small project; it has huge industry backing. Major tech companies like Microsoft, IBM, and Red Hat were all involved in developing and supporting Jakarta EE 11. This means you can be confident that these tools are built for the real world and will work well with popular services like Microsoft Azure.
Several products have already been certified as compatible, including:
- Eclipse GlassFish
- IBM Open Liberty
- Red Hat WildFly
- Payara Platform Community Edition
This list is expected to grow very quickly now that the release is out!
A Quick Look Back
Just a little history lesson: this technology, formerly known as Java EE, used to be managed by Oracle. In 2017, Oracle decided to move it to the Eclipse Foundation, an open-source organization. This was a great move because it put the future of this important technology into the hands of a diverse community of developers and companies, allowing it to evolve more openly and quickly.
John’s and Lila’s Final Thoughts
John’s Perspective: “What I really like about this update is its focus on developer productivity and simplification. For years, ‘enterprise’ software had a reputation for being powerful but also incredibly complex. Jakarta EE 11 is a huge step in the right direction, cleaning house and giving developers simpler, more powerful tools to get the job done. It’s about refining the engine, not just adding a new coat of paint, and that’s what leads to truly great software.”
Lila’s Perspective: “As someone new to all this, hearing words like ‘simplify,’ ‘streamline,’ and ‘reduce complexity’ is music to my ears! It makes the world of professional programming feel a lot less scary. The analogies really help, and knowing that the goal is to make things easier for people gives me hope that I could learn it one day!”
And that’s the scoop on Jakarta EE 11! It’s a powerful step forward for the Java world, making it easier than ever to build the big, reliable applications that our digital world depends on. Thanks for reading!
This article is based on the following original source, summarized from the author’s perspective:
Eclipse Foundation releases Jakarta EE 11