[[mvc]]
= Spring Web MVC
:doc-spring-security: {doc-root}/spring-security/site/docs/current/reference

Spring Web MVC is the original web framework built on the Servlet API and has been included
in the Spring Framework from the very beginning. The formal name, "`Spring Web MVC,`"
comes from the name of its source module
(https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/tree/master/spring-webmvc[`spring-webmvc`]),
but it is more commonly known as "`Spring MVC`".

Parallel to Spring Web MVC, Spring Framework 5.0 introduced a reactive-stack web framework
whose name, "`Spring WebFlux,`" is also based on its source module
(https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/tree/master/spring-webflux[`spring-webflux`]).
This section covers Spring Web MVC. The <<web-reactive.adoc#spring-web-reactive,next section>>
covers Spring WebFlux.

For baseline information and compatibility with Servlet container and Java EE version
ranges, see the Spring Framework
https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/wiki/Spring-Framework-Versions[Wiki].




[[mvc-servlet]]
== DispatcherServlet
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-dispatcher-handler,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC, as many other web frameworks, is designed around the front controller
pattern where a central `Servlet`, the `DispatcherServlet`, provides a shared algorithm
for request processing, while actual work is performed by configurable delegate components.
This model is flexible and supports diverse workflows.

The `DispatcherServlet`, as any `Servlet`, needs to be declared and mapped according
to the Servlet specification by using Java configuration or in `web.xml`.
In turn, the `DispatcherServlet` uses Spring configuration to discover
the delegate components it needs for request mapping, view resolution, exception
handling, <<mvc-servlet-special-bean-types,and more>>.

The following example of the Java configuration registers and initializes
the `DispatcherServlet`, which is auto-detected by the Servlet container
(see <<mvc-container-config>>):

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class MyWebApplicationInitializer implements WebApplicationInitializer {

		@Override
		public void onStartup(ServletContext servletCxt) {

			// Load Spring web application configuration
			AnnotationConfigWebApplicationContext ac = new AnnotationConfigWebApplicationContext();
			ac.register(AppConfig.class);
			ac.refresh();

			// Create and register the DispatcherServlet
			DispatcherServlet servlet = new DispatcherServlet(ac);
			ServletRegistration.Dynamic registration = servletCxt.addServlet("app", servlet);
			registration.setLoadOnStartup(1);
			registration.addMapping("/app/*");
		}
	}
----
====

NOTE: In addition to using the ServletContext API directly, you can also extend
`AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer` and override specific methods
(see the example under <<mvc-servlet-context-hierarchy>>).

The following example of `web.xml` configuration registers and initializes the `DispatcherServlet`:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
<web-app>

	<listener>
		<listener-class>org.springframework.web.context.ContextLoaderListener</listener-class>
	</listener>

	<context-param>
		<param-name>contextConfigLocation</param-name>
		<param-value>/WEB-INF/app-context.xml</param-value>
	</context-param>

	<servlet>
		<servlet-name>app</servlet-name>
		<servlet-class>org.springframework.web.servlet.DispatcherServlet</servlet-class>
		<init-param>
			<param-name>contextConfigLocation</param-name>
			<param-value></param-value>
		</init-param>
		<load-on-startup>1</load-on-startup>
	</servlet>

	<servlet-mapping>
		<servlet-name>app</servlet-name>
		<url-pattern>/app/*</url-pattern>
	</servlet-mapping>

</web-app>
----
====

NOTE: Spring Boot follows a different initialization sequence. Rather than hooking into
the lifecycle of the Servlet container, Spring Boot uses Spring configuration to
bootstrap itself and the embedded Servlet container. `Filter` and `Servlet` declarations
are detected in Spring configuration and registered with the Servlet container.
For more details, see the
https://docs.spring.io/spring-boot/docs/current/reference/htmlsingle/#boot-features-embedded-container[Spring Boot documentation].



[[mvc-servlet-context-hierarchy]]
=== Context Hierarchy

`DispatcherServlet` expects a `WebApplicationContext` (an extension of a plain
`ApplicationContext`) for its own configuration. `WebApplicationContext` has a link to the
`ServletContext` and the `Servlet` with which it is associated. It is also bound to the `ServletContext`
such that applications can use static methods on `RequestContextUtils` to look up the
`WebApplicationContext` if they need access to it.

For many applications, having a single `WebApplicationContext` is simple and suffices.
It is also possible to have a context hierarchy where one root `WebApplicationContext`
is shared across multiple `DispatcherServlet` (or other `Servlet`) instances, each with
its own child `WebApplicationContext` configuration.
See <<core.adoc#context-introduction,Additional Capabilities of the `ApplicationContext`>>
for more on the context hierarchy feature.

The root `WebApplicationContext` typically contains infrastructure beans, such as data repositories and
business services that need to be shared across multiple `Servlet` instances. Those beans
are effectively inherited and can be overridden (that is, re-declared) in the Servlet-specific
child `WebApplicationContext`, which typically contains beans local to the given `Servlet`.
The following image shows this relationship:

image::images/mvc-context-hierarchy.png[]

The following example configures a `WebApplicationContext` hierarchy:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class MyWebAppInitializer extends AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer {

		@Override
		protected Class<?>[] getRootConfigClasses() {
			return new Class<?>[] { RootConfig.class };
		}

		@Override
		protected Class<?>[] getServletConfigClasses() {
			return new Class<?>[] { App1Config.class };
		}

		@Override
		protected String[] getServletMappings() {
			return new String[] { "/app1/*" };
		}
	}
----
====

TIP: If an application context hierarchy is not required, applications can return all
configuration through `getRootConfigClasses()` and `null` from `getServletConfigClasses()`.

The following example shows the `web.xml` equivalent:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
<web-app>

	<listener>
		<listener-class>org.springframework.web.context.ContextLoaderListener</listener-class>
	</listener>

	<context-param>
		<param-name>contextConfigLocation</param-name>
		<param-value>/WEB-INF/root-context.xml</param-value>
	</context-param>

	<servlet>
		<servlet-name>app1</servlet-name>
		<servlet-class>org.springframework.web.servlet.DispatcherServlet</servlet-class>
		<init-param>
			<param-name>contextConfigLocation</param-name>
			<param-value>/WEB-INF/app1-context.xml</param-value>
		</init-param>
		<load-on-startup>1</load-on-startup>
	</servlet>

	<servlet-mapping>
		<servlet-name>app1</servlet-name>
		<url-pattern>/app1/*</url-pattern>
	</servlet-mapping>

</web-app>
----
====

TIP: If an application context hierarchy is not required, applications may configure a
"`root`" context only and leave the `contextConfigLocation` Servlet parameter empty.



[[mvc-servlet-special-bean-types]]
=== Special Bean Types
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-special-bean-types,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The `DispatcherServlet` delegates to special beans to process requests and render the
appropriate responses. By "`special beans`" we mean Spring-managed `Object` instances that
implement framework contracts. Those usually come with built-in contracts, but
you can customize their properties and extend or replace them.

The following table lists the special beans detected by the `DispatcherServlet`:

[[mvc-webappctx-special-beans-tbl]]
[cols="1,2", options="header"]
|===
| Bean type| Explanation

| `HandlerMapping`
| Map a request to a handler along with a list of
  <<mvc-handlermapping-interceptor, interceptors>> for pre- and post-processing.
  The mapping is based on some criteria, the details of which vary by `HandlerMapping`
  implementation.

  The two main `HandlerMapping` implementations are `RequestMappingHandlerMapping`
  (which supports `@RequestMapping` annotated methods) and `SimpleUrlHandlerMapping`
  (which maintains explicit registrations of URI path patterns to handlers).

| `HandlerAdapter`
| Help the `DispatcherServlet` to invoke a handler mapped to a request, regardless of
  how the handler is actually invoked. For example, invoking an annotated controller
  requires resolving annotations. The main purpose of a `HandlerAdapter` is
  to shield the `DispatcherServlet` from such details.

| <<mvc-exceptionhandlers,`HandlerExceptionResolver`>>
| Strategy to resolve exceptions, possibly mapping them to handlers, to HTML error
  views, or other targets. See <<mvc-exceptionhandlers>>.

| <<mvc-viewresolver,`ViewResolver`>>
| Resolve logical `String`-based view names returned from a handler to an actual `View`
  with which to render to the response. See <<mvc-viewresolver>> and <<mvc-view>>.

| <<mvc-localeresolver,`LocaleResolver`>>, <<mvc-timezone,LocaleContextResolver>>
| Resolve the `Locale` a client is using and possibly their time zone, in order to be able
  to offer internationalized views. See <<mvc-localeresolver>>.

| <<mvc-themeresolver,`ThemeResolver`>>
| Resolve themes your web application can use -- for example, to offer personalized layouts.
  See <<mvc-themeresolver>>.

| <<mvc-multipart,`MultipartResolver`>>
| Abstraction for parsing a multi-part request (for example, browser form file upload) with
  the help of some multipart parsing library. See <<mvc-multipart>>.

| <<mvc-flash-attributes,`FlashMapManager`>>
| Store and retrieve the "`input`" and the "`output`" `FlashMap` that can be used to pass
  attributes from one request to another, usually across a redirect.
  See <<mvc-flash-attributes>>.
|===



[[mvc-servlet-config]]
=== Web MVC Config
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-framework-config,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Applications can declare the infrastructure beans listed in <<mvc-servlet-special-bean-types>>
that are required to process requests. The `DispatcherServlet` checks the
`WebApplicationContext` for each special bean. If there are no matching bean types,
it falls back on the default types listed in
https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/blob/master/spring-webmvc/src/main/resources/org/springframework/web/servlet/DispatcherServlet.properties[`DispatcherServlet.properties`].

In most cases, the <<mvc-config>> is the best starting point. It declares the required
beans in either Java or XML and provides a higher-level configuration callback API to
customize it.

NOTE: Spring Boot relies on the MVC Java configuration to configure Spring MVC and
provides many extra convenient options.



[[mvc-container-config]]
=== Servlet Config

In a Servlet 3.0+ environment, you have the option of configuring the Servlet container
programmatically as an alternative or in combination with a `web.xml` file. The following
example registers a `DispatcherServlet`:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	import org.springframework.web.WebApplicationInitializer;

	public class MyWebApplicationInitializer implements WebApplicationInitializer {

		@Override
		public void onStartup(ServletContext container) {
			XmlWebApplicationContext appContext = new XmlWebApplicationContext();
			appContext.setConfigLocation("/WEB-INF/spring/dispatcher-config.xml");

			ServletRegistration.Dynamic registration = container.addServlet("dispatcher", new DispatcherServlet(appContext));
			registration.setLoadOnStartup(1);
			registration.addMapping("/");
		}
	}
----
====

`WebApplicationInitializer` is an interface provided by Spring MVC that ensures your
implementation is detected and automatically used to initialize any Servlet 3 container.
An abstract base class implementation of `WebApplicationInitializer` named
`AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer` makes it even easier to register the
`DispatcherServlet` by overriding methods to specify the servlet mapping and the
location of the `DispatcherServlet` configuration.

This is recommended for applications that use Java-based Spring configuration, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class MyWebAppInitializer extends AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer {

		@Override
		protected Class<?>[] getRootConfigClasses() {
			return null;
		}

		@Override
		protected Class<?>[] getServletConfigClasses() {
			return new Class<?>[] { MyWebConfig.class };
		}

		@Override
		protected String[] getServletMappings() {
			return new String[] { "/" };
		}
	}
----
====

If you use XML-based Spring configuration, you should extend directly from
`AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class MyWebAppInitializer extends AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer {

		@Override
		protected WebApplicationContext createRootApplicationContext() {
			return null;
		}

		@Override
		protected WebApplicationContext createServletApplicationContext() {
			XmlWebApplicationContext cxt = new XmlWebApplicationContext();
			cxt.setConfigLocation("/WEB-INF/spring/dispatcher-config.xml");
			return cxt;
		}

		@Override
		protected String[] getServletMappings() {
			return new String[] { "/" };
		}
	}
----
====

`AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer` also provides a convenient way to add `Filter`
instances and have them be automatically mapped to the `DispatcherServlet`, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class MyWebAppInitializer extends AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer {

		// ...

		@Override
		protected Filter[] getServletFilters() {
			return new Filter[] {
				new HiddenHttpMethodFilter(), new CharacterEncodingFilter() };
		}
	}
----
====

Each filter is added with a default name based on its concrete type and automatically
mapped to the `DispatcherServlet`.

The `isAsyncSupported` protected method of `AbstractDispatcherServletInitializer`
provides a single place to enable async support on the `DispatcherServlet` and all
filters mapped to it. By default, this flag is set to `true`.

Finally, if you need to further customize the `DispatcherServlet` itself, you can
override the `createDispatcherServlet` method.



[[mvc-servlet-sequence]]
=== Processing
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-dispatcher-handler-sequence,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The `DispatcherServlet` processes requests as follows:

* The `WebApplicationContext` is searched for and bound in the request as an attribute
  that the controller and other elements in the process can use. It is bound by default
  under the `DispatcherServlet.WEB_APPLICATION_CONTEXT_ATTRIBUTE` key.
* The locale resolver is bound to the request to let elements in the process
  resolve the locale to use when processing the request (rendering the view, preparing
  data, and so on). If you do not need locale resolving, you do not need the locale resolver.
* The theme resolver is bound to the request to let elements such as views determine
  which theme to use. If you do not use themes, you can ignore it.
* If you specify a multipart file resolver, the request is inspected for multiparts. If
  multiparts are found, the request is wrapped in a `MultipartHttpServletRequest` for
  further processing by other elements in the process. See <<mvc-multipart>> for further
  information about multipart handling.
* An appropriate handler is searched for. If a handler is found, the execution chain
  associated with the handler (preprocessors, postprocessors, and controllers) is
  executed in order to prepare a model or rendering. Alternatively, for annotated
  controllers, the response can be rendered (within the `HandlerAdapter`) instead of
  returning a view.
* If a model is returned, the view is rendered. If no model is returned (maybe due to
  a preprocessor or postprocessor intercepting the request, perhaps for security
  reasons), no view is rendered, because the request could already have been fulfilled.

The `HandlerExceptionResolver` beans declared in the `WebApplicationContext` are used to
resolve exceptions thrown during request processing. Those exception resolvers allow
customizing the logic to address exceptions. See <<mvc-exceptionhandlers>> for more details.

The Spring `DispatcherServlet` also supports the return of the
`last-modification-date`, as specified by the Servlet API. The process of determining
the last modification date for a specific request is straightforward: The
`DispatcherServlet` looks up an appropriate handler mapping and tests whether the
handler that is found implements the `LastModified` interface. If so, the value of the
`long getLastModified(request)` method of the `LastModified` interface is returned to
the client.

You can customize individual `DispatcherServlet` instances by adding Servlet
initialization parameters (`init-param` elements) to the Servlet declaration in the
`web.xml` file. The following table lists the supported parameters:

[[mvc-disp-servlet-init-params-tbl]]
.DispatcherServlet initialization parameters
|===
| Parameter| Explanation

| `contextClass`
| Class that implements `ConfigurableWebApplicationContext`, to be instantiated and
  locally configured by this Servlet. By default, `XmlWebApplicationContext` is used.

| `contextConfigLocation`
| String that is passed to the context instance (specified by `contextClass`) to
  indicate where contexts can be found. The string consists potentially of multiple
  strings (using a comma as a delimiter) to support multiple contexts. In the case of
  multiple context locations with beans that are defined twice, the latest location
  takes precedence.

| `namespace`
| Namespace of the `WebApplicationContext`. Defaults to `[servlet-name]-servlet`.

| `throwExceptionIfNoHandlerFound`
| Whether to throw a `NoHandlerFoundException` when no handler was found for a request.
  The exception can then be caught with a `HandlerExceptionResolver` (for example, by using an
  `@ExceptionHandler` controller method) and handled as any others.

  By default, this is set to `false`, in which case the `DispatcherServlet` sets the
  response status to 404 (NOT_FOUND) without raising an exception.

  Note that, if <<mvc-default-servlet-handler,default servlet handling>>  is
  also configured, unresolved requests are always forwarded to the default servlet
  and a 404 is never raised.
|===



[[mvc-handlermapping-interceptor]]
=== Interception

All `HandlerMapping` implementations support handler interceptors that are useful when
you want to apply specific functionality to certain requests -- for example, checking for
a principal. Interceptors must implement `HandlerInterceptor` from the
`org.springframework.web.servlet` package with three methods that should provide enough
flexibility to do all kinds of pre-processing and post-processing:

* `preHandle(..)`: Before the actual handler is executed
* `postHandle(..)`: After the handler is executed
* `afterCompletion(..)`: After the complete request has finished

The `preHandle(..)` method returns a boolean value. You can use this method to break or
continue the processing of the execution chain. When this method returns `true`, the
handler execution chain continues. When it returns false, the `DispatcherServlet`
assumes the interceptor itself has taken care of requests (and, for example, rendered an
appropriate view) and does not continue executing the other interceptors and the actual
handler in the execution chain.

See <<mvc-config-interceptors>> in the section on MVC configuration for examples of how to
configure interceptors. You can also register them directly by using setters on individual
`HandlerMapping` implementations.

Note that `postHandle` is less useful with `@ResponseBody` and `ResponseEntity` methods for
which the response is written and committed within the `HandlerAdapter` and before
`postHandle`. That means it is too late to make any changes to the response, such as adding
an extra header. For such scenarios, you can implement `ResponseBodyAdvice` and either
declare it as an <<mvc-ann-controller-advice>> bean or configure it directly on
`RequestMappingHandlerAdapter`.



[[mvc-exceptionhandlers]]
=== Exceptions
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-dispatcher-exceptions,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

If an exception occurs during request mapping or is thrown from a request handler (such as
a `@Controller`), the `DispatcherServlet` delegates to a chain of `HandlerExceptionResolver`
beans to resolve the exception and provide alternative handling, which is typically an
error response.

The following table lists the available `HandlerExceptionResolver` implementations:

[cols="1,2", options="header"]
.HandlerExceptionResolver implementations
|===
| `HandlerExceptionResolver` | Description

| `SimpleMappingExceptionResolver`
| A mapping between exception class names and error view names. Useful for rendering
  error pages in a browser application.

| {api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/mvc/support/DefaultHandlerExceptionResolver.html[`DefaultHandlerExceptionResolver`]
| Resolves exceptions raised by Spring MVC and maps them to HTTP status codes.
  See also alternative `ResponseEntityExceptionHandler` and <<mvc-ann-rest-exceptions>>.

| `ResponseStatusExceptionResolver`
| Resolves exceptions with the `@ResponseStatus` annotation and maps them to HTTP status
  codes based on the value in the annotation.

| `ExceptionHandlerExceptionResolver`
| Resolves exceptions by invoking an `@ExceptionHandler` method in a `@Controller` or a
  `@ControllerAdvice` class. See <<mvc-ann-exceptionhandler,@ExceptionHandler methods>>.
|===


[[mvc-excetionhandlers-handling]]
==== Chain of Resolvers

You can form an exception resolver chain by declaring multiple `HandlerExceptionResolver`
beans in your Spring configuration and setting their `order` properties as needed.
The higher the order property, the later the exception resolver is positioned.

The contract of `HandlerExceptionResolver` specifies that it can return:

* a `ModelAndView` that points to an error view.
* An empty `ModelAndView` if the exception was handled within the resolver.
* `null` if the exception remains unresolved, for subsequent resolvers to try, and, if the
exception remains at the end, it is allowed to bubble up to the Servlet container.

The <<mvc-config>> automatically declares built-in resolvers for default Spring MVC
exceptions, for `@ResponseStatus` annotated exceptions, and for support of
`@ExceptionHandler` methods. You can customize that list or replace it.


[[mvc-ann-customer-servlet-container-error-page]]
==== Container Error Page

If an exception remains unresolved by any `HandlerExceptionResolver` and is, therefore,
left to propagate or if the response status is set to an error status (that is, 4xx, 5xx),
Servlet containers can render a default error page in HTML. To customize the default
error page of the container, you can declare an error page mapping in `web.xml`.
The following example shows how to do so:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<error-page>
		<location>/error</location>
	</error-page>
----
====

Given the preceding example, when an exception bubbles up or the response has an error status, the
Servlet container makes an ERROR dispatch within the container to the configured URL
(for example, `/error`). This is then processed by the `DispatcherServlet`, possibly mapping it
to a `@Controller`, which could be implemented to return an error view name with a model
or to render a JSON response, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RestController
	public class ErrorController {

		@RequestMapping(path = "/error")
		public Map<String, Object> handle(HttpServletRequest request) {
			Map<String, Object> map = new HashMap<String, Object>();
			map.put("status", request.getAttribute("javax.servlet.error.status_code"));
			map.put("reason", request.getAttribute("javax.servlet.error.message"));
			return map;
		}
	}
----
====

TIP: The Servlet API does not provide a way to create error page mappings in Java. You can,
however, use both a `WebApplicationInitializer` and a minimal `web.xml`.



[[mvc-viewresolver]]
=== View Resolution
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-viewresolution,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC defines the `ViewResolver` and `View` interfaces that let you render
models in a browser without tying you to a specific view technology. `ViewResolver`
provides a mapping between view names and actual views. `View` addresses the preparation
of data before handing over to a specific view technology.

The following table provides more details on the `ViewResolver` hierarchy:

[[mvc-view-resolvers-tbl]]
.ViewResolver implementations
|===
| ViewResolver| Description

| `AbstractCachingViewResolver`
| Sub-classes of `AbstractCachingViewResolver` cache view instances that they resolve.
  Caching improves performance of certain view technologies. You can turn off the
  cache by setting the `cache` property to `false`. Furthermore, if you must refresh a
  certain view at runtime (for example, when a FreeMarker template is modified), you can use
  the `removeFromCache(String viewName, Locale loc)` method.

| `XmlViewResolver`
| Implementation of `ViewResolver` that accepts a configuration file written in XML with
  the same DTD as Spring's XML bean factories. The default configuration file is
  `/WEB-INF/views.xml`.

| `ResourceBundleViewResolver`
| Implementation of `ViewResolver` that uses bean definitions in a `ResourceBundle`,
  specified by the bundle base name. For each view it is supposed to resolve, it uses
  the value of the property `[viewname].(class)` as the view class and the value of the
  property `[viewname].url` as the view URL. You can find examples in the chapter on
  <<mvc-view>>.

| `UrlBasedViewResolver`
| Simple implementation of the `ViewResolver` interface that affects the direct
  resolution of logical view names to URLs without an explicit mapping definition.
  This is appropriate if your logical names match the names of your view resources
  in a straightforward manner, without the need for arbitrary mappings.

| `InternalResourceViewResolver`
| Convenient subclass of `UrlBasedViewResolver` that supports `InternalResourceView` (in
  effect, Servlets and JSPs) and subclasses such as `JstlView` and `TilesView`. You can
  specify the view class for all views generated by this resolver by using `setViewClass(..)`.
  See the {api-spring-framework}/web/reactive/result/view/UrlBasedViewResolver.html[`UrlBasedViewResolver`]
  javadoc for details.

| `FreeMarkerViewResolver`
| Convenient subclass of `UrlBasedViewResolver` that supports `FreeMarkerView` and
  custom subclasses of them.

| `ContentNegotiatingViewResolver`
| Implementation of the `ViewResolver` interface that resolves a view based on the
  request file name or `Accept` header. See <<mvc-multiple-representations>>.
|===


[[mvc-viewresolver-handling]]
==== Handling
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-viewresolution-handling,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can chain view resolvers by declaring more than one resolver bean and, if necessary, by
setting the `order` property to specify ordering. Remember, the higher the order property,
the later the view resolver is positioned in the chain.

The contract of a `ViewResolver` specifies that it can return null to indicate that the
view could not be found. However, in the case of JSPs and `InternalResourceViewResolver`,
the only way to figure out if a JSP exists is to perform a dispatch through
`RequestDispatcher`. Therefore, you must always configure an `InternalResourceViewResolver`
to be last in the overall order of view resolvers.

Configuring view resolution is as simple as adding `ViewResolver` beans to your Spring
configuration. The <<mvc-config>> provides a dedicated configuration API for
<<mvc-config-view-resolvers>> and for adding logic-less
<<mvc-config-view-controller,View Controllers>> which are useful for HTML template
rendering without controller logic.


[[mvc-redirecting-redirect-prefix]]
==== Redirecting
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-redirecting-redirect-prefix,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The special `redirect:` prefix in a view name lets you perform a redirect. The
`UrlBasedViewResolver` (and its subclasses) recognize this as an instruction that a
redirect is needed. The rest of the view name is the redirect URL.

The net effect is the same as if the controller had returned a `RedirectView`, but now
the controller itself can operate in terms of logical view names. A logical view
name (such as `redirect:/myapp/some/resource`) redirects relative to the current
Servlet context, while a name such as `redirect:http://myhost.com/some/arbitrary/path`
redirects to an absolute URL.

Note that, if a controller method is annotated with the `@ResponseStatus`, the annotation
value takes precedence over the response status set by `RedirectView`.


[[mvc-redirecting-forward-prefix]]
==== Forwarding

You can also use a special `forward:` prefix for view names that are
ultimately resolved by `UrlBasedViewResolver` and subclasses. This creates an
`InternalResourceView`, which does a `RequestDispatcher.forward()`.
Therefore, this prefix is not useful with `InternalResourceViewResolver` and
`InternalResourceView` (for JSPs), but it can be helpful if you use another view
technology but still want to force a forward of a resource to be handled by the
Servlet/JSP engine. Note that you may also chain multiple view resolvers, instead.


[[mvc-multiple-representations]]
==== Content Negotiation
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-multiple-representations,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/view/ContentNegotiatingViewResolver.html[`ContentNegotiatingViewResolver`]
does not resolve views itself but rather delegates
to other view resolvers and selects the view that resembles the representation requested
by the client. The representation can be determined from the `Accept` header or from a
query parameter (for example, `"/path?format=pdf"`).

The `ContentNegotiatingViewResolver` selects an appropriate `View` to handle the request
by comparing the request media types with the media type (also known as
`Content-Type`) supported by the `View` associated with each of its `ViewResolvers`. The
first `View` in the list that has a compatible `Content-Type` returns the representation
to the client. If a compatible view cannot be supplied by the `ViewResolver` chain,
the list of views specified through the `DefaultViews` property is consulted. This
latter option is appropriate for singleton `Views` that can render an appropriate
representation of the current resource regardless of the logical view name. The `Accept`
header can include wildcards (for example `text/{asterisk}`), in which case a `View` whose
`Content-Type` is `text/xml` is a compatible match.

See <<mvc-config-view-resolvers>> under <<mvc-config>> for configuration details.



[[mvc-localeresolver]]
=== Locale

Most parts of Spring's architecture support internationalization, as the Spring web
MVC framework does. `DispatcherServlet` lets you automatically resolve messages
by using the client's locale. This is done with `LocaleResolver` objects.

When a request comes in, the `DispatcherServlet` looks for a locale resolver and, if it
finds one, it tries to use it to set the locale. By using the `RequestContext.getLocale()`
method, you can always retrieve the locale that was resolved by the locale resolver.

In addition to automatic locale resolution, you can also attach an interceptor to the
handler mapping (see <<mvc-handlermapping-interceptor>> for more information on handler
mapping interceptors) to change the locale under specific circumstances (for example,
based on a parameter in the request).

Locale resolvers and interceptors are defined in the
`org.springframework.web.servlet.i18n` package and are configured in your application
context in the normal way. The following selection of locale resolvers is included in
Spring.

* <<mvc-timezone>>
* <<mvc-localeresolver-acceptheader>>
* <<mvc-localeresolver-cookie>>
* <<mvc-localeresolver-session>>
* <<mvc-localeresolver-interceptor>>


[[mvc-timezone]]
==== Time Zone

In addition to obtaining the client's locale, it is often useful to know its time zone.
The `LocaleContextResolver` interface offers an extension to `LocaleResolver` that lets
resolvers provide a richer `LocaleContext`, which may include time zone information.

When available, the user's `TimeZone` can be obtained by using the
`RequestContext.getTimeZone()` method. Time zone information is automatically used
by any Date/Time `Converter` and `Formatter` objects that are registered with Spring's
`ConversionService`.


[[mvc-localeresolver-acceptheader]]
==== Header Resolver

This locale resolver inspects the `accept-language` header in the request that was sent
by the client (for example, a web browser). Usually, this header field contains the locale of
the client's operating system. Note that this resolver does not support time zone
information.


[[mvc-localeresolver-cookie]]
==== Cookie Resolver

This locale resolver inspects a `Cookie` that might exist on the client to see if a
`Locale` or `TimeZone` is specified. If so, it uses the specified details. By using the
properties of this locale resolver, you can specify the name of the cookie as well as the
maximum age. The following example defines a `CookieLocaleResolver`:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<bean id="localeResolver" class="org.springframework.web.servlet.i18n.CookieLocaleResolver">

		<property name="cookieName" value="clientlanguage"/>

		<!-- in seconds. If set to -1, the cookie is not persisted (deleted when browser shuts down) -->
		<property name="cookieMaxAge" value="100000"/>

	</bean>
----
====

The following table describes the properties `CookieLocaleResolver`:

[[mvc-cookie-locale-resolver-props-tbl]]
.CookieLocaleResolver properties
[cols="1,1,4"]
|===
| Property | Default | Description

| `cookieName`
| classname + LOCALE
| The name of the cookie

| `cookieMaxAge`
| Servlet container default
| The maximum time a cookie persists on the client. If `-1` is specified, the
  cookie will not be persisted. It is available only until the client shuts down
  the browser.

| `cookiePath`
| /
| Limits the visibility of the cookie to a certain part of your site. When `cookiePath` is
  specified, the cookie is visible only to that path and the paths below it.
|===


[[mvc-localeresolver-session]]
==== Session Resolver

The `SessionLocaleResolver` lets you retrieve `Locale` and `TimeZone` from the
session that might be associated with the user's request. In contrast to
`CookieLocaleResolver`, this strategy stores locally chosen locale settings in the
Servlet container's `HttpSession`. As a consequence, those settings are temporary
for each session and are, therefore, lost when each session terminates.

Note that there is no direct relationship with external session management mechanisms,
such as the Spring Session project. This `SessionLocaleResolver` evaluates and
modifies the corresponding `HttpSession` attributes against the current `HttpServletRequest`.


[[mvc-localeresolver-interceptor]]
==== Locale Interceptor

You can enable changing of locales by adding the `LocaleChangeInterceptor` to one of the
`HandlerMapping` definitions. It detects a parameter in the request and changes the locale
accordingly, calling the `setLocale` method on the `LocaleResolver` in the dispatcher's
application context. The next example shows that calls to all `{asterisk}.view` resources
that contain a parameter named `siteLanguage` now changes the locale. So, for example,
a request for the URL, `http://www.sf.net/home.view?siteLanguage=nl`, changes the site
language to Dutch. The following example shows how to intercept the locale:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
	<bean id="localeChangeInterceptor"
			class="org.springframework.web.servlet.i18n.LocaleChangeInterceptor">
		<property name="paramName" value="siteLanguage"/>
	</bean>

	<bean id="localeResolver"
			class="org.springframework.web.servlet.i18n.CookieLocaleResolver"/>

	<bean id="urlMapping"
			class="org.springframework.web.servlet.handler.SimpleUrlHandlerMapping">
		<property name="interceptors">
			<list>
				<ref bean="localeChangeInterceptor"/>
			</list>
		</property>
		<property name="mappings">
			<value>/**/*.view=someController</value>
		</property>
	</bean>
----
====



[[mvc-themeresolver]]
=== Themes

You can apply Spring Web MVC framework themes to set the overall look-and-feel of your
application, thereby enhancing user experience. A theme is a collection of static
resources, typically style sheets and images, that affect the visual style of the
application.


[[mvc-themeresolver-defining]]
==== Defining a theme

To use themes in your web application, you must set up an implementation of the
`org.springframework.ui.context.ThemeSource` interface. The `WebApplicationContext`
interface extends `ThemeSource` but delegates its responsibilities to a dedicated
implementation. By default, the delegate is an
`org.springframework.ui.context.support.ResourceBundleThemeSource` implementation that
loads properties files from the root of the classpath. To use a custom `ThemeSource`
implementation or to configure the base name prefix of the `ResourceBundleThemeSource`,
you can register a bean in the application context with the reserved name, `themeSource`.
The web application context automatically detects a bean with that name and uses it.

When you use the `ResourceBundleThemeSource`, a theme is defined in a simple properties
file. The properties file lists the resources that make up the theme, as the following example shows:

====
[literal]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
styleSheet=/themes/cool/style.css
background=/themes/cool/img/coolBg.jpg
----
====

The keys of the properties are the names that refer to the themed elements from view
code. For a JSP, you typically do this using the `spring:theme` custom tag, which is
very similar to the `spring:message` tag. The following JSP fragment uses the theme
defined in the previous example to customize the look and feel:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<%@ taglib prefix="spring" uri="http://www.springframework.org/tags"%>
	<html>
		<head>
			<link rel="stylesheet" href="<spring:theme code='styleSheet'/>" type="text/css"/>
		</head>
		<body style="background=<spring:theme code='background'/>">
			...
		</body>
	</html>
----
====

By default, the `ResourceBundleThemeSource` uses an empty base name prefix. As a result,
the properties files are loaded from the root of the classpath. Thus, you would put the
`cool.properties` theme definition in a directory at the root of the classpath (for
example, in `/WEB-INF/classes`). The `ResourceBundleThemeSource` uses the standard Java
resource bundle loading mechanism, allowing for full internationalization of themes. For
example, we could have a `/WEB-INF/classes/cool_nl.properties` that references a special
background image with Dutch text on it.


[[mvc-themeresolver-resolving]]
==== Resolving Themes

After you define themes, as described in the <<mvc-themeresolver-defining,preceding section>>,
you decide which theme to use. The `DispatcherServlet` looks for a bean named `themeResolver`
to find out which `ThemeResolver` implementation to use. A theme resolver works in much the same
way as a `LocaleResolver`. It detects the theme to use for a particular request and can also
alter the request's theme. The following table describes the theme resolvers provided by Spring:

[[mvc-theme-resolver-impls-tbl]]
.ThemeResolver implementations
[cols="1,4"]
|===
| Class | Description

| `FixedThemeResolver`
| Selects a fixed theme, set by using the `defaultThemeName` property.

| `SessionThemeResolver`
| The theme is maintained in the user's HTTP session. It needs to be set only once for
  each session but is not persisted between sessions.

| `CookieThemeResolver`
| The selected theme is stored in a cookie on the client.
|===

Spring also provides a `ThemeChangeInterceptor` that lets theme changes on every
request with a simple request parameter.



[[mvc-multipart]]
=== Multipart Resolver
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-multipart,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`MultipartResolver` from the `org.springframework.web.multipart` package is a strategy
for parsing multipart requests including file uploads. There is one implementation
based on http://jakarta.apache.org/commons/fileupload[Commons FileUpload] and another
based on Servlet 3.0 multipart request parsing.

To enable multipart handling, you need to declare a `MultipartResolver` bean in your
`DispatcherServlet` Spring configuration with a name of `multipartResolver`.
The `DispatcherServlet` detects it and applies it to the incoming request. When a POST with
content-type of `multipart/form-data` is received, the resolver parses the content and
wraps the current `HttpServletRequest` as `MultipartHttpServletRequest` to
provide access to resolved parts in addition to exposing them as request parameters.


[[mvc-multipart-resolver-commons]]
==== Apache Commons `FileUpload`

To use Apache Commons `FileUpload`, you can configure a bean of type
`CommonsMultipartResolver` with a name of `multipartResolver`. You also need to
have `commons-fileupload` as a dependency on your classpath.


[[mvc-multipart-resolver-standard]]
==== Servlet 3.0

Servlet 3.0 multipart parsing needs to be enabled through Servlet container configuration.
To do so:

* In Java, set a `MultipartConfigElement` on the Servlet registration.
* In `web.xml`, add a `"<multipart-config>"` section to the servlet declaration.

The following example shows how to set a `MultipartConfigElement` on the Servlet registration:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	public class AppInitializer extends AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer {

		// ...

		@Override
		protected void customizeRegistration(ServletRegistration.Dynamic registration) {

			// Optionally also set maxFileSize, maxRequestSize, fileSizeThreshold
			registration.setMultipartConfig(new MultipartConfigElement("/tmp"));
		}

	}
----
====

Once the Servlet 3.0 configuration is in place, you can add a bean of type
`StandardServletMultipartResolver` with a name of `multipartResolver`.



[[mvc-logging]]
=== Logging
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-logging,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

DEBUG-level logging in Spring MVC is designed to be compact, minimal, and
human-friendly. It focuses on high-value bits of information that are useful over and
over again versus others that are useful only when debugging a specific issue.

TRACE-level logging generally follows the same principles as DEBUG (and, for example, also
should not be a fire hose) but can be used for debugging any issue. In addition, some log
messages may show a different level of detail at TRACE versus DEBUG.

Good logging comes from the experience of using the logs. If you spot anything that does
not meet the stated goals, please let us know.


[[mvc-logging-sensitive-data]]
==== Sensitive Data
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-logging-sensitive-data,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

DEBUG and TRACE logging may log sensitive information. This is why request parameters and
headers are masked by default and their logging in full must be enabled explicitly
through the `enableLoggingRequestDetails` property on `DispatcherServlet`.

The following example shows how to do so by using Java configuration:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
public class MyInitializer
		extends AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer {

	@Override
	protected Class<?>[] getRootConfigClasses() {
		return ... ;
	}

	@Override
	protected Class<?>[] getServletConfigClasses() {
		return ... ;
	}

	@Override
	protected String[] getServletMappings() {
		return ... ;
	}

	@Override
	protected void customizeRegistration(Dynamic registration) {
		registration.setInitParameter("enableLoggingRequestDetails", "true");
	}

}
----
====




[[filters]]
== Filters
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-filters,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The `spring-web` module provides some useful filters:

* <<filters-http-put>>
* <<filters-forwarded-headers>>
* <<filters-shallow-etag>>
* <<filters-cors>>



[[filters-http-put]]
=== Form Data

Browsers can submit form data only through HTTP GET or HTTP POST but non-browser clients can also
use HTTP PUT, PATCH, and DELETE. The Servlet API requires `ServletRequest.getParameter{asterisk}()`
methods to support form field access only for HTTP POST.

The `spring-web` module provides `FormContentFilter` to intercept HTTP PUT, PATCH, and DELETE
requests with a content type of `application/x-www-form-urlencoded`, read the form data from
the body of the request, and wrap the `ServletRequest` to make the form data
available through the `ServletRequest.getParameter{asterisk}()` family of methods.



[[filters-forwarded-headers]]
=== Forwarded Headers
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-forwarded-headers,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

As a request goes through proxies (such as load balancers) the host, port, and
scheme may change, and that makes it a challenge to create links that point to the correct
host, port, and scheme from a client perspective.

https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7239[RFC 7239] defines the `Forwarded` HTTP header
that proxies can use to provide information about the original request. There are other
non-standard headers, too, including `X-Forwarded-Host`, `X-Forwarded-Port`,
`X-Forwarded-Proto`, `X-Forwarded-Ssl`, and `X-Forwarded-Prefix`.

`ForwardedHeaderFilter` is a Servlet filter that modifies the host, port, and scheme of
the request, based on `Forwarded` headers, and then removes those headers.

There are security considerations for forwarded headers since an application cannot know
if the headers were added by a proxy, as intended, or by a malicious client. This is why
a proxy at the boundary of trust should be configured to remove untrusted `Forwarded` headers that come
from the outside. You can also configure the `ForwardedHeaderFilter` with
`removeOnly=true`, in which case it removes but does not use the headers.



[[filters-shallow-etag]]
=== Shallow ETag

The `ShallowEtagHeaderFilter` filter creates a "`shallow`" ETag by caching the content
written to the response and computing an MD5 hash from it. The next time a client sends,
it does the same, but it also compares the computed value against the `If-None-Match` request
header and, if the two are equal, returns a 304 (NOT_MODIFIED).

This strategy saves network bandwidth but not CPU, as the full response must be computed
for each request. Other strategies at the controller level, described earlier, can avoid the
computation. See <<mvc-caching>>.

This filter has a `writeWeakETag` parameter that configures the filter to write weak ETags
similar to the following: `W/"02a2d595e6ed9a0b24f027f2b63b134d6"` (as defined in
https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7232#section-2.3[RFC 7232 Section 2.3]).



[[filters-cors]]
=== CORS
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-filters-cors,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC provides fine-grained support for CORS configuration through annotations on
controllers. However, when used with Spring Security, we advise relying on the built-in
`CorsFilter` that must be ordered ahead of Spring Security's chain of filters.

See the sections on <<mvc-cors>> and the <<mvc-cors-filter>> for more details.




[[mvc-controller]]
== Annotated Controllers
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-controller,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC provides an annotation-based programming model where `@Controller` and
`@RestController` components use annotations to express request mappings, request input,
exception handling, and more. Annotated controllers have flexible method signatures and
do not have to extend base classes nor implement specific interfaces.
The following example shows a controller defined by annotations:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class HelloController {

		@GetMapping("/hello")
		public String handle(Model model) {
			model.addAttribute("message", "Hello World!");
			return "index";
		}
	}
----
====

In the preceding example, the method accepts a `Model` and returns a view name as a `String`,
but many other options exist and are explained later in this chapter.

TIP: Guides and tutorials on https://spring.io/guides[spring.io] use the annotation-based
programming model described in this section.



[[mvc-ann-controller]]
=== Declaration
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-controller,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can define controller beans by using a standard Spring bean definition in the
Servlet's `WebApplicationContext`. The `@Controller` stereotype allows for auto-detection,
aligned with Spring general support for detecting `@Component` classes in the classpath
and auto-registering bean definitions for them. It also acts as a stereotype for the
annotated class, indicating its role as a web component.

To enable auto-detection of such `@Controller` beans, you can add component scanning to
your Java configuration, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@ComponentScan("org.example.web")
	public class WebConfig {

		// ...
	}
----
====

The following example shows the XML configuration equivalent of the preceding example:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
	<beans xmlns="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans"
		xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
		xmlns:p="http://www.springframework.org/schema/p"
		xmlns:context="http://www.springframework.org/schema/context"
		xsi:schemaLocation="
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans/spring-beans.xsd
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/context
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/context/spring-context.xsd">

		<context:component-scan base-package="org.example.web"/>

		<!-- ... -->

	</beans>
----
====

`@RestController` is a <<core.adoc#beans-meta-annotations,composed annotation>> that is
itself meta-annotated with `@Controller` and `@ResponseBody` to indicate a controller whose
every method inherits the type-level `@ResponseBody` annotation and, therefore, writes
directly to the response body versus view resolution and rendering with an HTML template.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-proxying]]
==== AOP Proxies

In some cases, you many need to decorate a controller with an AOP proxy at runtime.
One example is if you choose to have `@Transactional` annotations directly on the
controller. When this is the case, for controllers specifically, we recommend
using class-based proxying. This is typically the default choice with controllers.
However, if a controller must implement an interface that is not a Spring Context
callback (such as `InitializingBean`, `*Aware`, and others), you may need to explicitly
configure class-based proxying. For example, with `<tx:annotation-driven/>`, you can
change to `<tx:annotation-driven proxy-target-class="true"/>`.



[[mvc-ann-requestmapping]]
=== Request Mapping
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@RequestMapping` annotation to map requests to controllers methods. It has
various attributes to match by URL, HTTP method, request parameters, headers, and media
types. You can use it at the class level to express shared mappings or at the method level
to narrow down to a specific endpoint mapping.

There are also HTTP method specific shortcut variants of `@RequestMapping`:

* `@GetMapping`
* `@PostMapping`
* `@PutMapping`
* `@DeleteMapping`
* `@PatchMapping`

The shortcuts are <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-composed>> that are provided
because, arguably, most controller methods should be mapped to a specific HTTP method versus
using `@RequestMapping`, which, by default, matches to all HTTP methods. At the same, a
`@RequestMapping` is still needed at the class level to express shared mappings.

The following example has type and method level mappings:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RestController
	@RequestMapping("/persons")
	class PersonController {

		@GetMapping("/{id}")
		public Person getPerson(@PathVariable Long id) {
			// ...
		}

		@PostMapping
		@ResponseStatus(HttpStatus.CREATED)
		public void add(@RequestBody Person person) {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-uri-templates]]
==== URI patterns
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-uri-templates,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can map requests by using the following global patterns and wildcards:

* `?` matches one character
* `*` matches zero or more characters within a path segment
* `**` match zero or more path segments

You can also declare URI variables and access their values with `@PathVariable`,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}")
	public Pet findPet(@PathVariable Long ownerId, @PathVariable Long petId) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

You can declare URI variables at the class and method levels, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,intent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
@Controller
@RequestMapping("/owners/{ownerId}")
public class OwnerController {

	@GetMapping("/pets/{petId}")
	public Pet findPet(@PathVariable Long ownerId, @PathVariable Long petId) {
		// ...
	}
}
----
====

URI variables are automatically converted to the appropriate type, or `TypeMismatchException`
is raised. Simple types (`int`, `long`, `Date`, and so on) are supported by default and you can
register support for any other data type.
See <<mvc-ann-typeconversion>> and <<mvc-ann-initbinder>>.

You can explicitly name URI variables (for example, `@PathVariable("customId")`), but you can
leave that detail out if the names are the same and your code is compiled with debugging
information or with the `-parameters` compiler flag on Java 8.

The syntax `{varName:regex}` declares a URI variable with a regular expression that has
syntax of `{varName:regex}`. For example, given URL `"/spring-web-3.0.5 .jar"`, the following method
extracts the name, version, and file extension:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/{name:[a-z-]+}-{version:\\d\\.\\d\\.\\d}{ext:\\.[a-z]+}")
	public void handle(@PathVariable String version, @PathVariable String ext) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

URI path patterns can also have embedded `${...}` placeholders that are resolved on startup
by using `PropertyPlaceHolderConfigurer` against local, system, environment, and other property
sources. You can use this, for example, to parameterize a base URL based on some external
configuration.

NOTE: Spring MVC uses the `PathMatcher` contract and the `AntPathMatcher` implementation from
`spring-core` for URI path matching.



[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-pattern-comparison]]
==== Pattern Comparison
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-pattern-comparison,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

When multiple patterns match a URL, they must be compared to find the best match. This is done
by using `AntPathMatcher.getPatternComparator(String path)`, which looks for patterns that are more
specific.

A pattern is less specific if it has a lower count of URI variables (counted as 1), single
wildcards (counted as 1), and double wildcards (counted as 2). Given an equal score, the
longer pattern is chosen. Given the same score and length, the pattern with more URI variables
than wildcards is chosen.

The default mapping pattern (`/{asterisk}{asterisk}`) is excluded from scoring and always
sorted last. Also, prefix patterns (such as `/public/{asterisk}{asterisk}`) are considered less
specific than other pattern that do not have double wildcards.

For the full details, see {api-spring-framework}/util/AntPathMatcher.AntPatternComparator.html[`AntPatternComparator`]
in {api-spring-framework}/util/AntPathMatcher.html[`AntPathMatcher`] and also keep mind that
you can customize the {api-spring-framework}/util/PathMatcher.html[`PathMatcher`] implementation.
See <<mvc-config-path-matching>> in the configuration section.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-suffix-pattern-match]]
==== Suffix Match

By default, Spring MVC performs `.{asterisk}` suffix pattern matching so that a
controller mapped to `/person` is also implicitly mapped to `/person.{asterisk}`.
The file extension is then used to interpret the requested content type to use for
the response (that is, instead of the `Accept` header) -- for example, `/person.pdf`,
`/person.xml`, and others.

Using file extensions in this way was necessary when browsers used to send `Accept` headers
that were hard to interpret consistently. At present, that is no longer a necessity and
using the `Accept` header should be the preferred choice.

Over time, the use of file name extensions has proven problematic in a variety of ways.
It can cause ambiguity when overlain with the use of URI variables, path parameters, and
URI encoding. Reasoning about URL-based authorization
and security (see next section for more details) also become more difficult.

To completely disable the use of file extensions, you must set both of the following:

* `useSuffixPatternMatching(false)`, see <<mvc-config-path-matching,PathMatchConfigurer>>
* `favorPathExtension(false)`, see <<mvc-config-content-negotiation,ContentNegotiationConfigurer>>

URL-based content negotiation can still be useful (for example, when typing a URL in a
browser). To enable that, we recommend a query parameter-based strategy to avoid most of
the issues that come with file extensions. Alternatively, if you must use file extensions, consider
restricting them to a list of explicitly registered extensions through the
`mediaTypes` property of <<mvc-config-content-negotiation,ContentNegotiationConfigurer>>.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-rfd]]
==== Suffix Match and RFD

A reflected file download (RFD) attack is similar to XSS in that it relies on request input
(for example, a query parameter and a URI variable) being reflected in the response. However, instead of
inserting JavaScript into HTML, an RFD attack relies on the browser switching to perform a
download and treating the response as an executable script when double-clicked later.

In Spring MVC, `@ResponseBody` and `ResponseEntity` methods are at risk, because
they can render different content types, which clients can request through URL path extensions.
Disabling suffix pattern matching and using path extensions for content negotiation
lower the risk but are not sufficient to prevent RFD attacks.

To prevent RFD attacks, prior to rendering the response body, Spring MVC adds a
`Content-Disposition:inline;filename=f.txt` header to suggest a fixed and safe download
file. This is done only if the URL path contains a file extension that is neither whitelisted
nor explicitly registered for content negotiation. However, it can potentially have
side effects when URLs are typed directly into a browser.

Many common path extensions are whitelisted by default. Applications with custom
`HttpMessageConverter` implementations can explicitly register file extensions for content
negotiation to avoid having a `Content-Disposition` header added for those extensions.
See <<mvc-config-content-negotiation>>.

See http://pivotal.io/security/cve-2015-5211[CVE-2015-5211] for additional
recommendations related to RFD.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-consumes]]
==== Consumable Media Types
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-consumes,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can narrow the request mapping based on the `Content-Type` of the request,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping(path = "/pets", consumes = "application/json") <1>
	public void addPet(@RequestBody Pet pet) {
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Using a `consumes` attribute to narrow the mapping by the content type.
====

The `consumes` attribute also supports negation expressions -- for example, `!text/plain` means any
content type other than `text/plain`.

You can declare a shared `consumes` attribute at the class level. Unlike most other
request-mapping attributes, however, when used at the class level, a method-level `consumes` attribute
overrides rather than extends the class-level declaration.

TIP: `MediaType` provides constants for commonly used media types, such as
`APPLICATION_JSON_VALUE` and `APPLICATION_XML_VALUE`.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-produces]]
==== Producible Media Types
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-produces,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can narrow the request mapping based on the `Accept` request header and the list of
content types that a controller method produces, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping(path = "/pets/{petId}", produces = "application/json;charset=UTF-8") <1>
	@ResponseBody
	public Pet getPet(@PathVariable String petId) {
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Using a `produces` attribute to narrow the mapping by the content type.
====

The media type can specify a character set. Negated expressions are supported -- for example,
`!text/plain` means any content type other than "text/plain".

NOTE: For the JSON content type, the UTF-8 charset should be specified even if
https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7159#section-11[RFC7159]
clearly states that "`no charset parameter is defined for this registration`", because some
browsers require it to  correctly interpret UTF-8 special characters.

You can declare a shared `produces` attribute at the class level. Unlike most other
request-mapping attributes, however, when used at the class level, a method-level `produces` attribute
overrides rather than extends the class-level declaration.

TIP: `MediaType` provides constants for commonly used media types, such as
`APPLICATION_JSON_UTF8_VALUE` and `APPLICATION_XML_VALUE`.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-params-and-headers]]
==== Parameters, headers
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-params-and-headers,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can narrow request mappings based on request parameter conditions. You can test for the
presence of a request parameter (`myParam`), for the absence of one (`!myParam`), or for a
specific value (`myParam=myValue`). The following example shows how to test for a specific value:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping(path = "/pets/{petId}", params = "myParam=myValue") <1>
	public void findPet(@PathVariable String petId) {
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Testing whether `myParam` equals `myValue`.
====

You can also use the same with request header conditions, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping(path = "/pets", headers = "myHeader=myValue") <1>
	public void findPet(@PathVariable String petId) {
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Testing whether `myHeader` equals `myValue`.
====

TIP: You can match `Content-Type` and `Accept` with the headers condition, but it is better to use
<<mvc-ann-requestmapping-consumes,consumes>> and <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-produces,produces>>
instead.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-head-options]]
==== HTTP HEAD, OPTIONS
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-head-options,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@GetMapping` (and `@RequestMapping(method=HttpMethod.GET)`) support HTTP HEAD
transparently for request mapping. Controller methods do not need to change.
A response wrapper, applied in `javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet`, ensures a `Content-Length`
header is set to the number of bytes written (without actually writing to the response).

`@GetMapping` (and `@RequestMapping(method=HttpMethod.GET)`) are implicitly mapped to
and support HTTP HEAD. An HTTP HEAD request is processed as if it were HTTP GET except
that, instead of writing the body, the number of bytes are counted and the `Content-Length`
header is set.

By default, HTTP OPTIONS is handled by setting the `Allow` response header to the list of HTTP
methods listed in all `@RequestMapping` methods that have matching URL patterns.

For a `@RequestMapping` without HTTP method declarations, the `Allow` header is set to
`GET,HEAD,POST,PUT,PATCH,DELETE,OPTIONS`. Controller methods should always declare the
supported HTTP methods (for example, by using the HTTP method specific variants:
`@GetMapping`, `@PostMapping`, and others).

You can explicitly map the `@RequestMapping` method to HTTP HEAD and HTTP OPTIONS, but that
is not necessary in the common case.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-composed]]
==== Custom Annotations
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#mvc-ann-requestmapping-head-options,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC supports the use of <<core.adoc#beans-meta-annotations,composed annotations>>
for request mapping. Those are annotations that are themselves meta-annotated with
`@RequestMapping` and composed to redeclare a subset (or all) of the `@RequestMapping`
attributes with a narrower, more specific purpose.

`@GetMapping`, `@PostMapping`, `@PutMapping`, `@DeleteMapping`, and `@PatchMapping` are
examples of composed annotations. They are provided because, arguably, most
controller methods should be mapped to a specific HTTP method versus using `@RequestMapping`,
which, by default, matches to all HTTP methods. If you need an example of composed
annotations, look at how those are declared.

Spring MVC also supports custom request-mapping attributes with custom request-matching
logic. This is a more advanced option that requires subclassing
`RequestMappingHandlerMapping` and overriding the `getCustomMethodCondition` method, where
you can check the custom attribute and return your own `RequestCondition`.


[[mvc-ann-requestmapping-registration]]
==== Explicit Registrations
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestmapping-registration,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can programmatically register handler methods, which you can use for dynamic
registrations or for advanced cases, such as different instances of the same handler
under different URLs. The following example registers a handler method:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
@Configuration
public class MyConfig {

	@Autowired
	public void setHandlerMapping(RequestMappingHandlerMapping mapping, UserHandler handler) <1>
			throws NoSuchMethodException {

		RequestMappingInfo info = RequestMappingInfo
				.paths("/user/{id}").methods(RequestMethod.GET).build(); <2>

		Method method = UserHandler.class.getMethod("getUser", Long.class); <3>

		mapping.registerMapping(info, handler, method); <4>
	}

}
----

<1> Inject the target handler and the handler mapping for controllers.
<2> Prepare the request mapping meta data.
<3> Get the handler method.
<4> Add the registration.
====



[[mvc-ann-methods]]
=== Handler Methods
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-methods,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@RequestMapping` handler methods have a flexible signature and can choose from a range of
supported controller method arguments and return values.


[[mvc-ann-arguments]]
==== Method Arguments
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-arguments,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The next table describes the supported controller method arguments. Reactive types are not supported
for any arguments.

JDK 8's `java.util.Optional` is supported as a method argument in combination with
annotations that have a `required` attribute (for example, `@RequestParam`, `@RequestHeader`,
and others) and is equivalent to `required=false`.

[cols="1,2", options="header"]
|===
| Controller method argument | Description

| `WebRequest`, `NativeWebRequest`
| Generic access to request parameters and request and session attributes, without direct
  use of the Servlet API.

| `javax.servlet.ServletRequest`, `javax.servlet.ServletResponse`
| Choose any specific request or response type -- for example, `ServletRequest`, `HttpServletRequest`,
  or Spring's `MultipartRequest`, `MultipartHttpServletRequest`.

| `javax.servlet.http.HttpSession`
| Enforces the presence of a session. As a consequence, such an argument is never `null`.
  Note that session access is not thread-safe. Consider setting the
  `RequestMappingHandlerAdapter` instance's `synchronizeOnSession` flag to `true` if multiple
  requests are allowed to concurrently access a session.

| `javax.servlet.http.PushBuilder`
| Servlet 4.0 push builder API for programmatic HTTP/2 resource pushes.
  Note that, per the Servlet specification, the injected `PushBuilder` instance can be null if the client
  does not support that HTTP/2 feature.

| `java.security.Principal`
| Currently authenticated user -- possibly a specific `Principal` implementation class if known.

| `HttpMethod`
| The HTTP method of the request.

| `java.util.Locale`
| The current request locale, determined by the most specific `LocaleResolver` available (in
  effect, the configured `LocaleResolver` or `LocaleContextResolver`).

| `java.util.TimeZone` + `java.time.ZoneId`
| The time zone associated with the current request, as determined by a `LocaleContextResolver`.

| `java.io.InputStream`, `java.io.Reader`
| For access to the raw request body as exposed by the Servlet API.

| `java.io.OutputStream`, `java.io.Writer`
| For access to the raw response body as exposed by the Servlet API.

| `@PathVariable`
| For access to URI template variables. See <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-uri-templates>>.

| `@MatrixVariable`
| For access to name-value pairs in URI path segments. See <<mvc-ann-matrix-variables>>.

| `@RequestParam`
| For access to the Servlet request parameters, including multipart files. Parameter values
  are converted to the declared method argument type. See <<mvc-ann-requestparam>> as well
  as <<mvc-multipart-forms>>.

  Note that use of `@RequestParam` is optional for simple parameter values.
  See "`Any other argument`", at the end of this table.

| `@RequestHeader`
| For access to request headers. Header values are converted to the declared method argument
  type. See <<mvc-ann-requestheader>>.

| `@CookieValue`
| For access to cookies. Cookies values are converted to the declared method argument
  type. See <<mvc-ann-cookievalue>>.

| `@RequestBody`
| For access to the HTTP request body. Body content is converted to the declared method
  argument type by using `HttpMessageConverter` implementations. See <<mvc-ann-requestbody>>.

| `HttpEntity<B>`
| For access to request headers and body. The body is converted with an `HttpMessageConverter`.
  See <<mvc-ann-httpentity>>.

| `@RequestPart`
| For access to a part in a `multipart/form-data` request, converting the part's body
  with an `HttpMessageConverter`. See <<mvc-multipart-forms>>.

| `java.util.Map`, `org.springframework.ui.Model`, `org.springframework.ui.ModelMap`
| For access to the model that is used in HTML controllers and exposed to templates as
  part of view rendering.

| `RedirectAttributes`
| Specify attributes to use in case of a redirect (that is, to be appended to the query
  string) and flash attributes to be stored temporarily until the request after redirect.
  See <<mvc-redirecting-passing-data>> and <<mvc-flash-attributes>>.

| `@ModelAttribute`
| For access to an existing attribute in the model (instantiated if not present) with
  data binding and validation applied. See <<mvc-ann-modelattrib-method-args>> as well as
  <<mvc-ann-modelattrib-methods>> and <<mvc-ann-initbinder>>.

  Note that use of `@ModelAttribute` is optional (for example, to set its attributes).
  See "`Any other argument`" at the end of this table.

| `Errors`, `BindingResult`
| For access to errors from validation and data binding for a command object
  (that is, a `@ModelAttribute` argument) or errors from the validation of a `@RequestBody` or
  `@RequestPart` arguments. You must declare an `Errors`, or `BindingResult` argument
  immediately after the validated method argument.

| `SessionStatus` + class-level `@SessionAttributes`
| For marking form processing complete, which triggers cleanup of session attributes
  declared through a class-level `@SessionAttributes` annotation. See
  <<mvc-ann-sessionattributes>> for more details.

| `UriComponentsBuilder`
| For preparing a URL relative to the current request's host, port, scheme, context path, and
  the literal  part of the servlet mapping. See <<mvc-uri-building>>.

| `@SessionAttribute`
| For access to any session attribute, in contrast to model attributes stored in the session
  as a result of a class-level `@SessionAttributes` declaration. See
  <<mvc-ann-sessionattribute>> for more details.

| `@RequestAttribute`
| For access to request attributes. See <<mvc-ann-requestattrib>> for more details.

| Any other argument
| If a method argument is not matched to any of the earlier values in this table and it is
  a simple type (as determined by
	{api-spring-framework}/beans/BeanUtils.html#isSimpleProperty-java.lang.Class-[BeanUtils#isSimpleProperty],
  it is a resolved as a `@RequestParam`. Otherwise, it is resolved as a `@ModelAttribute`.
|===


[[mvc-ann-return-types]]
==== Return Values
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-return-types,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The next table describes the supported controller method return values. Reactive types are
supported for all return values.

[cols="1,2", options="header"]
|===
| Controller method return value | Description

| `@ResponseBody`
| The return value is converted through `HttpMessageConverter` implementations and written to the
  response. See <<mvc-ann-responsebody>>.

| `HttpEntity<B>`, `ResponseEntity<B>`
| The return value that specifies the full response (including HTTP headers and body) is to be converted
  through `HttpMessageConverter` implementations and written to the response.
  See <<mvc-ann-responseentity>>.

| `HttpHeaders`
| For returning a response with headers and no body.

| `String`
| A view name to be resolved with `ViewResolver` implementations and used together with the implicit
  model -- determined through command objects and `@ModelAttribute` methods. The handler
  method can also programmatically enrich the model by declaring a `Model` argument
  (see <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-registration>>).

| `View`
| A `View` instance to use for rendering together with the implicit model -- determined
  through command objects and `@ModelAttribute` methods. The handler method can also
  programmatically enrich the model by declaring a `Model` argument (see <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-registration>>).

| `java.util.Map`, `org.springframework.ui.Model`
| Attributes to be added to the implicit model, with the view name implicitly determined
  through a `RequestToViewNameTranslator`.

| `@ModelAttribute`
| An attribute to be added to the model, with the view name implicitly determined through
  a `RequestToViewNameTranslator`.

  Note that `@ModelAttribute` is optional. See "Any other return value" at the end of
  this table.

| `ModelAndView` object
| The view and model attributes to use and, optionally, a response status.

| `void`
| A method with a `void` return type (or `null` return value) is considered to have fully
  handled the response if it also has a `ServletResponse`, an `OutputStream` argument, or
  an `@ResponseStatus` annotation. The same is also true if the controller has made a positive
  `ETag` or `lastModified` timestamp check (see <<mvc-caching-etag-lastmodified>> for details).

  If none of the above is true, a `void` return type can also indicate "`no response body`" for
  REST controllers or a default view name selection for HTML controllers.

| `DeferredResult<V>`
| Produce any of the preceding return values asynchronously from any thread -- for example, as a
  result of some event or callback. See <<mvc-ann-async>> and
  <<mvc-ann-async-deferredresult>>.

| `Callable<V>`
| Produce any of the above return values asynchronously in a Spring MVC-managed thread.
  See <<mvc-ann-async>> and <<mvc-ann-async-callable>>.

| `ListenableFuture<V>`,
  `java.util.concurrent.CompletionStage<V>`,
  `java.util.concurrent.CompletableFuture<V>`
| Alternative to `DeferredResult`, as a convenience (for example, when an underlying service
  returns one of those).

| `ResponseBodyEmitter`, `SseEmitter`
| Emit a stream of objects asynchronously to be written to the response with
  `HttpMessageConverter` implementations. Also supported as the body of a `ResponseEntity`.
  See <<mvc-ann-async>> and <<mvc-ann-async-http-streaming>>.

| `StreamingResponseBody`
| Write to the response `OutputStream` asynchronously. Also supported as the body of a
  `ResponseEntity`. See <<mvc-ann-async>> and <<mvc-ann-async-http-streaming>>.

| Reactive types -- Reactor, RxJava, or others through `ReactiveAdapterRegistry`
| Alternative to `DeferredResult` with multi-value streams (for example, `Flux`, `Observable`)
  collected to a `List`.

  For streaming scenarios (for example, `text/event-stream`, `application/json+stream`),
  `SseEmitter` and `ResponseBodyEmitter` are used instead, where `ServletOutputStream`
  blocking I/O is performed on a Spring MVC-managed thread and back pressure is applied
  against the completion of each write.

  See <<mvc-ann-async>> and <<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types>>.

| Any other return value
| Any return value that does not match any of the earlier values in this table and that
  is a `String` or `void` is treated as a view name (default view name selection through
  `RequestToViewNameTranslator` applies), provided it is not a simple type, as determined by
  {api-spring-framework}/beans/BeanUtils.html#isSimpleProperty-java.lang.Class-[BeanUtils#isSimpleProperty].
  Values that are simple types remain unresolved.
|===


[[mvc-ann-typeconversion]]
==== Type Conversion
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-typeconversion,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Some annotated controller method arguments that represent `String`-based request input (such as
`@RequestParam`, `@RequestHeader`, `@PathVariable`, `@MatrixVariable`, and `@CookieValue`)
can require type conversion if the argument is declared as something other than `String`.

For such cases, type conversion is automatically applied based on the configured converters.
By default, simple types (`int`, `long`, `Date`, and others) are supported. You can customize type conversion
through a `WebDataBinder` (see <<mvc-ann-initbinder>>) or by registering
`Formatters` with the `FormattingConversionService`. See
<<core.adoc#format, Spring Field Formatting>>.


[[mvc-ann-matrix-variables]]
==== Matrix Variables
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-matrix-variables,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc3986#section-3.3[RFC 3986] discusses name-value pairs in
path segments. In Spring MVC, we refer to those as "`matrix variables`" based on an
http://www.w3.org/DesignIssues/MatrixURIs.html["`old post`"] by Tim Berners-Lee, but they
can be also be referred to as URI path parameters.

Matrix variables can appear in any path segment, with each variable separated by a semicolon and
multiple values separated by comma (for example, `/cars;color=red,green;year=2012`). Multiple
values can also be specified through repeated variable names (for example,
`color=red;color=green;color=blue`).

If a URL is expected to contain matrix variables, the request mapping for a controller
method must use a URI variable to mask that variable content and ensure the request can
be matched successfully independent of matrix variable order and presence.
The following example uses a matrix variable:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// GET /pets/42;q=11;r=22

	@GetMapping("/pets/{petId}")
	public void findPet(@PathVariable String petId, @MatrixVariable int q) {

		// petId == 42
		// q == 11
	}
----
====

Given that all path segments may contain matrix variables, you may sometimes need to
disambiguate which path variable the matrix variable is expected to be in.
The following example shows how to do so:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// GET /owners/42;q=11/pets/21;q=22

	@GetMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}")
	public void findPet(
			@MatrixVariable(name="q", pathVar="ownerId") int q1,
			@MatrixVariable(name="q", pathVar="petId") int q2) {

		// q1 == 11
		// q2 == 22
	}
----
====

A matrix variable may be defined as optional and a default value specified, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// GET /pets/42

	@GetMapping("/pets/{petId}")
	public void findPet(@MatrixVariable(required=false, defaultValue="1") int q) {

		// q == 1
	}
----
====

To get all matrix variables, you can use a `MultiValueMap`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// GET /owners/42;q=11;r=12/pets/21;q=22;s=23

	@GetMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}")
	public void findPet(
			@MatrixVariable MultiValueMap<String, String> matrixVars,
			@MatrixVariable(pathVar="petId") MultiValueMap<String, String> petMatrixVars) {

		// matrixVars: ["q" : [11,22], "r" : 12, "s" : 23]
		// petMatrixVars: ["q" : 22, "s" : 23]
	}
----
====

Note that you need to enable the use of matrix variables. In the MVC Java configuration,
you need to set a `UrlPathHelper` with `removeSemicolonContent=false` through
<<mvc-config-path-matching>>. In the MVC XML namespace, you can set
`<mvc:annotation-driven enable-matrix-variables="true"/>`.


[[mvc-ann-requestparam]]
==== `@RequestParam`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestparam,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@RequestParam` annotation to bind Servlet request parameters (that is,
query parameters or form data) to a method argument in a controller.

The following example shows how to do so:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	@RequestMapping("/pets")
	public class EditPetForm {

		// ...

		@GetMapping
		public String setupForm(**@RequestParam("petId") int petId**, Model model) { <1>
			Pet pet = this.clinic.loadPet(petId);
			model.addAttribute("pet", pet);
			return "petForm";
		}

		// ...

	}
----
<1> Using `@RequestParam` to bind `petId`.
====

By default, method parameters that use this annotation are required, but you can specify that
a method parameter is optional by setting the `@RequestParam` annotation's `required` flag to
`false` or by declaring the argument with an `java.util.Optional` wrapper.

Type conversion is automatically applied if the target method parameter type is not
`String`. See <<mvc-ann-typeconversion>>.

Declaring the argument type as an array or list allows for resolving multiple parameter
values for the same parameter name.

When an `@RequestParam` annotation is declared as a `Map<String, String>` or
`MultiValueMap<String, String>`, without a parameter name specified in the annotation,
then the map is populated with the request parameter values for each given parameter name.

Note that use of `@RequestParam` is optional (for example, to set its attributes).
By default, any argument that is a simple value type (as determined by
{api-spring-framework}/beans/BeanUtils.html#isSimpleProperty-java.lang.Class-[BeanUtils#isSimpleProperty])
and is not resolved by any other argument resolver, is treated as if it were annotated
with `@RequestParam`.


[[mvc-ann-requestheader]]
==== `@RequestHeader`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestheader,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@RequestHeader` annotation to bind a request header to a method argument in a
controller.

Consider the following request, with headers:

====
[literal]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
Host                    localhost:8080
Accept                  text/html,application/xhtml+xml,application/xml;q=0.9
Accept-Language         fr,en-gb;q=0.7,en;q=0.3
Accept-Encoding         gzip,deflate
Accept-Charset          ISO-8859-1,utf-8;q=0.7,*;q=0.7
Keep-Alive              300
----
====

The following example gets the value of the `Accept-Encoding` and `Keep-Alive` headers:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/demo")
	public void handle(
			@RequestHeader("Accept-Encoding") String encoding, <1>
			@RequestHeader("Keep-Alive") long keepAlive) { <2>
		//...
	}
----
<1> Get the value of the `Accept-Encoding` header.
<2> Get the value of the `Keep-Alive` header.
====

If the target method parameter type is not
`String`, type conversion is automatically applied. See <<mvc-ann-typeconversion>>.

When an `@RequestHeader` annotation is used on a `Map<String, String>`,
`MultiValueMap<String, String>`, or `HttpHeaders` argument, the map is populated
with all header values.

TIP: Built-in support is available for converting a comma-separated string into an
array or collection of strings or other types known to the type conversion system. For
example, a method parameter annotated with `@RequestHeader("Accept")` can be of type
`String` but also `String[]` or `List<String>`.


[[mvc-ann-cookievalue]]
==== `@CookieValue`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-cookievalue,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@CookieValue` annotation to bind the value of an HTTP cookie to a method argument
in a controller.

Consider a request with the following cookie:

====
[literal]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
JSESSIONID=415A4AC178C59DACE0B2C9CA727CDD84
----
====

The following example shows how to get the cookie value:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/demo")
	public void handle(@CookieValue("JSESSIONID") String cookie) { <1>
		//...
	}
----
<1> Get the value of the `JSESSIONID` cookie.
====

if the target method parameter type is not
`String`, type conversion is applied automatically. See <<mvc-ann-typeconversion>>.


[[mvc-ann-modelattrib-method-args]]
==== `@ModelAttribute`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-modelattrib-method-args,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@ModelAttribute` annotation on a method argument to access an attribute from the
model or have it be instantiated if not present. The model attribute is also overlain with
values from HTTP Servlet request parameters whose names match to field names. This is
referred to as data binding, and it saves you from having to deal with parsing and
converting individual query parameters and form fields. The following example shows how to do so:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}/edit")
	public String processSubmit(@ModelAttribute Pet pet) { } <1>
----
<1> Bind an instance of `Pet`.
====

The `Pet` instance above is resolved as follows:

* From the model if already added by using <<mvc-ann-modelattrib-methods>>.
* From the HTTP session by using <<mvc-ann-sessionattributes>>.
* From a URI path variable passed through a `Converter` (see the next example).
* From the invocation of a default constructor.
* From the invocation of a "`primary constructor`" with arguments that match to Servlet
request parameters. Argument names are determined through JavaBeans
`@ConstructorProperties` or through runtime-retained parameter names in the bytecode.

While it is common to use a <<mvc-ann-modelattrib-methods>> to populate the model with
attributes, one other alternative is to rely on a `Converter<String, T>` in combination
with a URI path variable convention. In the following example, the model attribute name,
`account`, matches the URI path variable, `account`, and the `Account` is loaded by passing
the `String` account number through a registered `Converter<String, Account>`:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PutMapping("/accounts/{account}")
	public String save(@ModelAttribute("account") Account account) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

After the model attribute instance is obtained, data binding is applied. The
`WebDataBinder` class matches Servlet request parameter names (query parameters and form
fields) to field names on the target `Object`. Matching fields are populated after type
conversion is applied, where necessary. For more on data binding (and validation), see
<<core.adoc#validation, Validation>>. For more on customizing data binding, see
<<mvc-ann-initbinder>>.

Data binding can result in errors. By default, a `BindException` is raised. However, to check
for such errors in the controller method, you can add a `BindingResult` argument immediately next
to the `@ModelAttribute`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}/edit")
	public String processSubmit(@ModelAttribute("pet") Pet pet, BindingResult result) { <1>
		if (result.hasErrors()) {
			return "petForm";
		}
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Adding a `BindingResult` next to the `@ModelAttribute`.
====

In some cases, you may want access to a model attribute without data binding. For such
cases, you can inject the `Model` into the controller and access it directly or,
alternatively, set `@ModelAttribute(binding=false)`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@ModelAttribute
	public AccountForm setUpForm() {
		return new AccountForm();
	}

	@ModelAttribute
	public Account findAccount(@PathVariable String accountId) {
		return accountRepository.findOne(accountId);
	}

	@PostMapping("update")
	public String update(@Valid AccountForm form, BindingResult result,
			@ModelAttribute(binding=false) Account account) { <1>
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Setting `@ModelAttribute(binding=false)`.
====

You can automatically apply validation after data binding by adding the
`javax.validation.Valid` annotation or Spring's `@Validated` annotation (
<<core.adoc#validation-beanvalidation, Bean validation>> and
<<core.adoc#validation, Spring validation>>). The following example shows how to do so:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/owners/{ownerId}/pets/{petId}/edit")
	public String processSubmit(@Valid @ModelAttribute("pet") Pet pet, BindingResult result) { <1>
		if (result.hasErrors()) {
			return "petForm";
		}
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Validate the `Pet` instance.
====

Note that using `@ModelAttribute` is optional (for example, to set its attributes).
By default, any argument that is not a simple value type (as determined by
{api-spring-framework}/beans/BeanUtils.html#isSimpleProperty-java.lang.Class-[BeanUtils#isSimpleProperty])
and is not resolved by any other argument resolver is treated as if it were annotated
with `@ModelAttribute`.


[[mvc-ann-sessionattributes]]
==== `@SessionAttributes`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-sessionattributes,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@SessionAttributes` is used to store model attributes in the HTTP Servlet session between
requests. It is a type-level annotation that declares the session attributes used by a
specific controller. This typically lists the names of model attributes or types of
model attributes that should be transparently stored in the session for subsequent
requests to access.

The following example uses the `@SessionAttributes` annotation:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	@SessionAttributes("pet") <1>
	public class EditPetForm {
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Using the `@SessionAttributes` annotation.
====

On the first request, when a model attribute with the name, `pet`, is added to the model,
it is automatically promoted to and saved in the HTTP Servlet session. It remains there
until another controller method uses a `SessionStatus` method argument to clear the
storage, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	@SessionAttributes("pet") <1>
	public class EditPetForm {

		// ...

		@PostMapping("/pets/{id}")
		public String handle(Pet pet, BindingResult errors, SessionStatus status) {
			if (errors.hasErrors) {
				// ...
			}
				status.setComplete(); <2>
				// ...
			}
		}
	}
----
<1> Storing the `Pet` value in the Servlet session.
<2> Clearing the `Pet` value from the Servlet session.
====


[[mvc-ann-sessionattribute]]
==== `@SessionAttribute`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-sessionattribute,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

If you need access to pre-existing session attributes that are managed globally
(that is, outside the controller -- for example, by a filter) and may or may not be present,
you can use the `@SessionAttribute` annotation on a method parameter,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RequestMapping("/")
	public String handle(@SessionAttribute User user) { <1>
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Using a `@SessionAttribute` annotation.
====

For use cases that require adding or removing session attributes, consider injecting
`org.springframework.web.context.request.WebRequest` or
`javax.servlet.http.HttpSession` into the controller method.

For temporary storage of model attributes in the session as part of a controller
workflow, consider using `@SessionAttributes` as described in
<<mvc-ann-sessionattributes>>.


[[mvc-ann-requestattrib]]
==== `@RequestAttribute`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestattrib,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Similar to `@SessionAttribute`, you can use the `@RequestAttribute` annotations to
access pre-existing request attributes created earlier (for example, by a Servlet `Filter`
or `HandlerInterceptor`):

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/")
	public String handle(@RequestAttribute Client client) { <1>
		// ...
	}
----
<1> Using the `@RequestAttribute` annotation.
====


[[mvc-redirecting-passing-data]]
==== Redirect Attributes

By default, all model attributes are considered to be exposed as URI template variables in
the redirect URL. Of the remaining attributes, those that are primitive types or
collections or arrays of primitive types are automatically appended as query parameters.

Appending primitive type attributes as query parameters can be the desired result if a
model instance was prepared specifically for the redirect. However, in annotated
controllers, the model can contain additional attributes added for rendering purposes (for example,
drop-down field values). To avoid the possibility of having such attributes appear in the
URL, a `@RequestMapping` method can declare an argument of type `RedirectAttributes` and
use it to specify the exact attributes to make available to `RedirectView`. If the method
does redirect, the content of `RedirectAttributes` is used.  Otherwise, the content of the
model is used.

The `RequestMappingHandlerAdapter` provides a flag called
`ignoreDefaultModelOnRedirect`, which you can use to indicate that the content of the default
`Model` should never be used if a controller method redirects. Instead, the controller
method should declare an attribute of type `RedirectAttributes` or, if it does not do so,
no attributes should be passed on to `RedirectView`. Both the MVC namespace and the MVC
Java configuration keep this flag set to `false`, to maintain backwards compatibility.
However, for new applications, we recommend setting it to `true`.

Note that URI template variables from the present request are automatically made
available when expanding a redirect URL, and you don't need to explicitly add them
through `Model` or `RedirectAttributes`. The following example shows how to define a redirect:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/files/{path}")
	public String upload(...) {
		// ...
		return "redirect:files/{path}";
	}
----
====

Another way of passing data to the redirect target is by using flash attributes. Unlike
other redirect attributes, flash attributes are saved in the HTTP session (and, hence, do
not appear in the URL). See <<mvc-flash-attributes>> for more information.


[[mvc-flash-attributes]]
==== Flash Attributes

Flash attributes provide a way for one request to store attributes that are intended for use in
another. This is most commonly needed when redirecting -- for example, the
Post-Redirect-Get pattern. Flash attributes are saved temporarily before the
redirect (typically in the session) to be made available to the request after the
redirect and are removed immediately.

Spring MVC has two main abstractions in support of flash attributes. `FlashMap` is used
to hold flash attributes, while `FlashMapManager` is used to store, retrieve, and manage
`FlashMap` instances.

Flash attribute support is always "`on`" and does not need to enabled explicitly. However,
if not used, it never causes HTTP session creation. On each request, there is an "`input`"
`FlashMap` with attributes passed from a previous request (if any) and an "`output`"
`FlashMap` with attributes to save for a subsequent request. Both `FlashMap` instances
are accessible from anywhere in Spring MVC through static methods in
`RequestContextUtils`.

Annotated controllers typically do not need to work with `FlashMap` directly. Instead, a
`@RequestMapping` method can accept an argument of type `RedirectAttributes` and use it
to add flash attributes for a redirect scenario. Flash attributes added through
`RedirectAttributes` are automatically propagated to the "`output`" FlashMap. Similarly,
after the redirect, attributes from the "`input`" `FlashMap` are automatically added to the
`Model` of the controller that serves the target URL.

.Matching requests to flash attributes
****
The concept of flash attributes exists in many other web frameworks and has proven to sometimes
be exposed to concurrency issues. This is because, by definition, flash attributes
are to be stored until the next request. However the very "`next`" request may not be the
intended recipient but another asynchronous request (for example, polling or resource requests),
in which case the flash attributes are removed too early.

To reduce the possibility of such issues, `RedirectView` automatically "`stamps`"
`FlashMap` instances with the path and query parameters of the target redirect URL. In
turn, the default `FlashMapManager` matches that information to incoming requests when
it looks up the "`input`" `FlashMap`.

This does not entirely eliminate the possibility of a concurrency issue but
reduces it greatly with information that is already available in the redirect URL.
Therefore, we recommend that you use flash attributes mainly for redirect scenarios.
****


[[mvc-multipart-forms]]
==== Multipart
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-multipart-forms,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

After a `MultipartResolver` has been <<mvc-multipart,enabled>>, the content of POST
requests with `multipart/form-data` is parsed and accessible as regular request
parameters. The following example accesses one regular form field and one uploaded
file:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
@Controller
public class FileUploadController {

	@PostMapping("/form")
	public String handleFormUpload(@RequestParam("name") String name,
			@RequestParam("file") MultipartFile file) {

		if (!file.isEmpty()) {
			byte[] bytes = file.getBytes();
			// store the bytes somewhere
			return "redirect:uploadSuccess";
		}
		return "redirect:uploadFailure";
	}
}
----
====

Declaring the argument type as a `List<MultipartFile>` allows for resolving multiple
files for the same parameter name.

When the `@RequestParam` annotation is declared as a `Map<String, MultipartFile>` or
`MultiValueMap<String, MultipartFile>`, without a parameter name specified in the annotation,
then the map is populated with the multipart files for each given parameter name.

NOTE: With Servlet 3.0 multipart parsing, you may also declare `javax.servlet.http.Part`
instead of Spring's `MultipartFile`, as a method argument or collection value type.

You can also use multipart content as part of data binding to a
<<mvc-ann-modelattrib-method-args,command object>>. For example, the form field
and file from the preceding example could be fields on a form object,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
class MyForm {

	private String name;

	private MultipartFile file;

	// ...
}

@Controller
public class FileUploadController {

	@PostMapping("/form")
	public String handleFormUpload(MyForm form, BindingResult errors) {
		if (!form.getFile().isEmpty()) {
			byte[] bytes = form.getFile().getBytes();
			// store the bytes somewhere
			return "redirect:uploadSuccess";
		}
		return "redirect:uploadFailure";
	}
}
----
====

Multipart requests can also be submitted from non-browser clients in a RESTful service
scenario. The following example shows a file with JSON:

====
[literal]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
POST /someUrl
Content-Type: multipart/mixed

--edt7Tfrdusa7r3lNQc79vXuhIIMlatb7PQg7Vp
Content-Disposition: form-data; name="meta-data"
Content-Type: application/json; charset=UTF-8
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

{
	"name": "value"
}
--edt7Tfrdusa7r3lNQc79vXuhIIMlatb7PQg7Vp
Content-Disposition: form-data; name="file-data"; filename="file.properties"
Content-Type: text/xml
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
... File Data ...
----

You can access the "meta-data" part with `@RequestParam` as a `String` but you'll
probably want it deserialized from JSON (similar to `@RequestBody`). Use the
`@RequestPart` annotation to access a multipart after converting it with an
<<integration.adoc#rest-message-conversion,HttpMessageConverter>>:

[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
@PostMapping("/")
public String handle(**@RequestPart("meta-data") MetaData metadata,
		@RequestPart("file-data") MultipartFile file**) {
	// ...
}
----
====

You can use `@RequestPart` in combination with `javax.validation.Valid` or use Spring's
`@Validated` annotation, both of which cause Standard Bean Validation to be applied.
By default, validation errors cause a `MethodArgumentNotValidException`, which is turned
into a 400 (BAD_REQUEST) response. Alternatively, you can handle validation errors locally
within the controller through an `Errors` or `BindingResult` argument,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
@PostMapping("/")
public String handle(**@Valid** @RequestPart("meta-data") MetaData metadata,
		**BindingResult result**) {
	// ...
}
----
====


[[mvc-ann-requestbody]]
==== `@RequestBody`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-requestbody,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@RequestBody` annotation to have the request body read and deserialized into an
`Object` through an <<integration.adoc#rest-message-conversion,`HttpMessageConverter`>>.
The following example uses a `@RequestBody` argument:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/accounts")
	public void handle(@RequestBody Account account) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

You can use the <<mvc-config-message-converters>> option of the <<mvc-config>> to
configure or customize message conversion.

You can use `@RequestBody` in combination with `javax.validation.Valid` or Spring's
`@Validated` annotation, both of which cause Standard Bean Validation to be applied.
By default, validation errors cause a `MethodArgumentNotValidException`, which is turned
into a 400 (BAD_REQUEST) response. Alternatively, you can handle validation errors locally
within the controller through an `Errors` or `BindingResult` argument,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/accounts")
	public void handle(@Valid @RequestBody Account account, BindingResult result) {
		// ...
	}
----
====


[[mvc-ann-httpentity]]
==== HttpEntity
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-httpentity,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`HttpEntity` is more or less identical to using <<mvc-ann-requestbody>> but is based on a
container object that exposes request headers and body. The following listing shows an example:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping("/accounts")
	public void handle(HttpEntity<Account> entity) {
		// ...
	}
----
====


[[mvc-ann-responsebody]]
==== `@ResponseBody`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-responsebody,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@ResponseBody` annotation on a method to have the return serialized to the
response body through an
<<integration.adoc#rest-message-conversion,HttpMessageConverter>>. The following listing shows an example:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/accounts/{id}")
	@ResponseBody
	public Account handle() {
		// ...
	}
----
====

`@ResponseBody` is also supported at the class level, in which case it is inherited by
all controller methods. This is the effect of `@RestController`, which is nothing more
than a meta-annotation marked with `@Controller` and `@ResponseBody`.

You can use `@ResponseBody` with reactive types.
See <<mvc-ann-async>> and <<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types>> for more details.

You can use the <<mvc-config-message-converters>> option of the <<mvc-config>> to
configure or customize message conversion.

You can combine `@ResponseBody` methods with JSON serialization views.
See <<mvc-ann-jackson>> for details.


[[mvc-ann-responseentity]]
==== ResponseEntity
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-responseentity,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`ResponseEntity` is like <<mvc-ann-responsebody>> but with status and headers. For example:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/something")
	public ResponseEntity<String> handle() {
		String body = ... ;
		String etag = ... ;
		return ResponseEntity.ok().eTag(etag).build(body);
	}
----
====

Spring MVC supports using a single value <<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types,reactive type>>
to produce the `ResponseEntity` asynchronously, and/or single and multi-value reactive
types for the body.


[[mvc-ann-jackson]]
==== Jackson JSON

Spring offers support for the Jackson JSON library.

[[mvc-ann-jsonview]]
===== JSON Views
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-jsonview,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC provides built-in support for
http://wiki.fasterxml.com/JacksonJsonViews[Jackson's Serialization Views],
which allow rendering only a subset of all fields in an `Object`. To use it with
`@ResponseBody` or `ResponseEntity` controller methods, you can use Jackson's
`@JsonView` annotation to activate a serialization view class, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RestController
	public class UserController {

		@GetMapping("/user")
		@JsonView(User.WithoutPasswordView.class)
		public User getUser() {
			return new User("eric", "7!jd#h23");
		}
	}

	public class User {

		public interface WithoutPasswordView {};
		public interface WithPasswordView extends WithoutPasswordView {};

		private String username;
		private String password;

		public User() {
		}

		public User(String username, String password) {
			this.username = username;
			this.password = password;
		}

		@JsonView(WithoutPasswordView.class)
		public String getUsername() {
			return this.username;
		}

		@JsonView(WithPasswordView.class)
		public String getPassword() {
			return this.password;
		}
	}
----
====

NOTE: `@JsonView` allows an array of view classes, but you can specify only one per
controller method. If you need to activate multiple views, you can use a composite interface.

For controllers that rely on view resolution, you can add the serialization view class
to the model, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class UserController extends AbstractController {

		@GetMapping("/user")
		public String getUser(Model model) {
			model.addAttribute("user", new User("eric", "7!jd#h23"));
			model.addAttribute(JsonView.class.getName(), User.WithoutPasswordView.class);
			return "userView";
		}
	}
----
====



[[mvc-ann-modelattrib-methods]]
=== Model
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-modelattrib-methods,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use the `@ModelAttribute` annotation:

* On a <<mvc-ann-modelattrib-method-args,method argument>> in `@RequestMapping` methods
to create or access an `Object` from the model and to bind it to the request through a
`WebDataBinder`.
* As a method-level annotation in `@Controller` or `@ControllerAdvice` classes that help
to initialize the model prior to any `@RequestMapping` method invocation.
* On a `@RequestMapping` method to mark its return value is a model attribute.

This section discusses `@ModelAttribute` methods -- the second item in the preceding list.
A controller can have any number of `@ModelAttribute` methods. All such methods are
invoked before `@RequestMapping` methods in the same controller. A `@ModelAttribute`
method can also be shared across controllers through `@ControllerAdvice`. See the section on
<<mvc-ann-controller-advice>> for more details.

`@ModelAttribute` methods have flexible method signatures. They support many of the same
arguments as `@RequestMapping` methods, except for `@ModelAttribute` itself or anything
related to the request body.

The following example shows a `@ModelAttribute` method:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@ModelAttribute
	public void populateModel(@RequestParam String number, Model model) {
		model.addAttribute(accountRepository.findAccount(number));
		// add more ...
	}
----
====

The following example adds only one attribute:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@ModelAttribute
	public Account addAccount(@RequestParam String number) {
		return accountRepository.findAccount(number);
	}
----
====

NOTE: When a name is not explicitly specified, a default name is chosen based on the `Object`
type, as explained in the javadoc for {api-spring-framework}/core/Conventions.html[`Conventions`].
You can always assign an explicit name by using the overloaded `addAttribute` method or
through the `name` attribute on `@ModelAttribute` (for a return value).

You can also use `@ModelAttribute` as a method-level annotation on `@RequestMapping` methods,
in which case the return value of the `@RequestMapping` method is interpreted as a model
attribute. This is typically not required, as it is the default behavior in HTML controllers,
unless the return value is a `String` that would otherwise be interpreted as a view name.
`@ModelAttribute` can also customize the model attribute name, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/accounts/{id}")
	@ModelAttribute("myAccount")
	public Account handle() {
		// ...
		return account;
	}
----
====



[[mvc-ann-initbinder]]
=== `DataBinder`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-initbinder,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@Controller` or `@ControllerAdvice` classes can have `@InitBinder` methods that
initialize instances of `WebDataBinder`, and those, in turn, can:

* Bind request parameters (that is, form or query data) to a model object.
* Convert String-based request values (such as request parameters, path variables,
headers, cookies, and others) to the target type of controller method arguments.
* Format model object values as `String` values when rendering HTML forms.

`@InitBinder` methods can register controller-specific `java.bean.PropertyEditor` or
Spring `Converter` and `Formatter` components. In addition, you can use the
<<mvc-config-conversion,MVC config>> to register `Converter` and `Formatter`
types in a globally shared `FormattingConversionService`.

`@InitBinder` methods support many of the same arguments that `@RequestMapping` methods
do, except for `@ModelAttribute` (command object) arguments. Typically, they are declared
with a `WebDataBinder` argument (for registrations) and a `void` return value.
The following listing shows an example:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class FormController {

		@InitBinder <1>
		public void initBinder(WebDataBinder binder) {
			SimpleDateFormat dateFormat = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd");
			dateFormat.setLenient(false);
			binder.registerCustomEditor(Date.class, new CustomDateEditor(dateFormat, false));
		}

		// ...
	}
----
<1> Defining an `@InitBinder` method.
====

Alternatively, when you use a `Formatter`-based setup through a shared
`FormattingConversionService`, you can re-use the same approach and register
controller-specific `Formatter` implementations, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class FormController {

		@InitBinder <1>
		protected void initBinder(WebDataBinder binder) {
			binder.addCustomFormatter(new DateFormatter("yyyy-MM-dd"));
		}

		// ...
	}
----
<1> Defining an `@InitBinder` method on a custom formatter.
====



[[mvc-ann-exceptionhandler]]
=== Exceptions
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-controller-exceptions,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@Controller` and <<mvc-ann-controller-advice,@ControllerAdvice>> classes can have
`@ExceptionHandler` methods to handle exceptions from controller methods, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class SimpleController {

		// ...

		@ExceptionHandler
		public ResponseEntity<String> handle(IOException ex) {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====

The exception may match against a top-level exception being propagated (that is, a direct
`IOException` being thrown) or against the immediate cause within a top-level wrapper exception
(for example, an `IOException` wrapped inside an `IllegalStateException`).

For matching exception types, preferably declare the target exception as a method argument,
as the preceding example shows. When multiple exception methods match, a root exception match is generally
preferred to a cause exception match. More specifically, the `ExceptionDepthComparator` is
used to sort exceptions based on their depth from the thrown exception type.

Alternatively, the annotation declaration may narrow the exception types to match,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@ExceptionHandler({FileSystemException.class, RemoteException.class})
	public ResponseEntity<String> handle(IOException ex) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

You can even use a list of specific exception types with a very generic argument signature,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@ExceptionHandler({FileSystemException.class, RemoteException.class})
	public ResponseEntity<String> handle(Exception ex) {
		// ...
	}
----
====

[NOTE]
====
The distinction between root and cause exception matching can be surprising.

In the `IOException` variant shown earlier, the method is typically called with
the actual `FileSystemException` or `RemoteException` instance as the argument,
since both of them extend from `IOException`. However, if any such matching
exception is propagated within a wrapper exception which is itself an `IOException`,
the passed-in exception instance is that wrapper exception.

The behavior is even simpler in the `handle(Exception)` variant. This is
always invoked with the wrapper exception in a wrapping scenario, with the
actually matching exception to be found through `ex.getCause()` in that case.
The passed-in exception is the actual `FileSystemException` or
`RemoteException` instance only when these are thrown as top-level exceptions.
====

We generally recommend that you be as specific as possible in the argument signature,
reducing the potential for mismatches between root and cause exception types.
Consider breaking a multi-matching method into individual `@ExceptionHandler`
methods, each matching a single specific exception type through its signature.

In a multi-`@ControllerAdvice` arrangement, we recommend declaring your primary root exception
mappings on a `@ControllerAdvice` prioritized with a corresponding order. While a root
exception match is preferred to a cause, this is defined among the methods of a given
controller or `@ControllerAdvice` class. This means a cause match on a higher-priority
`@ControllerAdvice` bean is preferred to any match (for example, root) on a lower-priority
`@ControllerAdvice` bean.

Last but not least, an `@ExceptionHandler` method implementation can choose to back
out of dealing with a given exception instance by rethrowing it in its original form.
This is useful in scenarios where you are interested only in root-level matches or in
matches within a specific context that cannot be statically determined. A rethrown
exception is propagated through the remaining resolution chain, as though
the given `@ExceptionHandler` method would not have matched in the first place.

Support for `@ExceptionHandler` methods in Spring MVC is built on the `DispatcherServlet`
level, <<mvc-exceptionhandlers,HandlerExceptionResolver>> mechanism.


[[mvc-ann-exceptionhandler-args]]
==== Method Arguments

`@ExceptionHandler` methods support the following arguments:

[cols="1,2", options="header"]
|===
| Method argument | Description

| Exception type
| For access to the raised exception.

| `HandlerMethod`
| For access to the controller method that raised the exception.

| `WebRequest`, `NativeWebRequest`
| Generic access to request parameters and request and session attributes without direct
  use of the Servlet API.

| `javax.servlet.ServletRequest`, `javax.servlet.ServletResponse`
| Choose any specific request or response type (for example, `ServletRequest` or `HttpServletRequest` or
  or Spring's `MultipartRequest` or `MultipartHttpServletRequest`).

| `javax.servlet.http.HttpSession`
| Enforces the presence of a session. As a consequence, such an argument is never `null`. +
  Note that session access is not thread-safe. Consider setting the
  `RequestMappingHandlerAdapter` instance's `synchronizeOnSession` flag to `true` if multiple
  requests are allowed to access a session concurrently.

| `java.security.Principal`
| Currently authenticated user -- possibly a specific `Principal` implementation class if known.

| `HttpMethod`
| The HTTP method of the request.

| `java.util.Locale`
| The current request locale, determined by the most specific `LocaleResolver` available -- in
  effect, the configured `LocaleResolver` or `LocaleContextResolver`.

| `java.util.TimeZone`, `java.time.ZoneId`
| The time zone associated with the current request, as determined by a `LocaleContextResolver`.

| `java.io.OutputStream`, `java.io.Writer`
| For access to the raw response body, as exposed by the Servlet API.

| `java.util.Map`, `org.springframework.ui.Model`, `org.springframework.ui.ModelMap`
| For access to the model for an error response. Always empty.

| `RedirectAttributes`
| Specify attributes to use in case of a redirect -- (that is to be appended to the query
  string) and flash attributes to be stored temporarily until the request after the redirect.
  See <<mvc-redirecting-passing-data>> and <<mvc-flash-attributes>>.

| `@SessionAttribute`
| For access to any session attribute, in contrast to model attributes stored in the session
  as a result of a class-level `@SessionAttributes` declaration. See
  <<mvc-ann-sessionattribute>> for more details.

| `@RequestAttribute`
| For access to request attributes. See <<mvc-ann-requestattrib>> for more details.

|===


[[mvc-ann-exceptionhandler-return-values]]
==== Return Values

`@ExceptionHandler` methods support the following return values:

[cols="1,2", options="header"]
|===
| Return value | Description

| `@ResponseBody`
| The return value is converted through `HttpMessageConverter` instances and written to the
  response. See <<mvc-ann-responsebody>>.

| `HttpEntity<B>`, `ResponseEntity<B>`
| The return value specifies that the full response (including the HTTP headers and the body) be converted
  through `HttpMessageConverter` instances and written to the response.
  See <<mvc-ann-responseentity>>.

| `String`
| A view name to be resolved with `ViewResolver` implementations and used together with the implicit
  model -- determined through command objects and `@ModelAttribute` methods. The handler
  method can also programmatically enrich the model by declaring a `Model` argument
  (described earlier).

| `View`
| A `View` instance to use for rendering together with the implicit model -- determined
  through command objects and `@ModelAttribute` methods. The handler method may also
  programmatically enrich the model by declaring a `Model` argument (descried earlier).

| `java.util.Map`, `org.springframework.ui.Model`
| Attributes to be added to the implicit model with the view name implicitly determined
  through a `RequestToViewNameTranslator`.

| `@ModelAttribute`
| An attribute to be added to the model with the view name implicitly determined through
  a `RequestToViewNameTranslator`.

  Note that `@ModelAttribute` is optional. See "`Any other return value`" at the end of
  this table.

| `ModelAndView` object
| The view and model attributes to use and, optionally, a response status.

| `void`
| A method with a `void` return type (or `null` return value) is considered to have fully
  handled the response if it also has a `ServletResponse` an `OutputStream` argument, or
  a `@ResponseStatus` annotation. The same is also true if the controller has made a positive
  `ETag` or `lastModified` timestamp check (see <<mvc-caching-etag-lastmodified>> for details).

  If none of the above is true, a `void` return type can also indicate "`no response body`" for
  REST controllers or default view name selection for HTML controllers.

| Any other return value
| If a return value is not matched to any of the above and is not a simple type (as determined by
  {api-spring-framework}/beans/BeanUtils.html#isSimpleProperty-java.lang.Class-[BeanUtils#isSimpleProperty]),
  by default, it is treated as a model attribute to be added to the model. If it is a simple type,
  it remains unresolved.
|===


[[mvc-ann-rest-exceptions]]
==== REST API exceptions
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-rest-exceptions,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

A common requirement for REST services is to include error details in the body of the
response. The Spring Framework does not automatically do this because the representation
of error details in the response body is application-specific. However, a
`@RestController` may use `@ExceptionHandler` methods with a `ResponseEntity` return
value to set the status and the body of the response. Such methods can also be declared
in `@ControllerAdvice` classes to apply them globally.

Applications that implement global exception handling with error details in the response
body should consider extending
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/mvc/method/annotation/ResponseEntityExceptionHandler.html[`ResponseEntityExceptionHandler`],
which provides handling for exceptions that Spring MVC raises and provides hooks to
customize the response body. To make use of this, create a subclass of
`ResponseEntityExceptionHandler`, annotate it with `@ControllerAdvice`, override the
necessary methods, and declare it as a Spring bean.



[[mvc-ann-controller-advice]]
=== Controller Advice
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-ann-controller-advice,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Typically `@ExceptionHandler`, `@InitBinder`, and `@ModelAttribute` methods apply within
the `@Controller` class (or class hierarchy) in which they are declared. If you want such
methods to apply more globally (across controllers), you can declare them in a class
marked with `@ControllerAdvice` or `@RestControllerAdvice`.

`@ControllerAdvice` is marked with `@Component`, which means such classes can be registered
as Spring beans through <<core.adoc#beans-java-instantiating-container-scan,component scanning>>.
`@RestControllerAdvice` is also a meta-annotation marked with both `@ControllerAdvice` and
`@ResponseBody`, which essentially means `@ExceptionHandler` methods are rendered to the
response body through message conversion (versus view resolution or template rendering).

On startup, the infrastructure classes for `@RequestMapping` and `@ExceptionHandler` methods
detect Spring beans of type `@ControllerAdvice` and then apply their methods at runtime.
Global `@ExceptionHandler` methods (from a `@ControllerAdvice`) are applied _after_ local
ones (from the `@Controller`). By contrast, global `@ModelAttribute` and `@InitBinder`
methods are applied _before_ local ones.

By default, `@ControllerAdvice` methods apply to every request (that is, all controllers), but
you can narrow that down to a subset of controllers by using attributes on the annotation,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// Target all Controllers annotated with @RestController
	@ControllerAdvice(annotations = RestController.class)
	public class ExampleAdvice1 {}

	// Target all Controllers within specific packages
	@ControllerAdvice("org.example.controllers")
	public class ExampleAdvice2 {}

	// Target all Controllers assignable to specific classes
	@ControllerAdvice(assignableTypes = {ControllerInterface.class, AbstractController.class})
	public class ExampleAdvice3 {}
----
====

The selectors in the preceding example are evaluated at runtime and may negatively impact
performance if used extensively. See the
{api-spring-framework}/web/bind/annotation/ControllerAdvice.html[`@ControllerAdvice`]
javadoc for more details.




[[mvc-uri-building]]
== URI Links
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-uri-building,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

This section describes various options available in the Spring Framework to work with URI's.

include::web-uris.adoc[leveloffset=+2]



[[mvc-servleturicomponentsbuilder]]
=== Relative Servlet Requests

You can use `ServletUriComponentsBuilder` to create URIs relative to the current request,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	HttpServletRequest request = ...

	// Re-uses host, scheme, port, path and query string...

	ServletUriComponentsBuilder ucb = ServletUriComponentsBuilder.fromRequest(request)
			.replaceQueryParam("accountId", "{id}").build()
			.expand("123")
			.encode();
----
====

You can create URIs relative to the context path, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// Re-uses host, port and context path...

	ServletUriComponentsBuilder ucb = ServletUriComponentsBuilder.fromContextPath(request)
			.path("/accounts").build()
----
====

You can create URIs relative to a Servlet (for example, `/main/{asterisk}`),
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// Re-uses host, port, context path, and Servlet prefix...

	ServletUriComponentsBuilder ucb = ServletUriComponentsBuilder.fromServletMapping(request)
			.path("/accounts").build()
----
====

NOTE: As of 5.1, `ServletUriComponentsBuilder` ignores information from the `Forwarded` and
`X-Forwarded-*` headers, which specify the client-originated address. Consider using the
<<filters-forwarded-headers,`ForwardedHeaderFilter`>> to extract and use or to discard
such headers.



[[mvc-links-to-controllers]]
=== Links to Controllers

Spring MVC provides a mechanism to prepare links to controller methods. For example,
the following MVC controller allows for link creation:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	@RequestMapping("/hotels/{hotel}")
	public class BookingController {

		@GetMapping("/bookings/{booking}")
		public ModelAndView getBooking(@PathVariable Long booking) {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====

You can prepare a link by referring to the method by name, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	UriComponents uriComponents = MvcUriComponentsBuilder
		.fromMethodName(BookingController.class, "getBooking", 21).buildAndExpand(42);

	URI uri = uriComponents.encode().toUri();
----
====

In the preceding example, we provide actual method argument values (in this case, the long value: `21`)
to be used as a path variable and inserted into the URL. Furthermore, we provide the
value, `42`, to fill in any remaining URI variables, such as the `hotel` variable inherited
from the type-level request mapping. If the method had more arguments, we could supply null for
arguments not needed for the URL. In general, only `@PathVariable` and `@RequestParam` arguments
are relevant for constructing the URL.

There are additional ways to use `MvcUriComponentsBuilder`. For example, you can use a technique
akin to mock testing through proxies to avoid referring to the controller method by name, as the following example shows
(the example assumes static import of `MvcUriComponentsBuilder.on`):

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	UriComponents uriComponents = MvcUriComponentsBuilder
		.fromMethodCall(on(BookingController.class).getBooking(21)).buildAndExpand(42);

	URI uri = uriComponents.encode().toUri();
----
====

NOTE: Controller method signatures are limited in their design when they are supposed to be usable for
link creation with `fromMethodCall`. Aside from needing a proper parameter signature,
there is a technical limitation on the return type (namely, generating a runtime proxy
for link builder invocations), so the return type must not be `final`. In particular,
the common `String` return type for view names does not work here. You should use `ModelAndView`
or even plain `Object` (with a `String` return value) instead.

The earlier examples use static methods in `MvcUriComponentsBuilder`. Internally, they rely
on `ServletUriComponentsBuilder` to prepare a base URL from the scheme, host, port,
context path, and servlet path of the current request. This works well in most cases.
However, sometimes, it can be insufficient. For example, you may be outside the context of
a request (such as a batch process that prepares links) or perhaps you need to insert a path
prefix (such as a locale prefix that was removed from the request path and needs to be
re-inserted into links).

For such cases, you can use the static `fromXxx` overloaded methods that accept a
`UriComponentsBuilder` to use a base URL. Alternatively, you can create an instance of `MvcUriComponentsBuilder`
with a base URL and then use the instance-based `withXxx` methods. For example, the
following listing uses `withMethodCall`:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	UriComponentsBuilder base = ServletUriComponentsBuilder.fromCurrentContextPath().path("/en");
	MvcUriComponentsBuilder builder = MvcUriComponentsBuilder.relativeTo(base);
	builder.withMethodCall(on(BookingController.class).getBooking(21)).buildAndExpand(42);

	URI uri = uriComponents.encode().toUri();
----
====

NOTE: As of 5.1, `MvcUriComponentsBuilder` ignores information from the `Forwarded` and
`X-Forwarded-*` headers, which specify the client-originated address. Consider using the
<<filters-forwarded-headers,ForwardedHeaderFilter>> to extract and use or to discard
such headers.



[[mvc-links-to-controllers-from-views]]
=== Links in Views

In views such as Thymeleaf, FreeMarker, or JSP, you can build links to annotated controllers
by referring to the implicitly or explicitly assigned name for each request mapping.

Consider the following example:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RequestMapping("/people/{id}/addresses")
	public class PersonAddressController {

		@RequestMapping("/{country}")
		public HttpEntity getAddress(@PathVariable String country) { ... }
	}
----
====

Given the preceding controller, you can prepare a link from a JSP, as follows:

====
[source,jsp,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
<%@ taglib uri="http://www.springframework.org/tags" prefix="s" %>
...
<a href="${s:mvcUrl('PAC#getAddress').arg(0,'US').buildAndExpand('123')}">Get Address</a>
----
====

The preceding example relies on the `mvcUrl` function declared in the Spring tag library
(that is, META-INF/spring.tld), but it is easy to define your own function or prepare a
similar one for other templating technologies.

Here is how this works. On startup, every `@RequestMapping` is assigned a default name
through `HandlerMethodMappingNamingStrategy`, whose default implementation uses the
capital letters of the class and the method name (for example, the `getThing` method in
`ThingController` becomes "TC#getThing"). If there is a name clash, you can use
`@RequestMapping(name="..")` to assign an explicit name or implement your own
`HandlerMethodMappingNamingStrategy`.




[[mvc-ann-async]]
== Asynchronous Requests
[.small]#<<mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux,Compared to WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC has an extensive integration with Servlet 3.0 asynchronous request
<<mvc-ann-async-processing,processing>>:

* <<mvc-ann-async-deferredresult,`DeferredResult`>> and <<mvc-ann-async-callable,`Callable`>> return values in
controller methods and provide basic support for a single asynchronous return value.
* Controllers can <<mvc-ann-async-http-streaming,stream>> multiple values, including
<<mvc-ann-async-sse,SSE>> and <<mvc-ann-async-output-stream,raw data>>.
* Controllers can use reactive clients and return
<<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types,reactive types>> for response handling.



[[mvc-ann-async-deferredresult]]
=== `DeferredResult`
[.small]#<<mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux,Compared to WebFlux>>#

Once the asynchronous request processing feature is
<<mvc-ann-async-configuration,enabled>> in the Servlet container, controller methods can
wrap any supported controller method return value with `DeferredResult`, as the following
example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/quotes")
	@ResponseBody
	public DeferredResult<String> quotes() {
		DeferredResult<String> deferredResult = new DeferredResult<String>();
		// Save the deferredResult somewhere..
		return deferredResult;
	}

	// From some other thread...
	deferredResult.setResult(data);
----
====

The controller can produce the return value asynchronously, from a different thread -- for
example, in response to an external event (JMS message), a scheduled task, or other event.



[[mvc-ann-async-callable]]
=== `Callable`
[.small]#<<mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux,Compared to WebFlux>>#

A controller can wrap any supported return value with `java.util.concurrent.Callable`,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@PostMapping
	public Callable<String> processUpload(final MultipartFile file) {

		return new Callable<String>() {
			public String call() throws Exception {
				// ...
				return "someView";
			}
		};

	}
----
====

The return value can then be obtained by running the the given task through the
<<mvc-ann-async-configuration-spring-mvc,configured>> `TaskExecutor`.



[[mvc-ann-async-processing]]
=== Processing
[.small]#<<mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux,Compared to WebFlux>>#

Here is a very concise overview of Servlet asynchronous request processing:

* A `ServletRequest` can be put in asynchronous mode by calling `request.startAsync()`.
  The main effect of doing so is that the Servlet (as well as any filters) can exit, but
  the response remains open to let processing complete later.
* The call to `request.startAsync()` returns `AsyncContext`, which you can use for
  further control over asynchronous processing. For example, it provides the `dispatch` method,
  which is similar to a forward from the Servlet API, except that it lets an
  application resume request processing on a Servlet container thread.
* The `ServletRequest` provides access to the current `DispatcherType`, which you can
  use to distinguish between processing the initial request, an asynchronous
  dispatch, a forward, and other dispatcher types.

`DeferredResult` processing works as follows:

* The controller returns a `DeferredResult` and saves it in some in-memory
  queue or list where it can be accessed.
* Spring MVC calls `request.startAsync()`.
* Meanwhile, the `DispatcherServlet` and all configured filters exit the request
  processing thread, but the response remains open.
* The application sets the `DeferredResult` from some thread, and Spring MVC
  dispatches the request back to the Servlet container.
* The `DispatcherServlet` is invoked again, and processing resumes with the
  asynchronously produced return value.

`Callable` processing works as follows:

* The controller returns a `Callable`.
* Spring MVC calls `request.startAsync()` and submits the `Callable` to
  a `TaskExecutor` for processing in a separate thread.
* Meanwhile, the `DispatcherServlet` and all filters exit the Servlet container thread,
  but the response remains open.
* Eventually the `Callable` produces a result, and Spring MVC dispatches the request back
  to the Servlet container to complete processing.
* The `DispatcherServlet` is invoked again, and processing resumes with the
  asynchronously produced return value from the `Callable`.

For further background and context, you can also read
https://spring.io/blog/2012/05/07/spring-mvc-3-2-preview-introducing-servlet-3-async-support[the
blog posts] that introduced asynchronous request processing support in Spring MVC 3.2.


[[mvc-ann-async-exceptions]]
==== Exception Handling

When you use a `DeferredResult`, you can choose whether to call `setResult` or
`setErrorResult` with an exception. In both cases, Spring MVC dispatches the request back
to the Servlet container to complete processing. It is then treated either as if the
controller method returned the given value or as if it produced the given exception.
The exception then goes through the regular exception handling mechanism (for example, invoking
`@ExceptionHandler` methods).

When you use `Callable`, similar processing logic occurs, the main difference being that
the result is returned from the `Callable` or an exception is raised by it.


[[mvc-ann-async-interception]]
==== Interception

`HandlerInterceptor` instances can be of type `AsyncHandlerInterceptor`, to receive the
`afterConcurrentHandlingStarted` callback on the initial request that starts asynchronous
processing (instead of `postHandle` and `afterCompletion`).

`HandlerInterceptor` implementations can also register a `CallableProcessingInterceptor`
or a `DeferredResultProcessingInterceptor`, to integrate more deeply with the
lifecycle of an asynchronous request (for example, to handle a timeout event). See
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/AsyncHandlerInterceptor.html[`AsyncHandlerInterceptor`]
for more details.

`DeferredResult` provides `onTimeout(Runnable)` and `onCompletion(Runnable)` callbacks.
See the {api-spring-framework}/web/context/request/async/DeferredResult.html[javadoc of `DeferredResult`]
for more details. `Callable` can be substituted for `WebAsyncTask` that exposes additional
methods for timeout and completion callbacks.


[[mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux]]
==== Compared to WebFlux

The Servlet API was originally built for making a single pass through the Filter-Servlet
chain. Asynchronous request processing, added in Servlet 3.0, lets applications exit
the Filter-Servlet chain but leave the response open for further processing. The Spring MVC
asynchronous support is built around that mechanism. When a controller returns a `DeferredResult`,
the Filter-Servlet chain is exited, and the Servlet container thread is released. Later, when
the `DeferredResult` is set, an `ASYNC` dispatch (to the same URL) is made, during which the
controller is mapped again but, rather than invoking it, the `DeferredResult` value is used
(as if the controller returned it) to resume processing.

By contrast, Spring WebFlux is neither built on the Servlet API, nor does it need such an
asynchronous request processing feature, because it is asynchronous by design. Asynchronous
handling is built into all framework contracts and is intrinsically supported through all
stages of request processing.

From a programming model perspective, both Spring MVC and Spring WebFlux support
asynchronous and <<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types>> as return values in controller methods.
Spring MVC even supports streaming, including reactive back pressure. However, individual
writes to the response remain blocking (and are performed on a separate thread), unlike WebFlux,
which relies on non-blocking I/O and does not need an extra thread for each write.

Another fundamental difference is that Spring MVC does not support asynchronous or reactive
types in controller method arguments (for example, `@RequestBody`, `@RequestPart`, and others),
nor does it have any explicit support for asynchronous and reactive types as model attributes.
Spring WebFlux does support all that.



[[mvc-ann-async-http-streaming]]
=== HTTP Streaming
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-codecs-streaming,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can use `DeferredResult` and `Callable` for a single asynchronous return value.
What if you want to produce multiple asynchronous values and have those written to the
response? This section describes how to do so.


[[mvc-ann-async-objects]]
==== Objects

You can use the `ResponseBodyEmitter` return value to produce a stream of objects, where
each object is serialized with an
<<integration.adoc#rest-message-conversion,`HttpMessageConverter`>> and written to the
response, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/events")
	public ResponseBodyEmitter handle() {
		ResponseBodyEmitter emitter = new ResponseBodyEmitter();
		// Save the emitter somewhere..
		return emitter;
	}

	// In some other thread
	emitter.send("Hello once");

	// and again later on
	emitter.send("Hello again");

	// and done at some point
	emitter.complete();
----
====

You can also use `ResponseBodyEmitter` as the body in a `ResponseEntity`, letting you
customize the status and headers of the response.

When an `emitter` throws an `IOException` (for example, if the remote client went away), applications
are not responsible for cleaning up the connection and should not invoke `emitter.complete`
or `emitter.completeWithError`. Instead, the servlet container automatically initiates an
`AsyncListener` error notification, in which Spring MVC makes a `completeWithError` call.
This call, in turn, performs one final `ASYNC` dispatch to the application, during which Spring MVC
invokes the configured exception resolvers and completes the request.


[[mvc-ann-async-sse]]
==== SSE

`SseEmitter` (a subclass of `ResponseBodyEmitter`) provides support for
http://www.w3.org/TR/eventsource/[Server-Sent Events], where events sent from the server
are formatted according to the W3C SSE specification. To produce an SSE
stream from a controller, return `SseEmitter`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping(path="/events", produces=MediaType.TEXT_EVENT_STREAM_VALUE)
	public SseEmitter handle() {
		SseEmitter emitter = new SseEmitter();
		// Save the emitter somewhere..
		return emitter;
	}

	// In some other thread
	emitter.send("Hello once");

	// and again later on
	emitter.send("Hello again");

	// and done at some point
	emitter.complete();
----
====

While SSE is the main option for streaming into browsers, note that Internet Explorer
does not support Server-Sent Events. Consider using Spring's
<<web.adoc#websocket,WebSocket messaging>> with
<<web.adoc#websocket-fallback,SockJS fallback>> transports (including SSE) that target
a wide range of browsers.

See also <<mvc-ann-async-objects,previous section>> for notes on exception handling.


[[mvc-ann-async-output-stream]]
==== Raw Data

Sometimes, it is useful to bypass message conversion and stream directly to the response
`OutputStream` (for example, for a file download). You can use the `StreamingResponseBody`
return value type to do so, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/download")
	public StreamingResponseBody handle() {
		return new StreamingResponseBody() {
			@Override
			public void writeTo(OutputStream outputStream) throws IOException {
				// write...
			}
		};
	}
----
====

You can use `StreamingResponseBody` as the body in a `ResponseEntity` to
customize the status and headers of the response.



[[mvc-ann-async-reactive-types]]
=== Reactive Types
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-codecs-streaming,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Spring MVC supports use of reactive client libraries in a controller (also read
<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-reactive-libraries,Reactive Libraries>> in the WebFlux section).
This includes the `WebClient` from `spring-webflux` and others, such as Spring Data
reactive data repositories. In such scenarios, it is convenient to be able to return
reactive types from the controller method.

Reactive return values are handled as follows:

* A single-value promise is adapted to, similar to using `DeferredResult`. Examples
include `Mono` (Reactor) or `Single` (RxJava).
* A multi-value stream with a streaming media type (such as `application/stream+json`
or `text/event-stream`) is adapted to, similar to using `ResponseBodyEmitter` or
`SseEmitter`. Examples include `Flux` (Reactor) or `Observable` (RxJava).
Applications can also return `Flux<ServerSentEvent>` or `Observable<ServerSentEvent>`.
* A multi-value stream with any other media type (such as `application/json`) is adapted
to, similar to using `DeferredResult<List<?>>`.

TIP: Spring MVC supports Reactor and RxJava through the
{api-spring-framework}/core/ReactiveAdapterRegistry.html[`ReactiveAdapterRegistry`] from
`spring-core`, which lets it adapt from multiple reactive libraries.

For streaming to the response, reactive back pressure is supported, but writes to the
response are still blocking and are executed on a separate thread through the
<<mvc-ann-async-configuration-spring-mvc,configured>> `TaskExecutor`, to avoid
blocking the upstream source (such as a `Flux` returned from `WebClient`).
By default, `SimpleAsyncTaskExecutor` is used for the blocking writes, but that is not
suitable under load. If you plan to stream with a reactive type, you should use the
<<mvc-ann-async-configuration-spring-mvc,MVC configuration>> to configure a task executor.



[[mvc-ann-async-disconnects]]
=== Disconnects
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-codecs-streaming,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The Servlet API does not provide any notification when a remote client goes away.
Therefore, while streaming to the response, whether through <<mvc-ann-async-sse,SseEmitter>> or
<<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types,reactive types>, it is important to send data periodically,
since the write fails if the client has disconnected. The send could take the form
of an empty (comment-only) SSE event or any other data that the other side would have to
to interpret as a heartbeat and ignore.

Alternatively, consider using web messaging solutions (such as
<<websocket-stomp,STOMP over WebSocket>> or WebSocket with <<websocket-fallback,SockJS>>)
that have a built-in heartbeat mechanism.



[[mvc-ann-async-configuration]]
=== Configuration
[.small]#<<mvc-ann-async-vs-webflux,Compared to WebFlux>>#

The asynchronous request processing feature must be enabled at the Servlet container level.
The MVC configuration also exposes several options for asynchronous requests.


[[mvc-ann-async-configuration-servlet3]]
==== Servlet Container

Filter and Servlet declarations have an `asyncSupported` flag that needs to be set to `true`
to enable asynchronous request processing. In addition, Filter mappings should be
declared to handle the `ASYNC` `javax.servlet.DispatchType`.

In Java configuration, when you use `AbstractAnnotationConfigDispatcherServletInitializer`
to initialize the Servlet container, this is done automatically.

In `web.xml` configuration, you can add `<async-supported>true</async-supported>` to the
`DispatcherServlet` and to `Filter` declarations and add
`<dispatcher>ASYNC</dispatcher>` to filter mappings.


[[mvc-ann-async-configuration-spring-mvc]]
==== Spring MVC

The MVC configuration exposes the following options related to asynchronous request processing:

* Java configuration: Use the `configureAsyncSupport` callback on `WebMvcConfigurer`.
* XML namespace: Use the `<async-support>` element under `<mvc:annotation-driven>`.

You can configure the following:

* Default timeout value for async requests, which if not set, depends
on the underlying Servlet container (for example, 10 seconds on Tomcat).
* `AsyncTaskExecutor` to use for blocking writes when streaming with
<<mvc-ann-async-reactive-types>> and for executing `Callable` instances returned from
controller methods. We highly recommended configuring this property if you
stream with reactive types or have controller methods that return `Callable`, since
by default, it is a `SimpleAsyncTaskExecutor`.
* `DeferredResultProcessingInterceptor` implementations and `CallableProcessingInterceptor` implementations.

Note that you can also set the default timeout value on a `DeferredResult`,
a `ResponseBodyEmitter`, and an `SseEmitter`. For a `Callable`, you can use `WebAsyncTask` to provide
a timeout value.

include::webmvc-cors.adoc[leveloffset=+1]




[[mvc-web-security]]
== Web Security
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-web-security,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The http://projects.spring.io/spring-security/[Spring Security] project provides support
for protecting web applications from malicious exploits. See the Spring Security
reference documentation, including:

* {doc-spring-security}/html5/#mvc[Spring MVC Security]
* {doc-spring-security}/html5/#test-mockmvc[Spring MVC Test Support]
* {doc-spring-security}/html5/#csrf[CSRF protection]
* {doc-spring-security}/html5/#headers[Security Response Headers]

http://hdiv.org/[HDIV] is another web security framework that integrates with Spring MVC.




[[mvc-caching]]
== HTTP Caching
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-caching,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

HTTP caching can significantly improve the performance of a web application. HTTP caching
revolves around the `Cache-Control` response header and, subsequently, conditional request
headers (such as `Last-Modified` and `ETag`). `Cache-Control` advises private (for example, browser)
and public (for example, proxy) caches on how to cache and re-use responses. An `ETag` header is used
to make a conditional request that may result in a 304 (NOT_MODIFIED) without a body,
if the content has not changed. `ETag` can be seen as a more sophisticated successor to
the `Last-Modified` header.

This section describes the HTTP caching-related options that are available in Spring Web MVC.



[[mvc-caching-cachecontrol]]
=== `CacheControl`
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-caching-cachecontrol,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

{api-spring-framework}/http/CacheControl.html[`CacheControl`] provides support for
configuring settings related to the `Cache-Control` header and is accepted as an argument
in a number of places:

* {api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/mvc/WebContentInterceptor.html[`WebContentInterceptor`]
* {api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/support/WebContentGenerator.html[`WebContentGenerator`]
* <<mvc-caching-etag-lastmodified>>
* <<mvc-caching-static-resources>>

While https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7234#section-5.2.2[RFC 7234] describes all possible
directives for the `Cache-Control` response header, the `CacheControl` type takes a
use case-oriented approach that focuses on the common scenarios:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	// Cache for an hour - "Cache-Control: max-age=3600"
	CacheControl ccCacheOneHour = CacheControl.maxAge(1, TimeUnit.HOURS);

	// Prevent caching - "Cache-Control: no-store"
	CacheControl ccNoStore = CacheControl.noStore();

	// Cache for ten days in public and private caches,
	// public caches should not transform the response
	// "Cache-Control: max-age=864000, public, no-transform"
	CacheControl ccCustom = CacheControl.maxAge(10, TimeUnit.DAYS).noTransform().cachePublic();
----
====

`WebContentGenerator` also accept a simpler `cachePeriod` property (defined in seconds) that
works as follows:

* A `-1` value does not generate a `Cache-Control` response header.
* A `0` value prevents caching by using the `'Cache-Control: no-store'` directive.
* An `n > 0` value caches the given response for `n` seconds by using the
`'Cache-Control: max-age=n'` directive.



[[mvc-caching-etag-lastmodified]]
=== Controllers
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-caching-etag-lastmodified,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Controllers can add explicit support for HTTP caching. We recommended doing so, since the
`lastModified` or `ETag` value for a resource needs to be calculated before it can be compared
against conditional request headers. A controller can add an `ETag` header and `Cache-Control`
settings to a `ResponseEntity`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@GetMapping("/book/{id}")
	public ResponseEntity<Book> showBook(@PathVariable Long id) {

		Book book = findBook(id);
		String version = book.getVersion();

		return ResponseEntity
				.ok()
				.cacheControl(CacheControl.maxAge(30, TimeUnit.DAYS))
				.eTag(version) // lastModified is also available
				.body(book);
	}
----
====

The preceding example sends an 304 (NOT_MODIFIED) response with an empty body if the comparison
to the conditional request headers indicates that the content has not changed. Otherwise, the
`ETag` and `Cache-Control` headers are added to the response.

You can also make the check against conditional request headers in the controller,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@RequestMapping
	public String myHandleMethod(WebRequest webRequest, Model model) {

		long eTag = ... <1>

		if (request.checkNotModified(eTag)) {
			return null; <2>
		}

		model.addAttribute(...); <3>
		return "myViewName";
	}
----

<1> Application-specific calculation.
<2> The response has been set to 304 (NOT_MODIFIED) -- no further processing.
<3> Continue with the request processing.
====

There are three variants for checking conditional requests against `eTag` values, `lastModified`
values, or both. For conditional `GET` and `HEAD` requests, you can set the response to
304 (NOT_MODIFIED). For conditional `POST`, `PUT`, and `DELETE`, you can instead set the response
to 409 (PRECONDITION_FAILED), to prevent concurrent modification.



[[mvc-caching-static-resources]]
=== Static Resources
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-caching-static-resources,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You should serve static resources with a `Cache-Control` and conditional response headers
for optimal performance. See the section on configuring <<mvc-config-static-resources>>.



[[mvc-httpcaching-shallowetag]]
=== `ETag` Filter

You can use the `ShallowEtagHeaderFilter` to add "`shallow`" `eTag` values that are computed from the
response content and, thus, save bandwidth but not CPU time. See <<filters-shallow-etag>>.

include::webmvc-view.adoc[leveloffset=+1]




[[mvc-config]]
== MVC Config
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The MVC Java configuration and the MVC XML namespace provide default configuration suitable for most
applications and a configuration API to customize it.

For more advanced customizations, which are not available in the configuration API, see
<<mvc-config-advanced-java>> and <<mvc-config-advanced-xml>>.

You do not need to understand the underlying beans created by the MVC Java configuration and
the MVC namespace. If you want to learn more, see <<mvc-servlet-special-bean-types>>
and <<mvc-servlet-config>>.



[[mvc-config-enable]]
=== Enable MVC Configuration
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-enable,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

In Java configuration, you can use the `@EnableWebMvc` annotation to enable MVC
configuration, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig {
	}
----
====

In XML configuration, you can use the `<mvc:annotation-driven>` element to enable MVC
configuration, as the following example shows:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
	<beans xmlns="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans"
		xmlns:mvc="http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc"
		xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
		xsi:schemaLocation="
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans/spring-beans.xsd
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc/spring-mvc.xsd">

		<mvc:annotation-driven/>

	</beans>
----
====

The preceding example registers a number of Spring MVC
<<mvc-servlet-special-bean-types,infrastructure beans>> and adapts to dependencies
available on the classpath (for example, payload converters for JSON, XML, and others).



[[mvc-config-customize]]
=== MVC Config API
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-customize,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

In Java configuration, you can implement the `WebMvcConfigurer` interface, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		// Implement configuration methods...
	}
----
====

In XML, you can check attributes and sub-elements of `<mvc:annotation-driven/>`. You can
view the http://schema.spring.io/mvc/spring-mvc.xsd[Spring MVC XML schema] or use
the code completion feature of your IDE to discover what attributes and
sub-elements are available.



[[mvc-config-conversion]]
=== Type Conversion
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-conversion,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

By default formatters, for `Number` and `Date` types are installed, including support for
the `@NumberFormat` and `@DateTimeFormat` annotations. Full support for the Joda-Time
formatting library is also installed if Joda-Time is present on the classpath.

In Java configuration, you can register custom formatters and converters, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void addFormatters(FormatterRegistry registry) {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
	<beans xmlns="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans"
		xmlns:mvc="http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc"
		xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
		xsi:schemaLocation="
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans/spring-beans.xsd
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc/spring-mvc.xsd">

		<mvc:annotation-driven conversion-service="conversionService"/>

		<bean id="conversionService"
				class="org.springframework.format.support.FormattingConversionServiceFactoryBean">
			<property name="converters">
				<set>
					<bean class="org.example.MyConverter"/>
				</set>
			</property>
			<property name="formatters">
				<set>
					<bean class="org.example.MyFormatter"/>
					<bean class="org.example.MyAnnotationFormatterFactory"/>
				</set>
			</property>
			<property name="formatterRegistrars">
				<set>
					<bean class="org.example.MyFormatterRegistrar"/>
				</set>
			</property>
		</bean>

	</beans>
----
====

NOTE: See <<core.adoc#format-FormatterRegistrar-SPI,the `FormatterRegistrar` SPI>>
and the `FormattingConversionServiceFactoryBean` for more information on when to use FormatterRegistrar implementations.



[[mvc-config-validation]]
=== Validation
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-validation,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

By default, if <<core.adoc#validation-beanvalidation-overview,Bean Validation>> is present
on the classpath (for example, Hibernate Validator), the `LocalValidatorFactoryBean` is registered
as a global <<core.adoc#validator,Validator>> for use with `@Valid` and `Validated` on
controller method arguments.

In Java configuration, you can customize the global `Validator` instance, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public Validator getValidator(); {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
	<beans xmlns="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans"
		xmlns:mvc="http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc"
		xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
		xsi:schemaLocation="
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans/spring-beans.xsd
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc
			http://www.springframework.org/schema/mvc/spring-mvc.xsd">

		<mvc:annotation-driven validator="globalValidator"/>

	</beans>
----
====

Note that you can also register `Validator` implementations locally, as the following
example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Controller
	public class MyController {

		@InitBinder
		protected void initBinder(WebDataBinder binder) {
			binder.addValidators(new FooValidator());
		}

	}
----
====

TIP: If you need to have a `LocalValidatorFactoryBean` injected somewhere, create a bean and
mark it with `@Primary` in order to avoid conflict with the one declared in the MVC configuration.



[[mvc-config-interceptors]]
=== Interceptors

In Java configuration, you can register interceptors to apply to incoming requests, as
the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void addInterceptors(InterceptorRegistry registry) {
			registry.addInterceptor(new LocaleChangeInterceptor());
			registry.addInterceptor(new ThemeChangeInterceptor()).addPathPatterns("/**").excludePathPatterns("/admin/**");
			registry.addInterceptor(new SecurityInterceptor()).addPathPatterns("/secure/*");
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
	<mvc:interceptors>
		<bean class="org.springframework.web.servlet.i18n.LocaleChangeInterceptor"/>
		<mvc:interceptor>
			<mvc:mapping path="/**"/>
			<mvc:exclude-mapping path="/admin/**"/>
			<bean class="org.springframework.web.servlet.theme.ThemeChangeInterceptor"/>
		</mvc:interceptor>
		<mvc:interceptor>
			<mvc:mapping path="/secure/*"/>
			<bean class="org.example.SecurityInterceptor"/>
		</mvc:interceptor>
	</mvc:interceptors>
----
====



[[mvc-config-content-negotiation]]
=== Content Types
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-content-negotiation,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can configure how Spring MVC determines the requested media types from the request
(for example, `Accept` header, URL path extension, query parameter, and others).

By default, the URL path extension is checked first -- with `json`, `xml`, `rss`, and `atom`
registered as known extensions (depending on classpath dependencies). The `Accept` header
is checked second.

Consider changing those defaults to `Accept` header only, and, if you must use URL-based
content type resolution, consider using the query parameter strategy over path extensions. See
<<mvc-ann-requestmapping-suffix-pattern-match>> and <<mvc-ann-requestmapping-rfd>> for
more details.

In Java configuration, you can customize requested content type resolution, as the
following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureContentNegotiation(ContentNegotiationConfigurer configurer) {
			configurer.mediaType("json", MediaType.APPLICATION_JSON);
			configurer.mediaType("xml", MediaType.APPLICATION_XML);
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:annotation-driven content-negotiation-manager="contentNegotiationManager"/>

	<bean id="contentNegotiationManager" class="org.springframework.web.accept.ContentNegotiationManagerFactoryBean">
		<property name="mediaTypes">
			<value>
				json=application/json
				xml=application/xml
			</value>
		</property>
	</bean>
----
====



[[mvc-config-message-converters]]
=== Message Converters
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-message-codecs,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can customize `HttpMessageConverter` in Java configuration by overriding
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/config/annotation/WebMvcConfigurer.html#configureMessageConverters-java.util.List-[`configureMessageConverters()`]
(to replace the default converters created by Spring MVC) or by overriding
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/config/annotation/WebMvcConfigurer.html#extendMessageConverters-java.util.List-[`extendMessageConverters()`]
(to customize the default converters or add additional converters to the default ones).

The following example adds XML and Jackson JSON converters with a customized
`ObjectMapper` instead of the default ones:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfiguration implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureMessageConverters(List<HttpMessageConverter<?>> converters) {
			Jackson2ObjectMapperBuilder builder = new Jackson2ObjectMapperBuilder()
					.indentOutput(true)
					.dateFormat(new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd"))
					.modulesToInstall(new ParameterNamesModule());
			converters.add(new MappingJackson2HttpMessageConverter(builder.build()));
			converters.add(new MappingJackson2XmlHttpMessageConverter(builder.createXmlMapper(true).build()));
		}
	}
----
====

In the preceding example,
{api-spring-framework}/http/converter/json/Jackson2ObjectMapperBuilder.html[`Jackson2ObjectMapperBuilder`]
is used to create a common configuration for both `MappingJackson2HttpMessageConverter` and
`MappingJackson2XmlHttpMessageConverter` with indentation enabled, a customized date format,
and the registration of
https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-module-parameter-names[`jackson-module-parameter-names`],
Which adds support for accessing parameter names (a feature added in Java 8).

This builder customizes Jackson's default properties as follows:

* http://fasterxml.github.io/jackson-databind/javadoc/2.6/com/fasterxml/jackson/databind/DeserializationFeature.html#FAIL_ON_UNKNOWN_PROPERTIES[`DeserializationFeature.FAIL_ON_UNKNOWN_PROPERTIES`] is disabled.
* http://fasterxml.github.io/jackson-databind/javadoc/2.6/com/fasterxml/jackson/databind/MapperFeature.html#DEFAULT_VIEW_INCLUSION[`MapperFeature.DEFAULT_VIEW_INCLUSION`] is disabled.

It also automatically registers the following well-known modules if they are detected on the classpath:

* https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-datatype-jdk7[jackson-datatype-jdk7]: Support for Java 7 types, such as `java.nio.file.Path`.
* https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-datatype-joda[jackson-datatype-joda]: Support for Joda-Time types.
* https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-datatype-jsr310[jackson-datatype-jsr310]: Support for Java 8 Date and Time API types.
* https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-datatype-jdk8[jackson-datatype-jdk8]: Support for other Java 8 types, such as `Optional`.

NOTE: Enabling indentation with Jackson XML support requires
http://search.maven.org/#search%7Cgav%7C1%7Cg%3A%22org.codehaus.woodstox%22%20AND%20a%3A%22woodstox-core-asl%22[`woodstox-core-asl`]
dependency in addition to http://search.maven.org/#search%7Cga%7C1%7Ca%3A%22jackson-dataformat-xml%22[`jackson-dataformat-xml`] one.

Other interesting Jackson modules are available:

* https://github.com/zalando/jackson-datatype-money[jackson-datatype-money]: Support for `javax.money` types (unofficial module).
* https://github.com/FasterXML/jackson-datatype-hibernate[jackson-datatype-hibernate]: Support for Hibernate-specific types and properties (including lazy-loading aspects).

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:annotation-driven>
		<mvc:message-converters>
			<bean class="org.springframework.http.converter.json.MappingJackson2HttpMessageConverter">
				<property name="objectMapper" ref="objectMapper"/>
			</bean>
			<bean class="org.springframework.http.converter.xml.MappingJackson2XmlHttpMessageConverter">
				<property name="objectMapper" ref="xmlMapper"/>
			</bean>
		</mvc:message-converters>
	</mvc:annotation-driven>

	<bean id="objectMapper" class="org.springframework.http.converter.json.Jackson2ObjectMapperFactoryBean"
		  p:indentOutput="true"
		  p:simpleDateFormat="yyyy-MM-dd"
		  p:modulesToInstall="com.fasterxml.jackson.module.paramnames.ParameterNamesModule"/>

	<bean id="xmlMapper" parent="objectMapper" p:createXmlMapper="true"/>
----
====



[[mvc-config-view-controller]]
=== View Controllers

This is a shortcut for defining a `ParameterizableViewController` that immediately
forwards to a view when invoked. You can use it in static cases when there is no Java controller
logic to execute before the view generates the response.

The following example of Java configuration forwards a request for `/` to a view called `home`:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void addViewControllers(ViewControllerRegistry registry) {
			registry.addViewController("/").setViewName("home");
		}
	}
----
====

The following example achieves the same thing as the preceding example, but with XML, by
using the `<mvc:view-controller>` element:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:view-controller path="/" view-name="home"/>
----
====



[[mvc-config-view-resolvers]]
=== View Resolvers
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-view-resolvers,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

The MVC configuration simplifies the registration of view resolvers.

The following Java configuration example configures content negotiation view
resolution by using JSP and Jackson as a default `View` for JSON rendering:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureViewResolvers(ViewResolverRegistry registry) {
			registry.enableContentNegotiation(new MappingJackson2JsonView());
			registry.jsp();
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:view-resolvers>
		<mvc:content-negotiation>
			<mvc:default-views>
				<bean class="org.springframework.web.servlet.view.json.MappingJackson2JsonView"/>
			</mvc:default-views>
		</mvc:content-negotiation>
		<mvc:jsp/>
	</mvc:view-resolvers>
----
====

Note, however, that FreeMarker, Tiles, Groovy Markup, and script templates also require
configuration of the underlying view technology.

The MVC namespace provides dedicated elements. The following example works with FreeMarker:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----

	<mvc:view-resolvers>
		<mvc:content-negotiation>
			<mvc:default-views>
				<bean class="org.springframework.web.servlet.view.json.MappingJackson2JsonView"/>
			</mvc:default-views>
		</mvc:content-negotiation>
		<mvc:freemarker cache="false"/>
	</mvc:view-resolvers>

	<mvc:freemarker-configurer>
		<mvc:template-loader-path location="/freemarker"/>
	</mvc:freemarker-configurer>

----
====

In Java configuration, you can add the respective `Configurer` bean,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureViewResolvers(ViewResolverRegistry registry) {
			registry.enableContentNegotiation(new MappingJackson2JsonView());
			registry.freeMarker().cache(false);
		}

		@Bean
		public FreeMarkerConfigurer freeMarkerConfigurer() {
			FreeMarkerConfigurer configurer = new FreeMarkerConfigurer();
			configurer.setTemplateLoaderPath("/freemarker");
			return configurer;
		}
	}
----
====



[[mvc-config-static-resources]]
=== Static Resources
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-static-resources,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

This option provides a convenient way to serve static resources from a list of
{api-spring-framework}/core/io/Resource.html[`Resource`]-based locations.

In the next example, given a request that starts with `/resources`, the relative path is
used to find and serve static resources relative to `/public` under the web application
root or on the classpath under `/static`. The resources are served with a one-year future
expiration to ensure maximum use of the browser cache and a reduction in HTTP requests
made by the browser. The `Last-Modified` header is also evaluated and, if present, a `304`
status code is returned.

The following listing shows how to do so with Java configuration:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void addResourceHandlers(ResourceHandlerRegistry registry) {
			registry.addResourceHandler("/resources/**")
				.addResourceLocations("/public", "classpath:/static/")
				.setCachePeriod(31556926);
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:resources mapping="/resources/**"
		location="/public, classpath:/static/"
		cache-period="31556926" />
----
====

See also
<<mvc-caching-static-resources, HTTP caching support for static resources>>.

The resource handler also supports a chain of
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/resource/ResourceResolver.html[`ResourceResolver`] implementations and
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/resource/ResourceTransformer.html[`ResourceTransformer`] implementations,
which you can use to create a toolchain for working with optimized resources.

You can use the `VersionResourceResolver` for versioned resource URLs based on an MD5 hash
computed from the content, a fixed application version, or other. A
`ContentVersionStrategy` (MD5 hash) is a good choice -- with some notable exceptions, such as
JavaScript resources used with a module loader.

The following example shows how to use `VersionResourceResolver` in Java configuration:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void addResourceHandlers(ResourceHandlerRegistry registry) {
			registry.addResourceHandler("/resources/**")
					.addResourceLocations("/public/")
					.resourceChain(true)
					.addResolver(new VersionResourceResolver().addContentVersionStrategy("/**"));
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim"]
----
<mvc:resources mapping="/resources/**" location="/public/">
	<mvc:resource-chain>
		<mvc:resource-cache/>
		<mvc:resolvers>
			<mvc:version-resolver>
				<mvc:content-version-strategy patterns="/**"/>
			</mvc:version-resolver>
		</mvc:resolvers>
	</mvc:resource-chain>
</mvc:resources>
----
====

You can then use `ResourceUrlProvider` to rewrite URLs and apply the full chain of resolvers and
transformers -- for example, to insert versions. The MVC configuration provides a `ResourceUrlProvider`
bean so that it can be injected into others. You can also make the rewrite transparent with the
`ResourceUrlEncodingFilter` for Thymeleaf, JSPs, FreeMarker, and others with URL tags that
rely on `HttpServletResponse#encodeURL`.

Note that, when using both `EncodedResourceResolver` (for example, for serving gzipped or
brotli-encoded resources) and `VersionedResourceResolver`, you must register them in this order.
That ensures content-based versions are always computed reliably, based on the unencoded file.

http://www.webjars.org/documentation[WebJars] is also supported through `WebJarsResourceResolver`
and is automatically registered when `org.webjars:webjars-locator` is present on the
classpath. The resolver can re-write URLs to include the version of the jar and can also
match to incoming URLs without versions -- for example, `/jquery/jquery.min.js` to
`/jquery/1.2.0/jquery.min.js`.



[[mvc-default-servlet-handler]]
=== Default Servlet

Spring MVC allows for mapping the `DispatcherServlet` to `/` (thus overriding the mapping
of the container's default Servlet), while still allowing static resource requests to be
handled by the container's default Servlet. It configures a
`DefaultServletHttpRequestHandler` with a URL mapping of `/**` and the lowest priority
relative to other URL mappings.

This handler forwards all requests to the default Servlet. Therefore, it must
remain last in the order of all other URL `HandlerMappings`. That is the
case if you use `<mvc:annotation-driven>`. Alternatively, if you set up your
own customized `HandlerMapping` instance, be sure to set its `order` property to a value
lower than that of the `DefaultServletHttpRequestHandler`, which is `Integer.MAX_VALUE`.

The following example shows how to enable the feature by using the default setup:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureDefaultServletHandling(DefaultServletHandlerConfigurer configurer) {
			configurer.enable();
		}
	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:default-servlet-handler/>
----
====

The caveat to overriding the `/` Servlet mapping is that the `RequestDispatcher` for the
default Servlet must be retrieved by name rather than by path. The
`DefaultServletHttpRequestHandler` tries to auto-detect the default Servlet for
the container at startup time, using a list of known names for most of the major Servlet
containers (including Tomcat, Jetty, GlassFish, JBoss, Resin, WebLogic, and WebSphere).
If the default Servlet has been custom-configured with a different name, or if a
different Servlet container is being used where the default Servlet name is unknown,
then you must explicitly provide the default Servlet's name, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configureDefaultServletHandling(DefaultServletHandlerConfigurer configurer) {
			configurer.enable("myCustomDefaultServlet");
		}

	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:default-servlet-handler default-servlet-name="myCustomDefaultServlet"/>
----
====



[[mvc-config-path-matching]]
=== Path Matching
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-path-matching,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

You can customize options related to path matching and treatment of the URL.
For details on the individual options, see the
{api-spring-framework}/web/servlet/config/annotation/PathMatchConfigurer.html[`PathMatchConfigurer`] javadoc.

The following example shows how to customize path matching in Java configuration:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	@EnableWebMvc
	public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

		@Override
		public void configurePathMatch(PathMatchConfigurer configurer) {
			configurer
				.setUseSuffixPatternMatch(true)
				.setUseTrailingSlashMatch(false)
				.setUseRegisteredSuffixPatternMatch(true)
				.setPathMatcher(antPathMatcher())
				.setUrlPathHelper(urlPathHelper())
				.addPathPrefix("/api",
						HandlerTypePredicate.forAnnotation(RestController.class));
		}

		@Bean
		public UrlPathHelper urlPathHelper() {
			//...
		}

		@Bean
		public PathMatcher antPathMatcher() {
			//...
		}

	}
----
====

The following example shows how to achieve the same configuration in XML:

====
[source,xml,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	<mvc:annotation-driven>
		<mvc:path-matching
			suffix-pattern="true"
			trailing-slash="false"
			registered-suffixes-only="true"
			path-helper="pathHelper"
			path-matcher="pathMatcher"/>
	</mvc:annotation-driven>

	<bean id="pathHelper" class="org.example.app.MyPathHelper"/>
	<bean id="pathMatcher" class="org.example.app.MyPathMatcher"/>
----
====



[[mvc-config-advanced-java]]
=== Advanced Java Config
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-config-advanced-java,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

`@EnableWebMvc` imports `DelegatingWebMvcConfiguration`, which:

* Provides default Spring configuration for Spring MVC applications
* Detects and delegates to `WebMvcConfigurer` implementations to customize that configuration.

For advanced mode, you can remove `@EnableWebMvc` and extend directly from
`DelegatingWebMvcConfiguration` instead of implementing `WebMvcConfigurer`,
as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Configuration
	public class WebConfig extends DelegatingWebMvcConfiguration {

		// ...

	}
----
====

You can keep existing methods in `WebConfig`, but you can now also override bean declarations
from the base class, and you can still have any number of other `WebMvcConfigurer` implementations on
the classpath.



[[mvc-config-advanced-xml]]
=== Advanced XML Config

The MVC namespace does not have an advanced mode. If you need to customize a property on
a bean that you cannot change otherwise, you can use the `BeanPostProcessor` lifecycle
hook of the Spring `ApplicationContext`, as the following example shows:

====
[source,java,indent=0]
[subs="verbatim,quotes"]
----
	@Component
	public class MyPostProcessor implements BeanPostProcessor {

		public Object postProcessBeforeInitialization(Object bean, String name) throws BeansException {
			// ...
		}
	}
----
====

Note that you need to declare `MyPostProcessor` as a bean, either explicitly in XML or
by letting it be detected through a `<component-scan/>` declaration.




[[mvc-http2]]
== HTTP/2
[.small]#<<web-reactive.adoc#webflux-http2,Same as in Spring WebFlux>>#

Servlet 4 containers are required to support HTTP/2, and Spring Framework 5 is compatible
with Servlet API 4. From a programming model perspective, there is nothing specific that
applications need to do. However, there are considerations related to server configuration.
For more details, see the
https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/wiki/HTTP-2-support[HTTP/2 wiki page].

The Servlet API does expose one construct related to HTTP/2. You can use the
`javax.servlet.http.PushBuilder` proactively push resources to clients, and it
is supported as a <<mvc-ann-arguments,method argument>> to `@RequestMapping` methods.
