AliEE is a Jakarta EE 8 application server for building and running enterprise Java applications. It supports Java, J2EE, SOAP, HTTP, and HTTPS protocols and runs on Windows and Linux across x86, Arm, and additional chip architectures. AliEE provides microservices governance, containerized deployment, and cloud service integration through Enterprise Distributed Application Service (EDAS).
AliEE is available exclusively as the application runtime within EDAS.
Jakarta EE 8 compliance
Jakarta EE (formerly Java EE) is an open source platform maintained by the Eclipse Foundation for building enterprise Java applications. It defines standard APIs for web services, transaction management, persistence, messaging, and security -- making applications portable across compliant servers. Oracle transferred Java EE to the Eclipse Foundation in 2017, where it was renamed Jakarta EE.
AliEE implements Jakarta EE 8 and supports the following specification groups:
| Category | Supported specifications |
|---|---|
| Web services | Servlet, JavaServer Pages (JSP), WebSocket |
| Enterprise services | Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB), Java Persistence API (JPA), Java Transaction API (JTA) |
| Messaging | Java Message Service (JMS) for asynchronous message processing |
Applications built on these APIs run on AliEE without vendor-specific modifications.
Features
Platform compatibility
| Component | Supported options |
|---|---|
| Processors | x86, Arm, Kunpeng, Phytium, and all chip types supported by Apsara Stack |
| Operating systems | Anolis OS, Aliyun Linux2, Aliyun Linux3, Kylin, Unity Operating System (UOS) |
| Databases | PolarDB, OceanBase, Dameng (DM), KingbaseES, and standard databases |
Microservices
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Service communication | Supports RESTful, gRPC, and Dubbo protocols for inter-service calls. |
| Service discovery | Registers and discovers microservices instances automatically, eliminating manual endpoint configuration. |
| Distributed tracing | Tracks requests across microservices in real time through integrated trace monitoring tools. |
Container and deployment
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Containerized deployment | Runs on Docker, Kubernetes, and Helm charts. Accepts JAR, WAR, and EAR packaging formats. |
| Dynamic resource detection | Detects available CPU and memory inside containers at startup and adapts to container resource limits. |
| Configuration export | Exports application runtime configurations to ConfigMap and Nacos, preserving settings across pod restarts. |
| Automatic scaling | Adjusts resource allocation based on application load. |
Cloud integration
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Compute and networking | Connects to Elastic Compute Service (ECS) and Server Load Balancer (SLB). Applications are bound to SLB instances by default for external access. |
| PaaS services | Integrates with microservices engine, application monitoring, database, and message services through the EDAS PaaS layer. |
| Security | Works with Web Application Firewall (WAF) to enforce security policies and compliance requirements. |
Cluster management
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Deployment | Supports large-scale cluster deployment with high availability and dynamic load balancing across nodes. |
| Monitoring | Monitors cluster health in real time to surface issues before they affect availability. |
| Scaling | Scales clusters by adding nodes without downtime. |
Use cases
Replace IBM WebSphere or Oracle WebLogic Server
Migrate existing Java EE workloads from IBM WebSphere or Oracle WebLogic Server to AliEE. Jakarta EE 8 compliance means standard applications run without modification. Support for Kunpeng, Phytium, Kylin, UOS, and all Apsara Stack-supported chip types provides broad hardware and OS compatibility for on-premises and hybrid deployments.
Build a microservices architecture
Break monolithic applications into microservices that communicate over RESTful, gRPC, or Dubbo protocols. AliEE provides service discovery, distributed tracing, and microservices governance through EDAS, reducing the integration effort for operating a microservices platform.
Deploy on Kubernetes
Package applications as JAR, WAR, or EAR files and deploy them on Kubernetes with Helm charts. AliEE detects container resource limits at startup, exports configurations to ConfigMap or Nacos, and scales automatically -- providing a production-ready path from traditional deployment to cloud-native operations.