Spring Boot executable jar throws java.lang.ClassNotFoundException: org.apache.tomcat.util.descriptor.web.ServletDef

Question

I have created a simple test case that shows the issue I'm currently facing.

What I was trying to do is manually starting Tomcat embedded from a CommandLineRunner and manually deploying a war file available somewhere on the file system:

package example;

import java.io.File;

import org.apache.catalina.Context;
import org.apache.catalina.LifecycleException;
import org.apache.catalina.startup.Tomcat;
import org.springframework.boot.CommandLineRunner;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

@Component
public class MyCommandLineRunner implements CommandLineRunner {

    @Override
    public void run(String... args) throws Exception {

        File tomcatBaseDir = new File("<tomcat-base-dir>");
        File warToBeDeployed = new File("<war-to-be-deployed>");

        Tomcat tomcat = new Tomcat();
        tomcat.setPort(8080);
        tomcat.setBaseDir(tomcatBaseDir.getAbsolutePath());
        tomcat.getHost().setAppBase(tomcatBaseDir.getAbsolutePath());
        tomcat.getHost().setAutoDeploy(true);
        tomcat.getHost().setDeployOnStartup(true);

        try {
            tomcat.start();
            System.out.println("Tomcat started on " + tomcat.getHost());
        } catch (LifecycleException e) {
            System.err.println("Tomcat could not be started");
            System.exit(-1);
        }

        Context appContext = tomcat.addWebapp(tomcat.getHost(), "/hello-world", warToBeDeployed.getAbsolutePath());
        System.out.println("Deployed " + appContext.getBaseName() + " on " + tomcat.getHost());

        tomcat.getServer().await();

    }

}

This is my simple pom.xml:

<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd">
<modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>

<parent>
    <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
    <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-parent</artifactId>
    <version>1.3.5.RELEASE</version>
</parent>

<artifactId>spring-boot-tomcat-embedded-manually</artifactId>
<version>0.0.1-SNAPSHOT</version>

<properties>
    <java.version>1.8</java.version>
</properties>

<dependencies>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
        <artifactId>spring-boot-starter</artifactId>
    </dependency>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.apache.tomcat</groupId>
        <artifactId>tomcat-catalina</artifactId>
        <version>${tomcat.version}</version>
    </dependency>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.apache.tomcat</groupId>
        <artifactId>tomcat-util</artifactId>
        <version>${tomcat.version}</version>
    </dependency>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.apache.tomcat.embed</groupId>
        <artifactId>tomcat-embed-core</artifactId>
    </dependency>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.apache.tomcat.embed</groupId>
        <artifactId>tomcat-embed-jasper</artifactId>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>

<build>
    <plugins>
        <plugin>
            <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
            <artifactId>spring-boot-maven-plugin</artifactId>
        </plugin>
    </plugins>
</build>

So this is what happens:

if I run the application from within Eclipse, no problem at all;

if I run "mvn clean package" and then "java -jar [path-to-jar]", I get:

java.lang.ClassNotFoundException: org.apache.tomcat.util.descriptor.web.ServletDef
    at org.apache.catalina.loader.WebappClassLoaderBase.loadClass(WebappClassLoaderBase.java:1305) ~[tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.loader.WebappClassLoaderBase.loadClass(WebappClassLoaderBase.java:1139) ~[tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.tomcat.util.IntrospectionUtils.callMethod1(IntrospectionUtils.java:359) ~[tomcat-util-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.tomcat.util.digester.SetNextRule.end(SetNextRule.java:145) ~[tomcat-util-scan-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.tomcat.util.digester.Digester.endElement(Digester.java:956) [tomcat-util-scan-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.parsers.AbstractSAXParser.endElement(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.impl.XMLDocumentFragmentScannerImpl.scanEndElement(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.impl.XMLDocumentFragmentScannerImpl$FragmentContentDriver.next(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.impl.XMLDocumentScannerImpl.next(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.impl.XMLDocumentFragmentScannerImpl.scanDocument(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.parsers.XML11Configuration.parse(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.parsers.XML11Configuration.parse(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.parsers.XMLParser.parse(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.parsers.AbstractSAXParser.parse(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at com.sun.org.apache.xerces.internal.jaxp.SAXParserImpl$JAXPSAXParser.parse(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]
    at org.apache.tomcat.util.digester.Digester.parse(Digester.java:1451) [tomcat-util-scan-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.tomcat.util.descriptor.web.WebXmlParser.parseWebXml(WebXmlParser.java:120) [tomcat-util-scan-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.startup.ContextConfig.webConfig(ContextConfig.java:1115) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.startup.ContextConfig.configureStart(ContextConfig.java:779) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.startup.ContextConfig.lifecycleEvent(ContextConfig.java:306) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.util.LifecycleSupport.fireLifecycleEvent(LifecycleSupport.java:95) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.util.LifecycleBase.fireLifecycleEvent(LifecycleBase.java:90) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContext.startInternal(StandardContext.java:5150) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.util.LifecycleBase.start(LifecycleBase.java:147) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.addChildInternal(ContainerBase.java:725) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.addChild(ContainerBase.java:701) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardHost.addChild(StandardHost.java:717) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.startup.Tomcat.addWebapp(Tomcat.java:558) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at org.apache.catalina.startup.Tomcat.addWebapp(Tomcat.java:523) [tomcat-catalina-8.0.33.jar!/:8.0.33]
    at example.MyCommandLineRunner.run(MyCommandLineRunner.java:37) [spring-boot-tomcat-embedded-manually-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar!/:0.0.1-SNAPSHOT]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.callRunner(SpringApplication.java:806) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.callRunners(SpringApplication.java:790) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.afterRefresh(SpringApplication.java:777) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.run(SpringApplication.java:308) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.run(SpringApplication.java:1191) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication.run(SpringApplication.java:1180) [spring-boot-1.3.5.RELEASE.jar!/:1.3.5.RELEASE]
    at example.Main.main(Main.java:10) [spring-boot-tomcat-embedded-manually-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar!/:0.0.1-SNAPSHOT]
    at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) ~[na:1.8.0_91]
    at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(Unknown Source) ~[na:1.8.0_91]
    at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(Unknown Source) ~[na:1.8.0_91]
    at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Unknown Source) ~[na:1.8.0_91]
    at org.springframework.boot.loader.MainMethodRunner.run(MainMethodRunner.java:54) [spring-boot-tomcat-embedded-manually-0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.jar!/:0.0.1-SNAPSHOT]
    at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source) [na:1.8.0_91]

if I replace the spring-boot-maven-plugin with the maven-shade-plugin and then try "mvn clean package" followed by "java -jar [path-to-jar]" everything works fine.

Am I missing some configuration on the spring-boot-maven-plugin to make my executable jar actually work?

UPDATE 1

My issue is somewhat related to this one. I tried the solution proposed there and indeed it does work, from both command line and Eclipse.

But still, I don't understand the inconsistent behavior manifested in my specific case:

why it works in eclipse and it doesn't work from the command line?
why it works if I replace the spring-boot-maven-plugin with the maven-shade-plugin?

Why? Why are you starting it yourself, you are basically working around (against) spring boot here. Just let that start tomcat for you. — M. Deinum
– M. Deinum, Commented May 30, 2016 at 19:21
Unfortunately, I don't want MY web application to be deployed within an embedded tomcat otherwise I would have built a standard spring-boot web app. As a matter of fact, my application is not even a web application. I want my application to start, deploy some other web applications within an embedded Tomcat and then call those services. I'm curious to understand whether this is a spring-boot-maven-plugin limitation, issue or wrong configuration. — fabriziocucci
– fabriziocucci, Commented May 30, 2016 at 20:00
Feels like you are making things to complex and I don't see why it needs to be a boot application that way. However from what it looks like you are mixing regular tomcat jars with tomcat embedded. — M. Deinum
– M. Deinum, Commented May 30, 2016 at 20:03
I want it to be a spring boot application because right now I want to use spring DI and profiles but I might need something else that spring boot offers out-of-the-box in a bit. I don't see much of complexity in my application logic, actually it's pretty trivial. — fabriziocucci
– fabriziocucci, Commented May 30, 2016 at 20:08
Running an embedded tomcat,launching an external war, and call some services. Seems overkill to me, just make the war executabel. Hence my suggestion it is too complex. — M. Deinum
– M. Deinum, Commented May 30, 2016 at 20:34

Wojciech Wirzbicki · Accepted Answer · 2018-07-16 12:22:19Z

3

Look at this question. You should add class loader to your context. Add directly under line

Context appContext = tomcat.addWebapp(tomcat.getHost(), "/hello-world", warToBeDeployed.getAbsolutePath());

This code

WebappLoader loader = new WebappLoader(Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader());
appContext.setLoader(loader);

It worked in my case.

answered Jul 16, 2018 at 12:22

Wojciech Wirzbicki

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jstuartmilne · Accepted Answer · 2016-05-30 17:37:47Z

1

It is kind of strange, I would have thought your pom looks ok. That said, try replacing your tomcat entries in the pom by :

                <dependency>
                        <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
                        <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-tomcat</artifactId>
                </dependency>

Hope it helps

answered May 30, 2016 at 17:37

jstuartmilne

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1 Comment

fabriziocucci Over a year ago

Thanks but unfortunately I tried that too and it didn't solve the problem.

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