getServletContext().getContent() returning null

[Chandella Montero]

I have created two web applications to test getting the ServletContext of one application from within another application.

Code for the first Servlet, from the first application:

package foo;

//import statements

public class IceCream extends HttpServlet {
	
	protected void doGet(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) throws ServletException, IOException {
		ServletContext thisContext = getServletContext();
        String flavour = thisContext.getInitParameter("flavour");
		response.getWriter().write("Context Path is: " + thisContext.getContextPath());
        response.getWriter().write("from within the same servlet, flavour is: " + flavour);
		
	}

}

This will print the path "/MyServlets", which I will use in the second Servlet, as well as "from within the same servlet, flavour is: vanilla", which proves that this value has been set (I set it in the deployment descriptor).

Now here is the code for the second Servlet, which lives in the second application:

package bar;

//import statements

public class Dessert extends HttpServlet {
	      
   	protected void doGet(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) throws ServletException, IOException {
		ServletContext iceCreamContext = getServletContext().getContext("/MyServlets");
		response.getWriter().write(iceCreamContext.toString()); // on its own, throws NullPointerException
		String iceCreamFlavour = iceCreamContext.getInitParameter("flavour"); // on its own, throws NullPointerException
		response.getWriter().write("From the Dessert Servlet in the MyOtherServlets WebApp, the value of the IceCream Context Parameter is: " + iceCreamFlavour); //will not work
	}

}

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks in advance for your help

[Frits Walraven]

Hi Chandella,

What am I doing wrong?

If you are using Tomcat as a server you have to put the following line in either the server.xml or better the context.xml of your server:

<Context crossContext="true">

Regards,
Frits

[Chandella Montero]

Spot on, added that line to context.xml and it now works

Thank you ever so much, Frits!