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How to send manual jQuery Ajax request to JSF application?

I am doing a POST-request using jQuery which seems to succeed. But how can I work with that on server side and modify the response?
Do I need another servlet because the Faces Servlet is just not designed to deal with this?

$.ajax({type:'POST', data:{"status":status}, success: function(response) {
    alert("Qapla'");
}});

It is used for the following process:

  1. user inputs address and hits commandButton which invokes JS
  2. JS retrieves geodata using google maps and sends it to server (which I am considering to use the above code for)
  3. the servers responds sending some close places from database
  4. JS retrieves exact distances using google maps again and sends them to server
  5. server redirects client to next page with results

There is one case where a failing validation for the used inputText might be needed: At point 2 the server rates the geodata as not valid.

Solution

  • If sending the ajax POST by usual JSF means (UICommand component, jsf.ajax.request(), etc, in flavor of <h:commandButton>, <p:remoteCommand>, <o:commandScript>, etc) is really not an option for some reason left unspecified in your question, then you'd indeed better create a separate servlet or even JAX-RS or JAX-WS webservice listening on those requests and returning e.g. XML, JSON, etc. JSF is a HTML form based MVC framework not a web service framework.

    You only need to take into account that you deal properly with JSF view state when you manipulate the HTML representation of JSF components afterwards. E.g. when you use custom JS/ajax to enable a disabled HTML button as generated by <h:commandButton> without involving/notifying JSF, then it won't appear as enabled in JSF component state and its action would never be invoked.

    See also: