Simple Java framework/tool for web-based DB table access?

Question

I'm looking for a web-based Java tool (preferably one that will run in both Weblogic and JBoss) that will allow controlled access to a particular database. I need to allow non-technical users to insert, update, and delete rows in a particular Oracle DB table. The rows will be of varying data type (some dates, some numbers). Ability to add dropdowns with specific values would be nice.

Also nice, but not necessary (since we can always use a reverse proxy) would be the ability to control read/write access using LDAP/AD groups.

Another developer on my team suggested Spring/Roo, but that may be too heavyweight for what we're looking to do. There's got to be something simpler out there... Oracle Apex is another option, if we get desperate.

Answer 1

Grails is a great cheap way to build a CRUD app like you're describing, and it integrates cleanly with Java applications. You can probably build your first prototype app in an hour or two to get a feel for it. Here's a decent starter tutorial: https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/java/library/j-grails01158/

Answer 2

Spring Roo is absolutely not an overkill for this task in my opinion. It actually supports database reverse engineering, so you can explicitly specify which tables you want to have a CRUD view for.

You will need a really simple script, something like this:

project --topLevelPackage org.whatever --projectName crud --java 6
persistence setup --provider HIBERNATE --database ORACLE

--> you will need to acquire ojdbc*.jar because it's not available from Maven

--> also you will need to adjust database.properties to suit your needs

database reverse engineer --schema my --includeTables "Table1 .." --package ~.domain 
controller all --package ~.web
logging setup --level DEBUG --> OPTIONAL
security setup --> OPTIONAL
exit

That's it, you can run your application.