Server Setup

Lifecycle

As a basic requirement, the server always needs a handler to be supplied to serve incoming requests. See the Providing Content section to get a list of suitable handlers.

Server instances are usually created using the Host factory. Depending on your use case, you can either use a blocking or non-blocking call.

// the content we would like to serve
    var content = Content.From("Hello World!");
    
    // blocking until the application receives a shutdown signal (e.g. main method of a standalone application)
    return Host.Create()
               .Handler(content)
               .Defaults()
               .Run();
    
    // non-blocking (e.g. for in-process embedding or test libraries)
    var host = Host.Create()
                   .Handler(content)
                   .Defaults()
                   .Start();
    
    try {
        // do something with the server instance
    }
    finally {
        // release resources
        host.Stop();
    }

The server will start to listen for requests as soon as the Run or Start method is called. When disposed, the server will stop to process messages and release all claimed resources. This way, server instances can easily be used for service mocks in integration and component testing as well.

By default, the server will listen to all IP addresses on port 8080. These settings can be adjusted as needed. The Defaults() call adds typical features such as compression and client caching.

Security

By default, the server will provide an HTTP endpoint on port 8080 with no SSL supported enabled. It is recommended to serve all of your web applications by a dedicated reverse proxy such as nginx or the GenHTTP Gateway. Nevertheless, the server allows you to add HTTPS endpoints to your application.

Extensibility

To add additional behavior to your web application or service, you can register additional elements with your server.

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