Attributes for Struts bean tags

Attributes for Struts bean tags

This reference material describes the attributes for the Struts bean tag library. By default, each element name has a bean: prefix.

For more information about the Struts tags and tag attributes, refer to the Apache Struts specifications.
Each Struts tag has a number of attributes that you can set by using the Properties view of the tag. Use this table of attributes while working with the Properties view of the tag, to look up attributes for which you want additional detail. Some attributes have the same name but different usage in different elements. The attributes are listed in alphabetical order.

<bean:cookie />

<bean:define />

<bean:header />

<bean:include />

<bean:message />

<bean:page />

<bean:parameter />

<bean:resource/>

<bean:size/>

<bean:struts/>

<bean:write/>

Cookie

Table 1. Cookie tag attributes
Attribute Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified property.

Note: This is a required attribute.
multiple If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, causes all matching cookies to be accumulated and stored into a bean of type Cookie[]. If not specified, the first value for the specified cookie will be retrieved as a value of type Cookie.
name Specifies the name of the request cookie whose value, or values, is to be retrieved.

Note: This is a required attribute.
value The default cookie value to return if no cookie with the specified name was included in this request.

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Define

Table 2. Define tag attributes
Attribute Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified property.

Note: This is a required attribute.
name Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to define a new page scope attribute (if
property is also specified) or the attribute name of the bean that is duplicated with the new reference created by this tag (if
property is not also specified). This attribute is required unless you specify a
value attribute or nested body content.
property
Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by
name. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by
name is given a new reference identified by
id.
scope Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by
name. By default, the default rules applied by
PageContext.findAttribute() are applied.
toScope Specifies the variable scope into which the newly defined bean will be created. By default, the bean is created in
page scope.
type Specifies the fully qualified class name of the value to be exposed as the
id attribute. The default is
java.lang.String if you specify a
value attribute or
java.lang.Object otherwise.
value Specifies the
java.lang.String value to which the exposed bean should be set. This attribute is required unless you specify the
name attribute or nested body content.

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Header

Table 3. Header tag attributes
Properties Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified property.

Note: This is a required attribute.
multiple If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, causes a call to HttpServletRequest.getHeaders() and a definition of the result as a bean of type String[]. Otherwise, HttpServletRequest.getHeader() will be called, and a definition of the result as a bean of type String will be performed.
name Specifies the name of the request header whose value, or values, is to be retrieved.
value Specifies the
java.lang.String value to which the exposed bean should be set. This attribute is required unless you specify the
name attribute or nested body content.

Note: This is a required attribute.

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Include

Table 4. Include tag attributes
Attribute Description
anchor Specifies the optional anchor tag added to the generated hyperlink.
forward Logical name of a global ActionForward that contains the actual content relative URI of the resource to be included.
href Absolute URL of the resource to be included.
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable and associated page scope attribute that is available with the value of the specified web application resource.

Note: This is a required attribute.
page Module relative URI of the Web application resource to be included.
transaction Set to true if you want the current transaction control token included in the generated URL for this include.

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Message

Table 5. Message tag attributes
Attribute Description
arg0 Specifies the first parametric replacement value, if any.
arg1 Specifies the second parametric replacement value, if any.
arg2 Specifies the third parametric replacement value, if any.
arg3 Specifies the fourth parametric replacement value, if any.
arg4 Specifies the fifth parametric replacement value, if any.
bundle Specifies the name of the application scope bean under which the MessageResources object that contains messages is stored. The default is Globals.MESSAGES_KEY.
key Specifies the message key of the requested message, which must have a corresponding value in the message resources. By default, the key is obtained from the
name and
property properties.
locale Specifies the name of the session scope bean under which our currently selected Locale object is stored. The default is Globals.LOCALE_KEY.
name Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to retrieve the value specified by
property (if specified). If you omit
property, the value of this bean itself will be used as the message resource key.
property
Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by
name. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by
name is given a new reference identified by
id.
property
Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by
name. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the value of the bean identified by
name will itself be used as the message resource key.
scope Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by
name. By default, the default rules applied by
PageContext.findAttribute() are applied.

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Page

Table 6. Page tag attributes
Attribute Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified page context property.

Note: This is a required attribute.
property Name of the property from our page context to be retrieved and exposed. Must be one of application, config, request, response, or session.

Note: This is a required attribute.

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Parameter

Table 7. Parameter tag attributes
Attribute Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified request parameter.

Note: This is a required attribute.
multiple If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, causes a call to ServletRequest.getParameterValues() and a definition of the result as a bean of type String[]. Otherwise, ServletRequest.getParameter() will be called, and a definition of the result as a bean of type String will be performed.
name Specifies the name of the request parameter whose value, or values, is to be retrieved.

Note: This is a required attribute.
value The default parameter value to return if no parameter with the specified name was included in this request.

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Resource

Table 8. Resource tag attributes
Attribute Description
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified web application resource.

Note: This is a required attribute.
input If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, the resource will be made available as an InputStream. If this attribute is not specified, the resource will be made available as a String.
name Module relative name of the Web application resource to be loaded and made available.

Note: This is a required attribute.

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Size

Table 9. Size tag attributes
Attribute Description
collection A runtime expression that evaluates to an array, a Collection, or a Map.
id The name of a page scope JSP bean, of type java.lang.Integer, that will be created to contain the size of the underlying collection being counted.

Note: This is a required attribute.
name The name of the JSP bean (optionally constrained to the scope specified by the scope attribute) that contains the collection to be counted (if property is not specified), or whose property getter is called to return the collection to be counted (if property is specified.
property The name of the property, of the bean specified by the name attribute, whose getter method will return the collection to be counted.
scope The bean scope within which to search for the JSP bean specified by the name attribute. If not specified, the available scopes are searched in ascending sequence.

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Struts

Table 10. Struts tag attributes
Attribute Description
formBean Specifies the name of the Struts ActionFormBean definition object to be exposed.
forward Specifies the name of the global Struts ActionForward definition object to be exposed.
id Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified Struts internal configuration object.

Note: This is a required attribute.
mapping Specifies the matching path of the Struts ActionMapping definition object to be exposed.

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Write

Table 11. Write tag attributes
Attribute Description
bundle Specifies the name of the application scope bean under which the MessageResources object that contains messages is stored. The default is Globals.MESSAGES_KEY.
filter If set to
false, suppresses filtering of the rendered property value for characters that are sensitive in HTML. By default, such values are converted to their entity equivalents.
format Specifies the format string to use to convert a bean or property value to the
String object. By default, the format string for
value data type will be searched in message resources according to key.
formatKey Specifies the key to be used to search a format string in application resources.
ignore If set to
true and the bean specified by the
name and
scope properties does not exist, returns without writing anything. If set to
false and the bean does not exist, throws a runtime exception.
locale Specifies the name of the session scope bean under which our currently selected Locale object is stored. The default is Globals.LOCALE_KEY.
name Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to retrieve the value specified by property (if specified). If property is not specified, the value of this bean itself will be rendered.

Note: This is a required attribute.
property
Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by
name. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by
name will itself be rendered. If the specified property returns null, no output will be rendered.
scope Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by
name. By default, the default rules applied by
PageContext.findAttribute() are applied.

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Attribute	Description
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified property. Note: This is a required attribute.
multiple	If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, causes all matching cookies to be accumulated and stored into a bean of type Cookie[]. If not specified, the first value for the specified cookie will be retrieved as a value of type Cookie.
name	Specifies the name of the request cookie whose value, or values, is to be retrieved. Note: This is a required attribute.
value	The default cookie value to return if no cookie with the specified name was included in this request.

Attribute	Description
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified property. Note: This is a required attribute.
name	Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to define a new page scope attribute (if `property` is also specified) or the attribute name of the bean that is duplicated with the new reference created by this tag (if `property` is not also specified). This attribute is required unless you specify a `value` attribute or nested body content.
property	Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by `name`. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by `name` is given a new reference identified by `id`.
scope	Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by `name`. By default, the default rules applied by `PageContext.findAttribute()` are applied.
toScope	Specifies the variable scope into which the newly defined bean will be created. By default, the bean is created in `page` scope.
type	Specifies the fully qualified class name of the value to be exposed as the `id` attribute. The default is `java.lang.String` if you specify a `value` attribute or `java.lang.Object` otherwise.
value	Specifies the `java.lang.String` value to which the exposed bean should be set. This attribute is required unless you specify the `name` attribute or nested body content.

Attribute	Description
anchor	Specifies the optional anchor tag added to the generated hyperlink.
forward	Logical name of a global ActionForward that contains the actual content relative URI of the resource to be included.
href	Absolute URL of the resource to be included.
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable and associated page scope attribute that is available with the value of the specified web application resource. Note: This is a required attribute.
page	Module relative URI of the Web application resource to be included.
transaction	Set to true if you want the current transaction control token included in the generated URL for this include.

Attribute	Description
arg0	Specifies the first parametric replacement value, if any.
arg1	Specifies the second parametric replacement value, if any.
arg2	Specifies the third parametric replacement value, if any.
arg3	Specifies the fourth parametric replacement value, if any.
arg4	Specifies the fifth parametric replacement value, if any.
bundle	Specifies the name of the application scope bean under which the MessageResources object that contains messages is stored. The default is Globals.MESSAGES_KEY.
key	Specifies the message key of the requested message, which must have a corresponding value in the message resources. By default, the key is obtained from the `name` and `property` properties.
locale	Specifies the name of the session scope bean under which our currently selected Locale object is stored. The default is Globals.LOCALE_KEY.
name	Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to retrieve the value specified by `property` (if specified). If you omit `property`, the value of this bean itself will be used as the message resource key.
property	Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by `name`. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by `name` is given a new reference identified by `id`.
property	Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by `name`. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the value of the bean identified by `name` will itself be used as the message resource key.
scope	Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by `name`. By default, the default rules applied by `PageContext.findAttribute()` are applied.

Attribute	Description
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified page context property. Note: This is a required attribute.
property	Name of the property from our page context to be retrieved and exposed. Must be one of application, config, request, response, or session. Note: This is a required attribute.

Attribute	Description
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified web application resource. Note: This is a required attribute.
input	If any arbitrary value for this attribute is specified, the resource will be made available as an InputStream. If this attribute is not specified, the resource will be made available as a String.
name	Module relative name of the Web application resource to be loaded and made available. Note: This is a required attribute.

Attribute	Description
collection	A runtime expression that evaluates to an array, a Collection, or a Map.
id	The name of a page scope JSP bean, of type java.lang.Integer, that will be created to contain the size of the underlying collection being counted. Note: This is a required attribute.
name	The name of the JSP bean (optionally constrained to the scope specified by the scope attribute) that contains the collection to be counted (if property is not specified), or whose property getter is called to return the collection to be counted (if property is specified.
property	The name of the property, of the bean specified by the name attribute, whose getter method will return the collection to be counted.
scope	The bean scope within which to search for the JSP bean specified by the name attribute. If not specified, the available scopes are searched in ascending sequence.

Attribute	Description
formBean	Specifies the name of the Struts ActionFormBean definition object to be exposed.
forward	Specifies the name of the global Struts ActionForward definition object to be exposed.
id	Specifies the name of the scripting variable (and associated page scope attribute) that will be made available with the value of the specified Struts internal configuration object. Note: This is a required attribute.
mapping	Specifies the matching path of the Struts ActionMapping definition object to be exposed.

Attribute	Description
bundle	Specifies the name of the application scope bean under which the MessageResources object that contains messages is stored. The default is Globals.MESSAGES_KEY.
filter	If set to `false`, suppresses filtering of the rendered property value for characters that are sensitive in HTML. By default, such values are converted to their entity equivalents.
format	Specifies the format string to use to convert a bean or property value to the `String` object. By default, the format string for `value` data type will be searched in message resources according to key.
formatKey	Specifies the key to be used to search a format string in application resources.
ignore	If set to `true` and the bean specified by the `name` and `scope` properties does not exist, returns without writing anything. If set to `false` and the bean does not exist, throws a runtime exception.
locale	Specifies the name of the session scope bean under which our currently selected Locale object is stored. The default is Globals.LOCALE_KEY.
name	Specifies the attribute name of the bean whose property is accessed to retrieve the value specified by property (if specified). If property is not specified, the value of this bean itself will be rendered. Note: This is a required attribute.
property	Specifies the name of the property to be accessed on the bean specified by `name`. This value can be a simple, indexed, or nested property reference expression. By default, the bean identified by `name` will itself be rendered. If the specified property returns null, no output will be rendered.
scope	Specifies the variable scope that to be searched to retrieve the bean specified by `name`. By default, the default rules applied by `PageContext.findAttribute()` are applied.