IBM WebSphere Application Server Reviews

IBM WAS is the backbone for our enterprise content management suite which delivers the primary processes for our customers. Without a good application server, it would be hard to provide a secure layer of midddleware upon which the other applications run. IBM WAS improves the stability of the entire solution and provides a high quality platform for running web-based solutions.

The Admin Console is most valuable to us since we have to use it to configure the application server for using it as middleware for our IBM FileNet, IBM Content Navigator and IBM Case Manager software stack. Without the Admin Console it would be very hard to configure JVM settings, JDBC datasources, mail session settings, and security providers.

IBM WAS is a stable product. No issues encountered.

IBM WAS is extremely scalable. It is easy to add additional servers and to divide the load over servers in all kinds of ways. If you want true scalability with persistence of EJB sessions then you have to purchase IBM WAS ND which can be more expensive than most companies are willing to pay for.

I have never had a need to file a PMR (Problem Management Record) for IBM WAS, so I have no experience with technical support for this product.

We used BEA WebLogic before using IBM WAS. The reason we switched was because of the licensing. BEA WebLogic has to be purchased separately, while IBM WAS base is part of the deal when you purchase IBM FileNet P8 Content Engine. Both products work fine by the way.

Initial setup is very simple. Just use the IBM Installation Manager and add the packages. The install wizard takes care of the rest. The only thing that can be difficult is to find the right packages on the IBM website, because of all the changes that IBM does on its website(s).

Room for improvement would only be in the licensing. As with all IBM products the licensing can be complex and expensive. Bargain well and try to get as much discount as possible. Discounts of 85% are possible. Without the discount, I think the product is overrated.

We have evaluated other products, like BEA WebLogic and JBoss. 

Get a good feeling for how many users your system has and work out a system architecture before starting to implement IBM WAS. It is a product that can be implemented in many ways. Making a wrong choice in implementation can cause a lot of headaches later on.

I am a specialist in content management solutions, especially IBM and other open-source products. I am the director of my team, and we specialize in this solution.

We use this in many areas including banking, insurance, and public administration.

The most valuable feature of this solution is Portal Virtualization.

In the next release of this solution, I would like to see support for the Arabic language.

Better and easier integration with other solutions, such as DB2, would be an improvement. 

This solution is very good in terms of stability. It is one of the stablest solutions that exist.

The IBM technical support for this solution is good. I have had experience with them going back to 2003-2004, and they are reactive.

The initial setup of this solution is easy.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.