I haven't used the META-INF/context.xml convention, so I'm not too familiar with it. Conceptually, it's questionable whether a webapp should be able to modify container configuration ... even if it's just configuration for that one app. Practically it may be useful, but it's a bluring of the lines of responsibility between the development and deployment -- two things which really should be separate.
The question has been answered ("yes, a webapp can alter the container"), and yes, the container should be modifiable by the developer, but only under certain circumstances. I would not allow even the META-INF/context.xml convention on a production server, for example. However it's quite handy during development, and extending the convention would be handier still.
I am not aware of a way to prevent Tomcat from respecting the META-INF/context.xml convention, but if there was a way I'd expect it to be mentioned here:
http://jakarta.apache.org/tomcat/tomcat-5.0-doc/printer/deployer-howto.html
And if it existed it could apply to deployment of shared libraries, too.
-- Josh Rehman citysearch.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
