JAX-WS server-side SOAPHandler that returns fault gets “Internal Error” on WebSphere v8

Question

I have a server-side JAX-WS SOAPHandler (on WebSphere v8) that in certain cases needs to respond to the client with a SOAP response that it has in a String variable

Answer 1

WebSphere starting with version 8 has a default enabled security feature, just returning the message "Internal Error". This is done to "preventing detailed information regarding why inbound message processing failed from being returned to message senders". Search for "webservices.unify.faults"

To disable this feature, add a -Dwebservices.unify.faults=false to your JVM custom properties.