Not able to setup apache tomcat in Netbeans 9

Question

I am trying to setup apache tomcat in Netbeans IDE 9. I have tried following steps, but could not setup.

1. In the Tools->Servers, I clicked on the Add server button.

Answer 1

You are hitting this problem because of a larger and more general issue: NetBeans 9 does not officially support Java EE or web application development. For example, as well as not being able to add a Tomcat server, you will notice that you can't create a web project through the Project Wizard either.

There is a reason for this: NetBeans has been migrated from Oracle to Apache and the initial focus has been on providing a stable Java SE environment, including support for JDK releases 9 and 10 in NetBeans 9.

However, it is possible to add the plugins needed for web and Java EE development to NetBeans 9 at your own risk:

Step 1 of 2: Make the Java Web and EE plugins available.

• Tools > Plugins > Settings tab > click the Add button.

• On the Update Center Customizer screen:

  • Enter some descriptive value in the Name field (e.g. "NetBeans 8.2 Plugins"),

  • Enter http://updates.netbeans.org/netbeans/updates/8.2/uc/final/distribution/catalog.xml.gz in the URL field:

  • Click the OK button to close the the Update Center Customizer screen.

• This should create a new entry in the Configuration of Update Centers list in the Settings tab.
• Checking that new entry should instantly add plugins to the Available Plugins tab.
• Click the Available Plugins tab, then click the Category column to sort the entries by category.

• Verify that there are now several entries with the category Java Web and EE. If so, you have successfully made the plugins available:

Step 2 of 2: Install the Java Web and EE plugins.

• Check all of the Java Web and EE entries as shown in the screen shot above, and then click the Install button.
• Follow the wizard's instructions. The plugins will be downloaded and installed, and you will be required to restart NetBeans.

• Following the restart, right-click the Servers node. You should now see the Add Server Instance wizard, allowing you to add the Tomcat server: