Unit: COIT20259 Enterprise Computing Architecture
Assessment: Assignment 1 Research Report
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Body Word Count: 1,552
Table of Contents
- Introduction. 3
- Layered and Component-Based Model 3
- Differences in Various Aspects. 4
- Key Considerations for Choosing A Framework in Enterprise Application Development. 5
- Conclusion. 6
References. 7
1. Introduction
Enterprise application development is the design and delivery of large organisation software that requires the use of secure and reliable multi-user systems that are connected to databases, business rules and user interfaces. Such applications can be regularly used in finance, customer service, logistics, and human resources, and reporting in multiple departments. Due to such a scale, transaction management, scalability, maintainability, and interdepartmental integration are required in enterprise platforms. Jakarta EE and Spring Framework, as well as .NET, are three other significant alternatives in this sphere. Jakarta EE is a standards-based Java platform, Spring is a modular Java platform modeled after developer productivity, and is the integrated platform closely coupled with Microsoft tools and cloud services. This report examines the three frameworks in terms of their layered and component-based architecture, differences, strengths and the use cases and assesses the key concerns in choosing frameworks to be used in enterprise projects. Next relates to the technical structure, turning to the strategic fit which frequently becomes the greatest challenge in the enterprise adoption (Harris, 2025, Microsoft n.d.).
2. Layered and Component-Based Model
The structure of enterprise applications is frequently based on three connected layers. The presentation layer deals with the interaction of the user and routing of requests. The application of rules, workflows, validation and transaction control is done in the business logic layer. The Data access layer deals with interaction with databases and other storage services. This division of concerns enhances maintenance in the sense that one team alters just one of the layers without causing much disturbance to the rest. It is also scalable, as storage, processing and interface issues are separated, and optimized differently. This hierarchical structure in large organisations introduces complexity and enables reuse and testing in addition to better governing ownership and deployment of code (Microsoft 2025b).
The persistence layer of Jakarta EE is typically based on Jakarta Persistence, which is frequently backed by the JDBC interface where the lower database access is required. Enterprise Beans has always been depended upon by the business logic layer as a source of transactional business components and CDI as the source of dependency injection and lifecycle management. Jakarta Faces is used to serve the presentation layer with server-side web interfaces, and Servlets are used to process requests and JAX-RS is used to provide RESTful services (Fowler, 2002). This model indicates the standards-based designing of Jakarta EE. The platform establishes a standardized base of APIs and contracts, thus development is performed in an enterprise pattern as opposed to a stack that is highly customised. The method is appropriate to organisations that place importance on portability between compliant runtimes and good adherence to formal enterprise conventions (Falkner, 2024, Eclipse Foundation 2022).
Spring Framework shares the three-layer logic and has more modular freedom. Spring Data JPA in the persistence layer makes it easier to access data in the form of repositories, with the JDBC support in Spring making it easier to eliminate repetitive low-level database code. Spring Core inversion of control and dependency injection is offered in the business logic layer, and Spring Boot lessens the effort on configuration and assists the teams to assemble production-ready applications within a short time. At the presentation layer, Spring MVC can serve controller-based web applications, REST controllers can be used as service endpoints and Thymeleaf is frequently utilized on server-rendered pages. This structure provides the freedom of teams to mix modules. Consequently, Spring tends to fit organisations, which like quick delivery, lessening setup, and cloud-enabling application design (Spring n.d.-a).
The same architectural pattern is followed by NET as well and with a more unified platform style. Entity Framework Core provides object-relational mapping and various database engines in the persistence layer, and ADO.NET can be used to provide access to the data at the fine-grained level. Services are frequently implemented in the business logic layer as C# classes, which are handled via an inbuilt dependency injection. Asp.net core MVC has ASP.net core MVC which serves web application using controller and view, Razar pages which uses page centric views, Web API which uses service centric interaction and Blazor which uses interactive web interface with the use of .NET. The combination of stack provides .NET with a powerful full-stack profile, particularly in organisations that already have Microsoft development environments, identity services, and Azure deployment pipelines (Microsoft 2024, Microsoft n.d., Microsoft 2025a, Microsoft 2025b, Microsoft 2025c).
The three platforms are all layered enterprise design, but vary in the degree of standardisation of structure, the amount of freedom they provide developers, and the degree to which they attach application design to a broader ecosystem (Falkner, 2024).
3. Differences in Various Aspects
Jakarta EE and Spring have origins in Java, and as such, they have a history of cross-operating systems by the Java Virtual Machine. Kotlin and Groovy can also be run on the JVM with the help of Spring, but Java is still prevalent in the enterprise applications. Oppositely, C# is most linked with .NET, although F# and Visual Basic are also supported by the platform. This language profile is important since team competency, history of codebase, and recruiting patterns have an oftentimes more significant influence on choice of framework compared to technical considerations (Spring n.d.-a, Microsoft n.d.).
Another important difference is cross platform development. The concept of running code in compatible JVM environments has been enjoying a long history in Java-based enterprise development. Jakarta EE builds upon this concept by providing standards on certified runtimes and Spring also enjoys the same Java portability, in addition to providing the flexibility in deployment models. The new .NET has long since left its Windows-centred perception behind. The existing .NET and ASP.NET Core are open source and cross-platform and support Windows, Linux, and macOS. This has bridged a wider gap between Java stacks and Microsoft stacks (Eclipse Foundation n.d., Spring n.d.-b, Microsoft n.d., Microsoft 2025a).
The three platforms are also different in terms of their specialisation, strength, and the most common usage. Jakarta EE is most robust in standards-based enterprise environments where formality, portability and predictable API contracts are important. Spring excels in elastic application architecture, rapid development teams, micro services and cloud-native deployment.NET excels the most in integrated enterprise delivery where strong tooling, Microsoft high performance and identity services, and Azure alignment are the key priorities. Consequently, Jakarta EE is often suitable to regulated enterprise systems, Spring is often suitable to modern web services and distributed applications, and .NET is often suitable to enterprise web systems, internal business and organisations with a Microsoft-centered digital footprint (Eclipse Foundation n.d., Spring n.d.-b, Microsoft n.d., Microsoft 2025a).
4. Key Considerations for Choosing A Framework in Enterprise Application Development
Java-based frameworks versus .NET is often the first point of decision. At the flexibility-standardisation dimension, Spring offers great freedom to teams in the structure of the project and selection of modules. Jakarta EE provides more formal consistency and is stronger in standards across conforming implementations.NET provides a common platform with vendor focus, usually making it easy to make a choice during the toolchain. The size and complexity of the project are also important. Enterprise architecture review and large systems with strict governance and long maintenance cycles tend to fit well with Jakarta EE or .NET. Teams that need to deliver quickly, have an iterative delivery cycle, and are designed around modular services tend to work well with Spring. It is also a matter of ecosystem fit. Java is a wide and aging ecosystem, and the Microsoft ecosystem is particularly powerful with organisations on Azure, Active Directory, Visual Studio, SQL Server and Microsoft business platforms. In practice, the optimal decision should not be based on abstract superiority, but rather on strategicity based on the skills, the model of governance, the target of deployment and the needs of integration (Eclipse Foundation n.d., Spring n.d.-a, Microsoft n.d.).
A second decision point can be found within the Java space, between Jakarta EE and Spring. Their philosophies are at daggers. Jakarta EE focuses on enterprise standards, specification-led portability, and structured programming model. Spring focuses on developer productivity, modular assembly, and convention-based configuration, as well as on Spring Boot. Vendor and community support has their differences as well. Spring has a vibrant open-source ecosystem and good commercial support, whereas Jakarta EE is supported by governance of specifications and vendor involvement in all compliant run times. There is an additional distinction of development tools. Spring can provide quicker project establishment, broad testing assistance, and skimpy deployment options. Jakarta EE has a more standard stack and a better separation of standard APIs and runtime implementation. Jakarta EE is also appealing to teams interested in a defined enterprise model. In teams where speed and modularity are appreciated, along with extensive cloud patterns, Spring can be the superior choice ( Eclipse Foundation n.d., Spring n.d.-a, Spring n.d.-b).
5. Conclusion
Jakarta EE, Spring Framework and .NET all have established enterprise application development foundations. Both models are based on the fundamental layered system of persistence, business logic and presentation, but both of the models convey that system differently. Jakarta EE is characterised by standardisation, cross- compliant runtime, and formal enterprise structure. The modularity, rapid deployment, and robust support of current service based and cloud based development make spring stand out.The main strengths of NET are integrated tooling, cross-platform maturity, performance and close integration with Microsoft services. In formal, standards-based enterprise environments, Jakarta EE can tend to be the best fit. In the case of modern Java teams that are interested in flexibility and productivity, Spring can be a formidable choice. .NET is also frequently most strategic in organisations with a close connection with Microsoft technologies or Azure (Harris, 2025, Spring n.d.-b, Microsoft 2025a).
References
Harris, J. (2025) The Eclipse Foundation releases the 2025 Jakarta EE Developer Survey report. https://newsroom.eclipse.org/news/announcements/eclipse-foundation-releases-2025-jakarta-ee-developer-survey-report.
Fowler, M. (2002) ‘Patterns of enterprise Application Architecture,’ ResearchGate [Preprint]. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234801207_Patterns_of_Enterprise_Application_Architecture.
Eclipse Foundation 2022, ‘Jakarta Contexts and Dependency Injection 4.0’, Jakarta EE Specifications, viewed 22 March 2026.
Falkner, J. (2024) The road to JBoss EAP 8 | Red Hat Developer. https://developers.redhat.com/articles/2022/06/24/road-jboss-eap-8.
Eclipse Foundation n.d., ‘Jakarta RESTful Web Services’, Jakarta EE Specifications, viewed 22 March 2026.
Microsoft n.d., ‘Introduction to .NET’, Microsoft Learn, viewed 22 March 2026.
Microsoft 2024, ‘Overview of ASP.NET Core MVC’, Microsoft Learn, viewed 22 March 2026.
Microsoft 2025a, ‘Overview of ASP.NET Core’, Microsoft Learn, viewed 22 March 2026.
Microsoft 2025b, ‘Razor Pages architecture and concepts in ASP.NET Core’, Microsoft Learn, viewed 22 March 2026.
Microsoft 2025c, ‘ASP.NET Core Blazor’, Microsoft Learn, viewed 22 March 2026.
Spring n.d.-a, ‘Data Access with JDBC’, Spring Framework Reference Documentation, viewed 22 March 2026.
Spring n.d.-b, ‘Spring Web MVC’, Spring Framework Reference Documentation, viewed 22 March 2026.
Evan John