Session Tracking in Servlets
HTTP is a stateless protocol which means every request from the client is considered as if it is coming from a new user. Thus the server doesn’t have any record of the previous requests from the same user.
This leads to a problem. If an application requires login of the user, with no tracking of the user in place, for every access to a page the user will be forced to login. This is why some kind of tracking of the same user is required. This is known as session tracking.
The interaction of a user over a period of time is referred to as a session.
=> Session tracking is the process of remembering and documenting user interactions over time. Session management is another name for it.
Why session tracking is needed
- Session tracking is needed to maintain the state of a user.
- To track the interactions of the user based on which some actions can be taken on subsequent requests
- One example can be on online shopping platform where your cart details have to be recorded
Session tracking techniques
- URL Rewriting
- Cookies
- Hidden Form Fields
- HttpSession object