Hi,

I'm new to the idea of handlers - but I've been tasked to write a handler that can create SAML assertions and from the JBossWS spec status page, I see that it is 0% complete.

On a basic level, from what I understand about handlers, I can write a java class that will extend a *Handler. And then set the handler for the service in the xml file. And as long as the handler is on the classpath - it will be used. So can I package the WSS4J libraries, with my handler class so I can use the functionality? Or maybe just drop the wss4j.jar in the Jboss lib?

Also - I'm writing the handler - but I am not writing the service. Does a handler have to be packaged with the service? Or can it be added as a jar or war file?

The User Guide seems to indicate it has to be within the Service WAR file, but I just want to know if its possible to extract the handler to a separate archive. Why you ask? because another company is tasked with writing the service - but I am tasked with writing the handler - and I'm new to it - so I don't even know if that is possible.