Install openliberty-jakartaee8 with Homebrew

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• openliberty-jakartaee8

Project history

Liberty began inside IBM in 2012 as a smaller-footprint, extensible, and easy-to-configure Java runtime for both cloud and data-center deployment. IBM published the Liberty source code on GitHub in 2017 as the Open Liberty project, making the runtime's development model visible while keeping WebSphere Liberty built from the same open source codebase.

The Jakarta EE 8 Open Liberty feature represents the first Jakarta-branded continuation of the Java EE 8 platform after Java EE moved from the Java Community Process to the Eclipse Foundation. Open Liberty documents `jakartaee-8.0` as combining the Liberty features that support the Jakarta EE 8.0 Platform and as functionally equivalent to the older `javaee-8.0` feature.

Adoption history

Open Liberty's adoption story is tied to enterprise Java teams that wanted standards compatibility without the older heavyweight application-server footprint. IBM positions the project as an open source implementation of Jakarta EE and MicroProfile and as the foundation of WebSphere Liberty, giving it a bridge role between community Java standards and IBM-supported production deployments.

The Jakarta EE 8 package matters because Jakarta EE 8 was the compatibility-preserving handoff from Java EE 8 into the Eclipse Foundation namespace. It let applications keep the Java EE 8 programming model while consuming a Jakarta-labeled platform feature from Open Liberty.

How it is used

Developers use this package when they want a local Open Liberty installation with the Jakarta EE 8 platform feature set available. In a Liberty server configuration, the corresponding feature is enabled with `<feature>jakartaee-8.0</feature>` inside `server.xml`, pulling in the Web Profile plus the additional full-platform APIs such as messaging, connectors, mail, batch, and web services.

Open Liberty projects are also commonly driven through Maven, Gradle, Docker images, and Liberty Tools, but the Homebrew formula gives package-manager users a predictable CLI-style install rooted under Homebrew's prefix.

Why package nerds care

For package nerds, openliberty-jakartaee8 is interesting because it is not just one binary called `openliberty`; it is a standards-profile-specific distribution. The formula name encodes a compatibility target, which is useful when comparing how package managers expose Java runtimes by API platform rather than by only upstream project name.

It also marks the transitional Java EE to Jakarta EE era: the feature remains functionally equivalent to Java EE 8 while living in the Jakarta naming line, so dependency scanners and package catalogs need to preserve that nuance.

Timeline

• 2012: Liberty originated as IBM's lightweight, modular Java runtime.
• 2017: IBM opened the Liberty source code on GitHub as Open Liberty.
• 2019: Jakarta EE 8 established the Eclipse Foundation continuation of Java EE 8.
• Open Liberty documentation defines `jakartaee-8.0` as the Jakarta EE 8.0 Platform convenience feature and notes its functional equivalence to `javaee-8.0`.

Related projects

• Related packages and technologies include WebSphere Liberty, the Open Liberty Maven and Gradle plugins, Open Liberty container images, Jakarta EE 8, Java EE 8, and the Open Liberty Web Profile 8 package.

Sources

• https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/openliberty-jakartaee8
• https://github.com/openliberty
• https://jakarta.ee/release/
• https://openliberty.io/blog/2022/09/21/history-maker-projects.html
• https://openliberty.io/docs/latest/reference/feature/jakartaee-8.0.html
• https://openliberty.io/start/