The Administration Console uses the Java Management Extension (JMX) API as its underlying architecture. The JMX API models system administration functions using Java objects called MBeans. Each MBean contains a set of attributes that define parameters for various management functions and operations that define administrative actions. The Administration Console allows you to access these MBean attributes and operations using a convenient graphical user interface.
You can also perform nearly all of the management tasks that you perform using the Administration Console using the Application Servercommand-line interface. The command-line interface is useful for scripting of Application Server system administration operations or for system administrators who prefer to use a command-line environment.
The Application Server Platform Edition is free for development, production deployment, and redistribution. For more information on redistribution, please visit http://www.sun.com/software/products/appsrvr/appsrvr_oem.xml.