Netty 2 provides an easy event-based API (like Swing) to develop high-performance, maintainable TCP/IP server/client application. Netty provides many essential features such as readiness selection, thread pooling, write buffer DoS prevention, and buffer reuse which are required to build high- performance and capacity network applications.
Version 1.6 fixes a lot of known bugs and reflects most of user feedback.
Here's full feature list:
* Event-based API: Netty handles all low level I/O call
* Separation of message format and workflow
* Protocol implementation in object-oriented way!
* Java NIO: Better scalability
* Built-in thread pool
* Direct byte buffer pooling
* Customizable event dispatcher: Flexible thread scheduling
* 'Write buffer full' prevention:
* Detects too slow clients
* Throttles outgoing messages to avoid resource shortage
* JMX-compliant: Thread pools and common configuration are MBean.
Netty 2 is good for:
* implementing both legacy and non-legacy protocols fast but in high-quality
* implementing pluggable protocols (different message formats with one workflow)
* creating test cases both for message formats and protocol workflow
Please check Netty2 at: http://gleamynode.net/dev/projects/netty2/index.html