Servlet - sendRedirect() Method with Example

sendRedirect() is a method used to redirect the client from one resource to another by instructing the browser to make a new request to the specified URL.

• It performs client-side redirection
• Browser sends a new HTTP request
• URL changes in the browser
• Uses HTTP status code 302 (Found)

Method Signature

public void sendRedirect(String location) throws IOException

How sendRedirect() Works

• Client sends a request to a servlet
• Servlet processes the request
• Servlet sends a redirect response (302) to the browser
• Browser makes a new request to the redirected URL
• Target resource sends the final response

Example: Using sendRedirect() in Java Servlet

In this example, we will create a simple Servlet project that uses the sendRedirect() method to redirect the client request to another website.

Step 1: Create a Dynamic Web Project

• Open Eclipse IDE
• Go to File -> New -> Dynamic Web Project
• Enter the project name: SendRedirectExample
• Select:
• Target Runtime: Apache Tomcat
• Dynamic Web Module version: 4.0
• Click Finish

Step 2: Create index.html

• Right-click WebContent
• Select New -> HTML File
• File name: index.html

index.html

Explanation

• The form action is redirect
• The request method is GET
• This URL maps to the servlet with /redirect mapping
• When the button is clicked, the servlet’s doGet() method executes

Step 3: Create Servlet Class

1. Right-click src
2. Select New -> Servlet
3. Package name-> com.example.redirect
4. Servlet name-> ServletRedirect
5. URL Mapping-> /redirect
6. Click Finish

Step 4: Servlet Code (ServletRedirect.java)

Explanation

• @WebServlet("/redirect") maps the servlet URL
• No need for web.xml configuration
• sendRedirect() sends a 302 response to the browser
• Browser makes a new request to the given external URL

Step 7: Run the Project

• Right-click the project
• Select Run As -> Run on Server
• Choose Apache Tomcat
• Click Finish

Step 8: Output

When the project runs, the browser displays.

http://localhost:8080/SendRedirectExample/index.html

When clicking for more information, we specified redirecting the response to that particular URL.

This way, we can use the sendRedirect() method in Servlets.