Limitations of Cloud Runtime

Payara Cloud is a Jakarta EE focused deployment runtime that automatically provisions a Payara Micro instance for your applications. As a cloud deployment runtime, Payara Cloud has the following limitations.

Standalone Service

Payara Cloud focuses exclusively on running your Jakarta EE applications. You’ll need to source and integrate other essential services, such as databases or message queues,from external providers. Payara Cloud allows full outbound connectivity for implementing such services.

Jakarta EE Specific

Payara Cloud is specifically tailored for Jakarta EE applications. If your project relies on other Java frameworks like Spring, Quarkus, or Micronaut, you’ll need to consider alternative deployment solutions.

File System Access

No writing outside /tmp. No reading outside of current working dir (/opt/payara).

Storage

Local storage is limited to 1GB, inclusive of the size of your WAR file.

Network Access

Requests to the same namespace and the external network are allowed. Other internal requests are blocked.

Java Version

Payara Cloud supports Java 11, 17 and 21. Payara Cloud only supports LTS Java versions. Older Java versions are not supported.

Runtime Stability

Applications may be restarted due to node reallocation (immediate SIGTERM for Singletons, 60-second grace period for horizontal scaling, rolling upgrade via SIGTERM). Please refer to the scalability doc for more details about terminations.

Limited Customization

While Payara Cloud simplifies deployment, it offers less granular control compared to self-managing Payara Server instances on virtual machines or containers. You may have fewer options to fine-tune the runtime environment or install specific extensions.

Evolving Features

Payara Cloud is under active development. This means features and supported technologies are subject to change. Make sure to stay updated on Payara Cloud’s roadmap and release notes.

Important Considerations

Before choosing Payara Cloud, carefully weigh these limitations:

  1. Project Nature: Is your project built strictly on Jakarta EE standards?

  2. Customization Needs: How much control do you require over the runtime environment?

  3. Integrations: What external services does your application rely on, and how easily can they be integrated with Payara Cloud?

  4. Budget: Does Payara Cloud’s pricing align with your project’s financial constraints?