Getting the init parameters in a servlet

The answer is – Yes, you can.

OK, besides the JB Nizet’s comment here are a few suggestions.

1) Have you added your init parameters while the Web Container / Application Server was running?

Quote from “Head First Servlets & JSP: Passing the Sun Certified Web Component Developer Exam“:

The servlet init parameters are read only ONCE – when the Container
initializes the servlet.
…
When the Container makes a servlet, it
reads the DD and creates the name/value pairs for the ServletConfig.
The Container never reads the init parameters again! Once the
parameters are in the ServletConfig, they won’t be read again
until/unless you redeploy the servlet.

2) There are two types of init parameters available. Another quote from “Head First Servlets and JSP” (emphasis mine):

There are context init parameters (defined in <context-param> element) and servlet init parameters (defined in <init-param> element). They are both referred to as init parameters, although defined in different elements.

• Context init parameters are available to any servlet or JSP that are part of the current web app.

• Servlet init parameters are available to only the servlet for which the <init-param> was configured.

• Context init parameters are defined within the <web-app> element.

• Servlet init parameters are defined within the <servlet> element for each specific servlet.

---

Example:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<web-app xmlns="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee"
    xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
    xsi:schemaLocation="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee
                        http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee/web-app_3_0.xsd"
    version="3.0">

    <display-name>Servlet testing app</display-name>

    <!-- This is a context init parameter -->
    <context-param>
        <param-name>email</param-name>
        <param-value>[email protected]</param-value>
    </context-param>

    <servlet>
        <servlet-name>Info Servlet</servlet-name>
        <servlet-class>com.example.InfoServlet</servlet-class>
        <!-- This is a servlet init parameter -->
        <init-param>
            <param-name>name</param-name>
            <param-value>John Doe</param-value>
        </init-param>
    </servlet>
    <servlet-mapping>
        <servlet-name>Info Servlet</servlet-name>
        <url-pattern>/test/ShowInfo.do</url-pattern>
    </servlet-mapping>

</web-app>

• Accessing context init parameter in a servlet:
  getServletContext().getInitParameter(“email”);
• Accessing servlet init parameter in a servlet for which it was
  defined in the deployment
  descriptor:
  getServletConfig().getInitParameter("name");

An alternative way of getting servlet init parameter is using a method defined in the abstract class GenericServlet:
public String getInitParameter(String name);
This method is supplied for convenience. It gets the value of the named parameter from the servlet’s ServletConfig object.

And there is also Enumeration<String> getInitParameterNames() method for both ServletContext and ServletConfig to get all init parameters.