Appendix A. OSGi manifest headers

Manifest header entries are very significant in OSGi as they dictate behavior for several OSGi services and framework features. The following table includes all header entries used in the book. These are the most commonly used header entries in all existing OSGi specifications at the time of writing.

Header name	Description
Bundle-ActivationPolicy	Specifies how a bundle should be activated when started. This can be used for the lazy activation of a bundle, as explained in chapter 10. Example: Bundle-ActivationPolicy: lazy
Bundle-Activator	Specifies the Java class name of the bundle’s activator. Example: Bundle-Activator: com.manning.osgi.BundleActivator
Bundle-Blueprint	Specifies the path of a Blueprint document to be used by the Blueprint container for assembling dependencies in a bundle. This is demonstrated in chapter 13. Example: Bundle-Blueprint: META-INF/blueprint.xml
Bundle-Category	Specifies a comma-separated list of category names or tags. This can be used to describe a bundle. Example: Bundle-Category: manning, auction-framework
Bundle-ClassPath	Specifies paths within a bundle that are to be used as part of the bundle’s class space. Example: Bundle-ClassPath: /libs/app.jar
Bundle-ContactAddress	Specifies the contact address of the vendor. Example: Bundle-ContactAddress: 123 My Road, CA, my@email.com
Bundle-Copyright	Specifies the copyright information of the bundle. Example: Bundle-Copyright: Manning© 2011
Bundle-Description	Specifies a user-friendly short description for the bundle. Example: Bundle-Description: Manning's OSGi in Depth Auction Application
Bundle-DocURL	Specifies a URL pointing to a bundle’s documentation. Example: Bundle-DocURL: http://www.manning.com/alves
Bundle-Icon	Specifies a URL within the bundle’s JAR file for an image file, useful for a pictorial representation of the bundle. Example: Bundle-Icon: /images/bundle.jpg;size=64
Bundle-License	Specifies license information that can be used to validate the bundle’s usage terms. This can be in some internal format or even a URL. Example: Bundle-License: http://www.manning.com/validate-license.php
Bundle-Localization	Specifies the location within the bundle where localization files reside. Example: Bundle-Localization: OSGi-INF/l10n/bundle
Bundle-ManifestVersion	Specifies the OSGi specification to be used. For our purposes, it should be set to 2. Example: Bundle-ManifestVersion: 2
Bundle-Name	Specifies a user-friendly readable name for the bundle. Example: Bundle-Name: auction application
Bundle-NativeCode	Specifies the native code libraries contained within the bundle. Example: Bundle-NativeCode: /lib/io.dll; osname = Linux
Bundle-RequiredExecutionEnvironment	Specifies a comma-separated list of execution environments demanded by the bundle. This header has been deprecated in version 4.3 of the OSGi specification. Example: Bundle-RequiredExecutionEnvironment: CDC-1.0/Foundation-1.0
Bundle-SymbolicName	Specifies the non-localizable identity of the bundle. This header together with the bundle version uniquely identify a bundle. Example: Bundle-SymbolicName: com.manning.osgi.auction
Bundle-UpdateLocation	Specifies a URL where updates for this bundle can be retrieved. An example of how this can be used is in chapter 10. Example: Bundle-UpdateLocation: http://www.manning.com/alves/auction.jar
Bundle-Vendor	Specifies a user-friendly description of the bundle’s vendor. Example: Bundle-Vendor: manning
Bundle-Version	Specifies the version of the bundle. This header together with the symbolic name uniquely identify a bundle. Example: Bundle-Version: 1.0.0.1
DynamicImport-Package	Specifies a comma-separated list of package names that are imported when needed. This is explained in chapter 4. Example: DynamicImport-Package: com.manning.osgi.*
Export-Package	Specifies the exported packages of the bundle. Example: Export-Package: com.manning.osgi
Fragment-Host	Specifies the host bundle of this fragment. Example: Fragment-Host: com.manning.osgi.auction; bundle-version="1.0.0.1"
Import-Package	Specifies the imported packages for this bundle. Example: Import-Package: com.manning.osgi
Provide-Capability	New header in OSGi version 4.3 used to specify a generic capability. Example: Provide-Capability: com.cloudprovider; web-access:Boolean=true; cpu:Long=80
Meta-Persistence	Specifies the path to the persistence unit configuration of a JPA persistence bundle. Chapter 7 explains how JPA is used. Example: Meta-Persistence: META-INF/auction-jpa.xml
Meta-Transaction	Specifies Java classes to be run in a transactional context. This is part of an example explained in chapter 8. Example: Meta-Transaction: com.manning.osgi.MyTransactionalClass
Remote-Service	Specifies the endpoint description of a remote service. This is explained in chapter 7. Example: Remote-Service: META-INF/endpoint.xml
Require-Bundle	Specifies dependency to another bundle. As explained in chapter 4, this should be avoided. Example: Require-Bundle: com.manning.osgi.auction
Require-Capability	New header in OSGi version 4.3 used to specify a dependency on a provided capability. Example: Require-Capability: com.cloudprovider; filter:="(&(web-access)(cpu<90))"