commit 702a724422797b8081a8bed0277b319b13ddc735
Author: Lucio Lelii <lucio.lelii@isti.cnr.it>
Date:   Fri Nov 25 14:42:29 2016 +0000

    branch for release 4.2
    
    git-svn-id: https://svn.d4science-ii.research-infrastructures.eu/gcube/branches/common/common-smartgears/2.1@134815 82a268e6-3cf1-43bd-a215-b396298e98cf

diff --git a/.classpath b/.classpath
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..50217e7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.classpath
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<classpath>
+	<classpathentry kind="src" output="target/classes" path="src/main/java">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="optional" value="true"/>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry excluding="**" kind="src" output="target/classes" path="src/main/resources">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry kind="src" output="target/test-classes" path="src/test/java">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="optional" value="true"/>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry excluding="**" kind="src" output="target/test-classes" path="src/test/resources">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry kind="src" path="target/generated-sources">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="optional" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry kind="con" path="org.eclipse.jdt.launching.JRE_CONTAINER/org.eclipse.jdt.internal.debug.ui.launcher.StandardVMType/JavaSE-1.7">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry kind="con" path="org.eclipse.m2e.MAVEN2_CLASSPATH_CONTAINER">
+		<attributes>
+			<attribute name="maven.pomderived" value="true"/>
+		</attributes>
+	</classpathentry>
+	<classpathentry kind="output" path="target/classes"/>
+</classpath>
diff --git a/.project b/.project
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a4930ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.project
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<projectDescription>
+	<name>common-service</name>
+	<comment></comment>
+	<projects>
+	</projects>
+	<buildSpec>
+		<buildCommand>
+			<name>org.eclipse.jdt.core.javabuilder</name>
+			<arguments>
+			</arguments>
+		</buildCommand>
+		<buildCommand>
+			<name>org.eclipse.m2e.core.maven2Builder</name>
+			<arguments>
+			</arguments>
+		</buildCommand>
+	</buildSpec>
+	<natures>
+		<nature>org.eclipse.jdt.core.javanature</nature>
+		<nature>org.eclipse.m2e.core.maven2Nature</nature>
+	</natures>
+</projectDescription>
diff --git a/distro/LICENSE b/distro/LICENSE
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3695e26
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/LICENSE
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+${gcube.license}
diff --git a/distro/README b/distro/README
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5b353ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/README
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+The gCube System - ${name}
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+${description}
+ 
+ 
+${gcube.description}
+ 
+${gcube.funding}
+ 
+ 
+Version
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+${version} (${buildDate})
+ 
+Please see the file named "changelog.xml" in this directory for the release notes.
+ 
+ 
+Authors
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+* Fabio Simeoni (fabio.simeoni@fao.org), FAO of the UN, Italy
+* Luca Frosini (luca.frosini@isti.cnr.it), CNR, Italy
+* Lucio Lelii (lucio.lelii@isti.cnr.it), CNT, Italy
+ 
+ 
+Maintainers
+-----------
+ 
+* Luca Frosini (luca.frosini@isti.cnr.it), CNR, Italy
+* Lucio Lelii (lucio.lelii@isti.cnr.it), CNT, Italy
+ 
+ 
+Download information
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+Source code is available from SVN: 
+    ${scm.url}
+ 
+Binaries can be downloaded from the gCube website: 
+   ${gcube.website}
+ 
+ 
+Installation
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+Installation documentation is available on-line in the gCube Wiki:
+    ${gcube.wikiRoot}/Smartgears
+ 
+ 
+Documentation 
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+Documentation is available on-line in the gCube Wiki:
+    ${gcube.wikiRoot}/Smartgears
+ 
+ 
+Support 
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+Bugs and support requests can be reported in the gCube issue tracking tool:
+    ${gcube.issueTracking}
+ 
+ 
+Licensing
+--------------------------------------------------
+ 
+This software is licensed under the terms you may find in the file named "LICENSE" in this directory.
+
diff --git a/distro/changelog.xml b/distro/changelog.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dd3b43e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/changelog.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+<ReleaseNotes>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-2.1.0" date="2016-10-24">
+		<Change>proxy configuration added</Change>
+		<Change>solved a bug in events registration for ProfileManager</Change>
+		<Change>added a scheduler for period update of GCoreEnpoints</Change>
+		<Change>Exclude modified to support exclude for sub-group of handlers</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-2.0.0" date="2016-03-10">
+		<Change>integration with Authorization 2.0</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.6" date="2015-12-22">
+		<Change>Added flush of accounting data</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.5" date="2015-12-22">
+		<Change>Changed accounting version</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.4" date="2015-10-06">
+		<Change>Transparent accounting added on service calls</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.3" date="2015-07-27">
+		<Change>Authorization token control added</Change>
+		<Change>Added support to HTTP Basic authorization</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.2" date="2015-04-27">
+		<Change>Fixed available space information on ghn profile</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.2.1" date="2014-02-13">
+		<Change>scopes can be removed from container</Change>
+		<Change>node profile set to static</Change>
+		<Change>internal adjustments for move to Java 7</Change>
+		<Change>wildcard allowed in exclude directives</Change>
+		<Change>domain corrected derived in gHN profile</Change>
+		<Change>cleaner shutdown</Change>
+		<Change>further improvement in shutdown handling</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+	<Changeset component="common-smartgears-1.0.0" date="2013-10-24">
+		<Change>First Release</Change>
+	</Changeset>
+</ReleaseNotes>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/distro/descriptor.xml b/distro/descriptor.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e395580
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/descriptor.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+<assembly
+	xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-assembly-plugin/assembly/1.1.0"
+	xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
+	xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-assembly-plugin/assembly/1.1.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/assembly-1.1.0.xsd">
+	<id>servicearchive</id>
+	<formats>
+		<format>tar.gz</format>
+	</formats>
+	<baseDirectory>/</baseDirectory>
+	<fileSets>
+		<fileSet>
+			<directory>${distroDirectory}</directory>
+			<outputDirectory>/</outputDirectory>
+			<useDefaultExcludes>true</useDefaultExcludes>
+			<includes>
+				<include>README</include>
+				<include>LICENSE</include>
+				<include>changelog.xml</include>
+                <include>profile.xml</include>
+			</includes>
+			<fileMode>755</fileMode>
+			<filtered>true</filtered>
+		</fileSet>
+	</fileSets>
+	<files>
+		<file>
+			<source>target/${build.finalName}.${project.packaging}</source>
+			<outputDirectory>/${artifactId}</outputDirectory>
+		</file>
+
+	</files>
+</assembly>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/distro/profile.xml b/distro/profile.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..91c49e4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/profile.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<Resource xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
+	<ID />
+	<Type>Service</Type>
+	<Profile>
+		<Description>${description}</Description>
+		<Class>Common</Class>
+		<Name>${artifactId}</Name>
+		<Version>1.0.0</Version>
+		<Packages>
+			<Software>
+				<Name>${artifactId}</Name>
+				<Version>${version}</Version>
+				<MavenCoordinates>
+					<groupId>${groupId}</groupId>
+					<artifactId>${artifactId}</artifactId>
+					<version>${version}</version>
+				</MavenCoordinates>
+				<Files>
+					<File>${build.finalName}.jar</File>
+				</Files>
+			</Software>
+		</Packages>
+	</Profile>
+</Resource>
+
diff --git a/distro/smartgears-config.xml b/distro/smartgears-config.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ffa7124
--- /dev/null
+++ b/distro/smartgears-config.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
+<smartgears version="${project.version}" />
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/endpoint.xml b/endpoint.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..283934f
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diff --git a/endpoint.xml.backup b/endpoint.xml.backup
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..573db75
Binary files /dev/null and b/endpoint.xml.backup differ
diff --git a/extra/originals.graffle b/extra/originals.graffle
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e396639
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extra/originals.graffle
@@ -0,0 +1,612 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
+<plist version="1.0">
+<dict>
+	<key>ActiveLayerIndex</key>
+	<integer>0</integer>
+	<key>ApplicationVersion</key>
+	<array>
+		<string>com.omnigroup.OmniGrafflePro</string>
+		<string>138.17.0.133677</string>
+	</array>
+	<key>AutoAdjust</key>
+	<true/>
+	<key>BackgroundGraphic</key>
+	<dict>
+		<key>Bounds</key>
+		<string>{{0, 0}, {559, 783}}</string>
+		<key>Class</key>
+		<string>SolidGraphic</string>
+		<key>ID</key>
+		<integer>2</integer>
+		<key>Style</key>
+		<dict>
+			<key>shadow</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>Draws</key>
+				<string>NO</string>
+			</dict>
+			<key>stroke</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>Draws</key>
+				<string>NO</string>
+			</dict>
+		</dict>
+	</dict>
+	<key>CanvasOrigin</key>
+	<string>{0, 0}</string>
+	<key>ColumnAlign</key>
+	<integer>1</integer>
+	<key>ColumnSpacing</key>
+	<real>36</real>
+	<key>CreationDate</key>
+	<string>2013-08-26 14:09:56 +0000</string>
+	<key>Creator</key>
+	<string>fabio</string>
+	<key>DisplayScale</key>
+	<string>1 0/72 in = 1 0/72 in</string>
+	<key>GraphDocumentVersion</key>
+	<integer>6</integer>
+	<key>GraphicsList</key>
+	<array>
+		<dict>
+			<key>Bounds</key>
+			<string>{{182, 101.9996}, {27.164064, 25.574612}}</string>
+			<key>Class</key>
+			<string>ShapedGraphic</string>
+			<key>ID</key>
+			<integer>8</integer>
+			<key>Shape</key>
+			<string>Circle</string>
+			<key>Style</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>fill</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Color</key>
+					<dict>
+						<key>b</key>
+						<string>0.863685</string>
+						<key>g</key>
+						<string>0.863671</string>
+						<key>r</key>
+						<string>0.863697</string>
+					</dict>
+				</dict>
+				<key>shadow</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Draws</key>
+					<string>NO</string>
+				</dict>
+				<key>stroke</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Color</key>
+					<dict>
+						<key>b</key>
+						<string>0.491337</string>
+						<key>g</key>
+						<string>0.325267</string>
+						<key>r</key>
+						<string>0.192584</string>
+					</dict>
+				</dict>
+			</dict>
+			<key>Text</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>Text</key>
+				<string>{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\cocoartf1187\cocoasubrtf390
+\cocoascreenfonts1{\fonttbl\f0\fnil\fcharset0 HelveticaNeue-Light;}
+{\colortbl;\red255\green255\blue255;\red21\green111\blue181;}
+\pard\tx560\tx1120\tx1680\tx2240\tx2800\tx3360\tx3920\tx4480\tx5040\tx5600\tx6160\tx6720\pardirnatural\qc
+
+\f0\fs42 \cf2 C}</string>
+			</dict>
+		</dict>
+		<dict>
+			<key>Bounds</key>
+			<string>{{132.60156, 101.9996}, {27.164064, 25.574612}}</string>
+			<key>Class</key>
+			<string>ShapedGraphic</string>
+			<key>ID</key>
+			<integer>3</integer>
+			<key>Shape</key>
+			<string>Circle</string>
+			<key>Style</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>fill</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Color</key>
+					<dict>
+						<key>b</key>
+						<string>0.863685</string>
+						<key>g</key>
+						<string>0.863671</string>
+						<key>r</key>
+						<string>0.863697</string>
+					</dict>
+				</dict>
+				<key>shadow</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Draws</key>
+					<string>NO</string>
+				</dict>
+				<key>stroke</key>
+				<dict>
+					<key>Color</key>
+					<dict>
+						<key>b</key>
+						<string>0.491337</string>
+						<key>g</key>
+						<string>0.325267</string>
+						<key>r</key>
+						<string>0.192584</string>
+					</dict>
+				</dict>
+			</dict>
+			<key>Text</key>
+			<dict>
+				<key>Text</key>
+				<string>{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\cocoartf1187\cocoasubrtf390
+\cocoascreenfonts1{\fonttbl\f0\fnil\fcharset0 HelveticaNeue-Light;}
+{\colortbl;\red255\green255\blue255;\red21\green111\blue181;}
+\pard\tx560\tx1120\tx1680\tx2240\tx2800\tx3360\tx3920\tx4480\tx5040\tx5600\tx6160\tx6720\pardirnatural\qc
+
+\f0\fs42 \cf2 P}</string>
+			</dict>
+		</dict>
+	</array>
+	<key>GridInfo</key>
+	<dict/>
+	<key>GuidesLocked</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>GuidesVisible</key>
+	<string>YES</string>
+	<key>HPages</key>
+	<integer>1</integer>
+	<key>ImageCounter</key>
+	<integer>4</integer>
+	<key>KeepToScale</key>
+	<false/>
+	<key>Layers</key>
+	<array>
+		<dict>
+			<key>Lock</key>
+			<string>NO</string>
+			<key>Name</key>
+			<string>Layer 1</string>
+			<key>Print</key>
+			<string>YES</string>
+			<key>View</key>
+			<string>YES</string>
+		</dict>
+	</array>
+	<key>LayoutInfo</key>
+	<dict>
+		<key>Animate</key>
+		<string>NO</string>
+		<key>circoMinDist</key>
+		<real>18</real>
+		<key>circoSeparation</key>
+		<real>0.0</real>
+		<key>layoutEngine</key>
+		<string>dot</string>
+		<key>neatoSeparation</key>
+		<real>0.0</real>
+		<key>twopiSeparation</key>
+		<real>0.0</real>
+	</dict>
+	<key>LinksVisible</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>MagnetsVisible</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>MasterSheets</key>
+	<array/>
+	<key>ModificationDate</key>
+	<string>2013-08-27 13:29:54 +0000</string>
+	<key>Modifier</key>
+	<string>fabio</string>
+	<key>NotesVisible</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>Orientation</key>
+	<integer>2</integer>
+	<key>OriginVisible</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>PageBreaks</key>
+	<string>YES</string>
+	<key>PrintInfo</key>
+	<dict>
+		<key>NSBottomMargin</key>
+		<array>
+			<string>float</string>
+			<string>41</string>
+		</array>
+		<key>NSLeftMargin</key>
+		<array>
+			<string>float</string>
+			<string>18</string>
+		</array>
+		<key>NSPaperSize</key>
+		<array>
+			<string>size</string>
+			<string>{595, 842}</string>
+		</array>
+		<key>NSRightMargin</key>
+		<array>
+			<string>float</string>
+			<string>18</string>
+		</array>
+		<key>NSTopMargin</key>
+		<array>
+			<string>float</string>
+			<string>18</string>
+		</array>
+	</dict>
+	<key>PrintOnePage</key>
+	<false/>
+	<key>QuickLookPreview</key>
+	<data>
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+	</data>
+	<key>ReadOnly</key>
+	<string>NO</string>
+	<key>RowAlign</key>
+	<integer>1</integer>
+	<key>RowSpacing</key>
+	<real>36</real>
+	<key>SheetTitle</key>
+	<string>Canvas 1</string>
+	<key>SmartAlignmentGuidesActive</key>
+	<string>YES</string>
+	<key>SmartDistanceGuidesActive</key>
+	<string>YES</string>
+	<key>UniqueID</key>
+	<integer>1</integer>
+	<key>UseEntirePage</key>
+	<false/>
+	<key>VPages</key>
+	<integer>1</integer>
+	<key>WindowInfo</key>
+	<dict>
+		<key>CurrentSheet</key>
+		<integer>0</integer>
+		<key>ExpandedCanvases</key>
+		<array>
+			<dict>
+				<key>name</key>
+				<string>Canvas 1</string>
+			</dict>
+		</array>
+		<key>Frame</key>
+		<string>{{320, -1}, {693, 774}}</string>
+		<key>ListView</key>
+		<true/>
+		<key>OutlineWidth</key>
+		<integer>142</integer>
+		<key>RightSidebar</key>
+		<false/>
+		<key>ShowRuler</key>
+		<true/>
+		<key>Sidebar</key>
+		<true/>
+		<key>SidebarWidth</key>
+		<integer>120</integer>
+		<key>VisibleRegion</key>
+		<string>{{0, 0}, {558, 619}}</string>
+		<key>Zoom</key>
+		<real>1</real>
+		<key>ZoomValues</key>
+		<array>
+			<array>
+				<string>Canvas 1</string>
+				<real>1</real>
+				<real>1</real>
+			</array>
+		</array>
+	</dict>
+	<key>saveQuickLookFiles</key>
+	<string>YES</string>
+</dict>
+</plist>
diff --git a/pom.xml b/pom.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..75bce0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pom.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,270 @@
+<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
+	xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd">
+	<modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
+	<parent>
+		<artifactId>maven-parent</artifactId>
+		<groupId>org.gcube.tools</groupId>
+		<version>1.0.0</version>
+		<relativePath />
+	</parent>
+
+	<groupId>org.gcube.core</groupId>
+	<artifactId>common-smartgears</artifactId>
+	<version>2.1.0-SNAPSHOT</version>
+	<name>SmartGears</name>
+
+	<properties>
+		<distroDirectory>distro</distroDirectory>
+		<tomcat.version>7.0.42</tomcat.version>
+		<jersey.version>1.17.1</jersey.version>
+		<project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
+	</properties>
+
+	<scm>
+		<connection>scm:svn:http://svn.d4science.research-infrastructures.eu/gcube/trunk/Common/${project.artifactId}</connection>
+		<developerConnection>scm:svn:https://svn.d4science.research-infrastructures.eu/gcube/trunk/Common/${project.artifactId}</developerConnection>
+		<url>http://svn.d4science.research-infrastructures.eu/gcube/trunk/Common/${project.artifactId}</url>
+	</scm>
+
+	<dependencies>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.common</groupId>
+			<artifactId>authorization-client</artifactId>
+			<version>[2.0.0-SNAPSHOT,3.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.common</groupId>
+			<artifactId>common-authorization</artifactId>
+			<version>[2.0.0-SNAPSHOT,3.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.data.publishing</groupId>
+			<artifactId>document-store-lib</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT,2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+		
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.accounting</groupId>
+			<artifactId>accounting-lib</artifactId>
+			<version>[2.0.0-SNAPSHOT,3.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.slf4j</groupId>
+			<artifactId>slf4j-api</artifactId>
+			<version>1.7.5</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.resources</groupId>
+			<artifactId>registry-publisher</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT, 2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.resources</groupId>
+			<artifactId>common-gcore-resources</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT, 2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.core</groupId>
+			<artifactId>common-validator</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT,2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.core</groupId>
+			<artifactId>common-scope</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT, 2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.gcube.core</groupId>
+			<artifactId>common-events</artifactId>
+			<version>[1.0.0-SNAPSHOT,2.0.0-SNAPSHOT)</version>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>javax.servlet</groupId>
+			<artifactId>javax.servlet-api</artifactId>
+			<version>3.0.1</version>
+			<scope>provided</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+
+		<!-- ***************** test ******************* -->
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.jboss.shrinkwrap.resolver</groupId>
+			<artifactId>shrinkwrap-resolver-depchain</artifactId>
+			<version>2.0.0-beta-2</version>
+			<type>pom</type>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>com.sun.jersey</groupId>
+			<artifactId>jersey-client</artifactId>
+			<version>${jersey.version}</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.apache.tomcat.embed</groupId>
+			<artifactId>tomcat-embed-core</artifactId>
+			<version>${tomcat.version}</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.apache.tomcat.embed</groupId>
+			<artifactId>tomcat-embed-logging-log4j</artifactId>
+			<version>${tomcat.version}</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.apache.tomcat.embed</groupId>
+			<artifactId>tomcat-embed-jasper</artifactId>
+			<version>${tomcat.version}</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>junit</groupId>
+			<artifactId>junit</artifactId>
+			<version>4.10</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>ch.qos.logback</groupId>
+			<artifactId>logback-classic</artifactId>
+			<version>1.0.13</version>
+			<scope>runtime</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+		<dependency>
+			<groupId>org.mockito</groupId>
+			<artifactId>mockito-core</artifactId>
+			<version>1.9.0</version>
+			<scope>test</scope>
+		</dependency>
+
+	</dependencies>
+
+	<build>
+
+		<plugins>
+			<plugin>
+				<groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
+				<artifactId>maven-assembly-plugin</artifactId>
+				<version>2.2</version>
+				<configuration>
+					<descriptors>
+						<descriptor>${distroDirectory}/descriptor.xml</descriptor>
+					</descriptors>
+				</configuration>
+				<executions>
+					<execution>
+						<id>servicearchive</id>
+						<phase>install</phase>
+						<goals>
+							<goal>single</goal>
+						</goals>
+					</execution>
+				</executions>
+			</plugin>
+
+			<!-- excludes probe package from jar -->
+			<plugin>
+				<artifactId>maven-jar-plugin</artifactId>
+				<version>2.3.2</version>
+				<executions>
+					<execution>
+						<id>default-jar</id>
+						<phase>package</phase>
+						<goals>
+							<goal>jar</goal>
+						</goals>
+						<configuration>
+							<excludes>
+								<exclude>**/probe/**/*</exclude>
+							</excludes>
+						</configuration>
+					</execution>
+				</executions>
+			</plugin>
+
+			<!-- include probe in attached war -->
+			<plugin>
+				<groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
+				<artifactId>maven-war-plugin</artifactId>
+				<version>2.4</version>
+				<configuration>
+					<primaryArtifact>false</primaryArtifact>
+					<classifier>probe</classifier>
+
+					<packagingIncludes>WEB-INF/classes/org/gcube/smartgears/probe/**/*</packagingIncludes>
+					<failOnMissingWebXml>false</failOnMissingWebXml>
+				</configuration>
+				<executions>
+					<execution>
+						<id>probe-war</id>
+						<phase>package</phase>
+						<goals>
+							<goal>war</goal>
+						</goals>
+					</execution>
+				</executions>
+			</plugin>
+
+
+			<plugin>
+				<groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
+				<artifactId>maven-surefire-plugin</artifactId>
+				<version>2.15</version>
+				<configuration>
+					<!-- tomcat annotation discovery won't work with the default manifest-only 
+						jar -->
+					<useManifestOnlyJar>false</useManifestOnlyJar>
+				</configuration>
+			</plugin>
+			<plugin>
+				<groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
+				<artifactId>maven-resources-plugin</artifactId>
+				<version>2.6</version>
+				<executions>
+					<!-- interpolates and copies configuration.properties -->
+					<execution>
+						<id>copy-configuration</id>
+						<goals>
+							<goal>copy-resources</goal>
+						</goals>
+						<phase>validate</phase>
+						<configuration>
+							<outputDirectory>src/main/resources/META-INF</outputDirectory>
+							<overwrite>true</overwrite>
+							<encoding>UTF-8</encoding>
+							<resources>
+								<resource>
+									<directory>${distroDirectory}</directory>
+									<includes>
+										<include>smartgears-config.xml</include>
+									</includes>
+									<filtering>true</filtering>
+								</resource>
+							</resources>
+						</configuration>
+					</execution>
+				</executions>
+			</plugin>
+
+		</plugins>
+	</build>
+</project>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Bootstrap.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Bootstrap.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1428436
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Bootstrap.java
@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears;
+
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContainerInitializer;
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.managers.ApplicationManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.managers.ContainerManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Bootstraps management of all deployed applications which require it.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class Bootstrap implements ServletContainerInitializer {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(Bootstrap.class);
+
+	private static boolean smartgearsHasStarted = false;
+
+	private static boolean containerHasFailed = false;
+	
+	private static ContainerManager manager;
+
+	private static ContainerContext context;
+
+	public Bootstrap() {
+
+		if (smartgearsHasStarted)
+			return;
+
+		smartgearsHasStarted = true;
+				
+		initialiseContainer();
+		
+		//this can fail the app: managed resources need a working container
+		startContainerIfItHasntAlreadyFailed();
+
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void onStartup(Set<Class<?>> c, ServletContext application) throws ServletException {
+		
+		ApplicationManager appManager = new ApplicationManager();
+		
+		//act only on resources
+		if (isResource(application)) {
+
+			try {
+				
+				log.info("starting management of application @ {}", application.getContextPath());
+
+				ApplicationContext app = appManager.start(context, application);
+								
+				manager.manage(app);
+
+				context.configuration().app(app.configuration());
+							
+			} catch (Throwable t) {
+
+				appManager.stop();
+
+				throw new ServletException("cannot manage application @ " + application.getContextPath()
+						+ " (see cause)", t);
+
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	// helpers
+	private void initialiseContainer() {
+
+		try {
+			
+			log.trace("smartgears is starting");
+				
+			
+			/* Get the ContainerContext. Look at DefaultProvider */
+			context = ProviderFactory.provider().containerContext();
+
+			/* Validate the configuration retrieved by ContainerContext 
+			 * using gcube facilities annotation based 
+			 * ( i.e org.gcube.common.validator.annotations)
+			 */
+			context.configuration().validate();
+						
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			containerHasFailed = true;
+
+			log.error("cannot start smartgears", e);
+
+			//we let the container continue
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void startContainerIfItHasntAlreadyFailed() {
+
+		if (containerHasFailed)
+			throw new IllegalStateException("container is not managed due to previous failure");
+
+
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+
+
+		// we initialise the container in the same classloader as this
+		// lib, lest container bind its resources to the current webapp
+		try {
+
+			// TODO Ask why is needed?
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ContainerManager.class.getClassLoader());
+
+			manager = ContainerManager.instance;
+
+			context = manager.start(context);
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			containerHasFailed = true;
+
+			throw new IllegalStateException("cannot manage container", e);
+
+		}
+
+		finally {//restore the classloader of the current application
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+
+
+	}
+
+	private boolean isResource(ServletContext application) {
+
+		//with care: smartgears may have already failed at this stage but we want to recognise
+		//apps that would have been managed otherwise and give specific errors for those
+		return  (!containerHasFailed && context.configuration().app(application.getContextPath())!=null)
+				||
+				application.getResourceAsStream(Constants.configuration_file_path) != null;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Constants.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Constants.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..684d3de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/Constants.java
@@ -0,0 +1,222 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.RemoteResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle.ProfileManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestValidator;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle.AccountingManager;
+
+/**
+ * Library-wide constants.
+ * 
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class Constants {
+
+	/**
+	 * The environment variable that points to the container configuration directory.
+	 */
+	public static final String ghn_home_env = "GHN_HOME";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The system property that points to the container configuration directory.
+	 */
+	public static final String ghn_home_property = "ghn.home";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The container configuration file path, relative to the container configuration directory.
+	 */
+	public static final String container_configuraton_file_path = "container.xml";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The path of the application profile file, relative to the container configuration directory.
+	 */
+	public static final String container_profile_file_path = "ghn.xml";
+	
+	public static final String container_profile_file_path_copy = "ghn.xml.copy";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The container lifecycle configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String container_handlers_file_path = "/META-INF/container-handlers.xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The library configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String library_configuration_file_path = "/META-INF/smartgears-config.xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the context property that contains the node profile.
+	 */
+	public static final String container_profile_property = "ghn-profile";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The default value of for the container publication frequency.
+	 */
+	public static final long default_container_publication_frequency_in_seconds = 60;
+	
+	
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The application configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String configuration_file_path = "/WEB-INF/gcube-app.xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The application lifecycle configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String handlers_file_path = "/WEB-INF/gcube-handlers.xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The default application lifecycle configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String default_handlers_file_path = "/META-INF/default-handlers.xml";
+
+
+	/**
+	 * The wildcard exclude directive.
+	 */
+	public static final String EXCLUDE_ALL = "*";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The mapping root of all extensions.
+	 */
+	public static final String root_mapping = "/gcube/resource";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The application extensions configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String extensions_file_path = "/WEB-INF/gcube-extensions.xml";
+
+	/**
+	 * The default application extensions configuration resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String default_extensions_file_path = "/META-INF/default-extensions.xml";
+
+	/**
+	 * The application frontpage resource path.
+	 */
+	public static final String frontpage_file_path = "/META-INF/frontpage.html";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The configuration name of {@link ProfileManager}s.
+	 */
+	public static final String profile_management = "profile-management"; 
+	
+	/**
+	 * The configuration name of {@link RequestValidator}s.
+	 */
+	public static final String request_validation = "request-validation";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The configuration name of {@link AccountingManager}s.
+	 */
+	public static final String accounting_management = "accounting-management";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The configuration name of {@link RequestAccounting}s.
+	 */
+	public static final String request_accounting = "request-accounting";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The configuration name of {@link RemoteResource}s.
+	 */
+	public static final String remote_management = "remote-management";
+	
+	
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The path of the application profile file, relative to the service configuration directory.
+	 */
+	public static final String profile_file_path = "endpoint.xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the context property that contains the endpoint profile.
+	 */
+	public static final String profile_property = "endpoint-profile"; 
+	
+
+	/**
+	 * The name of the attribute in the servlet context that contains the context of an application.
+	 */
+	public static final String context_attribute ="gcube-application-context";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the HTTP header that contains the scope of requests
+	 */
+	public static final String scope_header="gcube-scope";
+
+	/**
+	 * The name of the HTTP header that contains the authorization token of requests
+	 */
+	public static final String token_header="gcube-token";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event for token registration for app.
+	 */
+	public static final String token_registered = "token-registered";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event for token removal for app.
+	 */
+	public static final String token_removed = "token-removed";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the HTTP header for standard HTTP basic authorization
+	 */
+	public static final String authorization_header ="Authorization";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the HTTP header that contains the called method of the current request
+	 */
+	public static final String called_method_header="gcube-method";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the Content-Type HTTP header
+	 */
+	public static final String content_type="Content-Type";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the Accept HTTP header
+	 */
+	public static final String accept="Accept";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the Allow HTTP header
+	 */
+	public static final String allow="Allow";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the XML media type.
+	 */
+	public static final String plain_text="text/plain";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the XML media type.
+	 */
+	public static final String application_xml="application/xml";
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the XHTML media type.
+	 */
+	public static final String application_xhtml="application/xhtml+xml";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The name of the Json media type.
+	 */
+	public static final String application_json="application/json";
+
+	public static final int application_republish_frequency_in_minutes = 20;
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/Mode.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/Mode.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c02b97a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/Mode.java
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration;
+
+/**
+ * The management mode the container or its applications.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public enum Mode {
+	online,
+	offline
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b8323c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * The configuration of the application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public interface ApplicationConfiguration {
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the management mode of the application.
+	 * @return the management mode
+	 */
+	Mode mode();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns true if the application is secure (accessible only in https).
+	 * @return secure or not
+	 */
+	boolean secure();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns true if the application is behind a proxy.
+	 * @return secure or not
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration proxied(boolean proxied);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the context path of the application
+	 * @return the context path
+	 */
+	String context();
+	
+	boolean proxied();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the context path of the application
+	 * @param context the context path
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration context(String context);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the management mode of this application.
+	 * @param the management mode
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration mode(Mode mode);
+
+	
+	ApplicationConfiguration secure(boolean value);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the name of the application.
+	 * @return the name
+	 */
+	String name();
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the name of the application.
+	 * @param name the name
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration name(String name);
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the class of the application
+	 * @return the class
+	 */
+	String serviceClass();
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the class of the application.
+	 * @param serviceClass the class
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration serviceClass(String serviceClass);
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the version of the application.
+	 * @return the version
+	 */
+	String version();
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the version of the application.
+	 * @param version the version
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration version(String version);
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the description of the application.
+	 * @return the description
+	 */
+	String description();
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the description of the application.
+	 * @param description the description
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration description(String description);
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the tokens in which the application operates when it first starts.
+	 * @return the tokens
+	 */
+	Set<String> startTokens();
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the tokens in which the application operates when it first starts.
+	 * @param scopes the scopes
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration startTokens(Set<String> tokens);
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the persistence manager of the application.
+	 * @return the manager
+	 */
+	Persistence persistence();
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns a set of request paths that should not be subjected to request management.
+	 * @return the set of exclude paths.
+	 */
+	Set<Exclude> excludes();
+	
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the persistence manager of the application.
+	 * @param manager the manager
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration persistence(Persistence manager);
+
+
+	/**
+	 * Validates this configuration.
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if the configuration is not valid
+	 */
+	void validate();
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Merges this configuration with another configuration
+	 * @param config the other configuration
+	 */
+	void merge(ApplicationConfiguration config);
+
+	ApplicationConfiguration excludes(Exclude ... excludes);
+
+
+
+
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfigurationBinder.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfigurationBinder.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9a81583
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationConfigurationBinder.java
@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.lang.reflect.Modifier;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.ServiceLoader;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBContext;
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBException;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler;
+
+/**
+ * Binds {@link ApplicationConfiguration}s to and from XML serialisations.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ApplicationConfigurationBinder {
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the application configuration from its XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public ApplicationConfiguration bind(InputStream stream) {
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(DefaultApplicationConfiguration.class);
+
+			return (ApplicationConfiguration) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid service configuration", e);
+
+		}
+		finally {
+			closeSafely(stream);
+		}
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers of the application from their XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public ApplicationHandlers bindHandlers(InputStream stream) {
+
+		//collects  handler classes
+		Set<Class<?>> classes = scanForHandlers();
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			return (ApplicationHandlers) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw unchecked(e);
+
+		}
+		finally {
+			closeSafely(stream);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the extensions of the application from their XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the extensions
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public ApplicationExtensions bindExtensions(InputStream stream) {
+
+		//collects  handler classes
+		Set<Class<?>> classes = scanForExtensions();
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			return (ApplicationExtensions) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw unchecked(e);
+
+		}
+		finally {
+			closeSafely(stream);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	
+	
+	private Set<Class<?>> scanForHandlers() throws RuntimeException {
+
+		@SuppressWarnings("all")
+		ServiceLoader<ApplicationHandler> handlerLoader = (ServiceLoader) ServiceLoader.load(ApplicationHandler.class);
+
+		Set<Class<?>> scanned = new HashSet<Class<?>>();
+
+		for (ApplicationHandler<?> handler : handlerLoader) {
+			Class<?> handlerClass = handler.getClass();
+			if (handlerClass.isInterface() || handlerClass.getModifiers() == Modifier.ABSTRACT)
+				continue;
+			else
+				scanned.add(handlerClass);
+		}
+
+		//add top-level configuration
+		scanned.add(ApplicationHandlers.class);
+
+		return scanned;
+	}
+	
+	private Set<Class<?>> scanForExtensions() throws RuntimeException {
+
+		@SuppressWarnings("all")
+		ServiceLoader<ApplicationExtension> handlerLoader = (ServiceLoader) ServiceLoader.load(ApplicationExtension.class);
+
+		Set<Class<?>> scanned = new HashSet<Class<?>>();
+
+		for (ApplicationExtension handler : handlerLoader) {
+			Class<?> handlerClass = handler.getClass();
+			if (handlerClass.isInterface() || handlerClass.getModifiers() == Modifier.ABSTRACT)
+				continue;
+			else
+				scanned.add(handlerClass);
+		}
+
+		//add top-level configuration
+		scanned.add(ApplicationExtensions.class);
+
+		return scanned;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationExtensions.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationExtensions.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..53496de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationExtensions.java
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.List;
+import javax.xml.bind.Unmarshaller;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAnyElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidationError;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.Validator;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidatorFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.IsValid;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.w3c.dom.Element;
+
+/**
+ * The {@link ApplicationExtension}s that manage the application.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="extensions")
+public class ApplicationExtensions {
+	
+	@XmlAnyElement(lax=true) @IsValid
+	List<ApplicationExtension> extensions = new ArrayList<ApplicationExtension>();
+	
+	public ApplicationExtensions() {}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the extensions for the application.
+	 * @return the extensions
+	 */
+	public List<ApplicationExtension> extensions() {
+		return extensions;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the extensions for the application.
+	 * @param extensions the extensions
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ApplicationExtensions set(ApplicationExtension ... extensions) {
+		this.extensions = Arrays.asList(extensions);
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return extensions.toString();
+	}
+	
+	public void validate() {
+		
+		List<String> msgs = new ArrayList<String>();
+		
+		Validator validator = ValidatorFactory.validator();
+		
+		for (ValidationError error : validator.validate(this))
+			msgs.add(error.toString());
+		
+		if (!msgs.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid configuration: "+msgs);
+		
+	}
+	
+	//since we use @AnyElement, after deserialisation, we check there are no DOM elements
+    void afterUnmarshal(Unmarshaller u, Object parent) {
+    	for (Object o : extensions)
+    		if (o instanceof Element)
+    			throw new RuntimeException("invalid extensions detected: "+Element.class.cast(o).getLocalName());
+    }
+	
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationHandlers.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationHandlers.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3834e38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/ApplicationHandlers.java
@@ -0,0 +1,141 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.List;
+import javax.xml.bind.Unmarshaller;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAnyElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidationError;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.Validator;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidatorFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.IsValid;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.w3c.dom.Element;
+
+/**
+ * The {@link ApplicationHandler}s that manage the application.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="handlers")
+public class ApplicationHandlers {
+
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="lifecycle") @IsValid
+	private LifecycleHandlers lifecycleHandlers = new LifecycleHandlers();
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="request") @IsValid
+	private RequestHandlers requestHandlers = new RequestHandlers();
+	
+	public ApplicationHandlers() {}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the {@link ApplicationLifecycleHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @return the lifecycle handlers
+	 */
+	public List<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> lifecycleHandlers() {
+		return lifecycleHandlers.values;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the {@link ApplicationLifecycleHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @param handlers the lifecycle handlers
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ApplicationHandlers set(ApplicationLifecycleHandler ... handlers) {
+		this.lifecycleHandlers = new LifecycleHandlers(Arrays.asList(handlers));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the {@link RequestHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @return the lifetime handlers
+	 */
+	public List<RequestHandler> requestHandlers() {
+		return requestHandlers.values;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the {@link RequestHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @param handlers the request handlers
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ApplicationHandlers set(RequestHandler ... handlers) {
+		this.requestHandlers = new RequestHandlers(Arrays.asList(handlers));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public void validate() {
+		
+		List<String> msgs = new ArrayList<String>();
+		
+		Validator validator = ValidatorFactory.validator();
+		
+		for (ValidationError error : validator.validate(this))
+			msgs.add(error.toString());
+		
+		if (!msgs.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid configuration: "+msgs);
+		
+	}
+    
+   //////////////// HELPER BINDING CLASSES
+   
+   //used internally to introduce level of nesting in JAXB whilst preserving arbitrary extension
+ 	
+    private static class LifecycleHandlers {
+ 	
+ 		@SuppressWarnings("all")
+ 		LifecycleHandlers() { //needed for deserialisation
+ 		}
+ 		
+ 		LifecycleHandlers(List<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> handlers) {
+ 			this.values=handlers;
+ 		}
+ 		
+ 		@XmlAnyElement(lax=true)
+ 		List<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> values = new ArrayList<ApplicationLifecycleHandler>();
+ 		
+
+ 		//since we use @AnyElement, after deserialisation, we check there are no DOM elements
+ 		@SuppressWarnings("unused")
+ 	    void afterUnmarshal(Unmarshaller u, Object parent) {
+ 	    	for (Object o : values)
+ 	    		if (o instanceof Element)
+ 	    			throw new RuntimeException("invalid handler detected in configuration: "+Element.class.cast(o).getLocalName());
+ 	    }
+ 		
+ 	}
+ 	
+ 	//used internally to introduce level of nesting in JAXB whilst preserving arbitrary extension
+ 	private static class RequestHandlers {
+ 	
+ 		@SuppressWarnings("all")
+ 		RequestHandlers() { //needed for deserialisation
+ 		}
+ 		
+ 		RequestHandlers(List<RequestHandler> handlers) {
+ 			this.values=handlers;
+ 		}
+ 		
+ 		@XmlAnyElement(lax=true)
+ 		List<RequestHandler> values = new ArrayList<RequestHandler>();
+ 		
+ 		//since we use @AnyElement, after deserialisation, we check there are no DOM elements
+ 		@SuppressWarnings("unused")
+ 	    void afterUnmarshal(Unmarshaller u, Object parent) {
+ 	    	for (Object o : values)
+ 	    		if (o instanceof Element)
+ 	    			throw new RuntimeException("invalid handler detected in configuration: "+Element.class.cast(o).getLocalName());
+ 	    }
+ 	}
+ 	
+ 	
+   
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/BridgedApplicationConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/BridgedApplicationConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f1182b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/BridgedApplicationConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode.offline;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @author Luca Frosini (ISTI - CNR) http://www.lucafrosini.com/
+ */
+public class BridgedApplicationConfiguration implements ApplicationConfiguration {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ApplicationConfiguration.class);
+	
+	private final ContainerConfiguration container;
+	private final ApplicationConfiguration application;
+	
+	
+	public BridgedApplicationConfiguration(ContainerConfiguration container, ApplicationConfiguration config) {
+		
+		this.container=container;
+		this.application=config;
+		
+		if (application.persistence()==null) {
+			
+			String location = container.persistence().location()+"/"+application.name();
+			File dir = new File(location);
+			if (!dir.exists())
+				dir.mkdirs();
+			
+			application.persistence(new DefaultPersistence(location));
+			
+			log.trace("setting persistence location for {} @ {}",application.name(), dir.getAbsolutePath());
+		}
+		
+		if (container.proxyAddress()==null)
+			application.proxied(false);
+		
+	}
+	
+	public ApplicationConfiguration inner() {
+		return application;
+	}
+
+	public Mode mode() {
+		return container.mode()==offline?offline:application.mode();
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String context() {
+		return application.context();
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration context(String context) {
+		return application.context(context);
+	}
+
+	public String name() {
+		return application.name();
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration name(String name) {
+		return application.name(name);
+	}
+
+	public String serviceClass() {
+		return application.serviceClass();
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration serviceClass(String group) {
+		return application.serviceClass(group);
+	}
+
+	public String version() {
+		return application.version();
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration version(String version) {
+		return application.version(version);
+	}
+
+	public String description() {
+		return application.description();
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration description(String description) {
+		return application.description(description);
+	}
+
+	public Persistence persistence() {
+		return application.persistence();
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration persistence(Persistence manager) {
+		return application.persistence(manager);
+	}
+
+	public ApplicationConfiguration mode(Mode mode) {
+		return application.mode(mode);
+	}
+
+	public void validate() {
+		
+		application.validate();
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public Set<Exclude> excludes() {
+		return application.excludes();
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void merge(ApplicationConfiguration config) {
+		application.merge(config);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean secure() {
+		return application.secure();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration secure(boolean value) {
+		return application.secure(value);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Set<String> startTokens() {
+		return application.startTokens();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration startTokens(Set<String> tokens) {
+		return application.startTokens(tokens);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration proxied(boolean proxied) {
+		return application.proxied(proxied);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean proxied() {
+		return application.proxied();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration excludes(Exclude ... excludes) {
+		return application.excludes(excludes);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/DefaultApplicationConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/DefaultApplicationConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3c2e8fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/DefaultApplicationConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,312 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElementRef;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlTransient;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidationError;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.Validator;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidatorFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.IsValid;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotNull;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * The configuration of a managed app.
+ * <p>
+ * Includes the list of its client services.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @author Luca Frosini (ISTI - CNR) http://www.lucafrosini.com/
+ *
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="application")
+public class DefaultApplicationConfiguration implements ApplicationConfiguration {
+
+
+	@XmlAttribute
+	private Mode mode = Mode.online;
+
+	@XmlAttribute(name="isSecure")
+	private boolean secure = false;
+	
+	@XmlAttribute(name="context")
+	String context;
+	
+	@XmlAttribute(name="proxied")
+	private boolean proxied = true;
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="name" , required=true)
+	@NotNull
+	String name;
+
+	@XmlElement(name="group", required=true)
+	@NotNull
+	String group;
+
+	@XmlElement(name="version", required=true)
+	@NotNull
+	String version;
+
+	@XmlTransient
+	Set<String> tokens = new HashSet<String>();
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="description")
+	String description="";
+	
+	@XmlElementRef
+	Set<Exclude> excludes= new LinkedHashSet<Exclude>();
+			
+	@XmlElementRef(type=DefaultPersistence.class)
+	@NotNull @IsValid
+	private Persistence persistenceManager;
+	
+	@Override
+	public Set<Exclude> excludes() {
+		return excludes;
+	}
+	
+	public DefaultApplicationConfiguration() {}
+	
+	@Override
+	public Mode mode() {
+		return mode;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean secure() {
+		return secure;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String name() {
+		return name;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String context() {
+		return context;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration context(String context) {
+		this.context=context;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration excludes(Exclude ... excludes) {
+		this.excludes=new HashSet<Exclude>(Arrays.asList(excludes));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration name(String name) {
+		this.name=name;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String serviceClass() {
+		return group;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean proxied() {
+		return proxied;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration proxied(boolean proxied) {
+		this.proxied = proxied;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration serviceClass(String group) {
+		this.group=group;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String version() {
+		return version;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration version(String version) {
+		this.version=version;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Set<String> startTokens() {
+		return tokens;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration startTokens(Set<String> tokens) {
+		this.tokens.addAll(tokens);
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String description() {
+		return description;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration description(String description) {
+		this.description=description;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	
+	
+	@Override
+	public Persistence persistence() {
+		return persistenceManager;
+	}
+		
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration persistence(Persistence manager) {
+		this.persistenceManager=manager;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration secure(boolean value) {
+		this.secure=value;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration mode(Mode mode) {
+		this.mode=mode;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void validate() {
+		
+		List<String> msgs = new ArrayList<String>();
+		
+		Validator validator = ValidatorFactory.validator();
+		
+		for (ValidationError error : validator.validate(this))
+			msgs.add(error.toString());
+		
+		if (!msgs.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid configuration: "+msgs);
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Override
+	public void merge(ApplicationConfiguration config) {
+		
+		mode(config.mode());
+		
+		if (config.persistence()!=null)
+			persistence(config.persistence());
+		
+		//scopes.addAll(config.startScopes());
+				
+	}
+
+	
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return "DefaultApplicationConfiguration [mode=" + mode + ", secure="
+				+ secure + ", context=" + context + ", proxied=" + proxied
+				+ ", name=" + name + ", group=" + group + ", version="
+				+ version + ", tokens=" + tokens + ", description="
+				+ description + ", excludes=" + excludes
+				+ ", persistenceManager=" + persistenceManager + "]";
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((context == null) ? 0 : context.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((description == null) ? 0 : description.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((excludes == null) ? 0 : excludes.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((group == null) ? 0 : group.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((mode == null) ? 0 : mode.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((name == null) ? 0 : name.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((persistenceManager == null) ? 0 : persistenceManager.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((tokens == null) ? 0 : tokens.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((version == null) ? 0 : version.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		DefaultApplicationConfiguration other = (DefaultApplicationConfiguration) obj;
+		if (context == null) {
+			if (other.context != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!context.equals(other.context))
+			return false;
+		if (description == null) {
+			if (other.description != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!description.equals(other.description))
+			return false;
+		if (excludes == null) {
+			if (other.excludes != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!excludes.equals(other.excludes))
+			return false;
+		if (group == null) {
+			if (other.group != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!group.equals(other.group))
+			return false;
+		if (mode != other.mode)
+			return false;
+		if (name == null) {
+			if (other.name != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!name.equals(other.name))
+			return false;
+		if (persistenceManager == null) {
+			if (other.persistenceManager != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!persistenceManager.equals(other.persistenceManager))
+			return false;
+		if (tokens == null) {
+			if (other.tokens != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!tokens.equals(other.tokens))
+			return false;
+		if (version == null) {
+			if (other.version != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!version.equals(other.version))
+			return false;
+		if (secure!=other.secure)
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/Exclude.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/Exclude.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..579758b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/application/Exclude.java
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAccessType;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAccessorType;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlValue;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name="exclude")
+@XmlAccessorType(XmlAccessType.FIELD)
+public class Exclude {
+
+	@XmlAttribute(name="handlers")
+	private List<String> handlers = new ArrayList<String>();
+	
+	@XmlValue
+	private String path;
+
+	public List<String> getHandlers() {
+		return handlers;
+	}
+
+	public String getPath() {
+		return path;
+	}
+
+	protected Exclude() {}
+
+	public Exclude(String path) {
+		super();
+		this.path = path;
+	}
+	
+	public Exclude(List<String> handlers, String path) {
+		super();
+		this.handlers = handlers;
+		this.path = path;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((path == null) ? 0 : path.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		Exclude other = (Exclude) obj;
+		if (handlers == null) {
+			if (other.handlers != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!handlers.equals(other.handlers))
+			return false;
+		if (path == null) {
+			if (other.path != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!path.equals(other.path))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return "Exclude [handlers=" + handlers + ", path=" + path + "]";
+	}
+		
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..55102bf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,501 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.default_container_publication_frequency_in_seconds;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.notNull;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElementRef;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlTransient;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidationError;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.Validator;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidatorFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.IsValid;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotEmpty;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotNull;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * The configuration of the container.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @author Luca Frosini (ISTI - CNR) http://www.lucafrosini.com/
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="container")
+public class ContainerConfiguration {
+
+	
+	@XmlAttribute
+	private Mode mode = Mode.online;
+		
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String hostname;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	Integer port;
+	
+	@XmlElementRef
+	@IsValid
+	ProxyAddress proxyAddress;
+	
+	@XmlElement(name ="authentication-endpoint")
+	String authenticationEnpoint = null;
+	
+	@XmlElement(name ="secure-port")
+	Integer securePort;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String infrastructure;
+
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull @IsValid
+	Site site;
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="token") 
+	@NotNull @NotEmpty
+	List<String> tokens = new ArrayList<String>();
+
+	@XmlTransient
+	Set<String> allowedContext = new HashSet<String>();
+	
+	@XmlElementRef(type=DefaultApplicationConfiguration.class)
+	List<ApplicationConfiguration> apps = new ArrayList<ApplicationConfiguration>();
+		
+	@XmlElement(name="property") 
+	@IsValid
+	List<Property> properties = new ArrayList<Property>();
+	
+	@XmlElement(name="publication-frequency")
+	long publicationFrequency = default_container_publication_frequency_in_seconds;
+	
+	@XmlElementRef(type=DefaultPersistence.class)
+	@IsValid
+	private Persistence persistenceManager;
+		
+	/**
+	 * Returns the management mode for the container.
+	 * @return the management mode
+	 */
+	public Mode mode() {
+		return mode;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the management mode for the container.
+	 * @param mode the management mode
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration mode(Mode mode) {
+		this.mode=mode;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the application configurations included in this configuration.  
+	 * @return the application configurations
+	 */
+	public List<ApplicationConfiguration> apps() {
+		return apps;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration of an application with a given context path.
+	 * @param context the context path
+	 * @return the application configuration
+	 */
+	public ApplicationConfiguration app(String context) {
+				
+		for (ApplicationConfiguration app : apps)
+			if (context.equals(app.context()))
+				return app;
+		
+		return null;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Adds the configuration of an application to this configuration.
+	 * @param app the application configuration
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public synchronized ContainerConfiguration app(ApplicationConfiguration app) {
+		int indexToRemove =-1;
+		int index =0;
+		for (ApplicationConfiguration application : apps){
+			if (app.context().equals(application.context()))
+				indexToRemove = index;
+			index++;
+		}
+		if(indexToRemove!=-1)
+			apps.remove(indexToRemove);
+		apps.add(app);
+		return this;
+	}
+		
+	/**
+	 * Returns the geographical site of the container.
+	 * @return the site
+	 */
+	public Site site() {
+		return site;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the geographical site of the container.
+	 * @param site the site
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration site(Site site) {
+		this.site=site;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the infrastructure in which the container is running.
+	 * @return the infrastructure
+	 */
+	public String infrastructure() {
+		return infrastructure;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the infrastructure in which the container is running.
+	 * @param infrastructure the infrastructure
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration infrastructure(String infrastructure) {
+		this.infrastructure=infrastructure;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the host name of the container.
+	 * @return the host name;
+	 */
+	public String hostname() {
+		return hostname;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the host name of the container.
+	 * @param name the host name
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration hostname(String name) {
+		this.hostname=name;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the port at which the container is listening for requests.
+	 * @return the port
+	 */
+	public int port() {
+		return port;
+	}
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the port at which the container is listening for requests.
+	 * @return the port
+	 */
+	public Integer securePort() {
+		return securePort;
+	}
+		
+	
+	public String authenticationEnpoint() {
+		return authenticationEnpoint;
+	}
+	
+	public ContainerConfiguration authenticationEnpoint(String endpoint) {
+		this.authenticationEnpoint = endpoint;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the port at which the container is listening for requests.
+	 * @param port the port
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration port(int port) {
+		this.port=port;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public ContainerConfiguration securePort(int port) {
+		this.securePort=port;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the VOs in which the container initially operates.
+	 * @return the VOs
+	 */
+	public List<String> startTokens() {
+		return tokens;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the VOs in which the container initially operates.
+	 * @param vos the VOs
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration startTokens(List<String> tokens) {
+		
+		notNull("start Tokens",tokens);
+		
+		this.tokens = tokens;
+		
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public ProxyAddress proxyAddress() {
+		return proxyAddress;
+	}
+
+	public ContainerConfiguration setProxyaddress(ProxyAddress proxyaddress) {
+		this.proxyAddress = proxyaddress;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the persistence manager of the container.
+	 * @return the manager
+	 */
+	public Persistence persistence() {
+		return persistenceManager;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the persistence manager of the container.
+	 * @param manager the manager
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration persistence(Persistence manager) {
+		this.persistenceManager=manager;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration properties of the container.
+	 * @return the properties
+	 */
+	public Map<String,String> properties() {
+		Map<String,String> map = new HashMap<String, String>();
+		for (Property prop : properties)
+			map.put(prop.name, prop.value);
+		return map;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds a configuration property to the container.
+	 * @param the name of the property
+	 * @param the value of the property
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration property(String name, String value) {
+		properties.add(new Property(name, value));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the publication frequency for the container's profile.
+	 * @return the frquency;
+	 */
+	public long publicationFrequency() {
+		return publicationFrequency;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the publication frequency for the container's profile.
+	 * @param frequency the frequency
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration publicationFrequency(long frequency) {
+		this.publicationFrequency=frequency;
+		return this;
+	}
+		
+	
+	public Set<String> allowedContexts() {
+		return allowedContext;
+	}
+
+	public void allowedContexts(Set<String> allowedContexts) {
+		this.allowedContext = allowedContexts;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Validates this configuration
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if the configuration is invalid
+	 */
+	public void validate() {
+
+		List<String> msgs = new ArrayList<String>();
+
+		Validator validator = ValidatorFactory.validator();
+		
+		for (ValidationError error : validator.validate(this))
+			msgs.add(error.toString());
+
+		if (!msgs.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid configuration: "+msgs);
+
+	}
+
+	
+	
+	static class Property {
+		
+		@XmlAttribute @NotNull
+		String name;
+		
+		@XmlAttribute @NotNull
+		String value;
+		
+		Property() {}
+		
+		Property(String key, String value) {
+			this.name=key;
+			this.value=value;
+		}
+
+		@Override
+		public int hashCode() {
+			final int prime = 31;
+			int result = 1;
+			result = prime * result + ((name == null) ? 0 : name.hashCode());
+			result = prime * result + ((value == null) ? 0 : value.hashCode());
+			return result;
+		}
+
+		@Override
+		public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+			if (this == obj)
+				return true;
+			if (obj == null)
+				return false;
+			if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+				return false;
+			Property other = (Property) obj;
+			if (name == null) {
+				if (other.name != null)
+					return false;
+			} else if (!name.equals(other.name))
+				return false;
+			if (value == null) {
+				if (other.value != null)
+					return false;
+			} else if (!value.equals(other.value))
+				return false;
+			return true;
+		}
+		
+		
+		
+	}
+
+
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((apps == null) ? 0 : apps.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((hostname == null) ? 0 : hostname.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((infrastructure == null) ? 0 : infrastructure.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((mode == null) ? 0 : mode.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((persistenceManager == null) ? 0 : persistenceManager.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((port == null) ? 0 : port.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((properties == null) ? 0 : properties.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + (int) (publicationFrequency ^ (publicationFrequency >>> 32));
+		result = prime * result + ((site == null) ? 0 : site.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((tokens == null) ? 0 : tokens.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		ContainerConfiguration other = (ContainerConfiguration) obj;
+		if (apps == null) {
+			if (other.apps != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!apps.equals(other.apps))
+			return false;
+		if (hostname == null) {
+			if (other.hostname != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!hostname.equals(other.hostname))
+			return false;
+		if (infrastructure == null) {
+			if (other.infrastructure != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!infrastructure.equals(other.infrastructure))
+			return false;
+		if (mode != other.mode)
+			return false;
+		if (persistenceManager == null) {
+			if (other.persistenceManager != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!persistenceManager.equals(other.persistenceManager))
+			return false;
+		if (port == null) {
+			if (other.port != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!port.equals(other.port))
+			return false;
+		if (securePort == null) {
+			if (other.securePort != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!securePort.equals(other.securePort))
+			return false;
+		if (properties == null) {
+			if (other.properties != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!properties.equals(other.properties))
+			return false;
+		if (publicationFrequency != other.publicationFrequency)
+			return false;
+		if (site == null) {
+			if (other.site != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!site.equals(other.site))
+			return false;
+		if (tokens == null) {
+			if (other.tokens != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!tokens.equals(other.tokens))
+			return false;
+		
+		return true;
+	}
+
+
+
+	
+
+		
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfigurationBinder.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfigurationBinder.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7d112a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerConfigurationBinder.java
@@ -0,0 +1,101 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.lang.reflect.Modifier;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.ServiceLoader;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBContext;
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBException;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+
+/**
+ * Binds {@link ContainerConfiguration}s to and from XML serialisations.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ContainerConfigurationBinder {
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a {@link ContainerConfiguration} from its XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration bind(InputStream stream) {
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(ContainerConfiguration.class);
+
+			ContainerConfiguration config = (ContainerConfiguration) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+			
+			return config;
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid container configuration", e);
+
+		}
+		finally {
+			
+			Utils.closeSafely(stream);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers of the container from their XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public ContainerHandlers bindHandlers(InputStream stream) {
+
+		//collects  handler classes
+		Set<Class<?>> classes = scanForConfigurationElements();
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			return (ContainerHandlers) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw unchecked(e);
+
+		}
+	}
+	
+	
+	
+	private Set<Class<?>> scanForConfigurationElements() throws RuntimeException {
+
+		@SuppressWarnings("all")
+		ServiceLoader<ContainerHandler> handlerLoader = (ServiceLoader) ServiceLoader.load(ContainerHandler.class);
+
+		Set<Class<?>> scanned = new HashSet<Class<?>>();
+
+		for (ContainerHandler handler : handlerLoader) {
+			Class<?> handlerClass = handler.getClass();
+			if (handlerClass.isInterface() || handlerClass.getModifiers() == Modifier.ABSTRACT)
+				continue;
+			else
+				scanned.add(handlerClass);
+		}
+
+		//add top-level configuration
+		scanned.add(ContainerHandlers.class);
+
+		return scanned;
+	}
+		
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerHandlers.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerHandlers.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..77a30fd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ContainerHandlers.java
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAnyElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler;
+
+/**
+ * The {@link ContainerHandler}s that manage the application.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="handlers")
+public class ContainerHandlers {
+	
+	@XmlAnyElement(lax=true)
+	List<ContainerHandler> handlers = new ArrayList<ContainerHandler>();
+	
+	public ContainerHandlers() {}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the {@link ContainerHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @return the lifecycle handlers
+	 */
+	public List<ContainerHandler> get() {
+		return handlers;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets the {@link ContainerHandler}s for the service.
+	 * @param handlers the lifecycle handlers
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerHandlers set(ContainerHandler ... handlers) {
+		this.handlers = Arrays.asList(handlers);
+		return this;
+	}
+   
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ProxyAddress.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ProxyAddress.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8cfde55
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/ProxyAddress.java
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotNull;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name="proxy")
+public class ProxyAddress {
+	
+	@XmlAttribute
+	boolean secure = false;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String hostname;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	int port;
+
+	public String hostname() {
+		return hostname;
+	}
+
+	public ProxyAddress hostname(String hostname) {
+		this.hostname = hostname;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	public int port() {
+		return port;
+	}
+
+	public ProxyAddress port(int port) {
+		this.port = port;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	public boolean secure() {
+		return secure;
+	}
+
+	public ProxyAddress secure(boolean secure) {
+		this.secure = secure;
+		return this;
+	}
+		
+	
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/Site.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/Site.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cc41f4f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/container/Site.java
@@ -0,0 +1,152 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotNull;
+
+/**
+ * The geographical site of the container.
+ *  
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name="site")
+public class Site {
+
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String country;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String location;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String latitude;
+	
+	@XmlElement
+	@NotNull
+	String longitude;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the country.
+	 * @return the country
+	 */
+	public String country() {
+		return country;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the country.
+	 * @param the country
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public Site country(String country) {
+		this.country=country;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the latitude.
+	 * @return the latitude
+	 */
+	public String latitude() {
+		return latitude;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the latitude.
+	 * @param the latitude
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public Site latitude(String latitude) {
+		this.latitude=latitude;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the longitude.
+	 * @return the longitude
+	 */
+	public String longitude() {
+		return longitude;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the longitude.
+	 * @param the longitude
+	 * @return this configuration
+	 */
+	public Site longitude(String longitude) {
+		this.longitude=longitude;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the location.
+	 * @return the location
+	 */
+	public String location() {
+		return location;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets the location.
+	 * @param the location
+	 * @return this location
+	 */
+	public Site location(String location) {
+		this.location=location;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((country == null) ? 0 : country.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((latitude == null) ? 0 : latitude.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((location == null) ? 0 : location.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((longitude == null) ? 0 : longitude.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		Site other = (Site) obj;
+		if (country == null) {
+			if (other.country != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!country.equals(other.country))
+			return false;
+		if (latitude == null) {
+			if (other.latitude != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!latitude.equals(other.latitude))
+			return false;
+		if (location == null) {
+			if (other.location != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!location.equals(other.location))
+			return false;
+		if (longitude == null) {
+			if (other.longitude != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!longitude.equals(other.longitude))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+		
+	
+	
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1541837
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidationError;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.Validator;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.ValidatorFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotEmpty;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name="smartgears")
+public class SmartGearsConfiguration {
+
+	@XmlAttribute @NotEmpty
+	private String version;
+	
+	public SmartGearsConfiguration(){
+	}
+	
+	public String version() {
+		return version;
+	}
+	
+	public SmartGearsConfiguration version(String version) {
+		this.version=version;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+
+	/**
+	 * Validates this configuration
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if the configuration is invalid
+	 */
+	public void validate() {
+
+		List<String> msgs = new ArrayList<String>();
+
+		Validator validator = ValidatorFactory.validator();
+
+		for (ValidationError error : validator.validate(this))
+			msgs.add(error.toString());
+
+		if (!msgs.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid configuration: "+msgs);
+
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((version == null) ? 0 : version.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		SmartGearsConfiguration other = (SmartGearsConfiguration) obj;
+		if (version == null) {
+			if (other.version != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!version.equals(other.version))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+	
+	
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfigurationBinder.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfigurationBinder.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..11a9b42
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/configuration/library/SmartGearsConfigurationBinder.java
@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library;
+
+import java.io.InputStream;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBContext;
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBException;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+
+/**
+ * Binds {@link ContainerConfiguration}s to and from XML serialisations.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class SmartGearsConfigurationBinder {
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a {@link ContainerConfiguration} from its XML serialisation.
+	 * 
+	 * @param stream the serialisation
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the serialisation is invalid
+	 */
+	public SmartGearsConfiguration bind(InputStream stream) {
+
+		try {
+
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(SmartGearsConfiguration.class);
+
+			SmartGearsConfiguration config = (SmartGearsConfiguration) ctx.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(stream);
+			
+			return config;
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid library configuration", e);
+
+		}
+		finally {
+			
+			Utils.closeSafely(stream);
+		}
+	}
+		
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Properties.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Properties.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d682f55
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Properties.java
@@ -0,0 +1,171 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.Iterator;
+import java.util.Map;
+
+/**
+ * A collection of uniquely named {@link Property}s.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class Properties implements Iterable<Property> {
+
+	private final Map<String, Property> properties = new HashMap<String, Property>();
+	private Properties parent;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance that delegates to another for unknown properties.
+	 * @param parent the parent instance
+	 */
+	public Properties(Properties parent) {
+		this.parent=parent;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance.
+	 */
+	public Properties() {}
+	
+	@Override
+	public Iterator<Property> iterator() {
+		return properties.values().iterator();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds one or more properties to this collection.
+	 * 
+	 * @param properties the properties
+	 */
+	public synchronized void add(Property ... properties) {
+		
+		notNull("properties",properties);
+		
+		for (Property property : properties)
+			this.properties.put(property.name(),property);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if this collection contains a given property.
+	 * 
+	 * @param name the name of the property
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if this collection contains a property with the given name
+	 */
+	public synchronized boolean contains(String name) {
+		
+		notNull("property name",name);
+		
+		return this.properties.containsKey(name) || 
+				parent==null?
+						false: 
+						this.parent.contains(name);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Removes a given property.
+	 * 
+	 * @param name the name of the property
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if a property with the given name does not exist in this collection
+	 */
+	public void delete(String name) {
+		
+		notNull("property name",name);
+		
+		if (this.properties.remove(name) == null)
+			if (parent==null)
+				throw new IllegalStateException("unknown property " + name);
+			else 
+				parent.delete(name);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a given property in this collection.
+	 * 
+	 * @param name the name of the property
+	 * @return the property
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if a property with a given name does not exist in this collection
+	 */
+	public synchronized Property lookup(String name) {
+
+		notNull("property name",name);
+		
+		Property property = this.properties.get(name);
+
+		if (property == null)
+			if (parent==null)
+				throw new IllegalStateException("unknown property " + name);
+			else
+				property = parent.lookup(name);
+
+		return property;
+
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if this collection has no properties.
+	 * 
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if this collection has no properties
+	 */
+	public synchronized boolean isEmpty() {
+		return properties.isEmpty() || parent==null? true: parent.isEmpty();
+	}
+
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		final int maxLen = 100;
+		return "board=" + (properties != null ? toString(properties.entrySet(), maxLen) : null);
+	}
+
+	private String toString(Collection<?> collection, int maxLen) {
+		StringBuilder builder = new StringBuilder();
+		builder.append("[");
+		int i = 0;
+		for (Iterator<?> iterator = collection.iterator(); iterator.hasNext() && i < maxLen; i++) {
+			if (i > 0)
+				builder.append(", ");
+			builder.append(iterator.next());
+		}
+		builder.append("]");
+		return builder.toString();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((parent == null) ? 0 : parent.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((properties == null) ? 0 : properties.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		Properties other = (Properties) obj;
+		if (parent == null) {
+			if (other.parent != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!parent.equals(other.parent))
+			return false;
+		if (properties == null) {
+			if (other.properties != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!properties.equals(other.properties))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Property.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Property.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..be92170
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/Property.java
@@ -0,0 +1,155 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+
+/**
+ * A named property with a value and a description.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class Property {
+
+	private final String name;
+	private final String description;
+	private final Object value;
+	private boolean display =true;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given name and value.
+	 * @param name the name
+	 * @param value the value
+	 */
+	public Property(String name, Object value) {
+		this(name,value,null);
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given name, value, and description.
+	 * @param name the name
+	 * @param value the value
+	 * @param description the description
+	 */
+	public Property(String name, Object value, String description) {
+		
+		notNull("property name",name);
+		notNull("property value",value);
+		
+		this.name=name;
+		this.description=description;
+		this.value=value;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the name of this property.
+	 * @return the name
+	 */
+	public String name() {
+		return name;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Sets whether the property is intended for display
+	 * @param display <code>true</code> if the property is intended for display
+	 */
+	public void display(boolean display) {
+		this.display = display;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if the property is intended for display
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if the property is intended for display
+	 */
+	public boolean isDisplay() {
+		return display;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the value of this property.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the value
+	 */
+	public Object value() {
+		return value;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the value of this property under a given type.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the value
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if the value cannot be returned under the given type.
+	 */
+	public <S> S value(Class<S> type) {
+		
+		if (is(type))
+			return type.cast(value());
+		
+		throw new IllegalStateException("property value "+value()+" of type "+value().getClass()+" cannot be typed as "+type.getCanonicalName());
+		
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if the value of this property has a given type.
+	 * @param type the type
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if the value of this property has a given type
+	 */
+	public boolean is(Class<?> type) {
+		return type.isInstance(value());
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the description of this property.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the description
+	 */
+	public String description() {
+		return description;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((description == null) ? 0 : description.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((name == null) ? 0 : name.hashCode());
+		result = prime * result + ((value == null) ? 0 : value.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		Property other = (Property) obj;
+		if (description == null) {
+			if (other.description != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!description.equals(other.description))
+			return false;
+		if (name == null) {
+			if (other.name != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!name.equals(other.name))
+			return false;
+		if (value == null) {
+			if (other.value != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!value.equals(other.value))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return name+"="+value;
+	}
+	
+	
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/ApplicationContext.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/ApplicationContext.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..033cb34
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/ApplicationContext.java
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context.application;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Properties;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * The management context of an application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public interface ApplicationContext {
+
+
+	String id();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the name of the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the name
+	 */
+	String name();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration of the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 */
+	ApplicationConfiguration configuration();
+	
+	
+	<T> T profile(Class<T> type);
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the lifecycle of the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the lifecycle
+	 */
+	ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the event hub of the application
+	 * 
+	 * @return the hub
+	 */
+	Hub events();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the persistence manager of the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the manager
+	 */
+	Persistence persistence();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the servlet context of the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the context
+	 */
+	ServletContext application();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the management context of the container.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the context
+	 */
+	ContainerContext container();
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the properties of the application
+	 * 
+	 * @return the properties
+	 */
+	Properties properties();
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/DefaultApplicationContext.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/DefaultApplicationContext.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..96f2b3a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/application/DefaultApplicationContext.java
@@ -0,0 +1,113 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context.application;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_property;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Properties;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * Default {@link ApplicationContext} implementation.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class DefaultApplicationContext implements ApplicationContext {
+
+	private final ContainerContext container; 
+	private final ServletContext sctx; 
+	private final ApplicationConfiguration configuration;
+	private final ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle;
+	private final Properties properties;
+	private final Hub hub;
+	private final String id;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Crates an intance with mandatory parameters
+	 * @param container the container context
+	 * @param sctx the servlet context
+	 * @param configuration the configuration
+	 * @param hub the event hub
+	 * @param lifecycle the lifecycle
+	 * @param properties the properties
+	 */
+	public DefaultApplicationContext(String id,ContainerContext container,ServletContext sctx,ApplicationConfiguration configuration, Hub hub, ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle, Properties properties) {
+		this.id = id;
+		this.container=container;
+		this.sctx = sctx;
+		this.configuration=configuration;
+		this.hub=hub;
+		this.lifecycle = lifecycle;
+		this.properties=properties;		
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance by copying the configuration of another.
+	 * @param context the other instance
+	 */
+	public DefaultApplicationContext(ApplicationContext context) {
+		this(context.id(), context.container(),context.application(),context.configuration(),context.events(), context.lifecycle(), new Properties(context.properties()));
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ServletContext application() {
+		return sctx;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ContainerContext container() {
+		return container;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public <T> T profile(Class<T> type) {
+
+		if (type==GCoreEndpoint.class)
+			return (T) properties().lookup(profile_property).value(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+
+		throw new IllegalArgumentException("unsupported profile type: "+type);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String name() { //little shortcut for ease of logging
+		return configuration.name();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationConfiguration configuration() {
+		return configuration;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle() {
+		return lifecycle;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Hub events() {
+		return hub;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Persistence persistence() {
+		return configuration.persistence();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Properties properties() {
+		return properties;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String id() {
+		return id;
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/ContainerContext.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/ContainerContext.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3c7ae53
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/ContainerContext.java
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context.container;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Properties;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * The management context of the container.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public interface ContainerContext {
+
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration of the container.
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 */
+	ContainerConfiguration configuration();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the resource profile of a given type of the container.
+	 * @return the profile
+	 */
+	<T> T profile(Class<T> type);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the lifecycle of the container
+	 * @return the lifecycle
+	 */
+	ContainerLifecycle lifecycle();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the event hub of the container
+	 * @return the hub
+	 */
+	Hub events();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the persistence manager of the container.
+	 * @return the manager
+	 */
+	Persistence persistence();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the properties of the container.
+	 * @return the properties
+	 */
+	Properties properties();
+	
+	String id();
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/DefaultContainerContext.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/DefaultContainerContext.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0a599f7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/context/container/DefaultContainerContext.java
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.context.container;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Properties;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.Persistence;
+
+/**
+ * Default {@link ContainerContext} implementation.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class DefaultContainerContext implements ContainerContext {
+
+	private final ContainerConfiguration configuration;
+	private final ContainerLifecycle lifecycle;
+	private final Properties properties;
+	private final Hub hub;
+	private final String id;
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with mandatory parameters.
+	 * @param configuration the configuration
+	 * @param hub the event hub
+	 * @param lifecycle the lifecycle
+	 * @param properties the properties
+	 */
+	public DefaultContainerContext(String id,ContainerConfiguration configuration, Hub hub, ContainerLifecycle lifecycle, 
+			Properties properties) {
+		this.id = id;		
+		this.configuration=configuration;
+		this.hub=hub;
+		this.lifecycle = lifecycle;
+		this.properties=properties;
+	}
+
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public <T> T profile(Class<T> type) {
+
+		if (type==HostingNode.class)
+			return (T) properties().lookup(container_profile_property).value(HostingNode.class);
+
+		throw new IllegalArgumentException("unsupported profile type: "+type);
+	};
+
+	@Override
+	public ContainerConfiguration configuration() {
+		return configuration;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ContainerLifecycle lifecycle() {
+		return lifecycle;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Hub events() {
+		return hub;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Persistence persistence() {
+		return configuration.persistence();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Properties properties() {
+		return properties;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String id() {
+		return id;
+	}
+	
+	
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiMethodSignature.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiMethodSignature.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2763618
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiMethodSignature.java
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import static java.util.Arrays.*;
+import static org.gcube.common.events.impl.Utils.*;
+
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method;
+
+public class  ApiMethodSignature {
+	
+	Method method;
+	Set<String> requestTypes = new HashSet<String>();
+	Set<String> responseTypes = new HashSet<String>();
+	
+	public ApiMethodSignature(Method method) {
+		notNull("method",method);
+		this.method=method;
+	}
+	
+	public ApiMethodSignature accepts(String ... types) {
+		
+		notNull("request types",types);
+		this.requestTypes.addAll(asList(types));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public ApiMethodSignature produces(String ... types) {
+
+		notNull("response types",types);
+		this.responseTypes.addAll(asList(types));
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6fab2bd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,150 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+
+/**
+ * A resource-specifc API handled by an {@link HttpController}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public abstract class ApiResource extends HttpExtension {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a {@link ApiSignature} that declares the method and media types handled by an {@link ApiResource} for a given mapping.
+	 * @param mapping the mapping
+	 * @return the signature
+	 */
+	public static ApiSignature handles(String mapping) {
+		return new ApiSignature(mapping);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns an {@link ApiMethodSignature} that declares the media types handled by an {@link ApiResource} for a given method.
+	 * @param method the method
+	 * @return the signature
+	 */
+	public static ApiMethodSignature method(Method method) {
+		return new ApiMethodSignature(method);
+	}
+	
+	private final ApiSignature signature;
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given signature.
+	 * @param signature the signature
+	 */
+	public ApiResource(ApiSignature signature) {
+
+		super("extension-resource", signature.mapping());
+
+		this.signature = signature;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public Set<Exclude> excludes() {
+		return Collections.singleton(new Exclude(Constants.root_mapping+mapping()));
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if this resource supports a given method.
+	 * @param method the method
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if this resource supports the given method
+	 */
+	public boolean supports(Method method) {
+
+		return signature.methods().contains(method);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if this resource accepts a given media type for a given method.
+	 * @param method the method
+	 * @param type the media type
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if this resource accepts the given media type for the given method
+	 */
+	public boolean accepts(Method method, String type) {
+
+		Set<String> requestTypes = signature.requestTypes().get(method);
+		
+		//if signature does not specify, we assume resource can work with anything or uses a default and is in charge
+		return requestTypes.isEmpty() || requestTypes.contains(type);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns <code>true</code> if this resource produces a given media type for a given method.
+	 * @param method the method
+	 * @param type the media type
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if this resource produces the given media type for the given method
+	 */
+	public boolean produces(Method method, String type) {
+
+		if (type.contains("*"))
+			return true;
+		
+		Set<String> contentTypes = signature.responseTypes().get(method);
+		return contentTypes.contains(type);
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Return the signature of this resource.
+	 * @return the signature
+	 */
+	public ApiSignature signature() {
+		return signature;
+	}
+	
+	
+	//adapt to http servlet API delegating to standard implementation that throws a 405, resources ovverride in line with their signature
+	
+	@Override
+	public void doHead(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		super.doHead(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		super.doGet(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doPost(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		// TODO Auto-generated method stub
+		super.doPost(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doPut(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		// TODO Auto-generated method stub
+		super.doPut(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doDelete(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		// TODO Auto-generated method stub
+		super.doDelete(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doOptions(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		// TODO Auto-generated method stub
+		super.doOptions(req, resp);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doTrace(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		// TODO Auto-generated method stub
+		super.doTrace(req, resp);
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiSignature.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiSignature.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7388e21
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApiSignature.java
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import static org.gcube.common.events.impl.Utils.*;
+
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method;
+
+public class ApiSignature {
+	
+	
+	private final String mapping;
+	private Set<Method> methods = new HashSet<Method>();
+	private Map<Method,Set<String>> requestTypes = new HashMap<Method, Set<String>>();
+	private Map<Method,Set<String>> responseTypes = new HashMap<Method, Set<String>>();
+
+	
+	public ApiSignature(String mapping) {
+		this.mapping=mapping;
+	}
+	
+	public ApiSignature with(ApiMethodSignature signature) {
+		
+		notNull("method signature",signature);
+		
+		this.methods.add(signature.method);
+		this.requestTypes.put(signature.method,signature.requestTypes);
+		this.responseTypes.put(signature.method,signature.responseTypes);
+
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public String mapping() {
+		return mapping;
+	}
+	
+	public Set<Method> methods() {
+		return methods;
+	}
+	
+	public Map<Method,Set<String>> requestTypes() {
+		return requestTypes;
+	}
+	
+	public Map<Method,Set<String>> responseTypes() {
+		return responseTypes;
+	}
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApplicationExtension.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApplicationExtension.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c4216d6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/ApplicationExtension.java
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.Servlet;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * A servlet that allows remote management of the application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public interface ApplicationExtension extends Servlet {
+
+	/**
+	 * Initialises the extensions with the context of the application.
+	 * @param context the application context
+	 * @throws Exception if the extension cannot be initialised
+	 */
+	void init(ApplicationContext context) throws Exception;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the name of this extension.
+	 * @return the name
+	 */
+	String name();
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the mapping of this extension. 
+	 * @return the mapping
+	 */
+	String mapping();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the set of request paths that should be excluded from request management. 
+	 * @return the set of request paths that should be excluded from request management
+	 */
+	Set<Exclude> excludes();
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpController.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpController.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8a2d7a7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpController.java
@@ -0,0 +1,245 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.ServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.ServletResponse;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link HttpExtension} that dispatches to one or more {@link ApiResource}s, handling the generic, HTTP-aspects
+ * aspects of their client interactions
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class HttpController extends HttpExtension {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	private final Map<String, ApiResource> resources = new HashMap<String, ApiResource>();
+	
+	
+	HttpController() {
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given name and a given mapping.
+	 * 
+	 * @param name the name
+	 * @param mapping the mapping
+	 */
+	public HttpController(String name, String mapping) {
+		super(name, mapping);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds one ore more {@link ApiResource}s to this controller.
+	 * 
+	 * @param resources the resources
+	 */
+	public void addResources(ApiResource... resources) {
+
+		notNull("API resources", resources);
+
+		for (ApiResource resource : resources)
+			this.resources.put(resource.mapping(), resource);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void init(ApplicationContext context) throws Exception {
+		super.init(context);
+		for (ApiResource resource : resources.values())
+			resource.init(context);
+
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public Set<Exclude> excludes() {
+
+		Set<Exclude> resourceExcludes = new LinkedHashSet<Exclude>();
+		
+		for (ApiResource resource : resources.values())
+			resourceExcludes.addAll(resource.excludes());
+		
+		return resourceExcludes;
+	}		
+	
+	// final because we dispatch to http servlet method inside, resources can use init(Context)
+	@Override
+	public final void service(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+
+		HttpServletRequest request = HttpServletRequest.class.cast(req);
+		HttpServletResponse response = HttpServletResponse.class.cast(resp);
+
+		ApiResource resource = resourceFor(request.getPathInfo());
+
+		checkMethod(resource, request, response);
+		
+		checkContentTyperHeader(resource, request, response);
+		checkAcceptHeader(resource, request, response);
+
+		setContentTypeHeader(resource, request, response);
+		
+		dispatch(resource, request, response);
+		
+
+	}
+
+	// helpers
+
+	private void setContentTypeHeader(ApiResource resource, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+
+		Method method = valueOf(request.getMethod());
+		
+		Set<String> responseTypes = resource.signature().responseTypes().get(method);
+		
+		if (responseTypes.isEmpty())
+			//overridden by resources that e.g. create something and return more specific codes
+			response.setStatus(HttpServletResponse.SC_NO_CONTENT);
+		else 
+			if (responseTypes.size() == 1 && !response.containsHeader(content_type))
+				response.addHeader(content_type, responseTypes.iterator().next());
+		
+		
+	}
+
+	
+	private ApiResource resourceFor(String path) {
+
+		if (path==null) {
+			path = "/";
+		}
+		else
+		// some tolerance for trailing slashes
+		if (path.length()>1 && path.endsWith("/"))
+			path = path.substring(0, path.length() - 1);
+
+		ApiResource resource = resources.get(path);
+
+		if (resource == null)
+			resource_notfound_error.fire();
+
+		return resource;
+	}
+	
+	
+
+	private void checkMethod(ApiResource resource, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+
+		Method method = valueOf(request.getMethod());
+
+		if (!resource.supports(method)) {
+			response.addHeader(allow, toSingleString(resource.signature().methods()));
+			method_unsupported_error.fire("this resource does not support method  " + method);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private void dispatch(ApiResource resource, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
+			throws ServletException, IOException {
+
+		Method method = valueOf(request.getMethod());
+
+		// dispatches
+		switch (method) {
+
+		case HEAD:
+			resource.doHead(request, response);
+			break;
+		case GET:
+			resource.doGet(request, response);
+			break;
+		case POST:
+			resource.doPost(request, response);
+			break;
+		case PUT:
+			resource.doPut(request, response);
+			break;
+		case DELETE:
+			resource.doDelete(request, response);
+			break;
+		case OPTIONS:
+			resource.doOptions(request, response);
+			break;
+		case TRACE:
+			resource.doTrace(request, response);
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void checkContentTyperHeader(ApiResource resource, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+
+		Method method = valueOf(request.getMethod());
+
+		// if request specifies a media-type, we check it against signature
+		// if it doesn't we let it pass and let the resource apply default or complain.
+		String requestTypes = request.getHeader(content_type);
+		if (requestTypes != null) {
+			String type = null;
+			for (String value : valuesOf(requestTypes))
+				if (resource.accepts(method, value)) {
+					type = value;
+					break;
+				}
+			if (type == null)
+				incoming_contenttype_unsupported_error.fire("this resource does not accept " + requestTypes);
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void checkAcceptHeader(ApiResource resource, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+
+		Method method = valueOf(request.getMethod());
+
+		// check match on outgoing media type, if any
+		String responseType = request.getHeader(accept);
+		if (responseType != null) {
+			String type = null;
+			for (String value : valuesOf(responseType))
+				if (resource.produces(method, value)) {
+					type = value;
+					break;
+				}
+			if (type == null)
+				outgoing_contenttype_unsupported_error.fire("this resource cannot produce " + responseType);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private String toSingleString(Collection<? extends Object> values) {
+		StringBuilder builder = new StringBuilder();
+
+		for (Object value : values)
+			builder.append(value).append(",");
+
+		String concat = builder.toString();
+		return concat.substring(0, concat.length() - 1);
+
+	}
+
+	private String[] valuesOf(String header) {
+		return header.split(",");
+	}
+
+	private Method valueOf(String method) {
+
+		try {
+			return Method.valueOf(method);
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			throw method_unsupported_error.toException("unsupported method " + method);
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpExtension.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpExtension.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c97a9e7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/HttpExtension.java
@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import static org.gcube.common.events.impl.Utils.*;
+
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotEmpty;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApplicationExtension} that implements the {@link HttpServlet} interface
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public abstract class HttpExtension extends HttpServlet implements ApplicationExtension {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	/**
+	 * Enumeration of HTTP methods.
+	 *
+	 */
+	public static enum Method {
+		GET, PUT, POST, HEAD, DELETE, OPTIONS, TRACE
+	}
+
+	@XmlAttribute @NotEmpty
+	private String name;
+
+	@XmlAttribute @NotEmpty
+	private String mapping;
+
+	private ApplicationContext context;
+
+	protected HttpExtension() {}
+	
+	public HttpExtension(String name, String mapping) {
+	
+		valid("extension name",name);
+		valid("extension mapping",name);
+		
+		name(name);
+		mapping(mapping);
+	}
+
+	//extensions use init(context) instead
+	public final void init() throws javax.servlet.ServletException {
+	};
+
+	@Override
+	public void init(ApplicationContext context) throws Exception {
+		this.context=context;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public Set<Exclude> excludes() {
+		return new HashSet<Exclude>(); //all managed by default
+	}
+	
+	protected ApplicationContext context() {
+		return context;
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String name() {
+		return name;
+	}
+
+	public void name(String name) {
+		this.name = name;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String mapping() {
+		return mapping;
+	}
+
+	public void mapping(String mapping) {
+		this.mapping = mapping;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/RequestExceptionBarrier.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/RequestExceptionBarrier.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b419b7b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/RequestExceptionBarrier.java
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.Filter;
+import javax.servlet.FilterChain;
+import javax.servlet.FilterConfig;
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.ServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.ServletResponse;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestException;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Filter} that maps {@link RequestException}s onto error responses.
+ *   
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class RequestExceptionBarrier implements Filter {
+
+	@Override
+	public void init(FilterConfig filterConfig) throws ServletException {
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doFilter(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response, FilterChain chain) throws IOException {
+
+		try {
+
+
+			chain.doFilter(request, response);
+			
+			
+		} catch (Throwable t) {
+
+			Utils.handleError(HttpServletRequest.class.cast(request), HttpServletResponse.class.cast(response), t);
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void destroy() {
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ConfigurationResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ConfigurationResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0e3c939
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ConfigurationResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.application_xml;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.BridgedApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiSignature;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApiResource} of {@link RemoteResource} at {@link #mapping}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class ConfigurationResource extends ApiResource {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+	
+	public static final String mapping = "/configuration";
+	
+	private static final ApiSignature signature = handles(mapping).with(method(GET).produces(application_xml)); 
+	
+	ConfigurationResource() {
+		super(signature);
+	}
+		
+	
+	@Override
+	public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration config = BridgedApplicationConfiguration.class.cast(context().configuration()).inner();
+		Resources.marshal(config,resp.getWriter());
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/FrontPageResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/FrontPageResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a587d0c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/FrontPageResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,152 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.application_xhtml;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.frontpage_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory.provider;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.closeSafely;
+
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.io.InputStreamReader;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+import java.util.regex.Matcher;
+import java.util.regex.Pattern;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.scope.impl.ScopeBean;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiSignature;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApiResource} of {@link RemoteResource} at {@link #mapping}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class FrontPageResource extends ApiResource {
+
+	// the variable replacement pattern
+	private static Pattern pattern = Pattern.compile("\\$\\{(.+?)\\}");
+
+	// log on behalf of extension
+	private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(RemoteResource.class);
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	public static final String mapping = "/";
+
+	private static final ApiSignature signature = handles(mapping).with(method(GET).produces(application_xhtml));
+
+	FrontPageResource() {
+		super(signature);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+
+		InputStream page = getClass().getResourceAsStream(frontpage_file_path);
+
+		if (page == null) {
+			log.error("invalid distribution: missing {}", frontpage_file_path);
+			application_error.fire("invalid distribution: missing " + frontpage_file_path);
+		}
+
+		Map<String, String> values = values();
+
+		BufferedReader reader = null;
+		try {
+
+			String line = null;
+			reader = new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(page));
+			while ((line = reader.readLine()) != null)
+				resp.getWriter().write(interpolate(line, values));
+
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			application_error.fire("could not read " + frontpage_file_path, e);
+		} finally {
+			closeSafely(reader);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private Map<String, String> values() {
+
+		Map<String, String> values = new HashMap<String, String>();
+
+		values.put("profile_link", ProfileResource.mapping.substring(1,ProfileResource.mapping.length()));
+		values.put("config_link", ConfigurationResource.mapping.substring(1,ConfigurationResource.mapping.length()));
+		
+		values.put("name", context().name());
+		values.put("version", context().configuration().version());
+
+		String infrastructure = context().container().configuration().infrastructure();
+		StringBuilder voValue = new StringBuilder();
+
+		Collection<String> scopes = context().profile(GCoreEndpoint.class).scopes().asCollection(); 
+		Set<String> vos = new HashSet<String>();
+		
+		//pre-process
+		for (String scope : scopes) {
+			ScopeBean bean = new ScopeBean(scope);
+			switch (bean.type()) {
+				case INFRASTRUCTURE:
+					infrastructure = bean.name();
+					break;
+				case VO:
+					vos.add(bean.name());
+					break;
+				case VRE:
+					vos.add(bean.enclosingScope().name());
+					infrastructure=bean.enclosingScope().enclosingScope().name();
+				}
+		}
+		
+		//build vo value
+		int i = 0;
+		int max = vos.size()-1;
+		for (String vo : vos) {
+			String voPrefix = i == 0 ? "" : (i==max?" and ":", ");
+			voValue.append(voPrefix+"<em>" + vo + "</em>");
+			i++;
+		}
+
+		values.put("infra", infrastructure);
+		values.put("vos", voValue.toString());
+		
+		values.put("status", context().lifecycle().state().toString());
+		
+		values.put("smartgears-version", provider().smartgearsConfiguration().version());
+		
+		return values;
+	}
+
+	public static String interpolate(String text, Map<String, String> replacements) {
+
+		Matcher matcher = pattern.matcher(text);
+		StringBuffer buffer = new StringBuffer();
+		while (matcher.find()) {
+			String replacement = replacements.get(matcher.group(1));
+			if (replacement != null) {
+				matcher.appendReplacement(buffer, ""); // safer in case replacements include some of the variable
+														// characters
+				buffer.append(replacement);
+			}
+		}
+		matcher.appendTail(buffer);
+		return buffer.toString();
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/LifecycleResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/LifecycleResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..072ca7f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/LifecycleResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.application_xml;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.POST;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.illegal_state_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.invalid_request_error;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlValue;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiSignature;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApiResource} of {@link RemoteResource} at {@link #mapping}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class LifecycleResource extends ApiResource {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	public static final String mapping = "/lifecyle";
+
+	private static final ApiSignature signature = handles(mapping).with(method(GET).produces(application_xml)).with(
+			method(POST).accepts(application_xml));
+
+
+	LifecycleResource() {
+		super(signature);
+	}
+		
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean supports(Method method) {
+
+		return method == GET || method == POST;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+
+		try {
+			Resources.marshal(new State(context().lifecycle().state()), resp.getWriter());
+		}
+		catch(Exception e) {
+			invalid_request_error.fire("cannot parse request body",e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doPost(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+
+		State wrapper = Resources.unmarshal(State.class, req.getReader());
+		String value = wrapper.value;
+
+		if (value == null || value.isEmpty())
+			invalid_request_error.fire("missing state in request body");
+
+		ApplicationState state = null;
+		
+		try {
+			state = ApplicationState.valueOf(value);
+		}
+		catch(Exception e) {
+			invalid_request_error.fire(value+" is an unkown resource state",e);
+		}
+		
+		try {
+			context().lifecycle().moveTo(state);
+		}
+		catch(Exception e) {
+			illegal_state_error.fire("invalid state transition for this resource"+value, e);
+		}
+	}
+
+	// helper classes
+
+	@XmlRootElement(name="state")
+	public static class State {
+
+		@XmlValue
+		public String value;
+
+		State() {
+		}
+
+		public State(ApplicationState state) {
+			this.value=state.name();
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ProfileResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ProfileResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9e76f66
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/ProfileResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.application_xml;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiSignature;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApiResource} of {@link RemoteResource} at {@link #mapping}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class ProfileResource extends ApiResource {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+	
+	public static final String mapping = "/profile";
+	
+	private static final ApiSignature signature = handles(mapping).with(method(GET).produces(application_xml)); 
+	
+	ProfileResource() {
+		super(signature);
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Override
+	public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		
+		Resources.marshal(context().profile(GCoreEndpoint.class),resp.getWriter());
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/RemoteResource.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/RemoteResource.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1acbf96
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/extensions/resource/RemoteResource.java
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpController;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link HttpController} for remote management of the application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name = remote_management)
+public class RemoteResource extends HttpController {
+
+	private static final String default_mapping = Constants.root_mapping+"/*";
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with its {@link ApiResource}s.
+	 */
+	public RemoteResource() {
+		super(remote_management, default_mapping);
+		addResources(new FrontPageResource(), new ConfigurationResource(), new ProfileResource(),
+				new LifecycleResource());
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return remote_management;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/AbstractHandler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/AbstractHandler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ce128bc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/AbstractHandler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers;
+
+/**
+ * Partial implementation of {@link Handler}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ * 
+ */
+public abstract class AbstractHandler {
+
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return getClass().getSimpleName();
+	}
+	
+	//so far, largely a placeholder for future cross-handler behaviour
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Event.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Event.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa6e316
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Event.java
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers;
+
+
+/**
+ * An event related to a given context.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ * @param <C> the context type
+ */
+public abstract class Event<C> {
+	
+	private final C context;
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with the context of the container.
+	 * @param context the context
+	 */
+	public Event(C context) {
+		this.context=context;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the context of the container.
+	 * @return the context
+	 */
+	public C context() {
+		return context;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return getClass().getSimpleName();
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Handler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Handler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b7c58d4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Handler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers;
+
+
+
+/**
+ * Handles events.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @param <E> the event type
+ */
+public interface Handler<E> {
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Processes a given event.
+	 * 
+	 * @param e the event
+	 */
+	void onEvent(E event);
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Pipeline.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Pipeline.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..14723c6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/Pipeline.java
@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+
+/**
+ * An ordered list {@link Handler}s that handle related events.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @param <E> the type of events
+ * @param <H> the type of handlers
+ * 
+ * 
+ */
+public abstract class Pipeline<E,H extends Handler<E>> {
+
+	//private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(Pipeline.class);
+
+	private final List<H> handlers;
+	private int cursor = 0;
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given list of handlers.
+	 * <p>
+	 * Modification to the input list do not affect the pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @param handlers the handlers
+	 */
+	public Pipeline(List<H> handlers) {
+		this.handlers = new ArrayList<H>(handlers); // defensive copy
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers in this pipeline.
+	 * <p>
+	 * Modification to the input list do not affect the pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 */
+	public List<H> handlers() {
+		return new ArrayList<H>(handlers); // defensive copy
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Forwards an event through the pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @param event the event
+	 */
+	public void forward(E event) {
+
+		if (cursor >= handlers.size()) {
+			reset();
+			return;
+		}
+		
+		
+		H handler = handlers.get(cursor);
+
+		cursor++;
+
+		//log.trace("forwarding {} to {}", event, handler);
+
+		try {
+			handler.onEvent(event);
+		}
+		catch(RuntimeException e) {
+			reset();
+			throw e;
+		}
+
+		forward(event); //make sure it's the last thing we do, or it will keep acting as recursion retracts
+	}
+	
+	private void reset() {
+		cursor=0;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/ProfileEvents.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/ProfileEvents.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..caf3565
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/ProfileEvents.java
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers;
+
+/**
+ * Profile lifetime events for container and application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class ProfileEvents {
+
+	/**
+	 * The event that signals the publication of the profile.
+	 */
+	public static final String published ="published";
+
+	/**
+	 * The event that signals a change to the profile.
+	 */
+	public static final String changed ="changed";
+	
+	public static final String addToContext = "addToContext";
+	
+	public static final String removeFromContext = "removeFromContext";
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0547dd8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Event;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link Event} that occurs in the lifetime of the application.
+ 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @param <T> the type of handler that handles these events
+ * 
+ */
+public abstract class ApplicationEvent<T extends ApplicationHandler<T>> extends Event<ApplicationContext> {
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given application context.
+	 * @param context the context
+	 */
+	ApplicationEvent(ApplicationContext context) {
+		super(context);
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationHandler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationHandler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..73bc5b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationHandler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Handler;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Handler} of {@link ApplicationEvent}s.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @param <T> the self type of the handler.
+ * 
+ * @see ApplicationEvent
+ */
+public interface ApplicationHandler<T extends ApplicationHandler<T>> extends Handler<ApplicationEvent<T>> {
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aebe98c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApplicationEvent} that occurs when the application starts or stops.
+ 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public abstract class ApplicationLifecycleEvent extends ApplicationEvent<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> {
+
+	/**
+	 * An {@link ApplicationEvent} that occurs when the application starts.
+	 */
+	public static class Start extends ApplicationLifecycleEvent {
+	
+		/**
+		 * Creates an instance for a given {@link ApplicationContext}.
+		 * @param context the context
+		 */
+		public Start(ApplicationContext context) {
+			super(context);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * An {@link ApplicationEvent} that occurs when the application stops.
+	 */
+	public static class Stop extends ApplicationLifecycleEvent {
+		
+		/**
+		 * Creates an instance for a given {@link ApplicationContext}.
+		 * @param context the context
+		 */
+		public Stop(ApplicationContext context) {
+			super(context);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance for a given {@link ApplicationContext}.
+	 * @param context the context
+	 */
+	ApplicationLifecycleEvent(ApplicationContext context) {
+		super(context);
+	}
+	
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleHandler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleHandler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4db4b49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationLifecycleHandler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import java.util.logging.Handler;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.AbstractHandler;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Handler} of {@link ApplicationLifecycleEvent}s.
+ * <p>
+ * The handler participates in a {@link ApplicationPipeline} of other handlers registered for notification of the same events.
+ * After processing the event, it may or may not propagate the event to the handlers further down in the {@link ApplicationPipeline}
+ * {@link ApplicationPipeline#forward(ApplicationEvent)}.
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ * @see ApplicationLifecycleEvent
+ * @see ApplicationPipeline
+ */
+public abstract class ApplicationLifecycleHandler extends AbstractHandler implements ApplicationHandler<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> {
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when the container starts a managed app.
+	 * @param pipeline the pipeline in which this handler is registered
+	 * @param e the event
+	 */
+	public void onStart(ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start e) {
+	
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when the container stops a managed app.
+	 * @param pipeline the pipeline in which this handler is registered
+	 * @param e the stop event
+	 */
+	public void onStop(ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Stop e) {
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void onEvent(ApplicationEvent<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> e) {
+		
+		if (e instanceof ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start)
+			onStart(ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start.class.cast(e));
+		else
+			if (e instanceof ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Stop)
+				onStop(ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Stop.class.cast(e));
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationPipeline.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationPipeline.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..220583d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ApplicationPipeline.java
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Pipeline;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Pipeline} of {@link ApplicationHandler}s.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @param <H> the type of the handlers
+ * 
+ * 
+ */
+public class ApplicationPipeline<H extends ApplicationHandler<H>> extends Pipeline<ApplicationEvent<H>,H> {
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given list of handlers.
+	 * <p>
+	 * Modification to the input list do not affect the pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @param handlers the handlers
+	 */
+	public ApplicationPipeline(List<H> handlers) {
+		super(handlers);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a pipeline with the same handlers as this pipeline but in reverse order.
+	 * @return the reversed pipeline
+	 */
+	public ApplicationPipeline<H> reverse() {
+		
+		List<H> handlers = handlers(); // it's a copy, we're not changing this pipeline
+		
+		Collections.reverse(handlers);
+		
+		return new ApplicationPipeline<H>(handlers);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d219d02
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link ApplicationEvent} that occurs when an application receives a request.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class RequestEvent extends ApplicationEvent<RequestHandler> {
+
+	private final String servlet;
+	private final HttpServletRequest request;
+	private final HttpServletResponse response;
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with the application context, the client request, and the name of the target servlet.
+	 * 
+	 * @param context the context of the application
+	 * @param servlet the name of the target servlet
+	 * @param request the client request
+	 */
+	public RequestEvent(String servlet,ApplicationContext context, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+		super(context);
+		this.request = request;
+		this.response=response;
+		this.servlet = servlet;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the name of the target servlet.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the name of the servlet.
+	 */
+	public String servlet() {
+		return servlet;
+	}
+
+	public String uri() {
+		String query = request().getQueryString();
+		return query==null?request().getRequestURI():request().getRequestURI()+"?"+query;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the client request.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the request
+	 */
+	public HttpServletRequest request() {
+		return request;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the response.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the response
+	 */
+	public HttpServletResponse response() {
+		return response;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return getClass().getSimpleName() + "[req=" + request().getRemoteHost() + ",resp="
+				+ response.toString().substring(0, 12) + "]";
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestHandler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestHandler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07f83e2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/RequestHandler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import java.util.logging.Handler;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.AbstractHandler;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Handler} of {@link RequestEvent}s and {@link ResponseEvent}s.
+ * <p>
+ * The handler participates in a {@link ApplicationPipeline} of other handlers registered for notification of the same events.
+ * After processing the event, it may or may not propagate the event to the handlers further down in the
+ * {@link ApplicationPipeline} {@link ApplicationPipeline#forward(ApplicationEvent)}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * @see RequestEvent
+ * @see ResponseEvent
+ * @see ApplicationPipeline
+ */
+public abstract class RequestHandler extends AbstractHandler implements ApplicationHandler<RequestHandler> {
+	
+	abstract public String getName();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Initialises the handler.
+	 * 
+	 * @param ctx the servlet context of the managed app.
+	 */
+	public void start(ApplicationContext ctx) {
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when the container receives a request for a servlet of a managed app.
+	 * 
+	 * @param pipeline the pipeline in which this handler is registered
+	 * @param e the event
+	 */
+	public void handleRequest(RequestEvent e) {
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when a servlet of a managed app has produced a response to a request.
+	 * 
+	 * @param pipeline the pipeline in which this handler is registered
+	 * @param e the event
+	 */
+	public void handleResponse(ResponseEvent e) {
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void onEvent(ApplicationEvent<RequestHandler> e) {
+
+		// mind the order here, ResponseEvent<RequestEvent so must be checked first
+		if (e instanceof ResponseEvent)
+			handleResponse(ResponseEvent.class.cast(e));
+		else if (e instanceof RequestEvent)
+			handleRequest(RequestEvent.class.cast(e));
+
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Terminates the handler.
+	 */
+	public void stop() {
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ResponseEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ResponseEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..32561b2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/ResponseEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application;
+
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link ApplicationEvent} that occurs when the application returns a response to a given request.
+ 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ResponseEvent extends RequestEvent {
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with the name of the target servlet, the context of the application, the client request, and the application response.
+	 * 
+	 * @param servlet the name of the servlet
+	 * @param context the context of the application
+	 * @param request the request
+	 * @param response the response
+	 */
+	public ResponseEvent(String servlet, ApplicationContext context, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) {
+		super(servlet, context, request, response);
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d22b93c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle;
+
+import java.net.URI;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.Calendar;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletRegistration;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+
+public class ProfileBuilder {
+
+	private static List<String> servletExcludes = Arrays.asList("default","jsp");
+
+	private ApplicationContext context;
+
+	public ProfileBuilder(ApplicationContext context) {
+		this.context = context;
+	}
+
+	public void fill(GCoreEndpoint endpoint) {
+
+
+		ApplicationConfiguration configuration = context.configuration();
+		ContainerConfiguration container = context.container().configuration();
+
+
+		endpoint.profile()
+		.description(configuration.description())
+		.serviceName(configuration.name())
+		.serviceClass(configuration.serviceClass())
+		.version(configuration.version())
+		.serviceId(configuration.name() + configuration.serviceClass() + configuration.version())
+		.ghnId(context.container().profile(HostingNode.class).id());
+
+		endpoint.profile().newDeploymentData()
+		.activationTime(Calendar.getInstance())
+		.status((context.lifecycle().state().remoteForm()));
+
+		endpoint.profile().endpoints().clear();
+
+		String baseAddress;
+		if (configuration.proxied()){
+			String protocol = container.proxyAddress().secure()? "https://": "http://";
+			int port = container.proxyAddress().port();
+
+			baseAddress=String.format("%s%s:%d%s", protocol , container.proxyAddress().hostname(), port,context.application().getContextPath());
+		} else {
+			String protocol = configuration.secure()? "https://": "http://";
+			int port = configuration.secure()?container.securePort(): container.port();
+
+			baseAddress=String.format("%s%s:%d%s", protocol , container.hostname(), port,context.application().getContextPath());
+		}
+		
+		for (ServletRegistration servlet : context.application().getServletRegistrations().values())
+			if (!servletExcludes.contains(servlet.getName()))
+				for (String mapping : servlet.getMappings()) {
+					String address = baseAddress+(mapping.endsWith("*")?mapping.substring(0,mapping.length()-2):mapping);
+					endpoint.profile().endpoints().add().nameAndAddress(servlet.getName(),URI.create(address));
+				}
+
+
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a897070
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,306 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle;
+
+import static org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind.resilient;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_management;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_property;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.addToContext;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.changed;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.published;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.removeFromContext;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle.activation;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle.failure;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle.stop;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.failed;
+
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.concurrent.ScheduledFuture;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Property;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * 
+ * Manages the resource profile of the application.
+ * <p>
+ * 
+ * The manager:
+ * 
+ * <ul>
+ * <li>creates the profile when the application starts for the first time;
+ * <li>loads the profile when the application restarts;
+ * <li>publishes the profile when the application becomes active, and at any
+ * lifecycle change thereafter;
+ * <li>stores the profile locally after each publication;
+ * </ul>
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @see ProfileBuilder
+ * @see ProfilePublisher
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name = profile_management)
+public class ProfileManager extends ApplicationLifecycleHandler {
+
+	Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ProfileManager.class);
+
+	private ApplicationContext context;
+	private ProfileBuilder builder;
+	private ProfilePublisher publisher;
+
+	private ScheduledFuture<?> periodicUpdates;
+
+	@Override
+	public void onStart(ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start e) {
+
+		context = e.context();
+		builder = new ProfileBuilder(context);
+
+		activated();
+		
+		schedulePeriodicUpdates();
+		// note we don't fire profile events, but wait for the final startup
+		// outcome which
+		// will result in a state change. only then we publish and store the
+		// profile
+		// this avoids the redundancy and performance penalty of storing and
+		// publishing multiple
+		// times in rapid succession (which would be correct). Revise if proves
+		// problematic in corner
+		// cases.
+
+	}
+
+
+	private void activated(){
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = loadOrCreateProfile();
+
+		share(profile);
+
+		publisher = new ProfilePublisher(context);
+
+		registerObservers();
+	}
+
+	// helpers
+	private void registerObservers() {
+
+		context.events().subscribe(new Object() {
+
+			@Observes({ activation, stop, failure })
+			void onChanged(ApplicationLifecycle lc) {
+
+				GCoreEndpoint profile = context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+
+				profile.profile().deploymentData().status(lc.state().remoteForm());
+
+				log.debug("moving app {} to {}",context.name(), lc.state().remoteForm());
+
+				// since we do not know the observers, they will deal with
+				// failures and their consequences
+				// any that comes back will be logged in this event thread
+				context.events().fire(profile, changed);
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = published)
+			void shareAfterPublish(GCoreEndpoint profile) {
+
+				share(profile); // publish may produce a new profile instance
+
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = changed, kind = Kind.safe)
+			void publishAfterChange(GCoreEndpoint profile) {
+
+				boolean firstPublication = profile.scopes().isEmpty();
+
+				//if we've failed before first publication do not try to publish
+				//(we may well have failed there)
+				try {
+
+					if (firstPublication) {
+						if (context.lifecycle().state()!= failed)
+							publishFirstTime(profile);
+					}
+					else{
+						log.debug("update app {} profile",context.name());
+						publisher.update(); // if successful, triggers share.
+					}
+				}
+				catch (Exception e) {
+
+					log.error("cannot publish "+context.name()+" (see details)", e);
+
+					// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile
+					// will not be stored.
+					// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the
+					// changed profile.
+					//TODO: CHECK --- store(profile);
+				}
+
+
+
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = addToContext)
+			void addTo(String token) {
+				try {
+					log.trace("publishing application with new token");
+					publisher.addTo(Collections.singleton(token));
+					publisher.update();
+				}catch (Exception e) {
+
+					log.error("cannot add token {} (see details)",token, e);
+
+					// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile
+					// will not be stored.
+					// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the
+					// changed profile.
+					//TODO: CHECK --- store(profile);
+				}
+
+			}
+			
+			@Observes(value = removeFromContext)
+			void removeFrom(String token) {
+				try {
+					log.trace("unpublishing application with token");
+					publisher.removeFrom(Collections.singleton(token));
+					publisher.update();
+				}catch (Exception e) {
+
+					log.error("cannot remove token {} (see details)",token, e);
+
+					// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile
+					// will not be stored.
+					// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the
+					// changed profile.
+					//TODO: CHECK --- store(profile);
+				}
+
+			}
+		});
+	}
+
+
+	private void share(GCoreEndpoint profile) {
+
+		log.trace("sharing profile for {}", context.name());
+
+		context.properties().add(new Property(profile_property, profile));
+	}
+
+	private void publishFirstTime(GCoreEndpoint profile) {
+
+		try {
+
+			publisher.addToAll();
+
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("publishing failed",e);
+		}
+	}
+
+	private GCoreEndpoint loadOrCreateProfile() {
+
+		return create();
+	}
+
+	private GCoreEndpoint create() {
+
+		log.info("creating profile for {}", context.name());
+
+		try {
+
+			GCoreEndpoint profile = new GCoreEndpoint();
+			profile.setId(context.id());
+
+			builder.fill(profile);
+
+			return profile;
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			// this is a critical startup failure: it will fail the application
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot create profile for " + context.name(), e);
+
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private void schedulePeriodicUpdates() {
+
+		// register to cancel updates
+		context.events().subscribe(
+
+				new Object() {
+
+					// we register it in response to lifecycle events so that we can stop and resume along with application
+					@Observes(value = { activation }, kind = resilient)
+					synchronized void restartPeriodicUpdates(ApplicationLifecycle lc) {
+
+						//already running
+						if (periodicUpdates!=null)
+							return;
+
+						if (lc.state()==ApplicationState.active)
+							log.info("scheduling periodic updates of application {} profile", context.name());
+
+						else
+							log.info("resuming periodic updates of application {} profile", context.name());
+
+						final Runnable updateTask = new Runnable() {
+							public void run() {
+								GCoreEndpoint profile = context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+
+								//if handling of event generates failures these will be reported
+								//for resilience we do not fail the application
+								log.trace("firing change event on application {} profile", context.name());
+								context.events().fire(profile,changed);
+							}
+						};
+
+						periodicUpdates = Utils.scheduledServicePool.scheduleAtFixedRate(updateTask, Constants.application_republish_frequency_in_minutes, Constants.application_republish_frequency_in_minutes , TimeUnit.MINUTES);
+
+					}
+
+					@Observes(value = { stop, failure }, kind = resilient)
+					synchronized void cancelPeriodicUpdates(ContainerLifecycle ignore) {
+
+						if (periodicUpdates != null){
+							log.trace("stopping periodic updates of application {} profile", context.name());
+
+							try {
+								periodicUpdates.cancel(true);
+								periodicUpdates=null;
+							}
+							catch(Exception e) {
+								log.warn("could not stop periodic updates of application {} profile", context.name(),e);
+							}
+						}
+					}
+
+				});
+
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return profile_management;
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6c58cbd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java
@@ -0,0 +1,214 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.published;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.notEmpty;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.rethrowUnchecked;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.SecurityTokenProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Publishes the current resource profile of the application.
+ * <p>
+ *Distinguishes publication in new scopes ({@link #addTo(List)} from publication updates in existing scopes ({@link #update()}.
+ * 
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ProfilePublisher {
+
+	private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ProfilePublisher.class);
+
+	//the underlying IS publisher
+	private final ScopedPublisher publisher;
+
+	private final ApplicationContext context;
+
+	private AuthorizationProxy authProxy  ;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance for a given application.
+	 * @param context the context of the application
+	 */
+	public ProfilePublisher(ApplicationContext context) {
+		this.context = context;
+		this.publisher=ProviderFactory.provider().publisherFor(context);
+		this.authProxy = ProviderFactory.provider().authorizationProxy();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds for the first time the current resource profile of the application in one or more scopes.
+	 * @param scopes the scopes
+	 */
+	public void addTo(Collection<String> tokens) {
+
+		notEmpty("tokens",tokens);
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		//TODO: remove when move to new IS
+		Collection<String> retainedContexts = new ArrayList<String>(context.container().configuration().allowedContexts());
+		retainedContexts.removeAll(profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		profile.scopes().asCollection().addAll(retainedContexts);
+		
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try {
+			for (String token: tokens){
+				log.info("creating profile with token {}", token);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.create(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}
+		}catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		}		
+		*/	
+				
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)tokens.toArray()[0]); 
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.create(profile, resolveScopesFromTokens(tokens));
+					
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		}  finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+		
+		sharePublished(profile);
+	} 
+
+	public void addToAll() {
+		this.addTo(context.configuration().startTokens());
+	}
+
+
+	public void update() {
+
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try {
+			
+			for (String token: context.configuration().startTokens()){
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.update(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}
+	
+		} 
+		catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		}
+		*/
+		
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)context.configuration().startTokens().toArray()[0]); 
+
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.update(profile);
+					
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		}  finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+		
+		sharePublished(profile);
+	}
+
+
+	/**
+	 * Removes the application from one or more scopes.
+	 * @param scopes the scopes
+	 */
+	public void removeFrom(Collection<String> tokens) {
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+		
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try {
+		
+			for (String token: tokens){
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.remove(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}				
+						
+		} 
+		catch (Exception e) {
+
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		}
+		*/
+		
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)tokens.toArray()[0]); 
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.remove(profile, resolveScopesFromTokens(tokens));
+					
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		}  finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+		log.debug("after remove application profile contains scopes {}",profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		sharePublished(profile);
+	}
+
+
+
+	private void sharePublished(GCoreEndpoint profile) {
+		context.events().fire(profile,published);
+	}
+
+	private List<String> resolveScopesFromTokens(Collection<String> tokens){
+		List<String> scopes = new ArrayList<String>(tokens.size());
+		for (String token: tokens)
+			try{
+				scopes.add(this.authProxy.get(token).getContext());
+			}catch (Exception e) {
+				log.warn("error retrieving token {} , it should never happen",token);
+			}
+		return scopes;
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestAccounting.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestAccounting.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c8138ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestAccounting.java
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.called_method_header;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.accounting.datamodel.UsageRecord.OperationResult;
+import org.gcube.accounting.datamodel.usagerecords.ServiceUsageRecord;
+import org.gcube.accounting.persistence.AccountingPersistence;
+import org.gcube.accounting.persistence.AccountingPersistenceFactory;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.AuthorizationProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.CalledMethodProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.scope.api.ScopeProvider;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ResponseEvent;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name = Constants.request_accounting)
+public class RequestAccounting extends RequestHandler {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(RequestAccounting.class);
+
+	private static ThreadLocal<Long> startCallThreadLocal = new ThreadLocal<Long>(); 
+			
+	
+	@Override
+	public String getName() {
+		return Constants.request_accounting;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void handleRequest(RequestEvent e) {
+		ApplicationContext context = e.context();
+		String calledMethod = e.request().getHeader(called_method_header);
+		if (calledMethod==null){
+			calledMethod = e.request().getRequestURI().substring(e.request().getContextPath().length());
+			if (calledMethod.startsWith("/"))
+				calledMethod = calledMethod.replaceFirst("/","");
+		}
+		CalledMethodProvider.instance.set(calledMethod);
+		String caller = AuthorizationProvider.instance.get()!=null? AuthorizationProvider.instance.get().getClient().getId(): "UNKNOWN";		
+		startCallThreadLocal.set(System.currentTimeMillis());
+		log.info("REQUEST START ON {}:{}({}) CALLED FROM {}@{} IN SCOPE {} ", 
+				context.configuration().name(),context.configuration().serviceClass(), CalledMethodProvider.instance.get(), 
+				caller, e.request().getRemoteHost(),  ScopeProvider.instance.get());
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void handleResponse(ResponseEvent e) {
+		ApplicationContext context = e.context();
+		String caller = AuthorizationProvider.instance.get()!=null? AuthorizationProvider.instance.get().getClient().getId(): "UNKNOWN";
+		String callerQualifier = AuthorizationProvider.instance.get()!=null? AuthorizationProvider.instance.get().getTokenQualifier(): "UNKNOWN";
+		//retieves caller Ip when there is a proxy
+		String callerIp = e.request().getHeader("x-forwarded-for");
+        if(callerIp==null)
+        	callerIp=e.request().getRemoteHost();
+                
+		generateAccounting(caller,callerQualifier,callerIp==null?"UNKNOWN":callerIp , context);
+		
+		log.info("REQUEST SERVED ON {}:{}({}) CALLED FROM {}@{} IN SCOPE {} FINISHED IN {} millis", 
+				context.configuration().name(),context.configuration().serviceClass(), CalledMethodProvider.instance.get(),
+				caller, callerIp, ScopeProvider.instance.get(), System.currentTimeMillis()-startCallThreadLocal.get());
+		startCallThreadLocal.remove();
+		CalledMethodProvider.instance.reset();
+	}
+
+	void generateAccounting(String caller, String callerQualifier, String remoteHost,  ApplicationContext context){
+		AccountingPersistenceFactory.setFallbackLocation(context.container().persistence().location());
+		AccountingPersistence persistence = AccountingPersistenceFactory.getPersistence();
+		ServiceUsageRecord serviceUsageRecord = new ServiceUsageRecord();
+		try{
+			
+			serviceUsageRecord.setConsumerId(caller);
+			serviceUsageRecord.setCallerQualifier(callerQualifier);
+			serviceUsageRecord.setScope(ScopeProvider.instance.get());
+			serviceUsageRecord.setServiceClass(context.configuration().serviceClass());
+			serviceUsageRecord.setServiceName(context.configuration().name());
+
+			serviceUsageRecord.setHost(context.container().configuration().hostname()+":"+context.container().configuration().port());
+			serviceUsageRecord.setCalledMethod(CalledMethodProvider.instance.get());
+			serviceUsageRecord.setCallerHost(remoteHost);
+			serviceUsageRecord.setOperationResult(OperationResult.SUCCESS);
+			serviceUsageRecord.setDuration(System.currentTimeMillis()-startCallThreadLocal.get());
+			persistence.account(serviceUsageRecord);
+			
+		}catch(Exception ex){
+			log.warn("invalid record passed to accounting ",ex);
+		}
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestError.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestError.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cb194a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestError.java
@@ -0,0 +1,122 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request;
+
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+
+/**
+ * Known error types.
+ * <p>
+ * Each type can throw a corresponding {@link RequestException}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public enum RequestError {
+
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests are made to failed applications.
+	 */
+	application_failed_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_GONE,"this resource is not currently available"),
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests are made to stopped applications.
+	 */
+	application_unavailable_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE, "this resource is permanently available"),
+	
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests are made to unknown resources.
+	 */
+	resource_notfound_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_NOT_FOUND, "no gCube resource at this URI"),
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests require illegal resource state transitions.
+	 */
+	illegal_state_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_CONFLICT, "this resource cannot assume the required state"),
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests are made with unsupported HTTP methods.
+	 */
+	method_unsupported_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_METHOD_NOT_ALLOWED, "this resource does not support this method"),
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests are genrically invalid.
+	 */
+	invalid_request_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_BAD_REQUEST, "this resource cannot process this request because it is malformed"),
+	
+	request_not_authorized_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_UNAUTHORIZED, "this resource cannot process this request because it needs authorization"),
+	
+	internal_server_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR, "unexpected error"),
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests carry an unsupported media type.
+	 */
+	incoming_contenttype_unsupported_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_UNSUPPORTED_MEDIA_TYPE, "this resource cannot consume this media type"),
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * The error raised when requests request an unsupported media type.
+	 */
+	outgoing_contenttype_unsupported_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_NOT_ACCEPTABLE, "this resource cannot produce this media type"),
+	
+
+	/**
+	 * An error raised by managed applications.
+	 */
+	application_error(HttpServletResponse.SC_INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR, "this resource has incurred in a generic error");
+	
+	
+	private final int code;
+	private final String msg;
+	
+	private RequestError(int code,String msg) {
+		this.code=code;
+		this.msg=msg;
+	}
+		
+	public int code() {
+		return code;
+	}
+	
+	public String message() {
+		return msg;
+	}
+	
+	public void fire() {
+		throw toException();
+	}
+	
+	public void fire(String msg) {
+		throw toException(msg);
+	}
+	
+	public void fire(Throwable cause) {
+		throw toException(cause);
+	}
+	
+	public void fire(String msg,Throwable cause) {
+		throw toException(msg,cause);
+	}
+	
+	public RequestException toException() {
+		return new RequestException(this);
+	}
+	
+	public RequestException toException(String msg) {
+		return new RequestException(this, msg);
+	}
+	
+	public RequestException toException(Throwable cause) {
+		return new RequestException(this,cause);
+	}
+	
+	public RequestException toException(String msg,Throwable cause) {
+		return new RequestException(this,cause,msg);
+	}
+	
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestException.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestException.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..79170b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestException.java
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request;
+
+
+/**
+ * Thrown for the occurrence of an error during request processing.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class RequestException extends RuntimeException {
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * 
+	 */
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	private final RequestError error;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with an underlying error.
+	 * @param error the error
+	 */
+	public RequestException(RequestError error) {
+		this(error, error.message());
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with an underling error and a custom message.
+	 * @param message the message
+	 * @param error the error
+	 */
+	public RequestException(RequestError error,String message) {
+		super(message);
+		this.error=error;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with an underlying error and an underlying cause
+	 * @param error the error
+	 * @param cause the cause;
+	 */
+	public RequestException(RequestError error,Throwable cause) {
+		this(error, cause, error.message());
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with an underlying error, an underlying cause, and an underlying message.
+	 * @param error the error
+	 * @param cause the cause;
+	 * @Param message the message;
+	 */
+	public RequestException(RequestError error,Throwable cause,String message) {
+		super(message,cause);
+		this.error=error;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the underlying error.
+	 * @return the error
+	 */
+	public RequestError error() {
+		return error;
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestValidator.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestValidator.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..41e2938
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/application/request/RequestValidator.java
@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request;
+
+import static org.gcube.common.authorization.client.Constants.authorizationService;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.request_validation;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.scope_header;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.token_header;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_failed_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_unavailable_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.internal_server_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.invalid_request_error;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.DatatypeConverter;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.exceptions.ObjectNotFound;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.AuthorizationEntry;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.PolicyUtils;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.policies.Policy;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.AuthorizationProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ClientInfo;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.SecurityTokenProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ServiceIdentifier;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.UserInfo;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.utils.Caller;
+import org.gcube.common.scope.api.ScopeProvider;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ResponseEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name = Constants.request_validation)
+public class RequestValidator extends RequestHandler {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(RequestValidator.class);
+
+	private ApplicationContext context;
+
+	@Override
+	public String getName() {
+		return Constants.request_validation;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void handleRequest(RequestEvent call) {
+
+		log.trace("executing request validator ON REQUEST");
+
+		context = call.context();
+
+		validateAgainstLifecycle(call);
+
+		if (!validateToken(call)){
+			String scope = call.request().getParameter(scope_header)==null?	call.request().getHeader(scope_header):call.request().getParameter(scope_header);
+			validateScope(scope);
+			log.info("received call to {} in context {}",call.uri(),scope);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void handleResponse(ResponseEvent e){
+		SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+		AuthorizationProvider.instance.reset();
+		ScopeProvider.instance.reset();
+		log.debug("resetting all the Thread local for this call.");
+	}
+
+	private void validateAgainstLifecycle(RequestEvent call) {
+
+		switch(context.lifecycle().state()) {
+
+		case stopped :
+			application_unavailable_error.fire(); break;
+
+		case failed: 
+			application_failed_error.fire(); break;
+
+		default: 
+			//nothing to do, but avoids warnings
+		}
+
+
+	}
+
+	private void validateScope(String scope) {
+
+		if (scope == null) {
+			log.warn("rejecting unscoped call to {}",context.name());
+			invalid_request_error.fire("call is unscoped"); 
+		}
+
+		if (!context.container().configuration().allowedContexts().contains(scope)) {
+			log.warn("rejecting call to {} in invalid context {}, allowed context are {}",context.name(),scope,context.container().configuration().allowedContexts());
+			invalid_request_error.fire(context.name()+" cannot be called in scope "+scope);
+		}
+
+		ScopeProvider.instance.set(scope);
+	}
+
+	private boolean validateToken(RequestEvent call){
+
+
+		String token = call.request().getParameter(token_header)==null?	call.request().getHeader(token_header):call.request().getParameter(token_header);
+
+		String scope = call.request().getParameter(scope_header)==null?	call.request().getHeader(scope_header):call.request().getParameter(scope_header);
+
+		if (token == null && scope==null){
+			log.warn("rejecting call to {}, authorization required",context.name(),token);
+			if (call.context().container().configuration().authenticationEnpoint()==null){
+				if (call.request().getHeader(Constants.authorization_header)!=null){
+					String basicAuthorization  = call.request().getHeader(Constants.authorization_header);
+					String base64Credentials = basicAuthorization.substring("Basic".length()).trim();
+					String credentials = new String(DatatypeConverter.parseBase64Binary(base64Credentials));
+					// credentials = username:password
+					final String[] values = credentials.split(":",2);
+					token = values[1];
+					ClientInfo info = retreiveAndSetInfo(token, call);
+					if (!(info instanceof UserInfo) || !info.getId().equals(values[0])) {
+						log.warn("rejecting call to {}, username {} not valid for token {}",context.name(),values[0],token);
+						RequestError.request_not_authorized_error.fire(context.name()+": username "+values[0]+" not valid for token "+token);
+					}
+					return true;
+				}else {
+					log.warn("rejecting call to {}, authorization required",context.name(),token);
+					RequestError.request_not_authorized_error.fire(context.name()+": authorization required");
+				}
+			}else {
+				log.info("authorization enpoint found on configuration, redirecting the call");
+				String recallLocation = String.format("http://%s:%d%s", call.context().container().configuration().hostname(), call.context().container().configuration().port(), call.uri());				
+				//call.response().setHeader("Allowed-Contexts", call.context().container().configuration().allowedContexts().toString());
+				try {
+					call.response().sendRedirect(context.container().configuration().authenticationEnpoint()+"?Recall-Location="+recallLocation);
+				} catch (IOException e) {
+					log.error("errror redirecting call",e );
+				}
+				return false;
+			}
+
+		} 
+
+		log.trace("token is "+token);
+
+		if (token!=null){
+			retreiveAndSetInfo(token, call);
+			return true;
+		} 
+		log.info("invalid token, checking the context");
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return request_validation;
+	}
+
+	private ClientInfo retreiveAndSetInfo(String token, RequestEvent call){
+		log.info("accessing  validator with token {} ", token);
+		AuthorizationEntry authEntry = null;
+		try{
+			authEntry = authorizationService().get(token);	
+		}catch(ObjectNotFound onf){
+			log.warn("rejecting call to {}, invalid token {}",context.name(),token);
+			invalid_request_error.fire(context.name()+" invalid token : "+token);
+		}catch(Exception e){
+			log.error("error contacting authorization service",e);
+			internal_server_error.fire("error contacting authorization service");
+		}
+
+		ServiceIdentifier serviceIdentifier = Utils.getServiceInfo(call.context()).getServiceIdentifier();
+
+		for (Policy policy: authEntry.getPolicies())
+			if (PolicyUtils.isPolicyValidForClient(policy.getServiceAccess(), serviceIdentifier)){
+				log.error("rejecting call to {} : {} is not allowed to contact the service ",context.name(),authEntry.getClientInfo().getId());
+				invalid_request_error.fire("rejecting call to "+context.name()+": "+authEntry.getClientInfo().getId()+" is not allowed to contact the service");
+			}	
+
+		AuthorizationProvider.instance.set(new Caller(authEntry.getClientInfo(), authEntry.getQualifier()));
+		validateScope(authEntry.getContext());
+		log.info("retrieved request authorization info {} in scope {} ", AuthorizationProvider.instance.get(), authEntry.getContext());
+		SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+		return authEntry.getClientInfo();
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerHandler.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerHandler.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1704546
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerHandler.java
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container;
+
+
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.AbstractHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Handler;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Handler} of {@link ContainerLifecycleEvent}s.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public abstract class ContainerHandler extends AbstractHandler implements Handler<ContainerLifecycleEvent> {
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when the container starts.
+	 * @param e the event
+	 */
+	public void onStart(ContainerLifecycleEvent.Start e) {
+	
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Invoked when the container stops.
+	 * @param e the stop event
+	 */
+	public void onStop(ContainerLifecycleEvent.Stop e) {
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public void onEvent(ContainerLifecycleEvent e) {
+		
+		if (e instanceof ContainerLifecycleEvent.Start)
+			onStart(ContainerLifecycleEvent.Start.class.cast(e));
+		else
+			if (e instanceof ContainerLifecycleEvent.Stop)
+				onStop(ContainerLifecycleEvent.Stop.class.cast(e));
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerLifecycleEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerLifecycleEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f848001
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerLifecycleEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Event;
+
+/**
+ * An {@link Event} that occurs in the lifetime of the container.
+ 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public abstract class ContainerLifecycleEvent extends Event<ContainerContext> {
+
+	/**
+	 * An {@link ContainerLifecycleEvent} that occurs when the container starts.
+	 */
+	public static class Start extends ContainerLifecycleEvent {
+	
+		/**
+		 * Creates an instance for a given {@link ContainerContext}.
+		 * @param context the context
+		 */
+		public Start(ContainerContext context) {
+			super(context);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * An {@link ContainerLifecycleEvent} that occurs when the container stops.
+	 */
+	public static class Stop extends ContainerLifecycleEvent {
+		
+		/**
+		 * Creates an instance for a given {@link ContainerContext}.
+		 * @param context the context
+		 */
+		public Stop(ContainerContext context) {
+			super(context);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with the context of the container.
+	 * @param context the context
+	 */
+	ContainerLifecycleEvent(ContainerContext context) {
+		super(context);
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerPipeline.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerPipeline.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0430b37
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/ContainerPipeline.java
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container;
+
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.Pipeline;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Pipeline} of {@link ContainerHandler}s.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ * 
+ */
+public class ContainerPipeline extends Pipeline<ContainerLifecycleEvent, ContainerHandler> {
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with a given list of handlers.
+	 * <p>
+	 * Modification to the input list do not affect the pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @param handlers the handlers
+	 */
+	public ContainerPipeline(List<ContainerHandler> handlers) {
+		super(handlers);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns a pipeline with the same handlers as this pipeline but in reverse order.
+	 * @return the reversed pipeline
+	 */
+	public ContainerPipeline reverse() {
+		
+		List<ContainerHandler> handlers = handlers(); // it's a copy, we're not changing this pipeline
+		
+		Collections.reverse(handlers);
+		
+		return new ContainerPipeline(handlers);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/AccountingManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/AccountingManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cf33c86
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/AccountingManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+/**
+ * 
+ */
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.accounting_management;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.accounting.persistence.AccountingPersistenceFactory;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerLifecycleEvent;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * @author Luca Frosini (ISTI - CNR) http://www.lucafrosini.com/
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name = accounting_management)
+public class AccountingManager extends ContainerHandler {
+	
+	private static Logger logger = LoggerFactory.getLogger(AccountingManager.class);
+	
+	@Override
+	public void onStop(ContainerLifecycleEvent.Stop e) {
+		logger.trace("Going to flush accounting data");
+		AccountingPersistenceFactory.flushAll(1000, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS);
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return accounting_management;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d12080d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileBuilder.java
@@ -0,0 +1,366 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle;
+
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileReader;
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.io.InputStreamReader;
+import java.io.Reader;
+import java.math.BigDecimal;
+import java.net.InetAddress;
+import java.net.UnknownHostException;
+import java.nio.file.Files;
+import java.nio.file.Paths;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Calendar;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.regex.Matcher;
+import java.util.regex.Pattern;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode.Profile.NodeDescription.GHNType;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode.Profile.NodeDescription.Processor;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode.Profile.NodeDescription.Variable;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.utils.Group;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @author Luca Frosini (ISTI - CNR) http://www.lucafrosini.com/
+ *
+ */
+public class ProfileBuilder {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ProfileBuilder.class);
+
+	private ContainerContext context;
+
+	public ProfileBuilder(ContainerContext context) {
+		this.context = context;
+	}
+
+	public HostingNode create() {
+
+		HostingNode node = new HostingNode();
+		
+		ContainerConfiguration cfg = context.configuration();
+		
+		node.newProfile().infrastructure(cfg.infrastructure());
+
+		addSiteTo(node);
+
+		String ip = null;
+		try {
+			ip = InetAddress.getLocalHost().getHostAddress();
+		} catch (UnknownHostException e) {
+			log.warn("unable to detect the IP address of the host");
+		}
+
+		node.profile().newDescription().activationTime(Calendar.getInstance()).name(cfg.hostname() + ":" + cfg.port());
+
+		node.profile().description().networkAdapters().add().mtu(0).name("local-adapter").ipAddress(ip).inboundIP("")
+				.outboundIP("");
+
+		node.profile().description().newOperatingSystem().name(System.getProperty("os.name"))
+				.version(System.getProperty("os.version")).release("");
+
+		node.profile().description().newArchitecture().platformType(System.getProperty("os.arch")).smpSize(0)
+				.smtSize(0);
+
+		ArrayList<HashMap<String, String>> info = cpuInfo();
+
+		Group<Processor> processors = node.profile().description().processors();
+
+		for (HashMap<String, String> map : info)
+
+			processors.add().bogomips(new BigDecimal(map.get("bogomips")))
+					.clockSpeedMhz(new BigDecimal(map.get("cpu_MHz"))).family(map.get("cpu_family"))
+					.modelName(map.get("model_name")).model(map.get("model")).vendor(map.get("vendor_id"))
+					.cacheL1(new Integer(map.get("cache_size"))).cacheL1D(0).cacheL1I(0).cacheL2(0);
+
+		addVariablesTo(node);
+
+		update(node,false);
+
+		node.profile().description().type(GHNType.Static);
+		// String type = (String) context.getProperty(GHNContext.GHN_TYPE, false);
+		// if (type.compareToIgnoreCase(Type.DYNAMIC.toString()) == 0) description.setType(Description.Type.Dynamic);
+		// else if (type.compareToIgnoreCase(Type.STATIC.toString()) == 0) description.setType(Description.Type.Static);
+		// else if (type.compareToIgnoreCase(Type.SELFCLEANING.toString()) == 0)
+		// description.setType(Description.Type.Selfcleaning);
+		//
+		// file system
+		node.profile().description().localFileSystems().add().name("").type("").readOnly(false)
+				.root(cfg.persistence().location());
+
+		return node;
+	}
+
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	private ArrayList<HashMap<String, String>> cpuInfo() {
+
+		ArrayList<HashMap<String, String>> map = new ArrayList<HashMap<String, String>>();
+
+		File file = new File("/proc/cpuinfo");
+
+		if (!file.exists()) {
+			log.warn("cannot acquire CPU info (no /proc/cpuinfo)");
+			return map;
+		}
+
+		BufferedReader input = null;
+
+		try {
+			input = new BufferedReader(new FileReader(file));
+
+			String line = null;
+
+			HashMap<String, String> currentProcessor = null;
+
+			while ((line = input.readLine()) != null) {
+
+				if ((line.startsWith("processor"))) { // add the current processor to the map
+
+					if (currentProcessor != null)
+						map.add((HashMap) currentProcessor.clone());
+
+					currentProcessor = new HashMap<String, String>();
+				}
+
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("vendor_id"))
+						currentProcessor.put("vendor_id", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("cpu family"))
+						currentProcessor.put("cpu_family", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if ((line.contains("model\t")) || (line.contains("model\b")))
+						currentProcessor.put("model", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("model name"))
+						currentProcessor.put("model_name", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("cpu MHz"))
+						currentProcessor.put("cpu_MHz", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("cache size"))
+						currentProcessor.put("cache_size", line.split(":")[1].trim().split(" ")[0]);
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+				try {
+					if (line.contains("bogomips"))
+						currentProcessor.put("bogomips", line.split(":")[1].trim());
+				} catch (Exception ex) {
+				}
+			}
+
+			if (currentProcessor != null)
+				map.add(currentProcessor);
+
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+
+			log.warn("unable to acquire CPU info", e);
+
+		} finally {
+
+			if (input != null)
+				try {
+					input.close();
+				} catch (IOException e) {
+					log.warn("unable to close stream", e);
+				}
+		}
+		return map;
+	}
+
+	private long getFreeSpace() {
+		long free = 0;
+		try {
+			free = Files.getFileStore(Paths.get(context.configuration().persistence().location())).getUsableSpace()/1024;
+		} catch (IOException ioe) {
+			log.warn("unable to detect the free space on the disk", ioe);
+		}
+		return free;
+	}
+	
+	public void update(HostingNode node,boolean onLoad) {
+
+		ContainerConfiguration cfg = context.configuration();
+
+		if (onLoad) {
+
+			log.info("updating ghn profile");
+
+			node.profile().description().activationTime(Calendar.getInstance()).name(cfg.hostname() + ":" + cfg.port());
+
+			addVariablesTo(node);
+
+			addSiteTo(node);
+
+		}
+
+		node.profile().description().status(context.lifecycle().state().remoteForm());
+
+		Map<String, Long> mem = memoryUsage();
+
+		node.profile().description().newMainMemory().ramAvailable(mem.get("MemoryAvailable"))
+				.ramSize(mem.get("MemoryTotalSize")).virtualAvailable(mem.get("VirtualAvailable"))
+				.virtualSize(mem.get("VirtualSize"));
+
+		node.profile().description().localAvailableSpace(getFreeSpace());
+
+		node.profile().description().uptime(uptime());
+
+		node.profile().description().lastUpdate(Calendar.getInstance());
+
+		Map<String, Double> loads = loadStatistics();
+
+		node.profile().description().newLoad().lastMin(loads.get("1min") == null ? 0 : loads.get("1min"))
+				.last5Mins(loads.get("5mins") == null ? 0 : loads.get("5mins"))
+				.last15Mins(loads.get("15mins") == null ? 0 : loads.get("15mins"));
+
+	}
+
+	private void addSiteTo(HostingNode node) {
+
+		ContainerConfiguration cfg = context.configuration();
+
+		node.profile().newSite().country(cfg.site().country()).location(cfg.site().location())
+				.latitude(cfg.site().latitude()).longitude(cfg.site().longitude()).domain(domainIn(cfg.hostname()));
+	}
+
+	private void addVariablesTo(HostingNode node) {
+
+		ContainerConfiguration cfg = context.configuration();
+
+		Group<Variable> variables = node.profile().description().environmentVariables();
+		
+		// Cleaning variables to avoid duplicates
+		variables.removeAll(node.profile().description().environmentVariables());
+		
+		Map<String, String> map = new HashMap<String, String>();
+		map.putAll(cfg.properties());
+		map.putAll(System.getenv());
+
+		for (Map.Entry<String, String> entry : map.entrySet()) {
+			String varname = entry.getKey();
+			if ((varname.compareToIgnoreCase("CLASSPATH") == 0) || (varname.compareToIgnoreCase("PATH") == 0)
+					|| (varname.contains("SSH")) || (varname.contains("MAIL"))
+					|| (varname.compareToIgnoreCase("LS_COLORS") == 0))
+				continue;
+			variables.add().keyAndValue(entry.getKey(), entry.getValue());
+		}
+
+		/* The following code is useless can be removed
+		Map<String, String> envvars = new HashMap<String, String>();
+		for (String varname : envvars.keySet()) {
+
+			// a bit of filtering
+			if ((varname.compareToIgnoreCase("CLASSPATH") == 0) || (varname.compareToIgnoreCase("PATH") == 0)
+					|| (varname.contains("SSH")) || (varname.contains("MAIL"))
+					|| (varname.compareToIgnoreCase("LS_COLORS") == 0))
+				continue;
+
+			variables.add().keyAndValue(varname, envvars.get(varname));
+		}
+		*/
+
+		
+		variables.add().keyAndValue("Java", System.getProperty("java.version"));
+		
+		SmartGearsConfiguration config = ProviderFactory.provider().smartgearsConfiguration();
+		variables.add().keyAndValue("SmartGears",config.version());
+
+		variables.add().keyAndValue("ghn-update-interval-in-secs", String.valueOf(cfg.publicationFrequency()));
+
+	}
+
+	public String uptime() {
+		String lines = "", linetemp = null;
+		try {
+			Process p = Runtime.getRuntime().exec("uptime");
+			p.waitFor();
+			BufferedReader input = new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(p.getInputStream()));
+			while ((linetemp = input.readLine()) != null)
+				lines += linetemp;
+			input.close();
+			p.destroy();
+			lines = lines.split(",")[0].split("up")[1].trim();
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("unable to detect the uptime of this machine", e);
+			lines = "unable to detect";
+		}
+		return lines;
+	}
+
+	public Map<String, Double> loadStatistics() {
+
+		Map<String, Double> result = new HashMap<String, Double>();
+		try {
+			File loadadv = new File("/proc/loadavg");
+			if (loadadv.exists()) {
+				Reader reader = new FileReader(loadadv);
+				int c;
+				StringBuilder content = new StringBuilder();
+				while ((c = reader.read()) != -1)
+					content.append((char) c);
+				reader.close();
+				Pattern p = Pattern.compile("^(.*?)\\s{1}(.*?)\\s{1}(.*?)\\s{1}(.*)$");
+				Matcher matcher = p.matcher(content.toString());
+				if ((matcher.matches()) && (matcher.groupCount() > 3)) {
+					result.put("1min", new Double(matcher.group(1)));
+					result.put("5mins", new Double(matcher.group(2)));
+					result.put("15mins", new Double(matcher.group(3).split("\\s")[0]));
+				}
+			}
+		} catch (Exception ioe) {
+			log.warn("unable to detect the load values of this machine", ioe);
+		}
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public Map<String, Long> memoryUsage() {
+		Map<String, Long> map = new HashMap<String, Long>();
+		java.lang.management.OperatingSystemMXBean mxbean = java.lang.management.ManagementFactory
+				.getOperatingSystemMXBean();
+		com.sun.management.OperatingSystemMXBean sunmxbean = (com.sun.management.OperatingSystemMXBean) mxbean;
+		long freeMemory = sunmxbean.getFreePhysicalMemorySize() / 1048576; // in MB
+		long availableMemory = sunmxbean.getTotalPhysicalMemorySize() / 1048576; // in MB
+		map.put("MemoryAvailable", freeMemory);
+		map.put("MemoryTotalSize", availableMemory);
+		long ramVirtualAvailable = Runtime.getRuntime().freeMemory() / 1048576; // in MB
+		long ramVirtualSize = Runtime.getRuntime().totalMemory() / 1048576; // in MB
+		map.put("VirtualAvailable", ramVirtualAvailable);
+		map.put("VirtualSize", ramVirtualSize);
+		return map;
+	}
+	
+	private String domainIn(String hostname) {        
+		Pattern pattern = Pattern.compile("([0-9]{1,3}\\.[0-9]{1,3}\\.[0-9]{1,3}\\.[0-9]{1,3})");
+	    java.util.regex.Matcher regexMatcher = pattern.matcher(hostname);
+	    if (regexMatcher.matches()) //it's an IP address, nothing to trim
+	    	return hostname;
+		String[] tokens = hostname.split("\\.");
+		if (tokens.length < 2) 
+			return hostname;
+		else 			
+			return tokens[tokens.length-2]+ "." + tokens[tokens.length-1];			    		
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2bcfce1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfileManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,289 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle;
+
+import static java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit.SECONDS;
+import static org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind.critical;
+import static org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind.resilient;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.container_profile_property;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_management;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.addToContext;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.changed;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.published;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents.removeFromContext;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.activation;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.failure;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.part_activation;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.shutdown;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.stop;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.active;
+
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.concurrent.ScheduledFuture;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Property;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerLifecycleEvent.Start;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * 
+ * Manages the resource profile of the container.
+ * <p>
+ * 
+ * The manager:
+ * 
+ * <ul>
+ * <li>creates the profile when the container starts for the first time;
+ * <li>loads the profile when the container restarts;
+ * <li>publishes the profile when the container becomes active, and at any lifecycle change thereafter;
+ * <li>stores the profile locally after each publication;
+ * </ul>
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * @see ProfileBuilder
+ */
+@XmlRootElement(name = profile_management)
+public class ProfileManager extends ContainerHandler {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ProfileManager.class);
+
+	private ContainerContext context;
+
+	private ProfileBuilder builder;
+	private ProfilePublisher publisher;
+
+
+	private ScheduledFuture<?> periodicUpdates;
+
+	@Override
+	public void onStart(Start e) {
+
+		context = e.context();
+		builder = new ProfileBuilder(context);
+
+		activated();
+
+		// note we don't fire profile events, but wait for the final startup response which
+		// will result in a state change. only then we publish and store the profile
+		// this avoids the redundancy and performance penalty of storing and publishing multiple
+		// times in rapid succession (which would be correct). Revise if proves problematic in corner
+		// cases.
+
+	}
+
+	private void activated(){
+		HostingNode profile = loadOrCreateProfile();
+
+		share(profile);
+
+		publisher = new ProfilePublisher(context);
+
+		registerObservers();
+
+		schedulePeriodicUpdates();
+	}
+	
+	private void registerObservers() {
+
+		context.events().subscribe(new Object() {
+
+			@Observes({ activation, part_activation, shutdown, stop, failure })
+			void onChanged(ContainerLifecycle lc) {
+				
+				HostingNode profile = context.profile(HostingNode.class);
+
+				profile.profile().description().status(lc.state().remoteForm());
+
+				// since we do not know the observers, they will deal with failures and their consequences
+				// any that comes back will be logged in this event thread
+				context.events().fire(profile, changed);
+
+			}
+
+
+			@Observes(value = published)
+			void shareAfterPublish(HostingNode profile) {
+
+				share(profile); // publish may produce a new profile instance
+
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = changed, kind = critical)
+			void publishAfterChange(HostingNode profile) {
+				log.info("Publish after profile Change event called");
+				publish(profile); // if successful, triggers share and store.
+
+			}
+			
+			@Observes(value = addToContext)
+			void addTo(String token) {
+				try {
+					log.trace("publishing container with new token");
+					publisher.addTo(Collections.singleton(token));
+					publisher.update();
+				}catch (Exception e) {
+
+					log.error("cannot add token {} (see details)",token, e);
+
+					// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile
+					// will not be stored.
+					// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the
+					// changed profile.
+					//TODO: CHECK --- store(profile);
+				}
+
+			}
+			
+			@Observes(value = removeFromContext)
+			void removeFrom(String token) {
+				try {
+					log.trace("unpublishing container with new token");
+					publisher.removeFrom(Collections.singleton(token));
+					publisher.update();
+				}catch (Exception e) {
+
+					log.error("cannot remove token {} (see details)",token, e);
+
+					// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile
+					// will not be stored.
+					// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the
+					// changed profile.
+					//TODO: CHECK --- store(profile);
+				}
+
+			}
+		});
+	}
+
+	private HostingNode loadOrCreateProfile() {
+		
+		return createProfile();
+
+	}
+
+	private void share(HostingNode profile) {
+
+		log.trace("sharing container profile");
+		context.properties().add(new Property(container_profile_property, profile));
+	}
+
+	private HostingNode createProfile() {
+
+		log.info("creating container profile");
+
+		try {
+			HostingNode node = builder.create();
+			node.setId(context.id());
+			return node;
+		} catch (Throwable e) {
+
+			// this is a critical startup failure: it will fail the application
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot create container profile", e);
+
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private void publish(HostingNode profile) {
+
+		//ContainerConfiguration configuration = context.configuration();
+
+		// first-publication vs. routine publication: when we delete scopes let's make sure there is
+		// at least one left of it will be re-triggered
+		boolean firstPublication = profile.scopes().isEmpty();
+
+		try {
+
+			if (firstPublication)
+				publisher.addToAll();
+			else
+				publisher.update();
+
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+
+			log.error("cannot publish container (see details)", e);
+
+			// since we've failed no published event is fired and profile will not be stored.
+			// we do it manually to ensure we leave some local trace of the changed profile.
+			//store(profile);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void schedulePeriodicUpdates() {
+
+		// register to cancel updates
+		context.events().subscribe(
+
+				new Object() {
+
+					// we register it in response to lifecycle events so that we can stop and resume along with application
+					@Observes(value = { activation, part_activation }, kind = resilient)
+					synchronized void restartPeriodicUpdates(ContainerLifecycle lc) {
+
+						//already running
+						if (periodicUpdates!=null)
+							return;
+
+						if (lc.state()==active)
+							log.info("scheduling periodic updates of container profile");
+
+						else
+							log.info("resuming periodic updates of container profile");
+
+						final Runnable updateTask = new Runnable() {
+							public void run() {
+								HostingNode profile = context.profile(HostingNode.class);
+
+								try {
+									builder.update(profile, false);
+								}
+								catch(Exception e) {
+									//we may fail in the update of the profile
+									log.error("cannot complete periodic update of container profile",e);
+								}
+
+								//if handling of event generates failures these will be reported
+								//for resilience we do not fail the application
+								log.trace("firing change event on container profile");
+								context.events().fire(profile,changed);
+							}
+						};
+
+						periodicUpdates = Utils.scheduledServicePool.scheduleAtFixedRate(updateTask, 3, context.configuration()
+								.publicationFrequency(), SECONDS);
+
+					}
+
+					@Observes(value = { stop, failure, shutdown }, kind = resilient)
+					synchronized void cancelPeriodicUpdates(ContainerLifecycle ignore) {
+
+						if (periodicUpdates != null){
+							log.trace("stopping periodic updates of container profile");
+
+							try {
+								periodicUpdates.cancel(true);
+								periodicUpdates=null;
+							}
+							catch(Exception e) {
+								log.warn("could not stop periodic updates of container profile",e);
+							}
+						}
+					}
+
+				});
+
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return profile_management;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d3933ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/handlers/container/lifecycle/ProfilePublisher.java
@@ -0,0 +1,233 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.notEmpty;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.rethrowUnchecked;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.SecurityTokenProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Publishes the resource profile of the container.
+ * <p>
+ * Distinguishes publication in new scopes ({@link #addTo(List)} from publication updates in existing scopes ({@link #update(List)}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ProfilePublisher {
+
+	private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ProfilePublisher.class);
+
+	//the underlying IS publisher
+	private final ScopedPublisher publisher;
+	//private final AuthorizationProvider authorization;
+	private final ContainerContext context;
+
+	private AuthorizationProxy authProxy  ;
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance for the container.
+	 * @param context the context of the application
+	 */
+	public ProfilePublisher(ContainerContext context) {
+		this.context = context;
+		this.publisher=ProviderFactory.provider().publisherFor(context);
+		this.authProxy = ProviderFactory.provider().authorizationProxy();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds the current resource profile of the application in one or more 
+	 * scopes. The scopes are retrieved from tokens 
+	 * @param tokens the tokens
+	 */
+	public void addTo(Collection<String> tokens) {
+
+		notEmpty("tokens",tokens);
+
+		log.info("publishing container with tokens {}", tokens);
+
+		HostingNode profile = context.profile(HostingNode.class);
+		
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		//TODO: remove when move to new IS
+		Collection<String> retainedContexts = new ArrayList<String>(context.configuration().allowedContexts());
+		retainedContexts.removeAll(profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		profile.scopes().asCollection().addAll(retainedContexts);
+		
+		log.trace("profile scopes on create are {} ",profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		
+		try {
+			for (String token: tokens){
+				log.info("creating profile with token {}", token);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.create(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}				
+			
+			update();
+			
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("error adding scopes",e);
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		}*/
+		
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)tokens.toArray()[0]); 
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.create(profile, resolveScopesFromTokens(tokens));
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		} finally {
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+		
+		sharePublished(profile);
+		
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Adds the current resource profile of the application in one or more scopes.
+	 */
+	public void addToAll() {
+		addTo(context.configuration().startTokens());
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Updates the current resource profile of the application in its current scopes.
+	 */
+	public void update() {
+
+		HostingNode profile = context.profile(HostingNode.class);
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		Collection<String> tokens = context.configuration().startTokens();
+				
+		log.info("updating container with tokens {}", tokens);
+ 				
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		
+		try {
+			for (String token: tokens){
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.update(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}							
+			sharePublished(profile);
+
+		} 
+		catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("error updating container",e);
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		}*/
+		
+		
+		log.debug("[update] resource scopes are : {} ",profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)context.configuration().startTokens().toArray()[0]); 
+			
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.update(profile);
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		} finally {
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		}
+		
+		sharePublished(profile);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Removes the container from one or more scopes.
+	 * @param tokens the tokens
+	 */
+	public void removeFrom(Collection<String> tokens) {
+
+		HostingNode profile = context.profile(HostingNode.class);
+		
+		log.info("removing container with tokens {}", tokens);
+		
+		/* TODO: reintroduce it when scope will be removed
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		
+		try {
+			
+			for (String token: tokens){
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+				profile = publisher.remove(profile);
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+			}				
+
+			update();
+
+		} 
+		catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("error removing scopes",e);
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+		} */
+		
+		ClassLoader contextCL = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader();
+		
+		String previousToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+		try{//This classloader set is needed for the jaxb context
+			if (previousToken==null)
+				SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set((String)tokens.toArray()[0]); 
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(ProfilePublisher.class.getClassLoader());
+			profile = publisher.remove(profile, resolveScopesFromTokens(tokens));
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			rethrowUnchecked(e);
+		} finally {
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(previousToken);
+			Thread.currentThread().setContextClassLoader(contextCL);
+		} 
+		
+		log.debug("after remove container profile contains scopes {}",profile.scopes().asCollection());
+		sharePublished(profile);
+	}
+
+	private void sharePublished(HostingNode profile) {
+		context.events().fire(profile,ProfileEvents.published);
+	}
+
+	private List<String> resolveScopesFromTokens(Collection<String> tokens){
+		List<String> scopes = new ArrayList<String>(tokens.size());
+		for (String token: tokens)
+			try{
+				scopes.add(this.authProxy.get(token).getContext());
+			}catch (Exception e) {
+				log.warn("error retrieving token {} , it should never happen",token);
+			}
+		return scopes;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/DefaultLifecycle.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/DefaultLifecycle.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2181547
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/DefaultLifecycle.java
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+public class DefaultLifecycle<S extends State<S>> implements Lifecycle<S> {
+
+	private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(Lifecycle.class);
+	
+	private final Hub hub;
+	private final String name;
+	private S currentState;
+	private S previousState;
+	
+	public DefaultLifecycle(Hub hub, String name, S startState){
+		this.hub = hub;
+		this.currentState = startState;
+		this.name = name;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public S state() {
+		return currentState;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void moveTo(S next) {
+		
+		if (next == currentState) 
+			return;
+		
+		if (currentState.next().contains(next)){
+
+			this.previousState = this.currentState;
+			this.currentState = next;
+			
+			log.trace("{} transitioned from {} to {}",new Object[]{name,previousState,currentState});
+			
+			hub.fire(this, currentState.event());
+			
+		}
+		else throw new IllegalStateException("cannot transition "+name+" from " +currentState+" to "+next);
+			
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public boolean tryMoveTo(S next) {
+		try {
+			moveTo(next);
+			return true;
+		}
+		catch(IllegalStateException ignore) {
+			return false;
+		}
+		
+	}
+
+	public S previous() {
+		return this.previousState;
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/Lifecycle.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/Lifecycle.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7ec16bb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/Lifecycle.java
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle;
+
+/**
+ * The lifecycle of an application managed as a gCube service.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public interface Lifecycle<S extends State<S>> {
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the state from which this lifecycle transitioned to its current state.
+	 * @return the previous state
+	 */
+	S previous();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the current state of this lifecycle.
+	 * @return the current state.
+	 */
+	S state();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Transition this lifecycle to a given state.
+	 * @param state the state
+	 * 
+	 * @throws IllegalStateException if the transition is illegal for this lifecycle 
+	 */
+	void moveTo(S state);
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Attempts to transition this lifecycle to a given state, but does not fail if the transition is illegal for this lifecycle.
+	 * @param state the state
+	 * @return <code>true<code> if this lifecycle has transitioned to the given state
+	 */
+	boolean tryMoveTo(S state);
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/State.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/State.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7bb1fde
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/State.java
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle;
+
+import java.util.List;
+
+public interface State<S extends State<S>> {
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the list of states to which services can transition to from this state.
+	 * @return the states
+	 */
+	public abstract List<S> next();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the event corresponding to this state.
+	 * @return the 
+	 */
+	public String event();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns a serialisation of this state for exchange purposes.
+	 * @return
+	 */
+	public String remoteForm();
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationLifecycle.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationLifecycle.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..556014e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationLifecycle.java
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.DefaultLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.Lifecycle;
+
+/**
+ * The {@link Lifecycle} of an application.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class ApplicationLifecycle extends DefaultLifecycle<ApplicationState> {
+
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ApplicationState#started} state of the service lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String start = "start";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ApplicationState#active} state of the service lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String activation = "activation";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ApplicationState#started#stopped} state of the service lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String stop = "stop";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ApplicationState#failed} state of the service lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String failure = "failure";
+	
+	public ApplicationLifecycle(Hub hub, String name){
+		super(hub,name,ApplicationState.started);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationState.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationState.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..11d40a6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/application/ApplicationState.java
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application;
+
+import static java.util.Arrays.*;
+import static java.util.Collections.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle.*;
+
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.State;
+
+/**
+ * The state and state transitions of the lifecycle of an application managed as a gCube service.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public enum ApplicationState implements State<ApplicationState> {
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of applications that are in the process of initialisation.
+	 */
+	started(start){
+		
+		public List<ApplicationState> next() {
+			return asList(active, failed);
+		}
+		
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "STARTED";
+		}
+	},
+
+	/**
+	 * The state of applications that have completed initialisation and can accept client requests.
+	 */
+	active(activation) {
+
+		public List<ApplicationState> next() {
+			return asList(failed,stopped);
+		}
+		
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "ready";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of applications that have can no longer accept requests, even though they may in the future.
+	 */
+	stopped(stop){
+		
+		public List<ApplicationState> next() {
+			return asList(failed,active);
+		}
+		
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "down";
+		}
+	},
+
+	/**
+	 * The permanent state of applications that has encountered some fatal failure and can no longer accept requests.
+	 */
+	failed(failure){
+
+		public List<ApplicationState> next() {
+			return emptyList();
+		}
+		
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "failed";
+		}
+	};
+
+	private final String event;
+	
+	//used internally
+	ApplicationState(String event) {
+		this.event=event;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String event() {
+		return event;
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerLifecycle.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerLifecycle.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8a6caff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerLifecycle.java
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.DefaultLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.Lifecycle;
+
+/**
+ * The {@link Lifecycle} of the application container.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class ContainerLifecycle extends DefaultLifecycle<ContainerState> {
+
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#pending} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String pending = "pending";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#started} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String start = "start";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#partActive} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String activation = "activation";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#active} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String part_activation = "part_activation";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#stopped} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String stop = "stop";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#stopped} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String shutdown = "shutdown";
+	
+	/**
+	 * The event qualifier that correspond to the {@link ContainerState#fa} state of the container lifecycle.
+	 */
+	public static final String failure = "failure";
+	
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with an event {@link Hub}. 
+	 * 
+	 * @param hub the event hub
+	 */
+	public ContainerLifecycle(Hub hub){
+		super(hub,"container",ContainerState.started);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerState.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerState.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9d5a2ba
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/lifecycle/container/ContainerState.java
@@ -0,0 +1,135 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container;
+
+import static java.util.Arrays.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle.*;
+
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.State;
+
+/**
+ * The state and state transitions of the lifecycle of an application managed as a gCube service.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public enum ContainerState implements State<ContainerState> {
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container that is in the process of pre authorization.
+	 */
+	notAuthorized(pending){
+		
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(active,failed);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "started";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container that is in the process of initialisation.
+	 */
+	started(start){
+		
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(active,failed);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "started";
+		}
+	},
+
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container in which not all applications are active.
+	 */
+	partActive(part_activation) {
+
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(active,stopped,down);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "ready";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container in which all applications are active.
+	 */
+	active(activation) {
+
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(partActive,stopped,down);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "certified";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container in which applications can no longer accept requests, even though they may in the future.
+	 */
+	stopped(stop){
+		
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(partActive,active);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "down";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container which has been explicitly shutdown.
+	 */
+	down(shutdown){
+		
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return asList(partActive,active);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "down";
+		}
+	},
+	
+	/**
+	 * The state of a container that has not completed initialisation.
+	 */
+	failed(failure) {
+
+		public List<ContainerState> next() {
+			return Collections.emptyList();
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public String remoteForm() {
+			return "failed";
+		}
+	};
+
+	private final String event;
+	
+	//used internally
+	ContainerState(String event) {
+		this.event=event;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String event() {
+		return event;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ApplicationManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ApplicationManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b4f9ad8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ApplicationManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,363 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.managers;
+
+import static java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit.SECONDS;
+import static org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind.critical;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.context_attribute;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.active;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.failed;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.stopped;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory.provider;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileOutputStream;
+import java.io.ObjectOutputStream;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import javax.servlet.FilterRegistration;
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+import javax.servlet.ServletContextEvent;
+import javax.servlet.ServletContextListener;
+import javax.servlet.ServletRegistration;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.SecurityTokenProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.RequestExceptionBarrier;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationPipeline;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Coordinates management of an application as a gCube resource.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ApplicationManager {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ApplicationManager.class);
+
+	private ApplicationPipeline<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> lifecyclePipeline;
+
+	private ApplicationContext context;
+
+	/**
+	 * Starts application management.
+	 * 
+	 * @param container
+	 * @param application the context of the application
+	 * @return the context of the application
+	 */
+	public ApplicationContext start(ContainerContext container, ServletContext application) {
+
+		try {
+
+			context = provider().contextFor(container, application);
+
+			context.configuration().validate();
+
+			if (context.configuration().secure() && 
+					container.configuration().securePort()==null)
+				throw new IllegalStateException(
+						String.format("Application %s cannot be managed because is declared as secure without a secure connector port declared in the container", context.application().getContextPath()));
+
+
+			context.configuration().startTokens(generateTokensForApplication(container));
+
+			saveApplicationState();
+
+			// make context available to application in case it is gcube-aware
+			shareContextWith(application);
+
+			// prepare for events as early as possible
+			registerObservers();
+
+			ApplicationHandlers handlers = provider().handlersFor(context);
+			handlers.validate();
+
+
+
+			ApplicationExtensions extensions = provider().extensionsFor(context);
+			extensions.validate();
+
+			List<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> lifecycleHandlers = handlers.lifecycleHandlers();
+			List<RequestHandler> requestHandlers = handlers.requestHandlers();
+
+
+			log.trace("managing {} lifecycle with {}", context.name(), lifecycleHandlers);
+			log.trace("managing {} requests with {}", context.name(), requestHandlers);
+			log.trace("extending {} API with {}", context.name(), extensions);
+
+			// order is important here: first add APIs
+			register(extensions);
+
+			// then intercept them all
+			register(requestHandlers);
+
+			// start lifecycle management
+			start(lifecycleHandlers);
+
+			//adding the context name to the configuration
+			context.configuration().context(application.getContextPath());
+
+			// we're in business
+			context.lifecycle().moveTo(active);
+
+			return context;
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			log.error("error starting application {} ", context.name(),e);
+
+			if (context != null)
+				context.lifecycle().moveTo(failed);
+
+			throw e;
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private Set<String> generateTokensForApplication(ContainerContext container){
+		log.info("generating token for app {}",context.configuration().name());
+		Set<String> tokens = new HashSet<String>();
+		AuthorizationProxy authProxy = provider().authorizationProxy();
+		for (String containerToken :container.configuration().startTokens())
+			tokens.add(generateApplicationToken(containerToken, authProxy));
+		return tokens;
+	}
+
+	private String generateApplicationToken(String containerToken, AuthorizationProxy authProxy){
+		SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(containerToken);
+		try {
+			log.info("generating token for app {} with container token {} ",context.configuration().name(), containerToken);
+			return authProxy.generateServiceToken(Utils.getServiceInfo(context));
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			throw new RuntimeException("error contacting authorization service",e);
+		} finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.reset();
+		}
+		
+	}
+
+
+	private void saveApplicationState() {
+		File file = context.configuration().persistence().file(profile_file_path);		
+		try(ObjectOutputStream oos = new ObjectOutputStream(new FileOutputStream(file))){
+			oos.writeObject(context.id());
+		}catch (Exception e) {
+			log.error("error serializing application {} state", context.name());
+			throw new RuntimeException(e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Stops application management.
+	 * 
+	 */
+	public void stop() {
+
+		if (context == null)
+			return;
+
+		log.info("stopping {} management", context.name());
+
+		try {
+
+			context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(stopped);
+
+			context.events().fire(context, ApplicationLifecycle.stop);
+
+			stopLifecycleHandlers();
+
+			log.info("stopping application events for {}", context.name());
+
+			context.events().stop();
+
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+
+			log.warn("cannot stop {} management (see cause)", context.name(), e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private void register(List<RequestHandler> rqHandlers) {
+
+		ServletContext app = context.application();
+
+		// attach filters based on request pipeline to each servlet
+		Collection<? extends ServletRegistration> servlets = app.getServletRegistrations().values();
+
+		for (ServletRegistration servlet : servlets) {
+
+			String name = servlet.getName();
+
+			if (name.equals("default") || name.equals("jsp")) // skip page-resolving servlets
+				continue;
+
+			for (String mapping : servlet.getMappings()) {
+
+				RequestManager requestFilter = new RequestManager(context, name, rqHandlers);
+
+				FilterRegistration.Dynamic filter = app.addFilter(name + "-filter-"+mapping.replaceAll("/", ""), requestFilter);
+
+				log.trace("filter {} for requestfilter {} in contextPath {} is null ?? {} ",name ,requestFilter, mapping, (filter==null));
+
+				filter.addMappingForUrlPatterns(null, false, mapping);
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void register(ApplicationExtensions extensions) {
+
+		ServletContext application = context.application();
+
+		for (ApplicationExtension extension : extensions.extensions())
+
+			try {
+
+				extension.init(context);
+
+				//register excludes
+				context.configuration().excludes().addAll(extension.excludes());
+
+				String mapping = extension.mapping();
+
+				application.addServlet(context.configuration().name() + "-" + extension.name(), extension)
+				.addMapping(mapping);
+
+				// adds a filter to map request exceptions onto error responses,
+				// repeating for our extensions what we already do for our filters.
+				// we do not interfere with error management of native application servlets
+				RequestExceptionBarrier barrier = new RequestExceptionBarrier();
+				FilterRegistration.Dynamic filter = application.addFilter("exception-barrier", barrier);
+				filter.addMappingForUrlPatterns(null, false, mapping);
+
+				log.info("registered API extension {} @ {}", extension.name(), mapping);
+
+			} catch (Exception e) {
+
+				throw new RuntimeException("cannot register API extension " + extension.name(), e);
+			}
+
+	}
+
+	private void start(List<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> handlers) {
+
+		try {
+
+			lifecyclePipeline = new ApplicationPipeline<ApplicationLifecycleHandler>(handlers);
+
+			lifecyclePipeline.forward(new ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start(context));
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+			context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(failed);
+			throw e;
+		}
+	}
+
+	private void stopLifecycleHandlers() {
+
+		if (lifecyclePipeline == null)
+			return;
+
+		// copy pipeline, flip it, and
+		ApplicationPipeline<ApplicationLifecycleHandler> returnPipeline = lifecyclePipeline.reverse();
+
+		// start lifetime pipeline in inverse order with stop event
+		returnPipeline.forward(new ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Stop(context));
+
+	}
+
+	private void registerObservers() {
+		Object observer = new Object() {
+
+			@Observes(value = ContainerLifecycle.stop, kind = critical)
+			void onStopOf(ContainerLifecycle ignore) {
+
+				if (!context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(stopped))
+					log.warn("cannot stop {} after container has stopped", context.name());				
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = ContextEvents.ADD_TOKEN_TO_APPLICATION, kind = critical)
+			void onAddToken(String containerToken) {
+				log.trace("event add received with token {} ",containerToken);
+				String appToken = generateApplicationToken(containerToken, provider().authorizationProxy());
+				context.configuration().startTokens().add(appToken);
+				log.trace("app token created : {} ", appToken);
+				context.events().fire(appToken, ProfileEvents.addToContext);
+				context.events().fire(appToken, Constants.token_registered);
+			}
+
+			@Observes(value = ContextEvents.REMOVE_TOKEN_FROM_APPLICATION, kind = critical)
+			void onRemoveToken(String containerToken) {
+				log.trace("event remove received with token {} ",containerToken);
+				String appToken = generateApplicationToken(containerToken, provider().authorizationProxy());
+				context.configuration().startTokens().remove(appToken);
+				log.trace("app token removed : {} ", appToken);
+				context.events().fire(appToken, ProfileEvents.removeFromContext);
+				context.events().fire(appToken, Constants.token_removed);
+			}
+			
+		};
+
+		context.container().events().subscribe(observer);
+
+		// we cleanup when container stops
+		context.application().addListener(new ServletContextListener() {
+
+			@Override
+			public void contextInitialized(ServletContextEvent sce) {
+				log.info("initilizing context {} ",context.name());
+				context.events().fire(context.application().getContextPath(), ApplicationLifecycle.activation);
+				log.info("webApp {} initialized ",context.name());
+			}
+
+			//when the container shuts down we go down
+			@Override
+			public void contextDestroyed(ServletContextEvent sce) {
+
+				try {
+
+					log.info("stopping {} on undeployment|shutdown",context.name());
+
+					stop();
+
+					log.info("suspending undeployment|shutdow to allow {} to stop gracefully",context.name());
+
+					SECONDS.sleep(3);
+
+					log.info("resuming undeployment|shutdow after stopping {}",context.name());
+
+				}
+				catch (InterruptedException e) {
+					log.warn(context.name()+" cannot gracefully stop on undeployment|shutdow",e);
+				}
+
+
+			}
+		});
+	}
+
+	private void shareContextWith(ServletContext application) {
+		application.setAttribute(context_attribute, context);
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContainerManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContainerManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..675a74a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContainerManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,327 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.managers;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.container_profile_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.active;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.down;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.failed;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.stopped;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory.provider;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileOutputStream;
+import java.io.ObjectOutputStream;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.exceptions.ObjectNotFound;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.AuthorizationEntry;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ClientInfo;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ContainerInfo;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes.Kind;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.ProfileEvents;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerLifecycleEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerPipeline;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Coordinates management of the container as a gCube resource.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class ContainerManager {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ContainerManager.class);
+
+	public static ContainerManager instance = new ContainerManager();
+
+	private AuthorizationProxy authProvider = provider().authorizationProxy();
+
+	private ContainerContext context;
+
+	private ContainerPipeline pipeline;
+
+	private ContainerManager() {}
+
+	/**
+	 * Starts container management.
+	 */
+	public ContainerContext start(ContainerContext context) {
+
+		this.context = context;
+
+		try {
+
+			// TODO Ask if is not enough that is already done in 
+			// Bootstrap.initialiseContainer() function;
+			context.configuration().validate();
+
+			validateContainer(context);
+
+			saveContainerState();
+
+			ContainerHandlers handlers = provider().containerHandlers();
+
+			log.trace("managing container lifecycle with {}", handlers.get());
+
+			startHandlers(handlers.get());
+
+			context.lifecycle().moveTo(active);
+
+			log.trace("loading keys for starting token ...");
+			//loadKeyForToken(context.configuration().startTokens());
+			log.trace("keys loaded for starting token ...");
+
+			return context;
+		}
+		catch(RuntimeException e) {
+
+			log.error("cannot manage container (see cause)",e);
+
+			if (context!=null)
+				context.lifecycle().moveTo(failed);
+
+			throw e;
+		}
+
+	}
+
+
+	private void saveContainerState() {
+		File file = context.configuration().persistence().file(container_profile_file_path);		
+		try(ObjectOutputStream oos = new ObjectOutputStream(new FileOutputStream(file))){
+			oos.writeObject(context.id());
+			oos.writeObject(context.configuration().startTokens());
+		}catch (Exception e) {
+			log.error("error serializing cointainer state");
+			throw new RuntimeException(e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	private void validateContainer(ContainerContext context) {
+		List<String> tokensToRemove = new ArrayList<String>();
+		Set<String> foundContexts= new HashSet<String>();
+
+		for (String token : context.configuration().startTokens()){
+			String tokenContext = resolveTokenForAdd(foundContexts, token);
+			if (tokenContext!=null){
+				log.info("the container will be started in context {}",tokenContext);
+				foundContexts.add(tokenContext);
+			} else
+				tokensToRemove.add(token);
+		}
+
+		if (foundContexts.isEmpty()){
+			log.error("no valid starting token are specified, moving the container to failed");
+			throw new RuntimeException("no valid starting token are specified");
+		}
+		
+		context.configuration().startTokens().removeAll(tokensToRemove);
+		context.configuration().allowedContexts(foundContexts);
+	}
+
+	private String resolveTokenForAdd(Set<String> alreadyAddedContext, String token){
+		try {
+			AuthorizationEntry entry = authProvider.get(token);
+			ClientInfo info = entry.getClientInfo();
+			log.info("resolved authorization entry for container {}",entry);
+			if (alreadyAddedContext.contains(entry.getContext())){
+				log.warn("the token {} cannot be used, another token with the same context {} found ", entry.getContext());
+			} else if(!entry.getContext().startsWith("/"+context.configuration().infrastructure())){
+				log.warn("the token {} cannot be used, is not in the infrastructure {} of the container ", token,context.configuration().infrastructure());				
+			}else if (!(info instanceof ContainerInfo)){ 
+				log.warn("the token {} cannot be used, is not for a container token ", token);
+			} else if (!((ContainerInfo)info).getHost().equals(context.configuration().hostname()) 
+					|| context.configuration().port()!=((ContainerInfo)info).getPort()){
+				log.warn("the token {} cannot be used, the client id {} resolved with the token is not the same of the one specified in this container  ", token, info.getId());
+			} else
+				return entry.getContext();
+		}catch(ObjectNotFound onf){
+			log.error("token {} not valid", token);
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			log.error("error contacting authorization for token {}",token,e);
+		}
+		return null;
+	}
+
+	public void manage(ApplicationContext app) {
+
+		app.events().subscribe(this); 
+
+	}
+
+	@Observes(value={ApplicationLifecycle.failure,ApplicationLifecycle.stop},kind=Kind.critical)
+	void monitorApplication(ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle) {
+		context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(ContainerState.partActive);
+	}
+
+	@Observes(value=ContextEvents.ADD_TOKEN_TO_CONTAINER,kind=Kind.critical)
+	void addToken(String token) {
+		log.trace("adding token {} to container", token);
+		String newContext;
+		if ((newContext = resolveTokenForAdd(context.configuration().allowedContexts(), token))!=null) {
+			context.configuration().startTokens().add(token);
+			context.configuration().allowedContexts().add(newContext);
+			saveContainerState();
+			//loadKeyForToken(Arrays.asList(token));
+			context.events().fire(token, ContextEvents.ADD_TOKEN_TO_APPLICATION);
+			context.events().fire(token, ProfileEvents.addToContext);
+			log.trace("token added and event fired");
+		} else log.warn("trying to add an invalid token");
+	}
+
+	@Observes(value=ContextEvents.REMOVE_TOKEN_FROM_CONTAINER,kind=Kind.critical)
+	void removeToken(String token) {
+		log.trace("removing token {} from container", token);
+		AuthorizationEntry entry;
+		try {
+			entry = authProvider.get(token);
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			log.error("error resolving token to remove");
+			return;
+		}
+
+		if (context.configuration().startTokens().contains(token)) {
+			context.configuration().startTokens().remove(token);
+			context.configuration().allowedContexts().remove(entry.getContext());
+			saveContainerState();
+			context.events().fire(token, ContextEvents.REMOVE_TOKEN_FROM_APPLICATION);
+			context.events().fire(token, ProfileEvents.removeFromContext);
+			log.trace("token removed and event fired");
+		} else log.warn("cannot remove token, it is not present in the container");
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Stops container management on remote request.
+	 * 
+	 */
+	public void stop() {
+
+		stop(false);
+	}
+
+
+	/**
+	 * Stops container management on remote request or container shutdown.
+	 * 
+	 */
+	public void stop(boolean shutdown) {
+
+		//two cases: stop-on-shutdown and stop-on-request, some listeners will be selective about this,
+
+		//shutdown is triggered by probe app, which is notified among other apps
+		//if other app have been already notified, the container may already be part-active.
+		//apps still to notify will listen only on stop, hence won't react to this but will go down when their turn arrives.
+
+		if (context == null)
+			return;
+
+		log.info("stopping container management");
+
+		try {
+
+			context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(shutdown?down:stopped);
+			
+			stopHandlers();
+
+			//no further reactions
+			log.info("stopping container events");
+			context.events().stop();
+			Utils.scheduledServicePool.shutdownNow();
+
+		} 
+		catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			log.warn("cannot stop container management (see cause)", e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+
+
+	//helpers
+
+	private void startHandlers(List<ContainerHandler> handlers) {
+
+		try {
+
+			pipeline = new ContainerPipeline(handlers);
+
+			pipeline.forward(new ContainerLifecycleEvent.Start(context));
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			context.lifecycle().tryMoveTo(failed);
+			throw e;
+		}
+	}
+
+
+	private void stopHandlers() {
+
+		if (pipeline == null)
+			return;
+
+		// copy pipeline, flip it, and
+		ContainerPipeline returnPipeline = pipeline.reverse();
+
+		// start lifetime pipeline in inverse order with stop event
+		returnPipeline.forward(new ContainerLifecycleEvent.Stop(context));
+
+	}
+/*
+	private void loadKeyForToken(List<String> tokens) {
+		String initialToken = SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get();
+
+		//TODO: change this
+		String filePath = "/tmp/keys";
+		File PathDirs = new File(filePath+"/");
+		PathDirs.mkdirs();
+		try{
+			for (String token : tokens)	{
+				try{
+					SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(token);
+					File key = authProvider.getSymmKey(filePath);
+					log.trace("loading key {} file name ",key.getAbsolutePath());
+					log.trace("loaded key {} file name ",key.getAbsolutePath());
+				}catch(Exception e){
+					log.warn("error loading key for token {}", token, e);
+				}
+			}
+			loadFileIntoClasspath(PathDirs);
+		}finally{
+			SecurityTokenProvider.instance.set(initialToken);
+		}
+	}
+	
+	
+	private void loadFileIntoClasspath(File file){
+		try {
+		    URL url = file.toURI().toURL();
+		    
+		    ClassLoader currentClassloader = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader().getParent()==null?
+		    		Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader() : Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader().getParent();
+		    
+		    URLClassLoader classLoader = (URLClassLoader)currentClassloader;
+		    Method method = URLClassLoader.class.getDeclaredMethod("addURL", URL.class);
+		    method.setAccessible(true);
+		    method.invoke(classLoader, url);
+		} catch (Exception ex) {
+		   	log.error("error loading file into classpath",ex);
+		}
+	}
+	*/
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContextEvents.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContextEvents.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8b771c2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/ContextEvents.java
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.managers;
+
+public class ContextEvents {
+
+	public static final String ADD_TOKEN_TO_CONTAINER ="AddTokenToContainer";
+
+	public static final String ADD_TOKEN_TO_APPLICATION ="AddTokenToApplication";
+
+	public static final String REMOVE_TOKEN_FROM_CONTAINER ="RemoveTokenFromContainer";
+
+	public static final String REMOVE_TOKEN_FROM_APPLICATION ="RemoveTokenFromApplication";
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/RequestManager.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/RequestManager.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b8fc520
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/managers/RequestManager.java
@@ -0,0 +1,234 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.managers;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.*;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.servlet.Filter;
+import javax.servlet.FilterChain;
+import javax.servlet.FilterConfig;
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.ServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.ServletResponse;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.DefaultApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationPipeline;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ResponseEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestException;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * A {@link Filter} that executes a {@link ApplicationPipeline} of {@link RequestHandler}s before and a client request is delivered
+ * to a given servlet and before the response produced by the servlet is returned to the client.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class RequestManager implements Filter {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(RequestManager.class);
+
+	private final ApplicationContext context;
+	private final String servlet;
+	private final List<RequestHandler> handlers;
+
+	/**
+	 * Creates an instance with the name of the target servlet and a pipeline.
+	 * 
+	 * @param servlet the name of the servlet
+	 * @param pipeline the pipeline
+	 */
+	public RequestManager(ApplicationContext context, String servletName, List<RequestHandler> handlers) {
+		this.context = context;
+		this.servlet = servletName;
+		this.handlers = handlers;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void doFilter(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response, FilterChain chain) throws IOException,
+	ServletException {
+
+		HttpServletRequest httprequest = (HttpServletRequest) request;
+		HttpServletResponse httpresponse = (HttpServletResponse) response;
+
+		List<RequestHandler> filterHandlers = getPipelineWithExcluded(httprequest, handlers);
+				
+		if (filterHandlers.isEmpty())
+
+			chain.doFilter(request, response);
+
+		else {
+			
+			ApplicationPipeline<RequestHandler> pipeline = new ApplicationPipeline<RequestHandler>(filterHandlers);
+			
+			// create a per-request context with temporary properties
+			ApplicationContext ctx = new DefaultApplicationContext(context);
+
+			RequestEvent event = new RequestEvent(servlet, ctx, httprequest,httpresponse);
+
+			try {
+				pipeline.forward(event);
+			}
+			catch(Throwable t) {
+				handleError(httprequest,httpresponse,t);
+				return;
+			}
+
+			try{
+				// dispatch to other filters for this servlet
+				chain.doFilter(request, response);
+			}catch(Throwable t){
+				t.printStackTrace();
+				handleError(httprequest,httpresponse,t);
+			}
+
+			ResponseEvent responseEvent = new ResponseEvent(servlet, ctx, httprequest, httpresponse);
+
+			try {
+
+				pipeline.reverse().forward(responseEvent);
+			}
+			catch(Throwable t) {
+				t.printStackTrace();
+				handleError(httprequest,httpresponse,t);
+				return;
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	private List<RequestHandler> getPipelineWithExcluded(
+			HttpServletRequest request, List<RequestHandler> handlersToFilter) {
+		
+		String query = request.getQueryString();
+		
+		log.debug("servletPath is {} and pathInfo is {}",request.getServletPath(), request.getPathInfo());
+
+		if ("wsdl".equals(query) || "wsdl=1".equals(query))
+			return Collections.emptyList();
+		
+		String path = request.getServletPath()==null?"":request.getServletPath();
+		
+		path += request.getPathInfo() ==null?"":request.getPathInfo();
+		
+		
+		log.debug("check wich handler should be excluded {}", path);
+						
+		for (Exclude exclude : context.configuration().excludes()){
+			String excludePath= exclude.getPath();
+			log.trace("exclude is {}",exclude);
+			if (
+					(EXCLUDE_ALL).equals(exclude) || 
+					(excludePath.endsWith(EXCLUDE_ALL) && path!=null && path.startsWith(excludePath.substring(0,excludePath.length()-2))) ||
+					excludePath.equals(path) || (path.endsWith("/") && excludePath.equals(path.substring(0, path.length()-1)))
+					){
+				//ALL handler are filtered
+				if (exclude.getHandlers().isEmpty()) return Collections.emptyList();
+				
+				List<RequestHandler> filteredHandlers = new ArrayList<>();
+				for (RequestHandler rh : filteredHandlers)
+					if (!exclude.getHandlers().contains(rh.getName()))
+						filteredHandlers.add(rh);
+				return filteredHandlers;
+			}
+		}
+		
+		//in case no path is recognized in excludes it return all handlers
+		return handlersToFilter;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void init(FilterConfig filterConfig) throws ServletException {
+
+		// propagate filter initialisation to handler
+		try {
+
+			for (RequestHandler handler : this.handlers)
+
+				handler.start(context);
+
+		} catch (Throwable t) {
+
+			throw new ServletException(t);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public void destroy() {
+
+		for (RequestHandler handler : this.handlers)
+			try {
+
+				handler.stop();
+
+			} catch (Throwable t) {
+
+				log.error("cannot terminate handler {} for application {} ", handler, context.name());
+			}
+
+	}
+
+	// helpers
+/*
+	private boolean shouldExcludeRequest(HttpServletRequest request) {
+
+		String query = request.getQueryString();
+		
+		log.debug("servletPath is {} and pathInfo is {}",request.getServletPath(), request.getPathInfo());
+
+		if ("wsdl".equals(query) || "wsdl=1".equals(query))
+			return true;
+		
+		String path = request.getServletPath()==null?"":request.getServletPath();
+		
+		path += request.getPathInfo() ==null?"":request.getPathInfo();
+		
+		
+		log.debug("check if should exclude call with path {}", path);
+		
+		for (Exclude exclude : context.configuration().excludes()){
+			if (!exclude.getHandlers().isEmpty()) continue;
+			String excludePath= exclude.getPath();
+			log.trace("exclude is {}",exclude);
+			if (
+					(EXCLUDE_ALL).equals(exclude) || 
+					(excludePath.endsWith(EXCLUDE_ALL) && path!=null && path.startsWith(excludePath.substring(0,excludePath.length()-2))) ||
+					excludePath.equals(path) || (path.endsWith("/") && excludePath.equals(path.substring(0, path.length()-1)))
+					)
+				return true;
+		}
+		return false;
+	}*/
+
+	private void handleError(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response,Throwable t) throws IOException {
+
+		RequestError error = t instanceof RequestException?
+				RequestException.class.cast(t).error():
+					application_error;
+
+				if (error == application_error) {
+					response.sendError(error.code(),error.message());
+				}else {
+					if (error == request_not_authorized_error){
+						response.setHeader("WWW-Authenticate", "Basic realm=\"Smartgears\"");
+						log.info("setting WWW-Authenticate to response header");
+					}
+					response.getWriter().write("Error ("+error.code()+") : "+error.message()+"\nStacktrace:\n");
+					t.printStackTrace(response.getWriter());
+					response.setStatus(error.code());
+				}
+
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/DefaultPersistence.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/DefaultPersistence.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..21dbbc3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/DefaultPersistence.java
@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.persistence;
+
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils.*;
+
+import java.io.File;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.Unmarshaller;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlAttribute;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.common.validator.annotations.NotNull;
+
+@XmlRootElement(name="persistence")
+public class DefaultPersistence implements Persistence {
+
+	@XmlAttribute(name="location") @NotNull
+	private String location;
+	
+	public DefaultPersistence() {}
+	
+	public DefaultPersistence(String location) {
+		
+		notNull("persistence location",location);
+		
+		this.location=location;
+		validate();
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String location() {
+		return location;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public File writefile(String path) {
+		
+		notNull("relative path", path);
+		
+		return fileAt(new File(location, path).getAbsolutePath()).toWrite();
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public File file(String path) {
+		
+		notNull("relative path", path);
+		
+		return fileAt(new File(location, path).getAbsolutePath()).toRead();
+	}
+	
+	
+	//called after JAXB unmarshalling to purge unavailable handlers
+	void afterUnmarshal(Unmarshaller u, Object parent) {
+		
+		validate();
+	}
+	
+	public void validate() {
+		
+		File locationDir = new File(location);
+		if (!(locationDir.exists() && locationDir.isDirectory() && locationDir.canRead() && locationDir.canWrite()))
+				throw new IllegalStateException("invalid node configuration: home "+location+" does not exist or is not a directory or cannot be accessed in read/write mode");
+	
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public int hashCode() {
+		final int prime = 31;
+		int result = 1;
+		result = prime * result + ((location == null) ? 0 : location.hashCode());
+		return result;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
+		if (this == obj)
+			return true;
+		if (obj == null)
+			return false;
+		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
+			return false;
+		DefaultPersistence other = (DefaultPersistence) obj;
+		if (location == null) {
+			if (other.location != null)
+				return false;
+		} else if (!location.equals(other.location))
+			return false;
+		return true;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public String toString() {
+		return "local persistence in "+location;
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/Persistence.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/Persistence.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..058480e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/persistence/Persistence.java
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.persistence;
+
+import java.io.File;
+
+public interface Persistence {
+
+	String location();
+
+	File file(String path);
+	
+	File writefile(String path);
+
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/probe/ContainerListener.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/probe/ContainerListener.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9f5068e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/probe/ContainerListener.java
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.probe;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContextListener;
+import javax.servlet.annotation.WebListener;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.managers.ContainerManager;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+@WebListener
+public class ContainerListener implements ServletContextListener {
+	
+	public static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(ContainerListener.class);
+
+	public void contextDestroyed(javax.servlet.ServletContextEvent sce) {
+		log.trace("shutting down container from probe");
+		ContainerManager.instance.stop(true);
+	};
+	
+	public void contextInitialized(javax.servlet.ServletContextEvent sce) {
+		log.trace("starting up probe...");
+	};
+}
+
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/DefaultProvider.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/DefaultProvider.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6f91dcf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/DefaultProvider.java
@@ -0,0 +1,387 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.provider;
+
+import static org.gcube.common.authorization.client.Constants.authorizationService;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.configuration_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.container_configuraton_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.container_handlers_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.container_profile_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.default_extensions_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.default_handlers_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.extensions_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.ghn_home_env;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.ghn_home_property;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.handlers_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.library_configuration_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_file_path;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileInputStream;
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.io.ObjectInputStream;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.common.events.impl.DefaultHub;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.RegistryPublisherFactory;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfigurationBinder;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.BridgedApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfigurationBinder;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfigurationBinder;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.Properties;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.DefaultApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.DefaultContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.utils.Utils;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Default implementation of the {@link Provider} interface.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public class DefaultProvider implements Provider {
+
+	private static Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(Provider.class);
+	 
+	private ContainerContext containerContext;
+	//TODO: do the same with applicationContext (with a map)
+
+	protected DefaultProvider(){};
+
+	@SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+	@Override
+	public ContainerContext containerContext() {
+
+		if(containerContext==null){
+			ContainerConfiguration configuration = containerConfiguration();
+
+			if (configuration.persistence()==null) {
+				String location = Utils.home()+"/state";
+				File dir = new File(location);
+				if (!dir.exists())
+					dir.mkdirs();
+				configuration.persistence(new DefaultPersistence(location));
+
+				log.trace("setting persistence location for container @ {}",dir.getAbsolutePath());
+			}
+
+			Hub hub = new DefaultHub();
+
+			ContainerLifecycle lifecycle = new ContainerLifecycle(hub);
+
+			File file = configuration.persistence().file(container_profile_file_path);
+
+			String id = null;
+			List<String> tokens = null;
+			if (file.exists()){
+				log.info("loading persisted state for container");
+				try(ObjectInputStream ois = new ObjectInputStream(new FileInputStream(file))){
+					id = (String)ois.readObject();
+					tokens = (List<String>) ois.readObject();
+				}catch(Exception e){
+					log.error("error loading persisted state, creating new uuid",e);
+				}
+
+			} 
+			if (id==null){
+				id = UUID.randomUUID().toString();
+				log.info("container id created is {}",id);
+
+			} 
+
+			if (tokens!=null)
+				configuration.startTokens(tokens);
+
+			containerContext =  new DefaultContainerContext(id, configuration, hub, lifecycle, new Properties());
+		}
+		return containerContext;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ContainerHandlers containerHandlers() {
+
+		try {
+
+			InputStream config = getClass().getResourceAsStream(container_handlers_file_path);
+
+			if (config == null)
+				throw new IllegalStateException("invalid distribution: cannot find " + container_handlers_file_path);
+
+			ContainerConfigurationBinder binder = new ContainerConfigurationBinder();
+
+			return binder.bindHandlers(config);
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot install container handlers (see cause) ", e);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationContext contextFor(ContainerContext context, ServletContext application) {
+
+		ApplicationConfiguration configuration = null;
+		ApplicationConfiguration embedded = configurationFor(application);
+		ApplicationConfiguration external = context.configuration().app(application.getContextPath());
+
+
+
+		//shouldn't happen: management shouldn't have started at all
+		if (embedded==null && external==null)			
+			throw new AssertionError("application @ "+application.getContextPath()+" is not distributed with "
+					+ configuration_file_path+" and there is no external configuration for it in "+container_configuraton_file_path);
+
+		//no embedded configuration
+		if (embedded == null) {
+
+			configuration = external ;
+
+			log.info("loaded  configuration for application "+configuration.name()+" from "+container_configuraton_file_path);
+		}
+		else  {
+
+			configuration = embedded;
+
+			if (external == null)
+
+				log.info("loaded configuration for application "+configuration.name()+" from "+configuration_file_path);
+
+			else {
+
+				configuration.merge(external);
+
+				log.info("loaded configuration for application "+configuration.name()+" from "+configuration_file_path+" and "+container_configuraton_file_path);
+
+			}
+		}	
+
+		// TODO we can check scopes here instead of in BridgedApplicationConfiguration constructor
+		ApplicationConfiguration bridgedConfiguration = new BridgedApplicationConfiguration(context.configuration(),
+				configuration);
+
+		Hub hub = new DefaultHub();
+
+		ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle = new ApplicationLifecycle(hub, configuration.name());
+
+		File file = bridgedConfiguration.persistence().file(profile_file_path);
+		String id= null;
+		if (file.exists()){
+			log.info("loading persisted state for application {}", application.getContextPath());
+			try(ObjectInputStream ois = new ObjectInputStream(new FileInputStream(file))){
+				id = (String)ois.readObject();
+			}catch(Exception e){
+				log.error("error loading persisted state, creating new uuid",e);
+			}
+		} 
+		if (id==null)
+			id = UUID.randomUUID().toString();
+
+		return new DefaultApplicationContext(id, context, application, bridgedConfiguration, hub, lifecycle,
+				new Properties());
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationHandlers handlersFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+
+		try {
+
+			InputStream config = context.application().getResourceAsStream(handlers_file_path);
+
+			if (config == null) {
+
+				log.trace("{} uses the default lifecycle as it does not include {}", context.name(), handlers_file_path);
+
+				// it's in a library, using
+				config = getClass().getResourceAsStream(default_handlers_file_path);
+
+				if (config == null)
+					throw new IllegalStateException("invalid distribution: cannot find " + default_handlers_file_path);
+
+			} else
+				log.info("{} uses a custom lifecycle @ {}", context.name(), handlers_file_path);
+
+			ApplicationConfigurationBinder binder = new ApplicationConfigurationBinder();
+
+			return binder.bindHandlers(config);
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot install handlers for application @ " + context.name()+" (see cause) ", e);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationExtensions extensionsFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+
+		try {
+
+			InputStream config = context.application().getResourceAsStream(extensions_file_path);
+
+			if (config == null) {
+
+				log.trace("{} uses default extensions as it does not include {}", context.name(), extensions_file_path);
+
+				// it's in a library, using
+				config = getClass().getResourceAsStream(default_extensions_file_path);
+
+				if (config == null)
+					throw new IllegalStateException("invalid distribution: cannot find " + default_extensions_file_path);
+
+			} else
+				log.info("{} uses custom extensions @ {}", context.name(), extensions_file_path);
+
+			ApplicationConfigurationBinder binder = new ApplicationConfigurationBinder();
+
+			return binder.bindExtensions(config);
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot install extensions for application @ " + context.name()+" (see cause) ", e);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+
+	@Override
+	public SmartGearsConfiguration smartgearsConfiguration() {
+
+		try {
+
+			InputStream config = getClass().getResourceAsStream(library_configuration_file_path);
+
+			if (config == null)
+				throw new IllegalStateException("invalid distribution: cannot find " + library_configuration_file_path);
+
+			SmartGearsConfigurationBinder binder = new SmartGearsConfigurationBinder();
+
+			SmartGearsConfiguration configuration = binder.bind(config);
+
+			configuration.validate();
+
+			return configuration;
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("cannot read library configuration (see cause) ", e);
+
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	// helpers
+
+	private ApplicationConfiguration configurationFor(ServletContext application) {
+
+		try {
+
+			InputStream config = application.getResourceAsStream(configuration_file_path);
+
+			if (config == null) 
+				return null;
+
+			ApplicationConfigurationBinder binder = new ApplicationConfigurationBinder();
+
+			return binder.bind(config);
+
+		} catch (RuntimeException e) {
+
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid configuration (see cause)", e);
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	private ContainerConfiguration containerConfiguration() {
+
+		String home = Utils.home();
+
+		if (home == null)
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid node configuration: the environment variable " + ghn_home_env
+					+ " or the system property " + ghn_home_property + " must be defined");
+
+		File homeDir = new File(home);
+
+		if (!(homeDir.exists() && homeDir.isDirectory() && homeDir.canRead() && homeDir.canWrite()))
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid node configuration: home "+home+" does not exist or is not a directory or cannot be accessed in read/write mode");
+
+		File config = new File(homeDir,container_configuraton_file_path);
+
+		if (!(config.exists() && config.canRead()))
+			throw new IllegalStateException("invalid node configuration: file "+config.getAbsolutePath()+" does not exist or cannot be accessed");
+
+
+		log.trace("reading container configuration @ {} ", config.getAbsolutePath());
+
+		ContainerConfigurationBinder binder = new ContainerConfigurationBinder();
+
+		FileInputStream stream = null;
+		try {
+
+			stream = new FileInputStream(config);
+
+		}
+		catch(Exception e) {
+			throw new RuntimeException("unexpected exception reading container configuration file see cause)",e);
+		}
+
+		ContainerConfiguration configuration =  binder.bind(stream);
+
+		try {
+			stream.close();
+		}
+		catch(Exception e) {
+			log.warn("could not close stream when reading container configuration @ "+config.getAbsolutePath()+" (see cause)",e);
+		}
+
+		return configuration;
+	}
+/*
+	@Override
+	public RegistryPublisher publisherFor(ContainerContext context) {
+		return context.configuration().mode()==Mode.online?
+				RegistryPublisherFactory.create(): new OfflinePublisher();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public RegistryPublisher publisherFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+		return context.configuration().mode()==Mode.online?
+				RegistryPublisherFactory.create():	new OfflinePublisher();
+	}*/
+	
+	@Override
+	public ScopedPublisher publisherFor(ContainerContext context) {
+		return context.configuration().mode()==Mode.online? RegistryPublisherFactory.scopedPublisher()
+				:	new OfflinePublisher();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public ScopedPublisher publisherFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+		return context.configuration().mode()==Mode.online? RegistryPublisherFactory.scopedPublisher()
+				:	new OfflinePublisher();
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public AuthorizationProxy authorizationProxy() {
+		return authorizationService();
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/OfflinePublisher.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/OfflinePublisher.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4f1cc1d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/OfflinePublisher.java
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.provider;
+
+import java.lang.reflect.Method;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resource;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.exception.RegistryNotFoundException;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+
+/**
+ * An implementation of {@link ScopedPublisher} that simulates remote publication.
+ * <p>
+ * Used for applications and or containers that operate in {@link Mode#offline}.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class OfflinePublisher implements ScopedPublisher {
+
+	@Override
+	public <T extends Resource> T update(T resource){
+		// do nothing
+		return resource;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public <T extends Resource> T create(T resource, List<String> scopes)
+			throws RegistryNotFoundException {
+		// fragile! bypass restrictions reflectively and set new scope
+		for (String scope : scopes)
+			try {
+				Method m = resource.getClass().getSuperclass().getDeclaredMethod("addScope", String.class);
+				m.setAccessible(true);
+				m.invoke(resource, scope);
+			} catch (Exception e) {
+				throw new RuntimeException("could not simulate publication in scope " + scope, e);
+			}
+		return resource;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public <T extends Resource> T remove(T resource, List<String> scopes)
+			throws RegistryNotFoundException {
+		for (String scope : scopes)
+			try {
+				Method m = resource.getClass().getSuperclass().getDeclaredMethod("removeScope", String.class);
+				m.setAccessible(true);
+				m.invoke(resource, scope);
+			} catch (Exception e) {
+				throw new RuntimeException("could not simulate publication remove from scope " + scope, e);
+			}
+		return resource;
+	}
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/Provider.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/Provider.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..13f538d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/Provider.java
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.provider;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.client.proxy.AuthorizationProxy;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+
+/**
+ * Provides dependencies for container and application management.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ *
+ */
+public interface Provider {
+
+	//container-level dependencies
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the runtime properties.
+	 * @return the properties.
+	 */
+	SmartGearsConfiguration smartgearsConfiguration();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Assembles and returns the context of the container.
+	 * @return the container's context
+	 */
+	ContainerContext containerContext();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers associated with the container.
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 */
+	ContainerHandlers containerHandlers();
+	
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns an implementation of the IS publisher for the container
+	 * @param application the context of the container
+	 * @return the publisher implementation
+	 */
+	ScopedPublisher publisherFor(ContainerContext application);
+	
+	//application-level dependencies
+	
+	/**
+	 * Assembles and returns the context of a given application.
+	 * @param container the context of the container
+	 * @param application the servlet context of the application
+	 * @return
+	 */
+	
+	ApplicationContext contextFor(ContainerContext container,ServletContext application);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers associated with a given application.
+	 * @param application the context of the application
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 */
+	ApplicationHandlers handlersFor(ApplicationContext application);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the API extensions associated with a given application.
+	 * @param application the context of the application
+	 * @return the extensions
+	 */
+	ApplicationExtensions extensionsFor(ApplicationContext application);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns an implementation of the IS publisher for a given application
+	 * @param application the context of the application
+	 * @return the publisher implementation
+	 */
+	ScopedPublisher publisherFor(ApplicationContext application);
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns an implementation of the IS publisher for a given application
+	 * @param application the context of the application
+	 * @return the publisher implementation
+	 */
+	AuthorizationProxy authorizationProxy();
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/ProviderFactory.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/ProviderFactory.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fef1da3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/provider/ProviderFactory.java
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.provider;
+
+public class ProviderFactory {
+
+	private static Provider provider = new DefaultProvider();
+	
+	public static Provider provider() {
+		return provider;
+	}
+	
+	public static void testProvider(Provider provider) {
+		ProviderFactory.provider=provider;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/ScopeEvent.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/ScopeEvent.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6ccd36d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/ScopeEvent.java
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.utils;
+
+import java.util.Collection;
+
+public class ScopeEvent {
+
+	private Collection<String> scopes;
+
+	public ScopeEvent(Collection<String> scopes) {
+		super();
+		this.scopes = scopes;
+	}
+
+	public Collection<String> getScopes() {
+		return scopes;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/Utils.java b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/Utils.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bdf06aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/org/gcube/smartgears/utils/Utils.java
@@ -0,0 +1,221 @@
+package org.gcube.smartgears.utils;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.ghn_home_env;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.ghn_home_property;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_error;
+
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
+import java.io.BufferedWriter;
+import java.io.Closeable;
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileReader;
+import java.io.FileWriter;
+import java.io.Flushable;
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
+import java.util.concurrent.ScheduledExecutorService;
+
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ServiceIdentifier;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.ServiceInfo;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestException;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * Library-wide utils.
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class Utils {
+
+	private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(Utils.class);
+
+	public static final ScheduledExecutorService scheduledServicePool = Executors.newScheduledThreadPool(10);
+	
+	public static RuntimeException unchecked(Throwable t) {
+
+		return (t instanceof RuntimeException) ? RuntimeException.class.cast(t) : new RuntimeException(t.getMessage(),
+				t);
+
+	}
+
+	public static String smartgearsVersion() {
+		return "1.0.0"; // @TODO
+	}
+
+	public static void rethrowUnchecked(Throwable t) throws RuntimeException {
+
+		throw unchecked(t);
+
+	}
+
+	public static void closeSafely(Closeable c) {
+
+		if (c != null) {
+			try {
+
+				if (c instanceof Flushable)
+					Flushable.class.cast(c).flush();
+
+				c.close();
+
+			} catch (IOException e) {
+				log.error("could not close {} due to error {}: msg{}", c, e.getClass().getSimpleName(), e.getMessage());
+			}
+
+		}
+	}
+
+	public static void valid(String name, Object[] o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull(name, o);
+
+	}
+
+	public static void notNull(Object[] o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull("argument", o);
+	}
+
+	public static void notNull(String name, Object o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		if (o == null)
+			throw new IllegalArgumentException(name + " is null");
+	}
+
+	public static void notEmpty(String name, String o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull(name, o);
+		if (o.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalArgumentException(name + " is empty");
+	}
+
+	public static void notEmpty(String name, Object[] o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull(name, o);
+		if (o.length == 0)
+			throw new IllegalArgumentException(name + " is empty");
+	}
+
+	public static void notEmpty(String name, Collection<?> o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull(name, o);
+		if (o.isEmpty())
+			throw new IllegalArgumentException(name + " is empty");
+	}
+
+	public static void valid(String name, String o) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+		notNull(name, o);
+		notEmpty(name, o);
+	}
+
+	public static String home() {
+
+		String home = System.getenv(ghn_home_env);
+
+		if (home == null)
+			home = System.getProperty(ghn_home_property);
+
+		return home;
+
+	}
+
+	public static void handleError(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response, Throwable t)
+			throws IOException {
+
+		RequestError error = t instanceof RequestException ? RequestException.class.cast(t).error() : application_error;
+
+		if (error == application_error) {
+			response.getWriter().write("Error (" + error.code() + ") : " + t.getMessage() + "\nStacktrace:\n");
+			t.printStackTrace(response.getWriter());
+			response.setStatus(error.code());
+
+		} else
+			response.sendError(error.code(), t.getMessage());
+
+	}
+
+
+	public static interface ModeClause {
+
+		File toRead();
+
+		File toWrite();
+	}
+
+	public static ModeClause fileAt(final String path) {
+
+		notNull("file path",path);
+
+		return new ModeClause() {
+
+			@Override
+			public File toWrite() {
+				return file(path,true);
+			}
+
+			@Override
+			public File toRead() {
+				return file(path,false);
+			}
+		};
+	}
+
+	private static File file(String path, boolean writeMode) throws IllegalArgumentException {
+
+
+		File file = new File(path);
+
+		if (!writeMode)
+
+			if (!file.exists() || file.length() == 0 || !file.canRead()) {
+				File backup = new File(file.getAbsolutePath() + ".backup");
+				if (backup.exists())
+					if (!backup.renameTo(file)) {
+						log.warn("accessing directly backup {} as it cannot be renamed to {}", backup.getAbsolutePath(), file.getAbsolutePath());
+						return backup; //bets effort:read from backup
+					}
+					else {
+						log.info("cannot read {} but can access its backup {}", backup.getAbsolutePath(), file.getAbsolutePath());
+						return file;
+					}
+			}
+
+
+		if (file.isDirectory())
+			throw new IllegalArgumentException(path + " cannot be used in write mode because it's folder");
+
+		//create folder structure it does not exist
+		if (!file.getParentFile().exists())
+			file.getParentFile().mkdirs();
+		else 
+			if (file.exists())
+
+				try (
+						BufferedReader reader = new BufferedReader(new FileReader(file));
+						BufferedWriter writer = new BufferedWriter(new FileWriter(new File(file.getAbsolutePath() + ".backup")));
+						) 
+						{
+					String line;
+					while ((line = reader.readLine()) != null)
+						writer.write(line);
+
+						} 
+		catch (Exception e) {
+			log.warn("cannot back up "+file.getAbsolutePath()+" on writing ", e);
+		} 		
+
+
+		return file;
+
+	}
+	
+	public static ServiceInfo getServiceInfo(ApplicationContext application){
+		String hostedin = String.format("%s_%d", application.container().configuration().hostname(), application.container().configuration().port());
+		return 
+			new ServiceInfo(new ServiceIdentifier(application.configuration().serviceClass(), application.configuration().name(), hostedin));
+	}
+
+
+}
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/container-handlers.xml b/src/main/resources/META-INF/container-handlers.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9884b0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/container-handlers.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
+<handlers>
+	<accounting-management /> 
+	<profile-management />
+</handlers>
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-extensions.xml b/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-extensions.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..26845b3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-extensions.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
+<extensions>
+	<remote-management/>
+</extensions>
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-handlers.xml b/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-handlers.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d6a1181
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/default-handlers.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
+<handlers>
+	<lifecycle>
+	    <profile-management />
+	</lifecycle>
+	<request>
+		<request-validation />
+		<request-accounting /> 
+	</request>
+</handlers>
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/frontpage.html b/src/main/resources/META-INF/frontpage.html
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b587fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/frontpage.html
@@ -0,0 +1,268 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?>
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">
+	<head>
+		<title>${name}</title>
+		<style type="text/css">
+			body {
+				
+				background-color: rgb(227, 227, 227);
+				color: rgb(18, 132, 194);
+				
+				padding: 0;
+				margin: 0;
+				
+				font-family: 'HelveticaNeue-UltraLight', 'Helvetica Neue', 'Arial', sans-serif;
+			}
+			
+			a:link {color: rgb(69, 114, 132); text-decoration:none}
+			a:hover {color: rgb(18, 132, 194);}
+			
+			#top, #bottom {
+				background-color: rgb(218, 218, 218);
+			}
+			
+			#container {
+				width: 906px;
+				margin-left: 60px;
+				margin-top: 10px;
+				margin-top: 5px;
+			}
+			
+			#top {
+				padding-left: 16px;
+			}
+			
+			#top h1, #top h2 {
+				width:99%;
+				font-weight: normal;
+				margin: 0 0;
+			}
+			
+			#top h1 {
+				font-size: 65px;	
+				padding-top: 16px;		
+			}
+			
+			#top h2 {
+				font-size: 25px;
+				color: rgb(69, 114, 132);
+			}
+			
+			#middle {
+				min-height: 300px;
+				padding: 1em;
+				padding-top: 40px;
+				padding-left: 30px;
+			}
+			
+			#middle p {
+				font-size: 25px;
+				margin-top: 0;
+				margin-bottom: 0;
+				padding-top: .2em;
+				padding-bottom: .2em;
+				color: rgb(69, 114, 132);
+			}
+			
+			#middle p em {
+				color: rgb(18, 132, 194);
+				font-family: HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif;
+				font-style: normal;
+				font-variant: normal;
+				font-weight: 300;
+			}
+			
+			#bottom {
+				padding-top: 2px;
+			}
+			
+			.half {
+				width: 49%;
+			}
+			
+			.left {
+				text-align: left;
+			}
+			
+			.right {
+				text-align: right;
+			}
+
+			.toolbar, .footer {
+				vertical-align: middle;
+				display: inline-block;
+			}
+		</style>
+	</head>
+	<body>
+		<div id="container">
+			<div id="top">
+				<h1>${name}</h1>
+				<h2>v.${version}</h2>
+				<h2 style="text-align:right">managed by <a href="http://www.gcube-system.org">gCube</a></h2>
+			</div>
+			<div id="middle">
+				<p>Welcome to <em>${name}</em>,</p>
+				<p>a resource of the <em>${infra}</em> infrastructure shared in <em>${vos}</em> VOs.</p>
+				<p style="padding-top:30px">The resource is <em>${status}</em>.</p>
+				
+			</div>
+			<div id="bottom">
+				<span class="toolbar half left">
+					<a href="${profile_link}">	
+						<img alt="profile" src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACAAAAAeCAYAAABNChwpAAAKQWlDQ1BJQ0MgUHJvZmlsZQAASA2d
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+					</a>
+					<a href="${config_link}">
+					<img alt="configuration" src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACAAAAAeCAYAAABNChwpAAAKQWlDQ1BJQ0MgUHJvZmlsZQAASA2d
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+aEL/mG50s9ylqz+sH7BYims+MQDR8VmN/wGY7l8hwnWNDgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" /></a>
+					</span>
+				<span class="footer half right">SmartGears ${smartgears-version}</span>
+			</div>
+		</div>
+	</body>
+</html>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/javax.servlet.ServletContainerInitializer b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/javax.servlet.ServletContainerInitializer
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..917ecac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/javax.servlet.ServletContainerInitializer
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+org.gcube.smartgears.Bootstrap
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3a14165
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.RemoteResource
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c7dfb1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle.ProfileManager
+org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestValidator
+org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestAccounting
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c13143
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/META-INF/services/org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.ContainerHandler
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle.ProfileManager
+org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.container.lifecycle.AccountingManager
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/test/java/app/Request.java b/src/test/java/app/Request.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b58b1bf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/app/Request.java
@@ -0,0 +1,179 @@
+package app;
+
+import static com.sun.jersey.api.client.Client.create;
+import static java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.scope_header;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.DELETE;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+import static utils.TestUtils.context_root;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map.Entry;
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.AuthorizationProvider;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.UserInfo;
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.utils.Caller;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method;
+
+import utils.TestUtils;
+
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.Client;
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.ClientResponse;
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.UniformInterfaceException;
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.WebResource.Builder;
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.filter.LoggingFilter;
+import com.sun.jersey.core.header.OutBoundHeaders;
+
+
+public class Request {
+
+	private String path="";
+	private String scope = TestUtils.scope;
+	
+	private OutBoundHeaders headers = new OutBoundHeaders();
+	private Method method = GET;
+	private String body = null;
+	private boolean logged = false;
+	
+	public static Request request() {
+		return new Request();
+	}
+	
+	private Request() {
+		
+	}
+	
+	public Request at(String path) {
+		this.path=path;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public Request logging() {
+		logged=true;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public Request inScope(String scope) {
+		this.scope=scope;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public Request with(String body) {
+		this.body=body;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public Request with(String name, String value) {
+		this.headers.add(name, value);
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public Request using(Method method) {
+		this.method=method;
+		return this;
+	}
+	
+	public String path() {
+		return path;
+	}
+	
+	public String body() {
+		return body;
+	}
+	
+	public Method method() {
+		return method;
+	}
+	
+	public String scope() {
+		return scope;
+	}
+	
+	ClientResponse make(final int port) {
+
+		
+		// we make a scoped call in a separate thread, with which we then synchronize for completion.
+		// this helps isolate the caller's thread (Main normally) from the app's thread,
+		// starting with the scope itself.
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		class Box {
+
+			volatile UniformInterfaceException failure;
+			volatile ClientResponse response;
+			
+		}
+
+		final Box box = new Box();
+
+		new Thread() {
+
+			public void run() {
+
+				AuthorizationProvider.instance.set(new Caller(new UserInfo("test", new ArrayList<String>()),"DEFAULT"));
+
+				try {
+					
+					Client client = create();
+				
+					if (logged) 
+						client.addFilter(new LoggingFilter(System.err));
+					
+					Builder builder = client.resource(address(path,port))
+							.entity(body).header(scope_header, scope);
+					
+					for (Entry<String,List<Object>> header : headers.entrySet())
+						for (Object value : header.getValue())
+							builder.header(header.getKey(), value);
+					
+					if (method==DELETE)
+						builder.delete();
+					else {
+						
+						System.err.println("making request @ "+address(path,port));
+						
+						ClientResponse response = builder.method(method.name(),ClientResponse.class);
+					
+						//throws an exception if there response has error status
+						if (response.getStatus()>300)
+							throw new UniformInterfaceException(response);
+						
+						box.response=response;
+					}
+					
+					
+				} catch (UniformInterfaceException t) {
+					box.failure=t;
+				}
+
+				latch.countDown();
+			};
+		}.start();
+
+		try {
+		
+			if (!latch.await(2000, MILLISECONDS))
+				throw new RuntimeException("application has not responded in time");
+
+		} catch (InterruptedException e) {
+			throw new RuntimeException(e);
+		}
+
+		if (box.failure !=null)
+			throw box.failure;
+		
+		else
+			return box.response;
+			
+	}
+	
+	private String address(String path, long port) {
+		
+		path = (path.isEmpty() || path.startsWith("/"))?path:"/"+path;
+		
+		return "http://localhost:" + port+ "/" + context_root+path;
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/app/SomeApp.java b/src/test/java/app/SomeApp.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4e25724
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/app/SomeApp.java
@@ -0,0 +1,450 @@
+package app;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.configuration_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.extensions_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.ghn_home_property;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.handlers_file_path;
+import static utils.TestUtils.context_root;
+import static utils.TestUtils.context_root_path;
+import static utils.TestUtils.location;
+import static utils.TestUtils.servlet_name;
+
+import java.io.File;
+
+import org.apache.catalina.Wrapper;
+import org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContext;
+import org.apache.catalina.startup.Tomcat;
+import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
+import org.apache.tomcat.util.scan.StandardJarScanner;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.RegistryPublisher;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.Site;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.managers.ContainerManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.ProviderFactory;
+import org.jboss.shrinkwrap.api.ShrinkWrap;
+import org.jboss.shrinkwrap.api.asset.StringAsset;
+import org.jboss.shrinkwrap.api.exporter.ZipExporter;
+import org.jboss.shrinkwrap.api.spec.WebArchive;
+import org.jboss.shrinkwrap.impl.base.path.BasicPath;
+
+import utils.TestProvider;
+import utils.TestUtils;
+
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.ClientResponse;
+
+/**
+ * Simulates a single-servlet application to be transformed into a gCube resource.
+ * <p>
+ * <ul>
+ * <li>uses a default configuration that can be customised (cf. {@link #configuration()});
+ * <li>can be configured with the default handlers (cf. {@link #useDefaultHandlers()}) or custom ones (
+ * {@link #handlers()}), including those that are not deployable through standard means, such as mocks (
+ * {@link #bypassHandlerDeployment()};
+ * <li>can be started to have a default behaviour when called, ({@link #start()}) or else a custom behaviour (
+ * {@link #startWith(Runnable)};
+ * </ul>
+ * can be called in a default scope ({@link #call()} or in a specific scope ({@link #callIn(String)}). Calls are blocking but always
+ * configured and executed in a separate thread;
+ * 
+ * @author Fabio Simeoni
+ * 
+ */
+public class SomeApp {
+
+	private final Tomcat tomcat = new Tomcat();
+
+	private WebArchive war = defaultWar();
+
+	private ContainerConfiguration containerConfiguration;
+	private ApplicationConfiguration configuration;
+	private ApplicationHandlers handlers = new ApplicationHandlers();
+	private ApplicationExtensions extensions = new ApplicationExtensions();
+	private TestProvider provider = new TestProvider();
+	private boolean deployHandlers = true;
+	private boolean deployExtensions = true;
+	private boolean deployConfiguration = true;
+	private boolean clean=true;
+	
+	public SomeApp() {
+
+		if (ContainerManager.instance!=null)
+			ContainerManager.instance.stop(true);
+		
+		tomcat.getConnector().setPort(0);
+		tomcat.setBaseDir(location);
+		
+		System.setProperty(ghn_home_property,location);
+						
+		containerConfiguration = defaultContainerConfiguration();
+		configuration = defaultConfiguration();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Sets a {@link TestProvider} to resolve dependencies at runtime.
+	 * 
+	 * @param provider the provider
+	 */
+	public void set(TestProvider provider) {
+		this.provider = provider;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Runs the test with the state left by previous run.
+	 * <p>
+	 * Use only within a single test!
+	 */
+	public void dirtyRun() {
+		this.clean = false;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration of the application.
+	 * <p>
+	 * The initial configuration is based on defaults, but can be changed and extended.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 */
+	public ApplicationConfiguration configuration() {
+		return configuration;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the configuration of the containerConfiguration.
+	 * <p>
+	 * The initial configuration is based on defaults, but can be changed and extended.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the configuration
+	 */
+	public ContainerConfiguration containerConfiguration() {
+		return containerConfiguration;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Returns the handlers that manage the application, none by default.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 */
+	public ApplicationHandlers handlers() {
+		return handlers;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Avoids deployment of the configured handlers in the application's WAR.
+	 * <p>
+	 * The handlers will instead be directly available at runtime.
+	 */
+	public void bypassHandlerDeployment() {
+
+		provider.use(handlers());
+		deployHandlers = false;
+	}
+	
+
+	/**
+	 * Avoids resource configuration deployment.
+	 */
+	public void asExternal() {
+
+		configuration.context(context_root_path);
+		containerConfiguration.app(configuration);
+
+		bypassConfigurationDeployment();
+		bypassExtensionsDeployment();
+		bypassHandlerDeployment();
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Avoids resource configuration deployment.
+	 */
+	public void withExternal(ApplicationConfiguration config) {
+
+		config.context(context_root_path);
+		
+		containerConfiguration.app(config.context()).merge(config);
+	}
+	
+	public void bypassConfigurationDeployment() {
+		
+		deployConfiguration = false;
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	public void usePublisher(ScopedPublisher publisher) {
+		
+		provider.use(publisher);
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Uses default handlers.
+	 */
+	public void useDefaultHandlers() {
+
+		deployHandlers = false;
+	}
+
+	
+	/**
+	 * Returns the extensions of the application, none by default.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the handlers
+	 */
+	public ApplicationExtensions extensions() {
+		return extensions;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Uses default extensions.
+	 */
+	public void useDefaultExtensions() {
+
+		deployExtensions = false;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Avoids deployment of the configured extensions in the application's WAR.
+	 * <p>
+	 * The extensions will instead be directly available at runtime.
+	 */
+	public void bypassExtensionsDeployment() {
+
+		provider.use(extensions());
+		deployExtensions = false;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Starts the application.
+	 * 
+	 * @return the context of the application
+	 */
+	public ApplicationContext start() {
+
+		return startWith(new Runnable() {
+
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				System.err.println("test servlet invoked with no particular task");
+			}
+		});
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Starts the application, injecting test logic in its single servlet
+	 * 
+	 * @param test test logic
+	 * @return the context of the application
+	 */
+	public ApplicationContext startWith(Runnable test) {
+
+		// install provider
+		ProviderFactory.testProvider(provider);
+				
+		if (clean)
+			cleanupInstallation();
+
+		installContainerConfiguration();
+		
+		if (deployConfiguration)
+			deployConfiguration();
+
+		if (deployHandlers)
+			deployHandlers();
+		
+		if (deployExtensions)
+			deployExtensions();
+
+		try {
+
+			System.err.println("deploying with " + war.toString(true));
+
+			StandardContext ctx = (StandardContext) tomcat.addWebapp(context_root_path, warFile().getAbsolutePath());
+
+			// tells tomcat to look also for exploded directories such as this project's (finds initializer)
+			((StandardJarScanner) ctx.getJarScanner()).setScanAllDirectories(true);
+
+			//this starts webapp and always comes back
+			tomcat.start();
+			
+			ApplicationContext context = provider.context;
+			
+			if (context==null)
+				throw new RuntimeException("app failed @ startup");
+			
+			Wrapper webapp = (Wrapper) tomcat.getHost().findChild(context_root_path).findChild(servlet_name);
+			
+			if (webapp!=null) {
+					
+				webapp.setServlet(new TestServlet(test));
+				
+				context.container().configuration().port(port());
+				
+				containerConfiguration = context.container().configuration();
+			}
+
+			return context;
+			
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			throw new RuntimeException(e);
+		}
+
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Retuens <code>true</code> if the application was successfully start in the container.
+	 * 
+	 * @return <code>true</code> if the application was successfully start in the container
+	 */
+	public boolean isActive() {
+		return tomcat.getHost().findChild("/" + context_root).findChild(servlet_name) != null;
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Makes a request to the application.
+	 */
+	
+	public String send(Request call) {
+		return call.make(port()).getEntity(String.class);
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Makes a request to the application.
+	 */
+	
+	public ClientResponse httpSend(Request call) {
+		return call.make(port());
+	}
+
+
+	/**
+	 * Stops the application
+	 */
+	public void stop() {
+		
+		try {
+			tomcat.stop();
+			tomcat.destroy();
+		
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			System.err.println("WARNING: could not clearly stop container:");
+			e.printStackTrace();
+		}
+	}
+
+	public File containerConfigurationFile() {
+		
+		return new File(location,Constants.container_configuraton_file_path);
+	}
+	// helpers
+
+	/**
+	 * Installs the container configuration.
+	 */
+	private void installContainerConfiguration() {
+
+		TestUtils.serialise(containerConfiguration(),containerConfigurationFile());
+
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Includes the configuration in the application's WAR.
+	 */
+	private void deployConfiguration() {
+
+		String xml = TestUtils.bind(configuration());
+
+		System.err.println("deploying with configuration:\n" + xml);
+
+		war.addAsWebResource(new StringAsset(xml), new BasicPath(configuration_file_path));
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Includes the handlers in the application's WAR.
+	 */
+	private void deployHandlers() {
+
+		String xml = TestUtils.bind(handlers());
+
+		System.err.println("deploying with handlers:\n" + xml);
+
+		war.addAsWebResource(new StringAsset(xml), new BasicPath(handlers_file_path));
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Includes the extensions in the application's WAR.
+	 */
+	private void deployExtensions() {
+
+		String xml = TestUtils.bind(extensions());
+
+		System.err.println("deploying with extensions:\n" + xml);
+
+		war.addAsWebResource(new StringAsset(xml), new BasicPath(extensions_file_path));
+	}
+
+	private File warFile() {
+
+		File warFile = new File(location, "test.war");
+
+		if (warFile.exists() && !warFile.delete())
+			System.out.println("could not delete old deployment");; // seems safer than plain overwrite to avoid war corruption
+
+		war.as(ZipExporter.class).exportTo(warFile, true);
+
+		return warFile;
+
+	}
+
+	private WebArchive defaultWar() {
+
+		WebArchive war = ShrinkWrap.create(WebArchive.class);
+		war.setWebXML(new File("src/test/java/app/web.xml"));
+		return war;
+
+	}
+
+	private ApplicationConfiguration defaultConfiguration() {
+
+		return new DefaultApplicationConfiguration().mode(Mode.offline).serviceClass("test-class").name("test-app").version("1.0");
+
+	}
+	
+	private ContainerConfiguration defaultContainerConfiguration() {
+
+		return new ContainerConfiguration().mode(Mode.offline).hostname("localhost").port(port()).infrastructure("gcube")
+								.site(new Site().country("it").location("rome").latitude("41.9000").longitude("12.5000"))
+								.property("test-prop1","foo")
+								.property("test-prop2","bar")
+								.publicationFrequency(5);
+
+	}
+
+	public int port() {
+		return tomcat.getConnector().getLocalPort();	
+	}
+	
+	private void cleanupInstallation() {
+				
+		System.out.println("cleaning installation in location "+location);
+		
+		File installation = new File(location);
+		
+		if (installation.exists())
+			try {
+				FileUtils.deleteDirectory(installation);
+			}
+			catch(Exception e) {
+				throw new RuntimeException(e);
+			}
+		
+		installation.mkdirs();
+		
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/app/TestServlet.java b/src/test/java/app/TestServlet.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b74bf33
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/app/TestServlet.java
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+package app;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.annotation.WebServlet;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+
+
+@WebServlet(name = "test", urlPatterns = "/test")
+public class TestServlet extends HttpServlet {
+
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	private Runnable test;
+	
+	public TestServlet(Runnable test) {
+		this.test=test;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	protected void doGet(HttpServletRequest request,
+			HttpServletResponse response) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		
+		test.run();
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/app/web.xml b/src/test/java/app/web.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5199029
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/app/web.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+<web-app>
+
+	<display-name>test-app</display-name>
+
+	<servlet>
+		<servlet-name>test</servlet-name>
+		<servlet-class>app.TestServlet</servlet-class>
+	</servlet>
+
+	<servlet-mapping>
+		<servlet-name>test</servlet-name>
+		<url-pattern>/*</url-pattern>
+	</servlet-mapping>
+
+</web-app>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/LifecycleTest.java b/src/test/java/test/LifecycleTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..60bb815
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/LifecycleTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+package test;
+
+import static java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit.*;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.*;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Hub;
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.common.events.impl.DefaultHub;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class LifecycleTest {
+
+	Hub hub = new DefaultHub();
+	ApplicationLifecycle lc = new ApplicationLifecycle(hub,"test");
+	
+	@Test 
+	public void movesFromStateToState() throws Exception {
+		
+		ApplicationState state  = lc.state();
+		lc.moveTo(active);
+		assertEquals(active, lc.state());
+		assertEquals(state,lc.previous());
+	}
+	
+	@Test(expected=IllegalStateException.class)
+	public void doesAllowIllegalTransitions() throws Exception {
+		
+		lc.moveTo(active);
+		lc.moveTo(started);
+	}
+	
+	@Test 
+	public void producesEventsOnStateChanges() throws Exception {
+		
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		Object verifier = new Object() {
+			
+			@Observes(ApplicationLifecycle.activation)
+			void verifyStateChangeIsNotified(ApplicationLifecycle lifecycle) {
+				latch.countDown();
+			}
+		};
+		
+		hub.subscribe(verifier);
+		
+		lc.moveTo(active);
+		
+		assertTrue(latch.await(100,MILLISECONDS));
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/PipelineTest.java b/src/test/java/test/PipelineTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c4e93f3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/PipelineTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+package test;
+
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+import static org.mockito.Matchers.*;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.*;
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationPipeline;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class PipelineTest {
+
+	
+	@Test
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public void pipelineforwards() {
+		
+		List<ApplicationHandler> mocks = new ArrayList<ApplicationHandler>();
+		
+		final ApplicationEvent e  = mock(ApplicationEvent.class);
+		
+		for (int i=0;i<3;i++)
+			mocks.add(mock(ApplicationHandler.class));
+		
+		final ApplicationPipeline pipeline = new ApplicationPipeline(mocks);
+		
+		//test
+		pipeline.forward(e);
+		pipeline.forward(e);
+		
+		for (ApplicationHandler mock : mocks)
+			verify(mock,times(2)).onEvent(e);
+		
+		
+
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	@SuppressWarnings("all") //a regression test!
+	public void resetsOnFailures() {
+		
+		List<ApplicationHandler> mocks = new ArrayList<ApplicationHandler>();
+		
+		final ApplicationEvent e  = mock(ApplicationEvent.class);
+		
+		for (int i=0;i<3;i++)
+			mocks.add(mock(ApplicationHandler.class));
+		
+		//first time fails, second does not
+		doThrow(new RuntimeException()).doNothing().when(mocks.get(1)).onEvent(anyObject());
+		
+		final ApplicationPipeline pipeline = new ApplicationPipeline(mocks);
+		
+		//test
+		try {
+			pipeline.forward(e);
+			fail();
+		}
+		catch(Exception ex) {
+			
+		}
+		
+		pipeline.forward(e);
+		
+		//the first mock is invoked both times because cursor is reset even with failures
+		verify(mocks.get(0),times(2)).onEvent(e);
+		
+		
+
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/SmartgearsConfigurationTest.java b/src/test/java/test/SmartgearsConfigurationTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2d67dc8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/SmartgearsConfigurationTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package test;
+
+import static junit.framework.Assert.*;
+
+import java.io.ByteArrayInputStream;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.library.SmartGearsConfigurationBinder;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class SmartgearsConfigurationTest {
+
+	@Test
+	public void configurationBinds() throws Exception {
+
+		String xml = "<smartgears version='1.0.0-SNAPSHOT'/>";
+		
+		SmartGearsConfigurationBinder binder = new SmartGearsConfigurationBinder();
+		
+		SmartGearsConfiguration bound = binder.bind(new ByteArrayInputStream(xml.getBytes()));
+		
+		bound.validate();
+		
+		String version = bound.version();
+		assertEquals("1.0.0-SNAPSHOT",version);
+
+		assertEquals(sampleSmartgearsConfiguration(),bound);
+		
+		
+	}
+	
+	private SmartGearsConfiguration sampleSmartgearsConfiguration() {
+
+		return new SmartGearsConfiguration().version("1.0.0-SNAPSHOT");
+
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/AppLifecycleTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/AppLifecycleTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8d339ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/AppLifecycleTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle.ProfileManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class AppLifecycleTest {
+
+	@Test
+	public void applicationGoesDownIfContainerDoes() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager());
+		
+		ApplicationContext actx = app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(ApplicationState.active,actx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		ContainerContext ctx = actx.container();
+
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		ctx.lifecycle().moveTo(ContainerState.stopped);
+		
+		assertEquals(ApplicationState.stopped,actx.lifecycle().state());
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/CallValidationTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/CallValidationTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e44f7e1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/CallValidationTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,213 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static app.Request.request;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.fail;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_failed_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.application_unavailable_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.invalid_request_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.request_not_authorized_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.failed;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.stopped;
+import static utils.TestUtils.scope;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
+import org.gcube.common.authorization.library.provider.SecurityTokenProvider;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle.ProfileManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestValidator;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.UniformInterfaceException;
+
+public class CallValidationTest {
+
+
+	@Test
+	public void rejectsCallsWhenServiceIsInactive() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		
+		Runnable test = new Runnable() {
+			
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				fail("call should have been rejected");
+			}
+		};
+		
+		ApplicationContext context = app.startWith(test);
+		
+		context.lifecycle().moveTo(stopped);
+		
+		try {
+			app.send(request());
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(application_unavailable_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+		
+		
+		context.lifecycle().moveTo(failed);
+		
+		try {
+			app.send(request());
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(application_failed_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+			
+		}
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void rejectsCallsWithoutScope() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		try {
+			app.send(request().inScope(null));; //call in no scope
+			fail();
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(request_not_authorized_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void rejectsCallsWithBadScope() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		try {
+			app.send(request().inScope("/bad/scope")); //call in no scope
+			fail();
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(invalid_request_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void propagatesScope() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		Runnable test = new Runnable() {
+			
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				assertEquals(scope,SecurityTokenProvider.instance.get());
+			}
+		};
+		
+		app.startWith(test);
+		
+		app.send(request());
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void respectsAllExcludeWildCard() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.configuration().excludes().add(new Exclude(Constants.EXCLUDE_ALL));
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		Runnable test = new Runnable() {
+			
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				latch.countDown();
+			}
+		};
+		
+		app.startWith(test);
+		
+		app.send(request().inScope(null));
+		
+		latch.await(500,TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS);
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void respectsExcludeWildCard() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.configuration().excludes().add(new Exclude("/path"+Constants.EXCLUDE_ALL));
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		Runnable test = new Runnable() {
+			
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				latch.countDown();
+			}
+		};
+		
+		app.startWith(test);
+		
+		app.send(request().at("path/test").inScope(null));
+		
+		latch.await(500,TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS);
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void respectsExactExclude() throws Throwable {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.configuration().excludes().add(new Exclude("/path"));
+		
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager()).set(new RequestValidator());
+		
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		Runnable test = new Runnable() {
+			
+			@Override
+			public void run() {
+				latch.countDown();
+			}
+		};
+		
+		app.startWith(test);
+		
+		app.send(request().at("path").inScope(null));
+		
+		latch.await(500,TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS);
+		
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/ConfigurationTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/ConfigurationTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..248f756
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/ConfigurationTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertNotNull;
+
+import java.io.ByteArrayInputStream;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfigurationBinder;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.Exclude;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class ConfigurationTest {
+
+	@Test
+	public void configurationBinds() throws Exception {
+
+		String xml = "<application mode='offline' context='ctx' isSecure='true'>" +
+							"<name>name</name>" +
+							"<group>class</group>" +
+							"<version>version</version>" +
+							"<description>desc</description>" +
+							"<scope>start/scope</scope>"+
+							"<scope>another/start/scope</scope>"+
+							"<exclude handlers='request-validation request-accounting'>/path</exclude>" +
+							"<persistence location='target'/>" +
+					"</application>";
+
+		
+		ApplicationConfigurationBinder binder = new ApplicationConfigurationBinder();
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration bound = binder.bind(new ByteArrayInputStream(xml.getBytes()));
+		
+		System.out.println(bound);
+		
+		assertEquals(sampleConfiguration(),bound);
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void extensionsBind() throws Exception {
+
+		String xml = "<extensions>" +
+							"<remote-management name='custom' mapping='custom' />" +
+					"</extensions>";
+
+		
+		ApplicationConfigurationBinder binder = new ApplicationConfigurationBinder();
+		
+		ApplicationExtensions bound = binder.bindExtensions(new ByteArrayInputStream(xml.getBytes()));
+
+		assertNotNull(bound.extensions());
+		assertEquals(1,bound.extensions().size());
+		
+		ApplicationExtension ext = bound.extensions().get(0);
+		assertEquals("custom",ext.name());
+		assertEquals("custom",ext.mapping());
+		
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	/*@Test
+	public void configurationsMerge() throws Exception {
+	
+		ApplicationConfiguration original = sampleConfiguration();
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration one = sampleConfiguration();
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration two = new DefaultApplicationConfiguration();
+		two.mode(Mode.online);
+		two.persistence(new DefaultPersistence(new File(".").getAbsolutePath()));
+		two.startScopes("yet/another/one");
+		
+		one.merge(two);
+		
+		assertEquals(one.mode(), two.mode());
+		assertEquals(one.name(), original.name());
+		assertEquals(one.persistence(), two.persistence());
+		
+		Set<String> merged = new HashSet<>(original.startScopes());
+		
+		merged.addAll(two.startScopes());
+		
+		assertEquals(merged,one.startScopes());
+		
+	}*/
+	
+	//helpers
+	
+	private ApplicationConfiguration sampleConfiguration() {
+		
+		
+		return new DefaultApplicationConfiguration()
+						.secure(true)
+						.mode(Mode.offline)
+						.context("ctx")
+						.name("name")
+						.serviceClass("class")
+						.excludes(new Exclude(Arrays.asList("request-validation","request-accounting"),"/path"))
+						.version("version")
+						.description("desc")
+						.persistence(new DefaultPersistence("target"));
+
+	}
+
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/ControllerTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/ControllerTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbdbb97
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/ControllerTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,277 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static app.Request.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.*;
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApiSignature;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpController;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.Request;
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.ClientResponse;
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.UniformInterfaceException;
+
+public class ControllerTest {
+
+	String name = "name";
+	String extension_path = "/ext";
+	String extension_mapping = "/ext/*";
+	String resource_path = "/resource";
+
+	@Test
+	public void dispatchesToResource() {
+
+		// returns a given type
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain"));
+
+		// requires same type
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		app.send(request);
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void toleratesTrainingSlashes() {
+
+		// returns a given type
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain"));
+
+		// requires same type
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		app.send(request);
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void handlesUnknownResources() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path);
+
+		// points to not existing resource
+		Request request = request().at(resource() + "/bad");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		try {
+			app.send(request);
+			fail();
+		} catch (UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(resource_notfound_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void handlesUnsupportedMethods() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET)).with(method(PUT));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).using(POST);
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		try {
+			app.send(request);
+			fail();
+		} catch (UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(method_unsupported_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+			assertNotNull(e.getResponse().getHeaders().toString(),e.getResponse().getHeaders().get(allow));
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void enforcesAcceptHeaders() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain"));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/xml");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		try {
+			app.send(request);
+			fail();
+		} catch (UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(outgoing_contenttype_unsupported_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+			
+		}
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void enforcesAcceptHeadersEvenWhenResourceDeclaresNone() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/xml");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		try {
+			app.send(request);
+			fail();
+		} catch (UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(outgoing_contenttype_unsupported_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void enforcesMultiValuedAcceptHeader() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain"));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/xml").with(accept,"text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		app.send(request);
+		
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void setsContentTypeIfUnsetAndUnambiguous() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain"));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		ClientResponse response = app.httpSend(request);
+
+		assertTrue(response.getHeaders().get(content_type).get(0).contains("text/plain"));
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void doesntSetContentTypeIfUnsetButAmbiguous() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(GET).produces("text/plain","text/xml"));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).with(accept, "text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+		
+		ClientResponse response = app.httpSend(request);
+		
+		System.out.println(response.getHeaders());
+
+		assertNull(response.getHeaders().get(content_type));
+
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void enforcesMultiValuedContentTypeHeader() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(POST).accepts("application/xml"));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).using(POST).with(content_type, "text/xml").with(content_type,"text/plain");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		try {
+			app.send(request);
+			fail();
+		} catch (UniformInterfaceException e) {
+			assertEquals(incoming_contenttype_unsupported_error.code(), e.getResponse().getStatus());
+		}
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void acceptsContentTypeHeadersWhenResourceDeclaresNone() {
+
+		ApiSignature signature = handles(resource_path).with(method(POST));
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource()).using(POST).with(content_type, "text/xml");
+
+		SomeApp app = startAppWith(signature);
+
+		app.httpSend(request);
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	
+	///////////////////////////////// helpers
+
+	private String resource() {
+		return Constants.root_mapping + extension_path + resource_path;
+	}
+
+	SomeApp startAppWith(ApiSignature signature) {
+
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+
+		app.extensions().set(controllerWith(signature));
+
+		app.bypassExtensionsDeployment();
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+
+		app.start();
+
+		return app;
+	}
+	
+	
+
+	@SuppressWarnings("serial")
+	HttpExtension controllerWith(final ApiSignature signature) {
+		return new HttpController(name, extension_mapping) {
+
+			{
+				addResources(new ApiResource(signature) {
+
+					@Override
+					public void doGet(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException,
+							IOException {
+						if (!supports(Method.valueOf(req.getMethod())))
+							super.doGet(req, resp);
+						else
+							resp.getWriter().write(req.getMethod() + " invoked @ " + signature.mapping());
+					}
+
+					@Override
+					public void doPost(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException,
+							IOException {
+						if (!supports(Method.valueOf(req.getMethod())))
+							super.doPost(req, resp);
+						else
+							resp.getWriter().write(req.getMethod() + " invoked @ " + signature.mapping());
+					}
+
+					@Override
+					public void doPut(HttpServletRequest req, HttpServletResponse resp) throws ServletException,
+							IOException {
+						if (!supports(Method.valueOf(req.getMethod())))
+							super.doPut(req, resp);
+						else
+							resp.getWriter().write(req.getMethod() + " invoked @ " + signature.mapping());
+					}
+
+				});
+			}
+
+			@Override
+			public String toString() {
+				return "SUT controller";
+			}
+		};
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/ExtensionsTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/ExtensionsTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..030fb8a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/ExtensionsTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,185 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static app.Request.request;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertNotNull;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.fail;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError.invalid_request_error;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.failed;
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletException;
+import javax.servlet.ServletRequest;
+import javax.servlet.ServletResponse;
+import javax.xml.bind.annotation.XmlRootElement;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.RemoteResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.request.RequestError;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+import com.sun.jersey.api.client.UniformInterfaceException;
+
+public class ExtensionsTest {
+
+	String name = "name";
+	String extension_path="/ext";
+	
+
+	@Test
+	public void areInstalledAndInitialised() {
+		
+
+		final String response = "output";
+		
+		@SuppressWarnings("serial")
+		ApplicationExtension extension = new HttpExtension(name,extension_path) {
+		
+			@Override
+			public void service(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse res) throws ServletException, IOException {
+				assertNotNull(context()); //init has been invoked
+				res.getWriter().write(response);
+			}
+		
+		};
+
+
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.extensions().set(extension);
+		
+		//we're only testing correct installation, not configuration now anything else
+		app.bypassExtensionsDeployment();
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		String actual = app.send(request().at(Constants.root_mapping+extension_path));
+		
+		assertEquals(response,actual);
+	}
+	
+	@SuppressWarnings("serial")
+	@XmlRootElement(name="unknown")
+	static class UnknownExtension extends HttpExtension {
+		
+		UnknownExtension() {}
+		
+		public UnknownExtension(String name, String mapping) {
+			super(name, mapping);
+		}
+		
+		@Override
+		public void service(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse res) throws ServletException, IOException {
+		}
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void failAppIfNotConfigured() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+		
+		app.extensions().set(new UnknownExtension(name,extension_path));
+		
+		ApplicationContext context= app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(failed,context.lifecycle().state());
+				
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void failAppIfConfiguredBadly() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		RemoteResource extension = new RemoteResource();
+		extension.name("");
+		extension.mapping("");
+		
+		app.extensions().set(extension);
+		
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+		
+		ApplicationContext context= app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(failed,context.lifecycle().state());
+				
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void throwErrorsConvertedInHttpResponses() {
+		
+
+		final RequestError error = invalid_request_error;
+		
+		@SuppressWarnings("serial")
+		ApplicationExtension extension = new HttpExtension(name,extension_path) {
+		
+			@Override
+			public void service(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse res) throws ServletException, IOException {
+				error.fire();
+			}
+		
+		};
+
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.extensions().set(extension);
+		
+		//we're only testing correct installation, not configuration now anything else
+		app.bypassExtensionsDeployment();
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		try {
+			app.send(request().at(Constants.root_mapping+extension_path));
+			fail();
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+
+			assertEquals(error.code(),e.getResponse().getStatus());	
+		}
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void areManagedLikeNativeServlets() {
+		
+		@SuppressWarnings("serial")
+		ApplicationExtension extension = new HttpExtension(name,extension_path) {
+			@Override
+			public void service(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse res) throws ServletException, IOException {
+			}
+		};
+
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+		
+		app.extensions().set(extension);
+		
+		app.bypassExtensionsDeployment();
+		
+		//installs default filters
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		//call in no scope
+		try {
+			app.send(request().at(Constants.root_mapping+extension_path).inScope(null));
+			fail();
+		}
+		catch(UniformInterfaceException e) {
+
+			assertEquals(e.getResponse().getEntity(String.class),invalid_request_error.code(),e.getResponse().getStatus());	
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/ProfileManagementTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/ProfileManagementTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bed3475
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/ProfileManagementTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static junit.framework.Assert.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+
+import java.io.File;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.lifecycle.ProfileManager;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationLifecycle;
+import org.junit.BeforeClass;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class ProfileManagementTest {
+
+	public static ApplicationContext ctx;
+	
+	@BeforeClass
+	public static void startApp() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+
+		app.handlers().set(new ProfileManager());
+
+		ctx = app.start();
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void createsStoresAndPublishesAValidProfile() throws Exception {
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = ctx.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class); 
+		
+		assertNotNull(profile);
+		
+		//assert profile has been created
+		File file = ctx.configuration().persistence().file(profile_file_path);
+		assertTrue(file.exists());
+
+		assertFalse(profile.scopes().isEmpty());
+
+		Resources.validate(profile);
+		
+		//assert status matches lifecycle's current state
+		ApplicationLifecycle lc = ctx.lifecycle();
+		
+		assertEquals(profile.profile().deploymentData().status(),lc.state().remoteForm());
+
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void loadsAndUpdatesProfile() throws Exception {
+		
+		SomeApp runtwice = new SomeApp();
+
+		runtwice.handlers().set(new ProfileManager());
+		
+		runtwice.dirtyRun();
+
+		ApplicationContext ctx = runtwice.start();
+
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = ctx.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class);
+		
+		assertNotNull(profile);
+
+		Resources.validate(profile);
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/RemoteResourceTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/RemoteResourceTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..03188a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/RemoteResourceTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,129 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static app.Request.request;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.application_xml;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.content_type;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.GET;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.HttpExtension.Method.POST;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertFalse;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertTrue;
+
+import java.io.StringReader;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBContext;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.ConfigurationResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.FrontPageResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.LifecycleResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.LifecycleResource.State;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.resource.ProfileResource;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+import org.junit.BeforeClass;
+import org.junit.Ignore;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.Request;
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class RemoteResourceTest {
+
+	static final String path = "/resource";
+	static JAXBContext jaxb;
+	static ApplicationContext context;
+	
+	static SomeApp app;
+
+	@BeforeClass
+	public static void setup() throws Exception {
+
+		jaxb = JAXBContext.newInstance(State.class);
+
+		app = new SomeApp();
+
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+		app.useDefaultExtensions();
+
+		context = app.start();
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void showsFrontpage() throws Exception {
+
+		// unscoped request
+		Request request = request().at(resource(FrontPageResource.mapping)).inScope(null);
+
+		app.send(request);
+		
+		//Thread.sleep(50000); enable to check interactively in browser
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void showsConfiguration() throws Exception {
+
+		//unscoped request
+		Request request = request().at(resource(ConfigurationResource.mapping)).inScope(null);
+
+		app.send(request);
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void showsProfile() throws Exception {
+
+		//unscoped request
+		Request request = request().at(resource(ProfileResource.mapping)).inScope(null);
+
+		String outcome = app.send(request);
+
+		GCoreEndpoint profile = Resources.unmarshal(GCoreEndpoint.class, new StringReader(outcome));
+
+		assertEquals(context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class).id(), profile.id());
+		assertEquals(context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class).profile().deploymentData().status(), profile.profile().deploymentData().status());
+	}
+	
+
+
+
+
+	@Test
+	public void currentState() throws Exception {
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource(LifecycleResource.mapping)).using(GET).inScope(null);
+
+		String outcome = app.send(request);
+		
+		State state = (State) jaxb.createUnmarshaller().unmarshal(new StringReader(outcome));
+
+		assertEquals(context.lifecycle().state(),ApplicationState.valueOf(state.value));
+
+	}
+	
+	@Ignore
+	@Test
+	public void changeState() throws Exception {
+
+		ApplicationState newstate = ApplicationState.stopped;
+
+		assertFalse(context.lifecycle().state()==newstate);
+
+		Request request = request().at(resource(LifecycleResource.mapping)).using(POST).inScope(null)
+				.with(content_type, application_xml).with("<state>stopped</state>");
+
+		app.httpSend(request);
+
+		assertTrue(context.lifecycle().state()==newstate);
+
+		request = request().at(resource(LifecycleResource.mapping)).using(POST).inScope(null)
+				.with(content_type, application_xml).with("<state>active</state>");
+		
+	}
+
+	// helper
+	private String resource(String resource) {
+		return Constants.root_mapping + path + resource;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/application/StartupTest.java b/src/test/java/test/application/StartupTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8f0457a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/application/StartupTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,234 @@
+package test.application;
+
+import static app.Request.request;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.profile_file_path;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.active;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState.failed;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertTrue;
+import static org.mockito.Matchers.any;
+import static org.mockito.Matchers.isA;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.doThrow;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.mock;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.times;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.verify;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.when;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.Set;
+
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.GCoreEndpoint;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resource;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.exception.RegistryNotFoundException;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.Constants;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationEvent;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleEvent.Start;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationLifecycleHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.RequestHandler;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.Test;
+import org.mockito.Matchers;
+import org.mockito.Mockito;
+
+import utils.TestUtils.Box;
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class StartupTest {
+
+	SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+	
+	@After
+	public void teardown() {
+		app.stop();
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void succeedsWithDefaults() throws Exception {
+	
+		
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+		app.useDefaultExtensions();
+		
+		ApplicationContext ctx = app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		//profile is shared in servlet context
+		assertEquals(ctx,ctx.application().getAttribute(Constants.context_attribute));
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void stillStoresProfileWhenPublicationFails() throws Exception {
+	
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+		
+		ScopedPublisher failingPublisher = Mockito.mock(ScopedPublisher.class);
+		when(failingPublisher.create(any(Resource.class), Matchers.anyListOf(String.class))).thenThrow(new RegistryNotFoundException());
+		
+		app.usePublisher(failingPublisher);
+		
+		ApplicationContext ctx = app.start();
+		
+		Thread.sleep(100); //a little bit of time for failure to propagate
+		
+		//application has failed
+		assertEquals(failed,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		//profile has been created
+		File file = ctx.configuration().persistence().file(profile_file_path);
+		assertTrue(file.exists());
+					
+	}
+	
+	@Test 
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public void invokesLifecycleHandlers() {
+	
+		ApplicationLifecycleHandler witness = mock(ApplicationLifecycleHandler.class);
+		
+		app.handlers().set(witness);
+		
+		//as we're using mocks, let us bypass JAXB configuration mechanisms
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+		
+		app.start();
+
+		verify(witness).onEvent(any(ApplicationEvent.class));
+	}
+	
+	@Test 
+	@SuppressWarnings("all")
+	public void registersRequestsHandlers() {
+	
+		Box<Boolean> handlerIsInvoked = new Box<Boolean>();
+	
+		RequestHandler witness = mock(RequestHandler.class);
+		
+		app.handlers().set(witness);
+		
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		app.send(request());
+
+		//invoked for request and response
+		verify(witness,times(2)).onEvent(isA(ApplicationEvent.class));
+	}
+
+	//@Ignore //inexplicable sometimes fails as configuration is not removed
+	@Test
+	public void failsIfConfigurationIsInvalid() {
+		
+		app.configuration().name(null).serviceClass(null).description(null).version(null).persistence(null);
+		
+		ApplicationContext ctx = app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(failed,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+	}
+	
+	@Test  
+	public void failsIfHandlerFails() throws Throwable {
+		
+		ApplicationLifecycleHandler failingHandler = mock(ApplicationLifecycleHandler.class);
+		doThrow(new RuntimeException("simulated handler failure")).when(failingHandler).onEvent(isA(Start.class));
+		
+		app.handlers().set(failingHandler);
+
+		app.bypassHandlerDeployment();
+		
+		ApplicationContext ctx = app.start();
+			
+		assertEquals(failed,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void canUseExternalConfiguration() {
+		
+		app.asExternal();
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		assertTrue(app.isActive());
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void canUseMergedConfiguration() {
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration config = new DefaultApplicationConfiguration();
+		config.persistence(new DefaultPersistence(new File(".").getAbsolutePath()));
+				
+		ApplicationContext context = app.start();
+				
+		assertTrue(app.isActive());
+		
+		app.withExternal(config);
+		
+		assertEquals(config.persistence(),context.configuration().persistence());
+	
+	}
+	
+
+	@Test
+	public void failsIfAllStartScopesAreInvalid() throws Exception {
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration config = new DefaultApplicationConfiguration();
+		
+		//config.startScopes("bad/scope","even/badder");
+		
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+						
+		ApplicationContext context = app.start();
+		
+		app.withExternal(config);
+		
+		assertEquals(failed,context.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void canStartInVreScope() throws Exception {
+		
+		ApplicationConfiguration config = new DefaultApplicationConfiguration();
+		
+		//tring vre = "/"+app.containerConfiguration().infrastructure()+"/"+app.containerConfiguration().startVOs().get(0)+"/vre";
+		
+		//config.startScopes(vre,"/bad/scope");
+		
+		app.useDefaultHandlers();
+		
+		ApplicationContext context = app.start();
+		
+		app.withExternal(config);
+		
+		assertEquals(active,context.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		Set<String> runningScopes = new HashSet<>(context.profile(GCoreEndpoint.class).scopes().asCollection());
+		
+		//assertEquals(singleton(vre),runningScopes);
+		
+		
+		
+		
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test(expected=RuntimeException.class)
+	public void failsIfConfigurationIsMissing() {
+		
+		app.bypassConfigurationDeployment();
+
+		app.start();
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/container/ConfigurationTest.java b/src/test/java/test/container/ConfigurationTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1721a0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/container/ConfigurationTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+package test.container;
+
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertEquals;
+import static junit.framework.Assert.assertTrue;
+
+import java.io.ByteArrayInputStream;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.Mode;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfigurationBinder;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.Site;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.persistence.DefaultPersistence;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class ConfigurationTest {
+
+	@Test
+	public void containerConfigurationBinds() throws Exception {
+
+		String appXml = "<application mode='offline'>" + "<name>name</name>" + "<group>class</group>"
+				+ "<version>version</version>" + "<description>desc</description>" + "<persistence location='target'/>"
+				+ "</application>";
+
+		String xml = "<container mode='offline'>"
+				+ "<hostname>localhost</hostname>"
+				+ "<port>8080</port>"
+				+ "<secure-port>8484</secure-port>"
+				+ "<infrastructure>gcube</infrastructure>"
+				+ // spaces are intentional!
+				"<token>token1</token>" + "<token>token2</token>" + "<persistence location='target'/>" + appXml + "<site>"
+				+ "<country>it</country>" + "<location>rome</location>" + "<latitude>41.9000</latitude>"
+				+ "<longitude>12.5000</longitude>" + "</site>" + "<property name='prop1' value='val1' />"
+				+ "<property name='prop2' value='val2' />" + "<publication-frequency>30</publication-frequency>"
+				+ "</container>";
+
+		ContainerConfigurationBinder binder = new ContainerConfigurationBinder();
+
+		ContainerConfiguration bound = binder.bind(new ByteArrayInputStream(xml.getBytes()));
+
+		bound.validate();
+
+		List<String> scopes = bound.startTokens();
+
+		assertTrue(scopes.contains("token1"));
+		assertTrue(scopes.contains("token2"));
+
+		assertEquals(sampleContainerConfiguration(), bound);
+
+	}
+
+	private ContainerConfiguration sampleContainerConfiguration() {
+
+		return new ContainerConfiguration().mode(Mode.offline).hostname("localhost").port(8080).securePort(8484).infrastructure("gcube")
+				.startTokens(Arrays.asList("token1", "token2"))
+				.site(new Site().country("it").location("rome").latitude("41.9000").longitude("12.5000"))
+				.property("prop1", "val1").property("prop2", "val2").publicationFrequency(30)
+				.app(sampleAppConfiguration())
+				.persistence(new DefaultPersistence("target"));
+
+	}
+
+	private ApplicationConfiguration sampleAppConfiguration() {
+
+		return new DefaultApplicationConfiguration().mode(Mode.offline).name("name").serviceClass("class")
+				.version("version").description("desc").persistence(new DefaultPersistence("target"));
+
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/container/ContainerLifecycleTest.java b/src/test/java/test/container/ContainerLifecycleTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..91a2cf0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/container/ContainerLifecycleTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+package test.container;
+
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.application.ApplicationState;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.managers.ContainerManager;
+import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.Ignore;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class ContainerLifecycleTest {
+	
+	SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+	
+	@After
+	public void teardown() {
+		app.stop();
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void containerGoesToPartActiveWhenAppFails() {
+		
+		
+		ApplicationContext actx = app.start();
+		
+		ContainerContext ctx = actx.container();
+
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		actx.lifecycle().moveTo(ApplicationState.failed);
+		
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.partActive,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void containerGoesToPartActiveWhenAppStops() {
+		
+		ApplicationContext actx = app.start();
+		
+		ContainerContext ctx = actx.container();
+
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		actx.lifecycle().moveTo(ApplicationState.stopped);
+		
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.partActive,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+	}
+
+	
+	//used interactively to study shutdown
+	@Ignore
+	@Test
+	public void containerShutsdown() throws Exception {
+		
+		ApplicationContext actx = app.start();
+		
+		ContainerContext ctx = actx.container();
+
+		assertEquals(ContainerState.active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		ContainerManager.instance.stop(true);
+		app.stop();
+		
+		Thread.sleep(10000);
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/container/ProfileManagementTest.java b/src/test/java/test/container/ProfileManagementTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1b45685
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/container/ProfileManagementTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
+package test.container;
+
+import static junit.framework.Assert.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.*;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
+import org.gcube.common.events.Observes;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.HostingNode;
+import org.gcube.common.resources.gcore.Resources;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class ProfileManagementTest {
+
+	@Test
+	public void createsStoresAndPublishesAValidProfile() throws Exception {
+
+		ContainerContext ctx = startAppAndGetContainerContext();
+		
+		HostingNode node = ctx.profile(HostingNode.class);
+
+		assertNotNull(node);
+		
+		//assert profile has been created
+		File profile = ctx.configuration().persistence().file(container_profile_file_path);
+		assertTrue(profile.exists());
+
+		assertFalse(node.scopes().isEmpty());
+
+		Resources.validate(node);
+
+	}
+
+	@Test
+	public void loadsAndUpdatesProfile() throws Exception {
+
+		startAppAndGetContainerContext();
+		
+		SomeApp runtwice = new SomeApp();
+
+		runtwice.dirtyRun();
+
+		ContainerContext ctx = runtwice.start().container();
+
+		assertNotNull(ctx.profile(HostingNode.class));
+
+		HostingNode node = ctx.profile(HostingNode.class);
+		
+		Resources.validate(node);
+	}
+	
+	
+	@Test
+	public void periodicallyUpdatesAndPublishesProfile() throws Exception {
+
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+
+		app.containerConfiguration().publicationFrequency(1);
+		
+		ContainerContext ctx = app.start().container();
+		
+		final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+		
+		assertEquals(active,ctx.lifecycle().state());
+		
+		ctx.events().subscribe(new Object() {
+			
+			@Observes
+			void profileHasChangedAfterPeriodicUpdate(HostingNode ignore) {
+				latch.countDown();
+			}
+			
+		});
+		
+		if (!latch.await(4,TimeUnit.SECONDS))
+				fail();
+		
+		ctx.lifecycle().moveTo(stopped); //should stop periodic updates
+		
+	}
+
+
+	ContainerContext startAppAndGetContainerContext() {
+		
+		SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+
+		ApplicationContext appCtx = app.start();
+
+		return appCtx.container();
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/test/container/StartupTest.java b/src/test/java/test/container/StartupTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbb5a0a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/test/container/StartupTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+package test.container;
+
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.Constants.*;
+import static org.gcube.smartgears.lifecycle.container.ContainerState.*;
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import app.SomeApp;
+
+public class StartupTest {
+
+	SomeApp app = new SomeApp();
+	
+	@After
+	public void teardown() {
+		app.stop();
+	}
+	
+	@Test(expected=RuntimeException.class)
+	public void failsIfHomeIsNotConfigured() {
+	
+		System.clearProperty(ghn_home_property);
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		assertFalse(app.isActive());
+	}
+	
+	@Test(expected=RuntimeException.class)
+	public void failsIfInstallationFolderIsInvalid() {
+	
+		System.setProperty(ghn_home_property,"foo");
+		
+		app.start();
+		
+		assertFalse(app.isActive());
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test(expected=RuntimeException.class)
+	public void failsIfConfigurationIsInvalid() {
+	
+		app.containerConfiguration().hostname(null);
+		
+		app.start();
+
+		assertFalse(app.isActive());
+		
+	}
+	
+	@Test
+	public void leavesContainerToActive() {
+		
+		ApplicationContext ctx = app.start();
+		
+		assertEquals(active,ctx.container().lifecycle().state());
+		
+		assertTrue(app.isActive());
+	}
+	
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/utils/TestProvider.java b/src/test/java/utils/TestProvider.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6d1de8a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/utils/TestProvider.java
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+package utils;
+
+import javax.servlet.ServletContext;
+
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.RegistryPublisher;
+import org.gcube.informationsystem.publisher.ScopedPublisher;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.application.ApplicationContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.context.container.ContainerContext;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.provider.DefaultProvider;
+
+public class TestProvider extends DefaultProvider {
+
+	public ApplicationContext context;
+	public ApplicationConfiguration configuration;
+	public ApplicationHandlers handlers;
+	public ApplicationExtensions extensions;
+	public ScopedPublisher publisher;
+	
+	public void use(ScopedPublisher publisher) {
+		this.publisher=publisher;
+	}
+	
+	public void use(ApplicationConfiguration configuration) {
+		this.configuration=configuration;
+	}
+	
+	public void use(ApplicationHandlers handlers) {
+		this.handlers=handlers;
+	}
+	
+	public void use(ApplicationExtensions extensions) {
+		this.extensions=extensions;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ScopedPublisher publisherFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+		return publisher==null?super.publisherFor(context):publisher;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationContext contextFor(ContainerContext container,ServletContext application) {
+		return context = super.contextFor(container,application);
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationHandlers handlersFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+		return handlers==null?super.handlersFor(context):handlers;
+	}
+	
+	@Override
+	public ApplicationExtensions extensionsFor(ApplicationContext context) {
+		return extensions==null?super.extensionsFor(context):extensions;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/utils/TestUtils.java b/src/test/java/utils/TestUtils.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..61ebc8e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/java/utils/TestUtils.java
@@ -0,0 +1,185 @@
+package utils;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileWriter;
+import java.io.StringWriter;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBContext;
+import javax.xml.bind.JAXBException;
+
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationExtensions;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.ApplicationHandlers;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.application.DefaultApplicationConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.configuration.container.ContainerConfiguration;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.extensions.ApplicationExtension;
+import org.gcube.smartgears.handlers.application.ApplicationHandler;
+
+
+public class TestUtils {
+
+	
+	public static String location = "target/ghn-home";
+	public static String context_root = "test-app";
+	public static String context_root_path = "/" + context_root;
+	public static String servlet_name = "test";
+	public static String scope = "/gcube/devsec";
+
+	public static class Box<T> {
+		
+		T t;
+		
+		public void put(T t) {
+			this.t=t;
+		}
+		
+		public T get() {
+			return t;
+		}
+		
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Serialises a {@link ContainerConfiguration} to XML in a file.
+	 * 
+	 * @param config the configuration
+	 * @param the file
+	 * @return the serialisation
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the configuration cannot be serialised
+	 */
+	public static void serialise(ContainerConfiguration config, File file) {
+		
+		//serialises configuration
+		
+		try {
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(ContainerConfiguration.class);
+	
+			FileWriter writer = new FileWriter(file);
+			
+			ctx.createMarshaller().marshal(config, writer);
+			
+			writer.flush();
+			writer.close();
+		
+		} catch (Exception e) {
+			
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid service configuration", e);
+		}		
+
+	}
+	/**
+	 * Serialises a {@link ApplicationConfiguration} to XML.
+	 * 
+	 * @param config the configuration
+	 * @return the serialisation
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the configuration cannot be serialised
+	 */
+	public static String bind(ApplicationConfiguration config) {
+
+		try {
+
+			//collect handler classes
+			List<Class<?>> classes = new ArrayList<Class<?>>();
+			
+			classes.add(DefaultApplicationConfiguration.class);
+			if (config.persistence()!=null)
+				classes.add(config.persistence().getClass());
+			
+			//serialises configuration
+			
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			StringWriter writer = new StringWriter();
+
+			ctx.createMarshaller().marshal(config, writer);
+
+			return writer.toString();
+
+		
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+			
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid application configuration", e);
+			
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Serialises application handlers.
+	 * 
+	 * @param handlers the handlers
+	 * @return the serialisation
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the handlers cannot be serialised
+	 */
+	public static String bind(ApplicationHandlers handlers) {
+
+		try {
+
+			//collect handler classes
+			List<Class<?>> classes = new ArrayList<Class<?>>();
+			
+			classes.add(ApplicationHandlers.class);
+
+			for (ApplicationHandler<?> h : handlers.lifecycleHandlers())
+				classes.add(h.getClass());
+
+			for (ApplicationHandler<?> h : handlers.requestHandlers())
+				classes.add(h.getClass());
+
+			
+			//serialises configuration
+			
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			StringWriter writer = new StringWriter();
+
+			ctx.createMarshaller().marshal(handlers, writer);
+
+			return writer.toString();
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+			
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid handler configuration", e);
+			
+		}
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Serialises application extensions.
+	 * 
+	 * @param extensions the extensions
+	 * @return the serialisation
+	 * @throws RuntimeException if the extensions cannot be serialised
+	 */
+	public static String bind(ApplicationExtensions extensions) {
+
+		try {
+
+			//collect handler classes
+			List<Class<?>> classes = new ArrayList<Class<?>>();
+			
+			classes.add(ApplicationExtensions.class);
+
+			for (ApplicationExtension h : extensions.extensions())
+				classes.add(h.getClass());
+
+			
+			//serialises configuration
+			
+			JAXBContext ctx = JAXBContext.newInstance(classes.toArray(new Class<?>[0]));
+
+			StringWriter writer = new StringWriter();
+
+			ctx.createMarshaller().marshal(extensions, writer);
+
+			return writer.toString();
+
+		} catch (JAXBException e) {
+			
+			throw new RuntimeException("invalid handler configuration", e);
+			
+		}
+	}
+	
+}
diff --git a/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml b/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4f36cc8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+<configuration>
+
+  <appender name="STDOUT" class="ch.qos.logback.core.ConsoleAppender">
+   <encoder>
+      <pattern>%d{HH:mm:ss.SSS} [%thread] %-5level %logger{0}: %msg%n</pattern>
+    </encoder>
+  </appender>
+  
+  
+  <logger name="org.gcube" level="TRACE" />
+
+  <root level="WARN">
+    <appender-ref ref="STDOUT" />
+  </root>
+  
+</configuration>
\ No newline at end of file