Download image file from JAX-RS

In this tutorial we will discuss about download image files from JAX-RS, for user to download a file, annotate the method with @Produces(“image/image-type”) :

1. Put @Produces(“image/png”) on service method, with a Response return type. It means the output is a image file.
2. Set “Content-Disposition” in Response header to tell browser pop up a download box for user to download.

1. Download Image in JAX-RS

Full example to download an image file from JAX-RS.

package com.dineshonjava.ws.rest;

import java.io.File;

import javax.ws.rs.GET;
import javax.ws.rs.Path;
import javax.ws.rs.Produces;
import javax.ws.rs.core.Response;
import javax.ws.rs.core.Response.ResponseBuilder;

/**
 * @author Dinesh Rajput
 *
 */
@Path("/employeephoto")
public class EmployeeImageService {
 private static final String IMAGE_PATH = "d:employee_photo.png";
  
 @GET
 @Path("/get")
 @Produces("image/png")
 public Response getSalarySlipFile() {
 
  File file = new File(IMAGE_PATH);
 
  ResponseBuilder response = Response.ok((Object) file);
  response.header("Content-Disposition",
   "attachment; filename="employee_image_photo.png"");
  return response.build();
 
 }
}

2. Test

Deploy above JAX-RS service, access this URI pattern : “http://localhost:8181/sdnext/doj/employeephoto/get”.

Figure : Image file “d:employee_photo.png” from server is prompt for user to download, with a new image  name “employee_image_photo.png”

Download SourceCode
Download image file from JAX-RS.zip

References
1. JAVA REST Web Services
2. Wikipedia for REST Web Service