The getRealPath method previously returned null for files that do not exist

In Liberty prior to version 19.0.0.8, the getRealPath method returns null if the specified path does not exist on the file system. This behavior was different that traditional WebSphere Application Server and could result in application NullPointerExceptions.

In Liberty version 19.0.0.8, the getRealPath behavior was changed to match WebSphere Application Server traditional.

This rule flags Java code that has references to the following methods:

• javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest.getRealPath(java.lang.String)
• javax.servlet.ServletContext.getRealPath(java.lang.String)
• javax.servlet.ServletRequest.getRealPath(java.lang.String)

Make sure you are using Liberty version 19.0.0.8 or later for consistent behavior.