One simple question - if my form bean is of the DynaValidatorForm type in the struts-config.xml and each propery of the form is specified in the validation.xml, do I have to call the validate method in the form bean? E.g. Do I still have to do the following in my form bean that extends the ActionForm?
do I have to call the validate method in the form bean?
No. A struts validator is going to manage input validation for you.
Do I still have to do the following in my form bean that extends the ActionForm?
No. But if you want to use validate method in the form bean with the defined validators, your ActionErrors object under the validate method should invoke super.validate(mapping, request).
The whole idea of having the DynaValidatorForm (sp?) as your FormBean instead of an ActionForm is so that you can manage all your validation requirements declaratively. In the end, all validation is done either with the built-in validation functions, or custom ones if your application needs something additional that doesn't come out-of-the-box. So, there's no source file for you to maintain (other than your struts-config.xml and whereever the validator functions are declared).