What is the lifecycle of a Servlet?

What is the lifecycle of a Servlet?

A Servlet in Java follows a specific lifecycle during its execution. The lifecycle consists of the following phases:

1. Initialization: When a Servlet is first loaded into memory, the container calls its init() method to initialize the Servlet. This method is called only once during the Servlet's lifecycle.
2. Request Handling: The Servlet container calls the service() method to handle client requests. This method is called for each request received by the Servlet.
3. Destroy: When the container decides to remove the Servlet from memory, it calls the destroy() method. This method allows the Servlet to clean up any resources before it is removed.

Understanding the lifecycle of a Servlet is crucial for developers to properly manage resources and handle requests efficiently.