The methods for registration of both resources and servlets require HttpContext objects. They contain data used by the HTTP Service during resource registration. In an HttpContext, a developer specifies the MIME type of the response sent to the HTTP client, maps a resource to an URL and manages security on received client requests. If a client request requires authentication, then security can be established with the HTTP Access Authentication schemes.

The HTTP Service provides a default implementation of HttpContext that can be loaded by passing null for the HttpContext instance when registering a resource or a servlet, or can be instantiated through the createDefaultHttpContext method of the HTTP Service. This default HttpContext handles authentication security using the Basic Access Authentication Scheme.