AD0-E137 Adobe Experience Manager Sites Developer Expert Questions and Answers

In AEM as a Cloud Service, indexes must be defined and deployed as part of the project code base. The recommended approach is to extend or customize the out-of-the-box (OOTB) indexes by modifying the Oak index definitions and deploying them via Maven and Cloud Manager pipelines. This ensures that indexes are version-controlled, consistently deployed across all environments (Dev, Stage, Prod), and aligned with CI/CD practices. Option B is incorrect because replicating index packages via Package Manager is not supported in AEM as a Cloud Service. Option C is valid in scenarios where entirely new indexes are needed, but the question specifies that the index is based on existing search requirements. Adobe documentation emphasizes customizing existing indexes as the most efficient way to support project-specific queries.

Text pre-extraction is recommended during reindexing of existing Lucene indexes that have binary extraction enabled. Binary extraction is the process where text content is extracted from binary files (such as PDFs or Word documents) for indexing. During reindexing, extracting text repeatedly from large binaries can cause performance degradation. Pre-extraction allows text to be extracted once and reused during indexing, significantly reducing reindexing time and system load. Option B is incorrect because small repositories don’t require pre-extraction optimization. Option C is also incorrect, as images generally don’t involve binary text extraction unless paired with OCR. Adobe highlights pre-extraction as a performance optimization technique for reindexing scenarios involving binary text content.

The segment store in AEM grows as new content versions are created and retained. If not managed, this can result in significant performance degradation and increased storage size. To address this, the Version Purge maintenance task should be scheduled daily. This task removes old, unused versions of nodes and ensures that the repository remains healthy and compact. Option A, Audit Log Purge, cleans old audit entries but does not significantly affect segment store size. Option B, Lucene Binaries Cleanup, targets binary references but is not the main factor behind large segment store growth. Adobe recommends running Version Purge regularly as part of AEM maintenance to balance data retention needs and performance optimization.

The Oak query engine, which underpins AEM’s repository search and indexing capabilities, supports multiple query syntaxes. However, Adobe recommends using XPath or JCR-SQL2, with XPath being the most widely used. JCR-SQL (option A) is deprecated and should not be used in modern AEM implementations. Plain SQL (option B) is not supported as queries must operate within the JCR structure. Option C, XPath, integrates tightly with Oak’s indexing system and provides efficient query execution. Adobe documentation states explicitly that developers should use XPath or JCR-SQL2 for queries, as both are optimized for Oak’s indexing and repository structure. Since the question provides XPath as an option but not JCR-SQL2, XPath is the correct answer.

In multi-module AEM Maven projects, the all module is responsible for packaging and deploying all submodules. To ensure a new module is included during installation, it must be listed in the embeddeds section of the filevault-package-maven-plugin configuration inside the all module. This ensures the module is packaged into the final deployable ZIP and installed into AEM. Option A and B are incorrect because the maven-bundle-plugin manages OSGi bundle metadata, not multi-module embedding. Adobe’s official archetype documentation specifies that developers must add new modules to the embeddeds configuration for them to be recognized in the final deployment.

Explanation (Adobe Docs Reference):

The recommended way to bind servlets in AEM (OSGi DS) is via the @SlingServletResourceTypes annotation.

The methods value must be uppercase "GET".

doGet() method must use SlingHttpServletRequest and SlingHttpServletResponse instead of standard Servlet API request/response.

SlingAllMethodsServlet is safe for handling multiple HTTP verbs, but you can extend SlingSafeMethodsServlet too. However, in Adobe docs examples, the uppercase "GET" with doGet(SlingHttpServletRequest, SlingHttpServletResponse) is correct.

Explanation (Adobe Docs Reference):

Replication agents in AEM are responsible for transferring content and digital assets from the author instance to the publish instance (or to other targets like Dispatcher flush agents). This ensures that authored and approved content becomes available on the public site.

Options B and C are incorrect:

User permissions are not replicated by agents; they are managed by user synchronization.

Core Components are provided via Maven dependencies and not transferred via replication agents.

Adobe Documentation:

“Replication agents are central to AEM; they are used to publish (activate) content from an author to a publish environment, or to clear content from the dispatcher cache.”

— AEM Replication Agents

Custom components built on Core Components should use the sling:resourceSuperType property to inherit functionality. When upgrading from v1 to v2 Core Components, the developer updates the sling:resourceSuperType property of the custom component to reference the new v2 implementation. This allows the custom component to inherit all new features and bug fixes introduced in v2 while retaining its customizations. Option A is incorrect because sling:resourceType defines the resource type of the component itself, not inheritance. Option B is incorrect because there is no automatic upgrade mechanism in AEM; developers must explicitly update the inheritance path. Adobe documentation clearly states that upgrading Core Components is achieved by re-pointing sling:resourceSuperType to the new version.

By default, when saving dialog values, AEM stores them as String types in the JCR unless a type hint is provided. To ensure a checkbox is stored as a Boolean, developers must add a hidden TypeHint field to the dialog. This informs Sling Post Servlet about the correct JCR type when persisting values. Option A, using a JCR Event Listener, is inefficient and adds unnecessary complexity. Option C, using a Switch, would still result in a String unless the TypeHint is specified. Adobe documentation specifies that TypeHint fields should be added whenever developers need precise control over how values are stored, especially for Boolean, Long, or Date properties.

Explanation (Adobe Docs Reference):

In Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), the SPA Editor enables the development of Single Page Applications (SPAs) that integrate with AEM’s content management capabilities. SPA components in AEM are typically React or Angular components mapped to AEM components, and their data is exposed to the SPA via JSON through the Sling Model Exporter framework. The ComponentExporter interface, part of the com.adobe.cq.export.json package, is used to define how AEM components are serialized into JSON for consumption by the SPA. By default, AEM provides a standard exporter (via the Sling Model Exporter) that serializes component data based on the Sling Model’s annotations and properties. However, developers can override this default exporter for specific components to customize the JSON output, such as adding, removing, or modifying fields.

The question specifies that the developer is creating a set of SPA components, where half do not require a custom component exporter (i.e., they can use the default exporter), and the other half need a custom exporter to override the default behavior. Let’s analyze the options to determine the correct approach:

Analysis of Options:

Option A: Implement ImplementationPicker service

The ImplementationPicker interface (from com.adobe.cq.wcm.core.components.util) is used in AEM’s Core Components to dynamically select the implementation of a component based on specific conditions, such as resource type or request context. It is not related to the Sling Model Exporter or JSON serialization for SPA components. Implementing an ImplementationPicker service would be relevant for selecting different component implementations (e.g., different HTL scripts or Java classes) but does not address the need to customize JSON export for SPA components. This option is incorrect.

Option B: Implement ComponentExporter service

The ComponentExporter interface is designed for SPA integration in AEM. When a Sling Model implements ComponentExporter, it can be serialized into JSON by the Sling Model Exporter, which is used by the SPA Editor to provide component data to the front-end SPA (React or Angular). To override the default exporter, a developer creates a Sling Model for each SPA component that requires customization, annotates it with @Model (specifying resourceType and exporters), and implements ComponentExporter. The model can then define custom methods or annotations (e.g., @JsonProperty, @ValueMapValue) to control the JSON output. For the components that do not require a custom exporter, the default Sling Model Exporter behavior (provided by AEM or Core Components) can be used without implementing ComponentExporter. This approach perfectly aligns with the requirement to override the default exporter for only half of the components. This option is correct.

Option C: Implement FallbackComponentImpl service

There is no such thing as a FallbackComponentImpl service in AEM or its SPA Editor framework. This appears to be a fictitious or misleading option. AEM’s SPA Editor and Sling Model Exporter do not use a “fallback” service for JSON export customization. Instead, customization is achieved through the ComponentExporter interface or by extending existing exporters. This option is incorrect.

Correct Implementation:

To meet the goal, the developer should:

For components that do not require a custom exporter, rely on the default Sling Model Exporter behavior. These components can use standard Sling Models (or Core Components) that are automatically serialized into JSON based on their properties and annotations.

For components requiring a custom exporter, create Sling Models that implement the ComponentExporter interface and annotate them with @Model (from org.apache.sling.models.annotations) and @Exporter (from org.apache.sling.models.annotations). For example:

import com.adobe.cq.export.json.ComponentExporter;

import org.apache.sling.api.SlingHttpServletRequest;

import org.apache.sling.models.annotations.Model;

import org.apache.sling.models.annotations.Exporter;

import org.apache.sling.models.annotations.injectorspecific.ValueMapValue;

import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonProperty;

@Model(adaptables = SlingHttpServletRequest.class,

adapters = {ComponentExporter.class},

resourceType = "wknd/components/customcomponent",

exporters = @Exporter(name = "jackson", extensions = "json"))

public class CustomComponentModel implements ComponentExporter {

@ValueMapValue

private String customField;

@JsonProperty("renamedField")

The @Model annotation specifies that the class is a Sling Model adaptable from a SlingHttpServletRequest and implements ComponentExporter.

The @Exporter annotation registers the model with the Sling Model Exporter for JSON output (using Jackson).

The getExportedType() method, required by ComponentExporter, returns the resource type, which is used by the SPA to identify the component.

Custom logic (e.g., toUpperCase()) or annotations like @JsonProperty can be used to modify the JSON output.

Ensure the SPA Editor is configured correctly in AEM (e.g., the SPA project is set up with proper page templates and policies) to map these components to their front-end counterparts.

Why Option B is Correct:

Implementing ComponentExporter allows the developer to define custom Sling Models for the components that need a customized JSON output, overriding the default exporter’s behavior.

For the other half of the components, the default exporter (provided by AEM or Core Components) can be used without additional implementation.

This approach leverages AEM’s SPA Editor and Sling Model Exporter framework, which is specifically designed for exposing AEM component data to SPAs via JSON.

Exact Extracts from Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Sites Developer Documents:

From "SPA Editor - Developing SPAs for AEM": "AEM components, which are used within the SPA Editor, must implement the ComponentExporter interface to be serialized correctly into the JSON format expected by the SPA. This interface allows developers to customize the JSON export of components for SPA integration."

From "Sling Model Exporter": "The Sling Model Exporter framework allows Sling Models to be exported as JSON for SPA integration. By implementing ComponentExporter and annotating with @Exporter(name = 'jackson', extensions = 'json'), developers can control the JSON output of their components."

From "AEM SPA Editor and React/Angular": "For custom components requiring specific JSON structures, implement a Sling Model with ComponentExporter and define custom getters to shape the JSON output. Components without custom exporters can rely on the default JSON serialization provided by AEM."

In Dispatcher configuration, request filtering is handled through the filters.any file. To deny access to specific content types or formats (like .json and .xml) for certain paths, the configuration must explicitly match both the extension and the path using correct syntax. The valid approach uses:

/0001 { /type "deny" /extension "(xml|json)" /path "(/path2|/path3)/*" }

Options A and B contain syntax errors. Option A incorrectly uses JSON/* instead of paths, and Option B mixes array-style brackets instead of regex or path expressions. Option C follows the correct pattern of specifying deny rules with /extension and /path. Adobe recommends always explicitly denying unwanted selectors or extensions to prevent exposure of sensitive content through JSON or XML requests.

Run mode-specific configurations in AEM follow a strict naming convention under the osgiconfig folder. The folder structure defines both the run mode (author or publish) and the environment (e.g., dev, stage, uat, prod). For UAT author environments, the correct structure is config.author.uat. Option C follows this convention correctly. Option A and B use incorrect naming patterns, which would prevent AEM from loading the configuration under the desired run mode. Adobe emphasizes the importance of placing OSGi configs in the correct folder paths within the ui.apps project or ui.config project depending on deployment structure.