In the two preceding chapters, we built the basic scaffolding of our web application. On the server side, you learned how the authenticated requests would come into our dispatcher for processing. There, you saw how we could accommodate both standard web requests and GWT-RPC requests by forwarding each of these to the appropriate controller. Behind our controller layer, we sketched out a service layer and filled it in with mock implementations. Doing this helped us verify that the RPC bridge was working and that everything was wired together correctly, but a web application without a database is like a car without gas. You can push the pedals and turn the wheels, but you’re not going to go anywhere. In this chapter, we’ll fuel our application with a database.