diff --git a/.github/workflows/build.yml b/.github/workflows/build.yml
index 75f68a8c7..e7c9bac0b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/build.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/build.yml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 # limitations under the License.
 #
 
-name: Build
+name: Build all modules
 
 on:
   pull_request:
@@ -23,9 +23,26 @@ on:
     types: [ opened, synchronize, reopened ]
 
 jobs:
-  test:
+  build-agent-and-model:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        scala: [2.11.12, 2.12.18, 2.13.11]
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v2
+      - uses: coursier/cache-action@v5
 
+      - name: Setup Scala
+        uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v14
+        with:
+          java-version: "adopt@1.8"
+
+      - name: Build and run tests
+        run: sbt "project agent" ++${{matrix.scala}} test doc "project model" ++${{matrix.scala}} test doc
+
+  build-server:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     services:
       postgres:
         image: postgres:15
@@ -39,26 +56,21 @@ jobs:
           --health-retries 5
         ports:
           - 5432:5432
-
     strategy:
-      fail-fast: false
       matrix:
-        scala: [2.11.12, 2.12.18, 2.13.11]
-
-    name: Scala ${{matrix.scala}}
-
+        scala: [2.13.11]
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
         uses: actions/checkout@v2
       - uses: coursier/cache-action@v5
 
       - name: Setup Scala
-        uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v10
+        uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v14
         with:
-          java-version: "adopt@1.8"
+          java-version: "adopt@1.11.0-11"
 
       - name: Prepare testing database
         run: sbt flywayMigrate
 
       - name: Build and run tests
-        run: sbt ++${{matrix.scala}} test doc
+        run: sbt "project server" ++${{matrix.scala}} test doc
diff --git a/.github/workflows/jacoco_check.yml b/.github/workflows/jacoco_check.yml
index e9757b0e3..09d19c805 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/jacoco_check.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/jacoco_check.yml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 # limitations under the License.
 #
 
-name: JaCoCo report
+name: JaCoCo report agent and module
 
 on:
   pull_request:
@@ -24,8 +24,6 @@ on:
 env:
   scalaLong12: 2.12.18
   scalaShort12: "2.12"
-  scalaLong13: 2.13.11
-  scalaShort13: "2.13"
   overall: 80.0
   changed: 80.0
 
@@ -34,20 +32,6 @@ jobs:
     name: Build and test
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
-    services:
-      postgres:
-        image: postgres:15
-        env:
-          POSTGRES_PASSWORD: postgres
-          POSTGRES_DB: atum_db
-        options: >-
-          --health-cmd pg_isready
-          --health-interval 10s
-          --health-timeout 5s
-          --health-retries 5
-        ports:
-          - 5432:5432
-
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
@@ -55,24 +39,12 @@ jobs:
         uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v14
         with:
           java-version: "adopt@1.8"
-      - name: Prepare testing database
-        run: sbt flywayMigrate
       - name: Build and run tests
         continue-on-error: true
         id: jacocorun
-        run: sbt jacoco
-      #  server module code coverage
-      - name: Add coverage to PR
-        if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
-        id: jacoco-server
-        uses: madrapps/jacoco-report@v1.6.1
-        with:
-          paths: ${{ github.workspace }}/server/target/jvm-${{ env.scalaShort13 }}/jacoco/report/jacoco.xml
-          token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
-          min-coverage-overall: ${{env.overall }}
-          min-coverage-changed-files: ${{ env.changed }}
-          title: JaCoCo server module code coverage report - scala ${{ env.scalaLong13 }}
-          update-comment: true
+        run: |
+          sbt "project agent; jacoco"
+          sbt "project model; jacoco"
       #  agent module code coverage
       - name: Add coverage to PR
         if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
@@ -102,8 +74,6 @@ jobs:
       - name: Get the Coverage info
         if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
         run: |
-          echo "Total sever module coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-overall }}"
-          echo "Changed Files coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}"
           echo "Total agent module coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-agent.outputs.coverage-overall }}"
           echo "Changed Files coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-agent.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}"
           echo "Total model module coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-model.outputs.coverage-overall }}"
@@ -114,7 +84,6 @@ jobs:
         with:
           script: |
             const coverageCheckFailed =
-              Number('${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}') < Number('${{ env.changed }}') ||
               Number('${{ steps.jacoco-agent.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}') < Number('${{ env.changed }}') ||
               Number('${{ steps.jacoco-model.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}') < Number('${{ env.changed }}');
             if (coverageCheckFailed) {
diff --git a/.github/workflows/jacoco_check_server.yml b/.github/workflows/jacoco_check_server.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..48e41b463
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/jacoco_check_server.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+#
+# Copyright 2021 ABSA Group Limited
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+#
+
+name: JaCoCo report server
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    branches: [ master ]
+    types: [ opened, edited, synchronize, reopened ]
+
+env:
+  scalaLong13: 2.13.11
+  scalaShort13: "2.13"
+  overall: 80.0
+  changed: 80.0
+
+jobs:
+  test:
+    name: Build and test
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+
+    services:
+      postgres:
+        image: postgres:15
+        env:
+          POSTGRES_PASSWORD: postgres
+          POSTGRES_DB: atum_db
+        options: >-
+          --health-cmd pg_isready
+          --health-interval 10s
+          --health-timeout 5s
+          --health-retries 5
+        ports:
+          - 5432:5432
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+      - name: Setup Scala
+        uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v14
+        with:
+          java-version: "adopt@1.11.0-11"
+      - name: Prepare testing database
+        run: sbt flywayMigrate
+      - name: Build and run tests
+        continue-on-error: true
+        id: jacocorun
+        run: sbt "project server; jacoco"
+      #  server module code coverage
+      - name: Add coverage to PR
+        if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
+        id: jacoco-server
+        uses: madrapps/jacoco-report@v1.6.1
+        with:
+          paths: ${{ github.workspace }}/server/target/jvm-${{ env.scalaShort13 }}/jacoco/report/jacoco.xml
+          token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          min-coverage-overall: ${{env.overall }}
+          min-coverage-changed-files: ${{ env.changed }}
+          title: JaCoCo server module code coverage report - scala ${{ env.scalaLong13 }}
+          update-comment: true
+      - name: Get the Coverage info
+        if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
+        run: |
+          echo "Total sever module coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-overall }}"
+          echo "Changed Files coverage ${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}"
+      - name: Fail PR if changed files coverage is less than ${{ env.changed }}%
+        if: steps.jacocorun.outcome == 'success'
+        uses: actions/github-script@v6
+        with:
+          script: |
+            const coverageCheckFailed =
+              Number('${{ steps.jacoco-server.outputs.coverage-changed-files }}') < Number('${{ env.changed }}');
+            if (coverageCheckFailed) {
+              core.setFailed('Changed files coverage is less than ${{ env.changed }}%!');
+            }
+      - name: Edit JaCoCo comments on build failure
+        if: steps.jacocorun.outcome != 'success'
+        uses: actions/github-script@v6
+        with:
+          script: |
+            const issue_number = context.issue.number;
+            const owner = context.repo.owner;
+            const repo = context.repo.repo;
+            const jacocoReportRegExp = /^### JaCoCo .* code coverage report .*/;
+
+            const comments = await github.rest.issues.listComments({
+              owner,
+              repo,
+              issue_number,
+            });
+
+            for (const comment of comments.data) {
+              const lines = comment.body.split('\n');
+              if (lines.length > 0 && jacocoReportRegExp.test(lines[0])) {
+                await github.rest.issues.updateComment({
+                  owner,
+                  repo,
+                  comment_id: comment.id,
+                  body: lines[0] + "\n\n### Build Failed",
+                });
+              }
+            }
+
+            core.setFailed('JaCoCo test coverage report generation failed, and related PR comments were updated.');
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release_publish.yml b/.github/workflows/release_publish.yml
index 4d52f137f..a75203377 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release_publish.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release_publish.yml
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ jobs:
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
       - uses: olafurpg/setup-scala@v14
-      - name: Run sbt ci-release (produces war as well)
+      - name: Run sbt ci-release (produces jar as well)
         run: sbt ci-release
         env:
           PGP_PASSPHRASE: ${{ secrets.PGP_PASSPHRASE }}
@@ -35,11 +35,11 @@ jobs:
           SONATYPE_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.SONATYPE_PASSWORD }}
           SONATYPE_USERNAME: ${{ secrets.SONATYPE_USERNAME }}
 
-      - name: Find WAR file
-        id: find_war
-        run: echo "WAR_PATH=$(find . -name '*.war' | head -n 1)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+      - name: Find JAR file
+        id: find_jar
+        run: echo "JAR_PATH=$(find . -name 'server/target/jvm-2.13/*.jar' | head -n 1)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
 
-      - name: Upload WAR file to GitHub Release
-        run: gh release upload ${{ github.event.release.tag_name }} ${{ env.WAR_PATH }} --repo ${{ github.repository }}
+      - name: Upload JAR file to GitHub Release
+        run: gh release upload ${{ github.event.release.tag_name }} ${{ env.JAR_PATH }} --repo ${{ github.repository }}
         env:
           GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index e1726edd4..68eb03cb2 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -88,3 +88,6 @@ _site
 utils/resources/*.conf
 
 .bsp
+/server/certs/
+/server/selfsigned.crt
+/server/selfsigned.p12
diff --git a/build.sbt b/build.sbt
index 46cc208d9..b3edec56c 100644
--- a/build.sbt
+++ b/build.sbt
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ import sbt.Keys.name
 ThisBuild / organization := "za.co.absa.atum-service"
 sonatypeProfileName := "za.co.absa"
 
-ThisBuild / scalaVersion := Versions.scala212  // default version
+ThisBuild / scalaVersion := Versions.scala213  // default version
 
 ThisBuild / versionScheme := Some("early-semver")
 
@@ -33,13 +33,23 @@ lazy val printSparkScalaVersion = taskKey[Unit]("Print Spark and Scala versions
 lazy val printScalaVersion = taskKey[Unit]("Print Scala versions for atum-service is being built for.")
 
 lazy val commonSettings = Seq(
-  libraryDependencies ++= commonDependencies,
   scalacOptions ++= Seq("-unchecked", "-deprecation", "-feature", "-Xfatal-warnings"),
-  javacOptions ++= Seq("-source", "1.8", "-target", "1.8", "-Xlint"),
   Test / parallelExecution := false,
   jacocoExcludes := jacocoProjectExcludes()
 )
 
+val serverMergeStrategy = assembly / assemblyMergeStrategy := {
+  case PathList("META-INF", "services", xs @ _*) => MergeStrategy.filterDistinctLines
+  case PathList("META-INF", "maven", "org.webjars", "swagger-ui", "pom.properties") => MergeStrategy.singleOrError
+  case PathList("META-INF", "resources", "webjars", "swagger-ui", _*) => MergeStrategy.singleOrError
+  case PathList("META-INF", _*) => MergeStrategy.discard
+  case PathList("META-INF", "versions", "9", xs@_*) => MergeStrategy.discard
+  case PathList("module-info.class") => MergeStrategy.discard
+  case "application.conf" => MergeStrategy.concat
+  case "reference.conf" => MergeStrategy.concat
+  case _ => MergeStrategy.first
+}
+
 enablePlugins(FlywayPlugin)
 flywayUrl := FlywayConfiguration.flywayUrl
 flywayUser := FlywayConfiguration.flywayUser
@@ -52,8 +62,9 @@ lazy val server = (projectMatrix in file("server"))
   .settings(
     commonSettings ++ Seq(
       name := "atum-server",
-      libraryDependencies ++= Dependencies.serverDependencies,
-      scalacOptions ++= Seq("-Ymacro-annotations"),
+      libraryDependencies ++= Dependencies.serverDependencies ++ testDependencies,
+      javacOptions ++= Seq("-source", "11", "-target", "11", "-Xlint"),
+      scalacOptions ++= Seq("-release", "11", "-Ymacro-annotations"),
       Compile / packageBin / publishArtifact := false,
       printScalaVersion := {
         val log = streams.value.log
@@ -61,15 +72,13 @@ lazy val server = (projectMatrix in file("server"))
       },
       (Compile / compile) := ((Compile / compile) dependsOn printScalaVersion).value,
       packageBin := (Compile / assembly).value,
-      artifactPath / (Compile / packageBin) := baseDirectory.value / s"target/${name.value}-${version.value}.war",
-      webappWebInfClasses := true,
-      inheritJarManifest := true,
-      publish / skip := true,
-      jacocoReportSettings := jacocoSettings(scalaVersion.value, "atum-server")
+      artifactPath / (Compile / packageBin) := baseDirectory.value / s"target/${name.value}-${version.value}.jar",
+      testFrameworks += new TestFramework("zio.test.sbt.ZTestFramework"),
+      jacocoReportSettings := jacocoSettings(scalaVersion.value, "atum-server"),
+      serverMergeStrategy
     ): _*
   )
   .enablePlugins(AssemblyPlugin)
-  .enablePlugins(TomcatPlugin)
   .enablePlugins(AutomateHeaderPlugin)
   .jvmPlatform(scalaVersions = Seq(Versions.serviceScalaVersion))
   .dependsOn(model)
@@ -77,8 +86,9 @@ lazy val server = (projectMatrix in file("server"))
 lazy val agent = (projectMatrix in file("agent"))
   .settings(
     commonSettings ++ Seq(
-      name := "agent",
-      libraryDependencies ++= Dependencies.agentDependencies(
+      name := "atum-agent",
+      javacOptions ++= Seq("-source", "1.8", "-target", "1.8", "-Xlint"),
+      libraryDependencies ++= jsonSerdeDependencies ++ testDependencies ++ Dependencies.agentDependencies(
         if (scalaVersion.value == Versions.scala211) Versions.spark2 else Versions.spark3,
         scalaVersion.value
       ),
@@ -97,8 +107,9 @@ lazy val agent = (projectMatrix in file("agent"))
 lazy val model = (projectMatrix in file("model"))
   .settings(
     commonSettings ++ Seq(
-      name := "model",
-      libraryDependencies ++= Dependencies.modelDependencies(scalaVersion.value),
+      name         := "atum-model",
+      javacOptions ++= Seq("-source", "1.8", "-target", "1.8", "-Xlint"),
+      libraryDependencies ++= jsonSerdeDependencies ++ testDependencies ++ Dependencies.modelDependencies(scalaVersion.value),
       printScalaVersion := {
         val log = streams.value.log
         log.info(s"Building ${name.value} with Scala ${scalaVersion.value}")
diff --git a/project/Dependencies.scala b/project/Dependencies.scala
index 385e6e1eb..f8b8541e9 100644
--- a/project/Dependencies.scala
+++ b/project/Dependencies.scala
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ object Dependencies {
     val sttp = "3.5.2"
 
     val postgresql = "42.6.0"
-    
+
     val fadb = "0.3.0"
 
     val json4s_spark2 = "3.5.3"
@@ -59,11 +59,12 @@ object Dependencies {
 
     val zio = "2.0.19"
     val zioLogging = "2.2.0"
+    val logbackZio = "1.4.7"
     val zioConfig = "4.0.1"
     val sbtJunitInterface = "0.13.3"
     val tapir = "1.9.6"
     val http4sBlazeBackend = "0.23.15"
-    val playJson = "2.9.4"
+    val playJson = "3.0.1"
 
   }
 
@@ -99,7 +100,17 @@ object Dependencies {
     }
   }
 
-  def commonDependencies: Seq[ModuleID] = {
+  def testDependencies: Seq[ModuleID] = {
+    lazy val scalatest = "org.scalatest" %% "scalatest" % Versions.scalatest % Test
+    lazy val mockito = "org.mockito" %% "mockito-scala" % Versions.scalaMockito % Test
+
+    Seq(
+      scalatest,
+      mockito,
+    )
+  }
+
+  def jsonSerdeDependencies: Seq[ModuleID] = {
     val json4sVersion = json4sVersionForScala(Versions.scala212)
 
     lazy val jacksonModuleScala = "com.fasterxml.jackson.module" %% "jackson-module-scala" % Versions.jacksonModuleScala
@@ -109,19 +120,12 @@ object Dependencies {
     lazy val json4sJackson = "org.json4s" %% "json4s-jackson" % json4sVersion
     lazy val json4sNative = "org.json4s" %% "json4s-native" % json4sVersion % Provided
 
-    lazy val logback = "ch.qos.logback" % "logback-classic" % Versions.logback
-    lazy val scalatest = "org.scalatest" %% "scalatest" % Versions.scalatest % Test
-    lazy val mockito = "org.mockito" %% "mockito-scala" % Versions.scalaMockito % Test
-
     Seq(
       jacksonModuleScala,
       json4sExt,
       json4sCore,
       json4sJackson,
-      json4sNative,
-      logback,
-      scalatest,
-      mockito,
+      json4sNative
     )
   }
 
@@ -130,13 +134,16 @@ object Dependencies {
     val tapirOrg = "com.softwaremill.sttp.tapir"
     val http4sOrg = "org.http4s"
     val faDbOrg = "za.co.absa.fa-db"
-    val playOrg = "com.typesafe.play"
+    val playOrg = "org.playframework"
     val sbtOrg = "com.github.sbt"
+    val logbackOrg = "ch.qos.logback"
 
     // zio
     lazy val zioCore = zioOrg %% "zio" % Versions.zio
     lazy val zioMacros = zioOrg %% "zio-macros" % Versions.zio
     lazy val zioLogging = zioOrg %% "zio-logging" % Versions.zioLogging
+    lazy val slf4jLogging = zioOrg %% "zio-logging-slf4j2" % Versions.zioLogging
+    lazy val logback = logbackOrg % "logback-classic" % Versions.logbackZio
     lazy val zioConfig = zioOrg %% "zio-config" % Versions.zioConfig
     lazy val zioConfigMagnolia = zioOrg %% "zio-config-magnolia" % Versions.zioConfig
     lazy val zioConfigTypesafe = zioOrg %% "zio-config-typesafe" % Versions.zioConfig
@@ -166,6 +173,8 @@ object Dependencies {
       zioCore,
       zioMacros,
       zioLogging,
+      slf4jLogging,
+      logback,
       zioConfig,
       zioConfigMagnolia,
       zioConfigTypesafe,
@@ -194,13 +203,16 @@ object Dependencies {
 
     lazy val sttp = "com.softwaremill.sttp.client3" %% "core" % Versions.sttp
 
+    lazy val logback = "ch.qos.logback" % "logback-classic" % Versions.logback
+
     Seq(
       sparkCore,
       sparkSql,
       typeSafeConfig,
       sparkCommons,
       sparkCommonsTest,
-      sttp
+      sttp,
+      logback
     )
   }
 
@@ -220,7 +232,7 @@ object Dependencies {
       balta,
     )
   }
-  
+
   def flywayDependencies: Seq[ModuleID] = {
     val postgresql = "org.postgresql" % "postgresql" % Versions.postgresql
 
diff --git a/project/plugins.sbt b/project/plugins.sbt
index f5ca6af36..321d068ee 100644
--- a/project/plugins.sbt
+++ b/project/plugins.sbt
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ addSbtPlugin("io.github.davidmweber" % "flyway-sbt" % "7.4.0")
 // To add release plugin
 addSbtPlugin("com.github.sbt" % "sbt-ci-release" % "1.5.12")
 
-// Plugins to build the server module as a war file
+// Plugins to build the server module as a jar file
 addSbtPlugin("com.eed3si9n" % "sbt-assembly" % "0.14.10")
 
 // sbt-jacoco dependency downloading
@@ -47,4 +47,3 @@ addSbtPlugin("org.ow2.asm" % "asm-commons" % ow2Version from ow2Url("asm-commons
 addSbtPlugin("org.ow2.asm" % "asm-tree" % ow2Version from ow2Url("asm-tree"))
 
 addSbtPlugin("za.co.absa.sbt" % "sbt-jacoco" % "3.4.1-absa.4" from "https://github.com/AbsaOSS/sbt-jacoco/releases/download/3.4.1-absa.4/sbt-jacoco-3.4.1-absa.4.jar")
-
diff --git a/server/Dockerfile b/server/Dockerfile
index a5bb8f1ac..68b8ee4b7 100644
--- a/server/Dockerfile
+++ b/server/Dockerfile
@@ -13,13 +13,12 @@
 # limitations under the License.
 #
 
-
 # Atum Service docker file
 
 # build via (docker root = project root):
 # docker build -t absaoss/atum-service:latest \
 # --build-arg BUILD_PROXY=http://my.cool.proxy.here:3128 \
-# --build-arg CONFIG=./path/to/my.awesome.local.application.properties \
+# --build-arg CONFIG=./path/to/my.awesome.local.reference.conf \
 # --build-arg SSL=true \
 # --build-arg SSL_DNAME="CN=*.my.domain.com, OU=project1, O=mycorp, L=Johannesburg, ST=Gauteng, C=za" .
 # run via
@@ -30,10 +29,10 @@
 # https://localhost:8443/token/public-key
 
 # Conditional Docker image creation idea: https://stackoverflow.com/a/60820156/1773349
-# change to OFF to disable SSL
-ARG SSL=true
-# Tomcat OS base image, feel free to use another (e.g. your hardened one)
-ARG BASE_IMAGE=tomcat:9-jdk8-corretto
+# change to false to disable SSL
+ARG SSL
+# Amazon correto base image
+ARG BASE_IMAGE=amazoncorretto:11.0.22
 
 # --- Base image part (common for SSL true|false) ---
 FROM $BASE_IMAGE as base
@@ -41,7 +40,7 @@ FROM $BASE_IMAGE as base
 # Provide your proxy if needed, e.g. http://my.proxy.examle.com:3128
 ARG BUILD_PROXY
 # Override of the example application config is possible
-ARG CONFIG=./src/main/resources/application.properties
+ARG CONFIG=./src/main/resources/resource.conf
 # Provide path to the directory with LDAP certs in PEM format
 ARG LDAP_SSL_CERTS_PATH
 # ARG SSL_DNAME is defined below in the SSL-enabled image
@@ -52,13 +51,11 @@ ARG SCALA_VERSION=2.13
 
 LABEL org.opencontainers.image.authors="ABSA"
 
-# Copy Spring application properties
-COPY $CONFIG /opt/application.properties
-
-# deploy as root application in tomcat
-COPY ${AS_PREFIX}/target/jvm-${SCALA_VERSION}/*.war /usr/local/tomcat/webapps/ROOT.war
+# The application's jar file
+ARG JAR_FILE=${AS_PREFIX}/target/jvm-${SCALA_VERSION}/*.jar
 
-ENV SPRING_CONFIG_LOCATION=/opt/application.properties
+# Add the application's jar to the container
+ADD ${JAR_FILE} app.jar
 
 ENV http_proxy=$BUILD_PROXY
 ENV https_proxy=$BUILD_PROXY
@@ -71,30 +68,24 @@ COPY $LDAP_SSL_CERTS_PATH /opt/certs/
 
 RUN for file in `ls /opt/certs/*.pem`; \
 do \
-    echo yes | keytool -import -file $file -alias ldaps$RANDOM -keystore $JAVA_HOME/jre/lib/security/cacerts -storepass changeit; \
+    echo yes | keytool -import -file $file -alias ldaps$RANDOM -keystore /usr/lib/jvm/java-11-amazon-corretto/lib/security/cacerts -storepass changeit; \
 done
 
-# uncomment and add packages you would need to install via yum if any
-#RUN yum -y update
-#RUN yum -y install htop procps
-
 # --- SSL=true image specifics ---
 FROM base AS base-ssl-true
 ENV SSL_ENABLED=true
 RUN echo "This stage sets SSL=$SSL_ENABLED"
-# Enable SSL: Add our SSL connector after <Service name="Catalina"> is found in server.xml; .bak = backup
-RUN sed -i.bak '/<Service name="Catalina">/a <Connector port="8443" protocol="HTTP/1.1" SSLEnabled="true" maxThreads="150" scheme="https" secure="true" keystoreFile="/usr/local/tomcat/conf/selfsigned.p12" keystorePass="changeit" clientAuth="false" acceptCount="100"/>' /usr/local/tomcat/conf/server.xml
 
 # DNAME for self-signed cert, only applied for SSL=true
 ARG SSL_DNAME="CN=*.my.example.com, OU=project1, O=yourcompany, L=Johannesburg, ST=Gauteng, C=za"
 
-# A self-seigned certificate for HTTPS
-RUN keytool -genkeypair -keyalg RSA -alias tomcat -keysize 2048 \
+# A self-signed certificate for HTTPS
+RUN keytool -genkeypair -keyalg RSA -alias selfsigned -keysize 2048 \
     -dname "$SSL_DNAME" \
-    -validity 365 -storepass changeit -keystore /usr/local/tomcat/conf/selfsigned.p12 -storetype PKCS12
+    -validity 365 -storepass changeit -keystore /etc/ssl/certs/selfsigned.jks -storetype JKS
 
 EXPOSE 8080 8443
-CMD ["catalina.sh", "run"]
+ENTRYPOINT ["java","-jar","/app.jar"]
 
 # --- SSL=false image specifics ---
 FROM base AS base-ssl-false
@@ -102,7 +93,7 @@ ENV SSL_ENABLED=false
 RUN echo "This stage sets SSL=$SSL_ENABLED"
 
 EXPOSE 8080
-CMD ["catalina.sh", "run"]
+ENTRYPOINT ["java","-jar","/app.jar"]
 
 # --- Final image assembly ---
 FROM base-ssl-${SSL} AS final
diff --git a/server/README.md b/server/README.md
index 7ee745bd9..551854cd8 100644
--- a/server/README.md
+++ b/server/README.md
@@ -2,10 +2,11 @@
 
 ## How to build and run (will be updated soon)
 
-To create a war file that can be deployed to tomcat just run:
+To create a jar file that can be executed:
 
 ```shell
-> sbt package
+> sbt clean "project server" assembly
+> java -jar server/target/jvm-2.13/*.jar
 ```
 
 If you want to quickly build and run from sbt you can run using the command below (alternatively you can execute za.co.absa.atum.server.Main within your IDE). This deploys it to `localhost:8080`.
diff --git a/server/certs/.gitkeep b/server/certs/.gitkeep
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e69de29bb
diff --git a/server/src/main/resources/logback.xml b/server/src/main/resources/logback.xml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..acd40c3d8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/main/resources/logback.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<configuration>
+    <appender name="STDOUT" class="ch.qos.logback.core.ConsoleAppender">
+        <layout class="ch.qos.logback.classic.PatternLayout">
+            <Pattern>%d{HH:mm:ss.SSS} %-5level [%thread] %logger{36}:%L - %msg %ex{short}%n</Pattern>
+        </layout>
+    </appender>
+    <root level="debug">
+        <appender-ref ref="STDOUT"/>
+    </root>
+    <logger name="za.co.absa" level="debug"/>
+    <logger name="com.zaxxer.hikari" level="warn"/>
+</configuration>
diff --git a/server/src/main/resources/reference.conf b/server/src/main/resources/reference.conf
index 7dabe41e0..817c72bbc 100644
--- a/server/src/main/resources/reference.conf
+++ b/server/src/main/resources/reference.conf
@@ -1,23 +1,18 @@
 {
-   logger {
-      # This format includes timestamp, level, thread (fiberId), message, and cause
-      format = "%label{timestamp}{%fixed{32}{%timestamp}} %label{level}{%level} %label{thread}{%fiberId} %label{class}{%name:%line} %label{message}{%message} %label{cause}{%cause}"
-      # log filter
-      filter {
-         # rootLevel sets the minimum level of log messages that will be displayed
-         rootLevel = INFO
-      }
-   }
-   postgres {
-      # The JDBC driver class
-      dataSourceClass=org.postgresql.Driver
-      serverName=localhost
-      # set to non-default port, to avoid local collision
-      portNumber=5432
-      databaseName=atum_db
-      user=atum_user
-      password=changeme
-      # maximum number of connections that HikariCP will keep in the pool, including both idle and in-use connections
-      maxPoolSize=10
-   }
+  postgres {
+    # The JDBC driver class
+    dataSourceClass=org.postgresql.Driver
+    serverName=localhost // host.docker.internal for local run in docker against db on its host machine; localhost otherwise for testing and for the gh pipeline
+    portNumber=5432
+    databaseName=atum_db
+    user=atum_user
+    password=changeme
+    # maximum number of connections that HikariCP will keep in the pool, including both idle and in-use connections
+    maxPoolSize=10
+  }
+  ssl {
+    enabled=false
+    keyStorePassword=password
+    keyStorePath="/path/to/your/cert"
+  }
 }
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/Main.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/Main.scala
index 9c0d21d0d..6afb1f2ed 100644
--- a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/Main.scala
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/Main.scala
@@ -17,14 +17,14 @@
 package za.co.absa.atum.server
 
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.controller._
-import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.{PostgresDatabaseProvider, TransactorProvider}
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.runs.functions.{CreatePartitioningIfNotExists, WriteCheckpoint}
+import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.{PostgresDatabaseProvider, TransactorProvider}
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.http.Server
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.repository.{CheckpointRepositoryImpl, PartitioningRepositoryImpl}
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.service.{CheckpointServiceImpl, PartitioningServiceImpl}
-import zio.config.typesafe.TypesafeConfigProvider
-import zio.logging.consoleLogger
 import zio._
+import zio.config.typesafe.TypesafeConfigProvider
+import zio.logging.backend.SLF4J
 
 object Main extends ZIOAppDefault with Server {
 
@@ -47,6 +47,6 @@ object Main extends ZIOAppDefault with Server {
       )
 
   override val bootstrap: ZLayer[Any, Config.Error, Unit] =
-    Runtime.removeDefaultLoggers >>> Runtime.setConfigProvider(configProvider) >>> consoleLogger()
+    Runtime.removeDefaultLoggers >>> SLF4J.slf4j >>> Runtime.setConfigProvider(configProvider)
 
 }
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/CreatePartitioningIfNotExists.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/CreatePartitioningIfNotExists.scala
index 9ac29565f..8c6135476 100644
--- a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/CreatePartitioningIfNotExists.scala
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/CreatePartitioningIfNotExists.scala
@@ -19,8 +19,8 @@ package za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.runs.functions
 import doobie.Fragment
 import doobie.implicits.toSqlInterpolator
 import doobie.util.Read
+import play.api.libs.json.Json
 import za.co.absa.atum.model.dto.PartitioningSubmitDTO
-import za.co.absa.atum.model.utils.SerializationUtils
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.model.PartitioningForDB
 import za.co.absa.fadb.DBSchema
 import za.co.absa.fadb.doobie.{DoobieEngine, StatusWithData}
@@ -28,7 +28,6 @@ import za.co.absa.fadb.doobie.DoobieFunction.DoobieSingleResultFunctionWithStatu
 import za.co.absa.fadb.status.handling.implementations.StandardStatusHandling
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.PostgresDatabaseProvider
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.runs.Runs
-
 import zio._
 import zio.interop.catz._
 
@@ -38,22 +37,22 @@ class CreatePartitioningIfNotExists(implicit schema: DBSchema, dbEngine: DoobieE
 
   override def sql(values: PartitioningSubmitDTO)(implicit read: Read[StatusWithData[Unit]]): Fragment = {
     val partitioning = PartitioningForDB.fromSeqPartitionDTO(values.partitioning)
-    val partitioningNormalized = SerializationUtils.asJson(partitioning)
+    val partitioningJsonString = Json.toJson(partitioning).toString
 
-    val parentPartitioningNormalized = values.parentPartitioning.map { parentPartitioning =>
+    val parentPartitioningJsonString = values.parentPartitioning.map { parentPartitioning =>
       val parentPartitioningForDB = PartitioningForDB.fromSeqPartitionDTO(parentPartitioning)
-      SerializationUtils.asJson(parentPartitioningForDB)
+      Json.toJson(parentPartitioningForDB).toString
     }
 
     sql"""SELECT ${Fragment.const(selectEntry)} FROM ${Fragment.const(functionName)}(
                   ${
                     import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.DoobieImplicits.Jsonb.jsonbPutUsingString
-                    partitioningNormalized
+                    partitioningJsonString
                   },
                   ${values.authorIfNew},
                   ${
                     import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.DoobieImplicits.Jsonb.jsonbPutUsingString
-                    parentPartitioningNormalized
+                    parentPartitioningJsonString
                   }
                 ) ${Fragment.const(alias)};"""
   }
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/WriteCheckpoint.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/WriteCheckpoint.scala
index bcd9882a1..35b615dad 100644
--- a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/WriteCheckpoint.scala
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/database/runs/functions/WriteCheckpoint.scala
@@ -20,7 +20,6 @@ import doobie.Fragment
 import doobie.implicits._
 import doobie.util.Read
 import za.co.absa.atum.model.dto.CheckpointDTO
-import za.co.absa.atum.model.utils.SerializationUtils
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.model.PartitioningForDB
 import za.co.absa.fadb.DBSchema
 import za.co.absa.fadb.doobie.{DoobieEngine, StatusWithData}
@@ -28,9 +27,10 @@ import za.co.absa.fadb.doobie.DoobieFunction.DoobieSingleResultFunctionWithStatu
 import za.co.absa.fadb.status.handling.implementations.StandardStatusHandling
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.PostgresDatabaseProvider
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.database.runs.Runs
-
 import zio._
 import zio.interop.catz._
+import play.api.libs.json.Json
+import za.co.absa.atum.server.model.PlayJsonImplicits.writesMeasurementDTO
 
 import doobie.postgres.implicits._
 
@@ -40,11 +40,12 @@ class WriteCheckpoint(implicit schema: DBSchema, dbEngine: DoobieEngine[Task])
 
   override def sql(values: CheckpointDTO)(implicit read: Read[StatusWithData[Unit]]): Fragment = {
     val partitioning = PartitioningForDB.fromSeqPartitionDTO(values.partitioning)
-    val partitioningNormalized = SerializationUtils.asJson(partitioning)
+    val partitioningNormalized = Json.toJson(partitioning).toString
     // List[String] containing json data has to be properly escaped
     // It would be safer to use Json data type and derive Put instance
-    val measurementsNormalized =
-      values.measurements.map(x => s"\"${SerializationUtils.asJson(x).replaceAll("\"", "\\\\\"")}\"")
+    val measurementsNormalized = {
+      values.measurements.map(x => s"\"${Json.toJson(x).toString.replaceAll("\"", "\\\\\"")}\"")
+    }
 
     sql"""SELECT ${Fragment.const(selectEntry)} FROM ${Fragment.const(functionName)}(
                   ${
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/SSL.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/SSL.scala
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d31072301
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/SSL.scala
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2021 ABSA Group Limited
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package za.co.absa.atum.server.api.http
+
+import za.co.absa.atum.server.config.SslConfig
+import zio.ZIO
+
+import java.io.FileInputStream
+import java.security.{KeyStore, SecureRandom}
+import javax.net.ssl.{KeyManagerFactory, SSLContext, TrustManagerFactory}
+
+object SSL {
+
+  val context: ZIO[Any, Throwable, SSLContext] = {
+    for {
+      sslConfig <- ZIO.config[SslConfig](SslConfig.config)
+      _ <- ZIO.logDebug("Attempting to initialize SSLContext")
+      keyStore <- ZIO.attempt {
+        val keyStore = KeyStore.getInstance(KeyStore.getDefaultType)
+        val in = new FileInputStream(sslConfig.keyStorePath)
+        keyStore.load(in, sslConfig.keyStorePassword.toCharArray)
+        keyStore
+      }
+      _ <- ZIO.logDebug("KeyStore instantiated")
+      keyManagerFactory <- ZIO.attempt {
+        val keyManagerFactory = KeyManagerFactory.getInstance(KeyManagerFactory.getDefaultAlgorithm)
+        keyManagerFactory.init(keyStore, sslConfig.keyStorePassword.toCharArray)
+        keyManagerFactory
+      }
+      _ <- ZIO.logDebug("KeyManagerFactory initialized")
+      trustManagerFactory <- ZIO.attempt {
+        val trustManagerFactory = TrustManagerFactory.getInstance(TrustManagerFactory.getDefaultAlgorithm)
+        trustManagerFactory.init(keyStore)
+        trustManagerFactory
+      }
+      _ <- ZIO.logDebug("TrustManagerFactory initialized")
+      sslContext <- ZIO.attempt {
+        val sslContext = SSLContext.getInstance("TLS")
+        sslContext.init(keyManagerFactory.getKeyManagers, trustManagerFactory.getTrustManagers, new SecureRandom())
+        sslContext
+      }
+      _ <- ZIO.logDebug("SSLContext successfully initialized")
+    } yield sslContext
+  }
+
+}
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/Server.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/Server.scala
index f38fd5d63..b38a67626 100644
--- a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/Server.scala
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/api/http/Server.scala
@@ -31,12 +31,15 @@ import sttp.tapir.server.interceptor.decodefailure.DefaultDecodeFailureHandler.r
 import sttp.tapir.server.model.ValuedEndpointOutput
 import sttp.tapir.swagger.bundle.SwaggerInterpreter
 import sttp.tapir.ztapir._
-import sttp.tapir.{DecodeResult, Endpoint, PublicEndpoint, headers, statusCode}
+import sttp.tapir.{DecodeResult, PublicEndpoint, headers, statusCode}
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.Constants.{SwaggerApiName, SwaggerApiVersion}
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.api.controller._
+import za.co.absa.atum.server.config.SslConfig
 import za.co.absa.atum.server.model.BadRequestResponse
 import zio.interop.catz._
-import zio.{RIO, ZIO}
+import zio._
+
+import javax.net.ssl.SSLContext
 
 trait Server extends Endpoints {
 
@@ -88,14 +91,25 @@ trait Server extends Endpoints {
       .toRoutes
   }
 
-  protected val server: ZIO[Env, Throwable, Unit] =
+  private def createServer(port: Int, sslContext: Option[SSLContext] = None): ZIO[Env, Throwable, Unit] =
     ZIO.executor.flatMap { executor =>
-      BlazeServerBuilder[F]
+      val builder = BlazeServerBuilder[F]
+        .bindHttp(port, "0.0.0.0")
         .withExecutionContext(executor.asExecutionContext)
         .withHttpApp(Router("/" -> (createAllServerRoutes <+> createSwaggerRoutes)).orNotFound)
-        .serve
-        .compile
-        .drain
+
+      val builderWithSsl = sslContext.fold(builder)(ctx => builder.withSslContext(ctx))
+      builderWithSsl.serve.compile.drain
     }
 
+  private val httpServer: ZIO[Env, Throwable, Unit] = createServer(8080)
+  private val httpsServer: ZIO[Env, Throwable, Unit] = SSL.context.flatMap { context =>
+    createServer(8443, Some(context))
+  }
+
+  protected val server: ZIO[Env, Throwable, Unit] = for {
+    sslConfig <- ZIO.config[SslConfig](SslConfig.config)
+    server <- if (sslConfig.enabled) httpsServer else httpServer
+  } yield server
+
 }
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/config/SslConfig.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/config/SslConfig.scala
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..77b032548
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/config/SslConfig.scala
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2021 ABSA Group Limited
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package za.co.absa.atum.server.config
+
+import zio.Config
+import zio.config.magnolia.deriveConfig
+
+case class SslConfig(
+  enabled: Boolean,
+  keyStorePassword: String,
+  keyStorePath: String
+)
+
+object SslConfig {
+  val config: Config[SslConfig] = deriveConfig[SslConfig].nested("ssl")
+}
diff --git a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/model/PartitioningForDB.scala b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/model/PartitioningForDB.scala
index df2ba109e..b03c89c3c 100644
--- a/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/model/PartitioningForDB.scala
+++ b/server/src/main/scala/za/co/absa/atum/server/model/PartitioningForDB.scala
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@
 
 package za.co.absa.atum.server.model
 
+import play.api.libs.json.{Json, Writes}
 import za.co.absa.atum.model.dto.PartitioningDTO
 
 private[server] case class PartitioningForDB private (
@@ -32,4 +33,7 @@ object PartitioningForDB {
 
     PartitioningForDB(keys = allKeys, keysToValuesMap = mapOfKeysAndValues)
   }
+
+  implicit val writes: Writes[PartitioningForDB] = Json.writes
+
 }
diff --git a/server/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml b/server/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..6e2afba1d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/test/resources/logback-test.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<configuration>
+    <appender name="STDOUT" class="ch.qos.logback.core.ConsoleAppender">
+        <layout class="ch.qos.logback.classic.PatternLayout">
+            <Pattern>%d{HH:mm:ss.SSS} [%thread] [%kvp] %-5level %logger{36} %msg%n</Pattern>
+        </layout>
+    </appender>
+    <root level="warn">
+        <appender-ref ref="STDOUT" />
+    </root>
+    <logger name="za.co.absa" level="debug" />
+</configuration>
diff --git a/server/src/test/resources/reference.conf b/server/src/test/resources/reference.conf
index 7b8fc5b4f..9279d9667 100644
--- a/server/src/test/resources/reference.conf
+++ b/server/src/test/resources/reference.conf
@@ -1,13 +1,4 @@
 {
-   logger {
-      # This format includes timestamp, level, thread (fiberId), message, and cause
-      format = "%label{timestamp}{%fixed{32}{%timestamp}} %label{level}{%level} %label{thread}{%fiberId} %label{class}{%name:%line} %label{message}{%message} %label{cause}{%cause}"
-      # log filter
-      filter {
-         # rootLevel sets the minimum level of log messages that will be displayed
-         rootLevel = INFO
-      }
-   }
    postgres {
       # The JDBC driver class
       dataSourceClass=org.postgresql.Driver