We employ a 'one to many' web server to application server configuration, and while we are able to test and validate multiple editions of an installed EAR, where we struggle is with testing/validating Static Content on the Web servers that is a part of the same build as a particular EAR.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to maintain and test separated Static Content with EAR editions?

I don't think there is an easy way to tackle this issue of static content tied to version of an EAR file.

The J2EE spec recommends that the static content be packaged as part of the EAR file and that is really the way WAS VE application edition management is going to manage the application.

If you have a large amount of static contents and you want to tie to particluar version of an EAR, you would at least need to create "separate" paths to the static content from where it is being served up and then change the img src urls in your code to point to a particular release of the static content.