Here's what I meant to write:
"Typo in compass-core-config.xsd blocks use of 'defaultTransactionIsolation' setting for DBCP".

The XSD names the attribute "defaultTransacitonIsolation", but the SchemaConfigurationBuilder.java code looks for "defaultTransactionIsolation" (correct spelling). If I change the XML to use what the Java code is looking for, then I get a SAX parse error since it doesn't match the schema.

The workaround is to use the <settings> element.

<!-- Example 1: passes XSD validation but isn't recognized by Compass -->
<dataSourceProvider>
<dbcp url="jdbc:mysql://localhost/soasta_repository?emulateLocators=true"
username="soasta"
password="soasta"
driverClass="com.mysql.jdbc.Driver"
defaultTransacitonIsolation="2"
maxActive="10" maxWait="5" maxIdle="2" initialSize="3" minIdle="4"
poolPreparedStatements="true" />
</dataSourceProvider>

<!-- Example 2: fails XSD validation -->
<dataSourceProvider>
<dbcp url="jdbc:mysql://localhost/soasta_repository?emulateLocators=true"
username="soasta"
password="soasta"
driverClass="com.mysql.jdbc.Driver"
defaultTransactionIsolation="2"
maxActive="10" maxWait="5" maxIdle="2" initialSize="3" minIdle="4"
poolPreparedStatements="true" />
</dataSourceProvider>

<!-- Example 3: workaround -->
<settings>
<setting name="compass.engine.store.jdbc.connection.provider.dbcp.defaultTransactionIsolation" value="2"/>
</settings>