You do not need to deploy the component anywhere on the server.
Importing it into Workbench actually stores it in the server's database. From there, it can be used by both the server, and by Workbench.
NoClassDefFound often means that you need to tweak your import or expoort statements or classpath in component.xml, you're missing a library, or perhaps you're compiling with the wrong version of Java.
Good luck...
Howard
http://www.avoka.com