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This chapter provides an introduction to the features, functionality, and architecture of AquaLogic Ensemble, and is divided into the following sections:
This section describes the features and functionality of Ensemble.
The Ensemble Console is a browser-based administration tool used to create and manage the various objects in your Ensemble deployment. From the Ensemble Console you can register web applications and pagelets with the Ensemble Proxy, configure authentication, manage the user experience, and configure auditing.
For more details on the Ensemble Console, see The AquaLogic Ensemble Console.
Resources are web applications registered with the Ensemble proxy. Registering a resource allows the Ensemble proxy to map internal applications to external URLs, manage authentication both at the proxy level (between user and resource) and at the resource level (between resource and application), and transform applications using Ensemble adaptive tags and the AquaLogic Interaction IDK.
For details on proxy resources, see Proxy Resources.
Authentication of users is managed using two mechanisms: proxy authentication and credential mapping.
Proxy authentication is how a user authenticates with the proxy in order to access proxied resources. Multiple authentication sources can be configured as login resources with Ensemble. The relative strength of authentication sources is described using authentication levels. A user authenticated at an authentication level can access resources configured for that authentication level, plus any resources with lower authentication levels. Authentication sources for proxy authentication can be based on the AquaLogic Interaction portal database or third-party SSO providers such as CA SiteMinder or Oracle COREid.
For details on proxy authentication, see Proxy Authentication.
For details on how authentication sources are associated with users accessing resources, see Experience Definitions.
Credential mapping is how a resource authenticates with the proxied application. Credentials can be be static and defined within the resource configuration, can be stored in the user's profile in AquaLogic Interaction, or can be stored in the Credential Vault after the user has logged into the proxied application once.
For details on credential mapping, see Credential Mapping.
In addition to authentication, access to resources is controled by policies and rules. Policies determine who can access a resource and under what conditions. Conditions for access can include factors such as time of day, an IP address within a configured range, the user's browser, and other criteria.
For details on policies and rules, see Policies and Rules.
A pagelet is a sub-component of a web page, accessed through the Ensemble proxy, and able to be injected into any proxied application. Any application on an Ensemble resource that returns text can be registered as a pagelet.
You can pass data to pagelets using pagelet parameters or the pagelet payload. The former passes name-value pairs to the pagelet application, while the latter is any text, including XML. Parameters can even be configured to be sent using transport types that mimic AquaLogic Interaction parameter transport, which allows you to port ALI portlets to be Ensemble pagelets.
For details on pagelets, see Pagelets.
You can access usage information for Ensemble proxied applications and the Ensemble Console by using the Ensemble audit system and the Ensemble integration with AquaLogic Analytics.
For details on Ensemble audit features, see Audit.
For details on using Ensemble with Analytics, see Analytics.
The following diagram illustrates the architecture of an AquaLogic Ensemble deployment.
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