Using WebLogic Integration - Business Connect
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The following topics are provided about managing company profiles in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect.
You can use the Company Profile information viewer to set up and maintain company profiles.
With a company profile, you can trade with different trading partners using:
You might find it necessary to set up more than one company profile. Each company profile you set up must have its own ID. Moreover, creating additional company profiles affects the performance of WebLogic Integration - Business Connect by adding to its processing overhead. You should not create multiple company profiles unless you need them.
One reason for creating more than one company profile is you might have more than one business unit, each of which uses a different EDI ID.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has two e-mail transport methods: POP and SMTP. They are distinctly different transports.
The POP transport sends documents via the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol; your partner receives the documents via Post Office Protocol (POP). POP can be done between WebLogic Integration - Business Connect and any EDIINT-compliant software that your partners might be using. POP is a store-and-forward transport. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect sends packaged documents to your SMTP server, and your SMTP server sends them to your partner's POP3 server. If your trading partner's POP3 server is off line, your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can still send the document, but will not get back an MDN acknowledging the document until the partner's POP3 server comes back on line.
The SMTP transport can be used under either of the following two situations:
SMTP is not a store-and-forward transport; it is more like bundled HTTP and HTTPS, in that it requires a direct connection with your trading partner's WebLogic Integration - Business Connect or SMTP server. If your partner's WebLogic Integration - Business Connect server or SMTP server is not running, you cannot send a document to the partner.
Because SMTP is not a store-and-forward transport, it can assure first-in, first-out (FIFO) outbound processing.
For details about configuring these transports, see SMTP Inbound Transport and POP Inbound Transport.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses a fall-off algorithm for document polling retries in the event of a transport connection failure. The algorithm is based on the inbound polling rate plus a wait state of 10 seconds that doubles at each successive failure. For example, if the inbound polling rate is 30 seconds and a connection failure occurs, the wait state becomes active and the next polling interval is 40 seconds (polling rate of 30 seconds plus one wait state of 10 seconds). The wait state doubles for each successive failure, so the polling interval increases as follows: 50 seconds (30 seconds plus two wait states), 70 seconds (30 seconds plus four wait states), and so on until a plateau of 12 hours is reached and repeated at that interval.
Wait states are maintained by company profile for each transport type. The original polling rate returns when the transport connection is restored or when any part of the company profile is updated, on the presumption that the update resolves the connection problem. However, the fall-off algorithm restarts if the transport connection failure persists.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect also uses a fall-off algorithm in attempting to resend outbound documents in the event of transport failures. For details see Partner Profile Preferences Tab.
Once you have created a company profile and have associated a certificate with it, you must distribute the profile to your trading partners.
The first step in distributing a company profile is to save the profile information in a file. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has an export feature that enables you to export a company profile as a partner profile saved in an XML or PFL file. See Exporting a Company Profile to a File.
After you export your company profile to a file, you distribute it to your partners on diskette, by e-mail or some other secure means. Although you can negotiate the exact details, distributing your company profile for the first time should be done with some care. It is recommended that you accomplish this first exchange by some means that ensures secure delivery. Examples of appropriate means include in-person, by way of the U.S. Postal Service or another delivery service such as Federal Express. After your partner has imported your profile and set up a trading profile for you, you can use e-mail or the Update Partner feature to send subsequent profiles and certificates.
When your partner receives your company profile file, the partner imports the data in the file to create a partner profile for you on their system.
You can use alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters as well as spaces in profile IDs. All alphanumeric characters are supported. Use of specific non-alphanumeric characters is supported, but results in the system creating names of data directories and processed files that use hex codes in place of the characters. Spaces in IDs are allowed within limitations. You also can create an ID in an electronic data interchange (EDI) format. The following topics are provided for supported profile ID formats:
You can use any alphanumeric characters in profile IDs. These are the alphabetic characters a through z (upper and lower case) and the numerals 0 through 9.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect supports specific non-alphanumeric characters in profile IDs. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect converts most of these characters to ASCII hex codes when it creates the names of document directories in the file system. The system creates directories for inbound and outbound documents for each company profile under the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect data directory. Profile IDs are used for the directory names. You can see examples of these directory names on the Company Profile window System Directories tab. The non-alphanumeric characters display as literals in the information viewers in Administrator, but as hex codes on the System Directories tab.
Not only data directory names, but the names that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect gives to processed documents are based on profile IDs. The non-alphanumeric characters in names of processed documents convert to hex codes in the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect data directories in the file system. In Tracker, if IDs contain non-alphanumeric characters, files names for processed documents also display with the hex codes.
The following table shows the non-alphanumeric characters that can be used in profile IDs. It also shows the hex code for the character that is used in document directory names and names of processed documents. Note that the underscore is the only character that is not converted to a hex code in names of data directories and processed files.
You can set up a profile ID in a qualifier-EDI ID format. Under this format, a 2-character qualifier precedes the EDI ID as follows:
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Indicates that a Dun & Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (D-U-N-S®) number is used as the ID. |
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If you use a 2-character qualifier-EDI ID format, type the EDI ID immediately after the qualifier as one string with no spaces, hyphens or other separating characters. For a complete list of EDI qualifiers, see the ASC X12 standards for EDI. For additional information visit the ASC X12 Web site at the following URL:
Spaces mostly are useful as placeholders for a 2-character qualifier for a profile ID in EDI format, but you can use them in any ID. The following table describes the allowable formats for using spaces in IDs. The character * represents a space and n represents an alphanumeric character.
The system displays an error message if you try to create an ID with an unsupported format.
If you use the bundled HTTP or HTTPS inbound transport in your company profile, you might have to make sure your partners have the right URL. This is because the URL WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses might not be the one your partners need to send documents to you through your company's firewall.
When you configure the bundled HTTP or HTTPS inbound transport, the default URL is in the following format:
HTTP: http://hostname_or_IPaddress:4080/exchange/companyID
HTTPS: https://hostname_or_IPaddress:1443/exchange/companyID
The default URL contains the internal host name or IP address for the computer running the Server application. However, if you installed WebLogic Integration - Business Connect behind a firewall as recommended, you must make sure your partners have the external IP address to send you documents. Depending on your transport, your partner needs a URL in the following format:
HTTP: http://external_IPaddress:4080/exchange/companyID
HTTPS: https://external_IPaddress:1443/exchange/companyID
You might have to contact your company's firewall administrator to obtain this external IP address or Network Address Translation (NAT) address. This is the global IP address alias of the computer running WebLogic Integration - Business Connect that is exposed to the public side of the Internet.
You cannot edit the URL for the bundled HTTP or HTTPS inbound transport in your company profile. The system does not allow it. However, there are two ways to make sure your partners have the correct URL:
Use this procedure to add a new profile, clone a profile or change a profile. Cloning creates a profile that is substantially the same as an existing profile.
Figure 6-1 Company Profiles Information Viewer
To add a company profile, click New to open the New Company Profile dialog box.
To clone a company profile, select the profile you want to copy and click Clone to open the New Company Profile dialog box. Cloning lets you create a new company profile that is substantially the same as an existing one. Cloning does not replicate certificates. You must load or generate a new certificate for a cloned profile.
Figure 6-2 New Company Profile Dialog Box
You can use alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters as well as spaces in profile IDs. All alphanumeric characters are supported. Use of specific non-alphanumeric characters is supported, but results in the system creating names of data directories and processed files that use hex codes in place of the characters. Spaces in IDs are allowed within limitations. You also can create an ID in an electronic data interchange (EDI) format. For details see Supported Formats for Profile IDs.
The system displays an error message if you try to create an ID with an unsupported format.
See the following topics for information about adding or changing information on the tabs:
Note: Click OK only after you have made all the changes or additions you want on all tabs.
If you changed a company profile and want to update your partners, see Distributing Profiles to Partners.
If this is a new company profile, the system displays a message asking whether you want to set up a certificate for the profile. Go to the next step.
Use this procedure to export a company profile to a file. You can export your company profile as a partner profile that you can distribute to your partners, or you can export your company profile as a backup that you do not share with your partners. The following are some reasons for exporting a profile to a file:
You can save an exported partner profile in an XML or PFL file. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect 8.1 can use partner profiles of either file type.
If you export your company profile as an XML file for backup purposes, you can later import the file as a company profile on any WebLogic Integration - Business Connect system version 7.0 or later. The exported company profile includes the associated certificate and public-private key pair. A company profile exported as a backup file cannot be imported as a partner profile; the system will not allow it.
Figure 6-3 Export Company Profile Window
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Select this option to export your company profile and associated certificate and public key to a file for manual distribution as a partner profile to partners who use WebLogic Integration - Business Connect 7.0 or later. This option exports the profile in an XML file. Any transport server passwords in the profile are encrypted for security. |
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Select this option to export your company profile and associated certificate and public key to a file for manual distribution as a partner profile to partners. |
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Select this option to export your company profile and associated certificate and public-private key pair to an XML file for backup purposes. You can type a password that you must remember and use if you later import the profile. See Importing a Backed Up Company Profile. The password protects the private key in the certificate associated with the company profile. Although using a password is optional, we recommend that you do so. We also recommend that you store the XML file in a secure place. Do not share this file with a partner. |
The default name of the file you are exporting depends on your selection, as the following table shows:
You can click Browse to open the Export Company Profile dialog box and change the default path and file name. Click Save to close the dialog box and return to the Export Company Profile window. Clicking Save on the dialog box only sets the name of the file to be saved, but does not save the file.
Figure 6-4 Export Company Profile Dialog Box
If you plan to send the profile file to a partner as an e-mail attachment, we recommend that you use a utility such as WinZip to package the file and then send the compressed file to your partner. This method is recommended to protect the profile file from possible corruption during transmission. Some SMTP servers append verbiage to e-mail attachments, which can harm the profile file.
Use this procedure to import a company profile and associated certificate and public-private key pair that was earlier exported for backup purposes to an XML file. See Exporting a Company Profile to a File.
Figure 6-5 Import Company Profile Window
ProfileName_company.xml.Figure 6-6 Import Company Profile Dialog Box
Use this procedure to change the locations of all system directories at the same time to conform to a desired root path. This procedure uses the Company Profile window System Directories tab. For descriptions of the fields on this tab, see Company Profile System Directories Tab.
Changing the directory structure after WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has been operational must be done with care. This is because documents received previous to the change are not transferred to the new directory structure. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect also does not delete the old directory structure.
The Change Base Path button is not available for client Administrator applications that are not installed on the same machine as the Server application.
Figure 6-7 Change Base Path Dialog Box
Use this procedure to delete a company profile that is no longer needed.
When you delete a company profile, it is no longer displayed in the Company Profiles or Certificates information viewers.
A certificate associated with the deleted profile is not also deleted, but retained in the system with a status of retired.
If, after you have deleted a company profile, you create another with the same ID, all the old profile's certificates are re-associated with this new profile.
Note: You cannot undo a company profile deletion.
Use the Company Profile window Identity tab to specify the address of the company and provide information about your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect point of contact. You can also view the company profile name and ID.
Figure 6-8 Company Profile Identity Tab
The following describes the fields on the Company Profile window Identity tab. For procedure see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
Type the company profile name. This field is required. You can use any alphanumeric characters and the following characters: back slash, forward slash, colon, underscore, comma and period. The application removes any other characters.
You can use spaces in your company name; the application translates them to underscores.
Type the mailing address for this company profile. The first line of this field is required; the second is optional.
Type the two-letter ISO country code of the country where your company or business unit is located. The following are the ISO codes for selected countries. See ISO Country Codes, for a complete list of the codes.
The ID or combined qualifier-EDI ID you entered when you created this company profile. This is a view-only field; you cannot change it.
Type the name of the person who is to receive WebLogic Integration - Business Connect alert messages. This field is required.
Use the Company Profile window Preferences tab to set up or change preferences information for a company profile, including: trading status, alert and notify e-mail addresses and SMTP server, and document backup options.
Figure 6-9 Company Profile Preferences Tab
The following describes the fields on the Company Profile window Identity tab. For procedure see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
Select Active if the company profile is active and is used to process documents. This is the default. Select Inactive if the company profile is not to be used to process documents.
You can quickly change the trading status by right-clicking the company profile in the Company Profiles information viewer and then left-clicking Change Status in the pop-up menu that appears.
Type the e-mail address of the person to receive alert messages generated by your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect system. This field is optional, but you do not receive alerts via e-mail if you leave it blank. Alerts are reported in Tracker, regardless whether you use this field.
Type only one e-mail address. If you want more than one person to receive messages, use a group address.
If you complete this field, you must complete the Alert/Notify SMTP server field.
Identified by the word alert in the subject line, alert e-mail messages are sent when WebLogic Integration - Business Connect detects a condition that might halt document exchange and require you to take action. An example of this situation is when WebLogic Integration - Business Connect cannot connect to the network or when there is a problem with the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect software.
Type the e-mail address of the person to receive notification messages from your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect system. This field is optional, but you do not receive notification messages via e-mail if you leave this field blank. Notifications are reported in Tracker, regardless whether you use this field.
Type only one e-mail address. If you want more than one person to receive messages, use a group address.
If you complete this field, you must complete the Alert/Notify SMTP server field.
Identified by the word notification in the subject line, notification e-mail messages are informational and do not require you to take action. Document exchange continues. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect sends a notification, for example, when it rejects a document or when it receives a binary (non-EDI) document from a partner for which it does not have a partner profile.
Type the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) mail server WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses to send alerts and notifications. If you want to send alert or notification e-mail messages, you must complete this field, regardless of the transport method you use for trading documents.
Use the following three fields for specifying backup options for inbound and outbound documents. For information about document archiving, see Changing the Archive Schedule.
Select from the drop-down list one of the following backup options for inbound packaged documents. Inbound documents are backed up in the state they were received (that is, MIME-wrapped and, if applicable, encrypted and signed).
Select from the drop-down list one of the following options for backing up outbound documents in unpackaged or clear-text form:
Select from the drop-down list one of the following options for backing up outbound packaged documents. Depending on your security settings, these are copies of the encrypted, signed and MIME-wrapped documents that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has packaged for sending to your partners.
Use the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab to set up or change information about the protocols and transports you allow trading partners to use to send documents to you. It is recommended that you consult with your partners on your preferred protocols and transports for receiving documents.
A profile must have at least one fully configured protocol and transport. Each protocol has one or more transport methods. The protocols you can use depend on your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect license.
The follow topics are discussed:
Figure 6-10 Company Profile Inbound Protocols Tab
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect supports the ebXML protocol and the following transports:
Note: WebLogic Integration - Business Connect supports bundled transports for the HTTP and HTTPS servers that are built into the application. To make it clear that this does not constitute support for external HTTP and HTTPS web servers, the user documentation references these transports as bundled HTTP and bundled HTTPS.
The Inbound Protocols tab allows you to change your company profile in the following ways:
The following topics explain each of these functions in detail:
See Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile for procedure about company profiles.
To add an inbound protocol to a company profile, click Add on the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab. This opens the Add Protocol window.
Figure 6-11 Add Protocol Window
Select the protocol from the drop-down list. The default protocol for WebLogic Integration - Business Connect already is selected. Then select a transport from the transports drop-down list. A protocol has at least one transport from which to choose. If more than one transport is available, you must configure at least one, but you can later select another transport and configure it, too. See Transport Selection Considerations for guidelines about selecting transports.
After you select a protocol and transport, click OK. A configuration window opens for the transport method you selected. See one of the following topics for information about configuring the transport:
On the configuration window for the selected transport, complete the applicable fields and then click OK to save the transport information and close the window. Or, click Cancel to close the configuration window without saving your changes.
After you click OK, the transport method you added appears on the configured protocol list on the Inbound Protocols tab. The information appears in the following format: protocol transport.
If more than one transport is available for the protocol, you can click Add and repeat the process to configure another transport. If you are done, click OK on the Inbound Protocols tab to save your changes and close the profile. Or, click Cancel to close the profile without saving your changes.
To edit an inbound transport for a protocol that was configured earlier for a company profile, select the protocol and transport combination you want from the configured protocol list on the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab and then click Edit. This opens the configuration window for the transport. See one of the following topics for information about configuring the transport:
On the configuration window for the selected transport, edit the applicable fields and then click OK to save the transport information and close the window. Or, click Cancel to close the configuration window without saving your changes. Then click OK on the Inbound Protocols tab to save your changes and close the profile. Or, click Cancel to close the profile without saving your changes.
To remove an inbound transport that was configured earlier for a company profile's protocol, select the protocol and transport combination you want from the configured protocol list on the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab and then click Remove. This removes the protocol and transport combination from the configured protocol list. Then click OK on the Inbound Protocols tab to save your changes and close the profile. Or, click Cancel to close the profile without saving your changes.
When you remove a transport and give your updated profile to your partners, the removed transport no longer is available for partners to send documents to you. However, on your system, removing a transport only removes the protocol and transport combination from the configured protocol list. It does not delete the configuration information for the transport. That information persists in your system. If you add a transport, later remove it and still later add it back, the earlier configuration information is saved and you do not have to re-enter it.
Keep the following points in mind while selecting transports for company or partner profiles. For more information, see Company Profile Inbound Protocols Tab or Partner Profile Outbound Protocols Tab.
You must select at least one transport and complete all the fields for that method. You do not have to select or complete more than one transport method. Because WebLogic Integration - Business Connect polls each new server or directory that you add, we recommend that you add a transport only when you need to use that method to communicate with a trading partner. Moreover, we recommend that you consult with your trading partner before selecting or changing a transport method. If you change transports, you should leave the old transport open until all your trading partners have switched over to the new transport.
The following points apply to bundled HTTP and HTTPS:
Note: Some operating systems throw socket exceptions when HTTPS server sockets are closed. These exceptions are written to the application console, but are of no consequence.
The SMTP transport enables partners to send you documents via the SMTP server in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. You configure this transport on the SMTP Transport Options window accessed from the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab.
For a comparison of the POP and SMTP inbound transports, see The Difference Between POP and SMTP.
Figure 6-12 SMTP Transport Options Window
E-mail address for receiving documents is the single field on the SMTP Transport Options window. Type the e-mail address your trading partners are to use to send documents to you. The e-mail address must be in the standard format of mailbox@server.domain (for example, john@worldwide.com). This can can be any address, as long as it is identical on your and your partner's system.
The system uses the same e-mail address on the SMTP Transport Options window and the POP Transport Options window. The address you enter on one window also is used on the other, regardless whether you use the transport.
If your partner uses some other EDIINT-compliant application, tell your partner to use the IP address or fully qualified domain name of the computer running your WebLogic Integration - Business Connect Server as the receiving SMTP server. Also tell your partner the port that the SMTP server built into WebLogic Integration - Business Connect listens for documents. This is port 4025 by default, but you can change it on the Ports tab in Tools
For procedure see the following topics:
The bundled HTTP transport enables partners to send you documents via the HTTP server in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. You configure this transport on the HTTP Transport Options window accessed from the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab.
Note: This bundled transport is named simply HTTP on the user interface.
Figure 6-13 HTTP Transport Options Window
URL is the single field on the HTTP Transport Options window. The field is system defined; you cannot change it. This field provides a URL alias for the HTTP server in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. The alias is used for security for your system.
If WebLogic Integration - Business Connect is installed behind a firewall, see Editing URLs to compensate for firewalls.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect obtains the computer name in the URL from the host name field on the General tab in Tools
For procedures see the following topics:
The bundled HTTPS transport enables partners to send you documents via the HTTPS server in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. You configure this transport on the HTTPS Transport Options window accessed from the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab.
Note: This bundled transport is named simply HTTPS on the user interface.
Figure 6-14 HTTPS Transport Options Window
The following describes the fields on the HTTPS Transport Options window. For procedure see the following topics: Adding an Inbound Protocol, Editing an Inbound Protocol, and Removing an Inbound Protocol.
If necessary, type the port where the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect HTTPS server is listening for inbound HTTPS documents. You must have a separate HTTPS port for each company profile that uses bundled HTTPS. The default port is 1443.
Select this check box to indicate you require your partners' HTTPS clients to authenticate the SSL connection with you using their certificates. This is the default.
Clear this check box to indicate that you allow your partners' HTTPS clients to make anonymous SSL connections with you.
SSL authentication results in somewhat longer processing per connection for large-key certificates.
A system-defined alias for the bundled HTTPS server in WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. You cannot change the value in the field. The alias is used for security for your system.
If WebLogic Integration - Business Connect is installed behind a firewall, see Editing URLs to compensate for firewalls.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect obtains the computer name in the URL from the host name field on the General tab in Tools
The POP transport enables you to retrieve documents from partners on a POP server. You configure this transport on the POP Transport Options window accessed from the Company Profile window Inbound Protocols tab.
In addition to completing the POP Transport Options window, you must complete the Outbound SMTP tab in Tools
If you intend to make POP available as a way for your trading partners to send documents to you, you first must have set up an account, user ID and password for your POP3 server where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect polls to retrieve inbound files.
For a comparison of the POP and SMTP inbound transports, see The Difference Between POP and SMTP.
Figure 6-15 POP Transport Options Window
The following describes the fields on the POP Transport Options window. For procedure see the following topics: Adding an Inbound Protocol, Editing an Inbound Protocol, and Removing an Inbound Protocol.
Type the e-mail address your trading partners are to use to send documents to you. The e-mail address must be in the standard format of mailbox@server.domain (for example, john@worldwide.com).
The system uses the same e-mail address on the SMTP Transport Options window and the POP Transport Options window. The address you enter on one window also is used on the other, regardless whether you use the transport.
Type the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the Post Office Protocol (POP) server where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect checks for inbound e-mail documents.
Type the fully qualified domain name of the e-mail account where documents are received from the POP server. The user name you enter must match that of the e-mail account on the POP server. Depending on the POP server, the name might also be case sensitive.
Type a password using any combination of letters and numbers. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can support passwords of up to 50 characters. The field is masked to hide the password, so it is important to enter this information carefully. The password is case sensitive and must match the password of the POP server account. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses this password with the user name to retrieve inbound documents from the POP server.
Use the Company Profile window XML tab to configure WebLogic Integration - Business Connect to identify senders and receivers in Extensible Markup Language (XML) documents that you send to trading partners.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses a specification called XPath to identify discrete elements within XML documents. Specifically, it uses XPath to find the sender and receiver addresses in XML documents polled from your XML-out directory.
Selecting one or more XML document types on the XML tab affects inbound and outbound documents. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect rejects malformed outbound XML documents and can reject malformed inbound XML documents. (Inbound XML documents are not parsed in some trading scenarios.)
Note: You must specify at least one XML type if you want to send XML documents. Otherwise, the system will not poll your XML-out directory for outbound documents.
Trading XML documents requires knowledge of XML and XML document types. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect supports any XML document type. The Document Generator tool lets you generate BizTalk XML documents for test trading. Before engaging in production trading, you and your partner should decide which XML type to use.
When parsing an XML document, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect must determine the sender and receiver. You specify this on the XML tab by selecting the sender and receiver XPaths for one or more XML types. If you and your partner use an unlisted XML type, you can provide the sender and receiver XPaths for parsing that XML type.
When you and your partner have set up the XPaths in your respective company profiles, place your outbound XML document into the XML-out directory, which is defined on your company profile's System Directories tab. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect will poll that directory, determine whether the document is a parseable XML type, package it and send it to your partner. Your partner will receive the document in his XML-in directory.
Figure 6-16 Company Profile XML Tab
The following describes the fields on the Company Profile window XML tab. For procedure see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
Select from the drop-down list the XML document type you want. Click Add to add the document type and display it on the window. Repeat this step if you want to add another document type.
If you select RosettaNet/ebXML Interface (MCD) and plan to use the ebXML or RosettaNet protocol, see Using ebXML.
If you select <my document type>, type a name for the document type you are adding and then see the information for the Sender and Receiver fields.
To delete a document type, select one from the list of types added earlier and click Delete.
Use the Company Profile window System Directories tab to change the directories where your document-related information is physically stored. Use this tab only if you want to use other than the default locations. If you want to use the default locations, you can bypass this tab.
Each path can point anywhere on your system. If the path is to a network drive, you must have it available whenever the Server application is running.
For a new profile, the tab shows the default locations of the directories. The directories are created after you save the profile. If the Server application is running, the directories are created immediately. If not, the directories are created the next time the Server is started.
Figure 6-17 Company Profile System Directories Tab
Changing the directory structure after WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has been operational must be done with care. This is because documents received previous to the change are not transferred to the new directory structure. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect also does not delete the old directory structure.
The following describes the fields on the Company Profile window System Directories tab. For the procedure for using the Change Base Path button, see Changing All System Directories at Once. For the procedure for setting up company profiles, see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
The directory where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect places successfully processed documents from your trading partners for pick up by your XML application. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\xmlin
The directory where your XML application places XML documents for processing by WebLogic Integration - Business Connect and transmission across the Internet. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\xmlout
The directory where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect places successfully processed documents from your trading partners for pick up by your binary application. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\binaryin
The directory where your binary application places binary documents for processing by WebLogic Integration - Business Connect and transmission across the Internet. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\binaryout
The directory where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect stores inbound binary (non-EDI) documents when you receive a binary document from a partner for whom you have not enabled binary trading on the Partner Profile window Binary Directories tab. When this occurs, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect sends your contact person a notification message. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\other
The directory where all rejected inbound or outbound documents are stored. Documents are rejected when, for example, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect:
- Cannot find a valid partner profile for an inbound or outbound document
- Receives a clear-text MIME document from a sender for whom you do not have a partner profile
When a file is placed in this directory, a notification message is sent to your company's WebLogic Integration - Business Connect point of contact. The notification is also sent to your partner's point of contact if you choose this option. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\rejected
If you choose the Backup and Archive option in the Company Profile window Preferences tab, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect moves completed documents from the inbound and outbound backup directories to the archive directory when the archive process runs.
This action deletes those archived files from the inbound and outbound backup directories. See Changing the Archive Schedule for information on how to set the interval for running the archive process. The default directory is:
Windows ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\archive
The backup directory is where all backed-up files are stored. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect makes a backup copy before encrypting and signing outbound documents and (optionally) immediately after receiving inbound signed and encrypted documents. If you request them, the MDNs your partners send you in response to your outbound documents are also stored in this directory. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\backup
The directory WebLogic Integration - Business Connect polls to retrieve and process inbound documents sent via HTTP. The default directory is:
Windows ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\http
The directory WebLogic Integration - Business Connect polls to retrieve and process inbound documents sent via HTTPS. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\https
If you configured the SMTP transport (SMTP Inbound Transport), the name of the directory WebLogic Integration - Business Connect polls for inbound documents. The default directory is:
Windows: ..\installation_directory\data\company_profile_id\smtp
Use the Company Profile window Integration tab to have WebLogic Integration - Business Connect send inbound or outbound documents to an FTP server, JMS interface or IBM MQSeries application. You also can set up post-processing commands for inbound documents.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect does not package any documents that are transferred by way of integration options.
The Integration tab enables you to set up integration for a single company profile. You can select any combination of document-type integration options for a single company profile. For example, for EDI documents you can integrate with MQSeries; for XML documents you can integrate with an FTP server; for binary documents you can set up post-processing for documents received from a specific partner.
When you select integration options on the Integration tab, other windows open for you to enter configuration information.
Note: MQSeries and JMS can support documents of up to approximately 8 megabytes.
Figure 6-18 Integration Tab as Seen in Default View with <None> Selected
The following describes the fields on the Company Profile window Integration tab. For procedure see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
If you want document integration, select By document type from the drop-down list to display the integration options on the tab.
Figure 6-19 Integration Tab as Seen with By document type Selected
The steps are identical for setting up EDI and XML documents for integration. The steps for binary documents are somewhat different.
In the fields for EDI documents or XML documents, select from the drop-down list one of the following options and click Options to open a configuration window:
Select a partner from the drop-down list. Click Add and then click Options to open a configuration window.
You must import or create the partner profile before the partner's name appears on the drop-down list. Also, you must save your company profile and then set up your company for binary trading in the Partner Profile window Binary Directories tab for the partner you want. Otherwise, there are no partners to select.
You can add more than one partner. If you select inbound post-processing as the type, you can select All for all partners, rather than adding each partner individually.
See the topic for the integration option you selected:
Use the IBM MQSeries Options window for configuring document integration with MQSeries. To access the window, select By document type as the integration method on the Company Profile window Integration tab, select an integration option for EDI, XML or binary documents and click Options. See Company Profile Integration Tab.
Figure 6-20 IBM MQSeries Options Window
The following describes the fields on the IBM MQSeries Options window.
You might want to contact your organization's MQSeries administrator for help in establishing criteria for inbound and outbound documents. For inbound documents, the information you enter is used to hand off documents to your legacy system. For outbound documents, the information you enter is used to retrieve documents from your legacy system.
After retrieving documents from the MQSeries host, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect deletes the acquired files from the host. Inbound files passed to the MQSeries host are not deleted from the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect file system.
You can complete the fields for inbound documents or outbound documents or both, depending on your needs.
Use the FTP Options window for configuring document integration with an FTP server. To access the window, select By document type as the integration method on the Company Profile window Integration tab, select an integration option for EDI, XML or binary documents and click Options. See Company Profile Integration Tab.
Figure 6-21 FTP Options Window
The following describes the fields on the FTP Options window.
The fields are described once for inbound and outbound documents. You can complete the inbound or the outbound side of the window or both. You do not have to complete both sides.
The fields on the inbound side of the window are for routing to the FTP server documents that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect receives from partners. The fields on the outbound side of the window are for retrieving from the FTP server documents that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect sends to partners.
After acquiring documents from the FTP server, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect deletes the acquired files from the server. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect preserves the names of the files it acquires from the FTP server. Inbound files passed to the FTP server are not deleted from the WebLogic Integration - Business Connect file system.
Type the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the FTP server.
You must set up your FTP account information outside WebLogic Integration - Business Connect. This set up must include establishing the FTP account, user ID, and password, and creating the directory where WebLogic Integration - Business Connect retrieves or sends documents.
Passive means the FTP server selects the data port for the FTP data transfer. Passive is the default.
Port means the FTP client selects the data port for the FTP data transfer.
Binary means documents are transported as-is with no conversions. Binary is the default.
ASCII means documents are converted when appropriate from ASCII to extended binary coded decimal interchange code (EBCDIC) or from DOS text to UNIX text. Use the ASCII setting with caution because it might change the data being transported.
Use the JMS Options window for configuring document integration with a JMS queue. To access the window, select By document type as the integration method on the Company Profile window Integration tab, select an integration option for EDI, XML or binary documents and click Options. See Company Profile Integration Tab.
To use this tab your organization must have JMS experience and a working JMS messaging system.
In addition to completing this tab, you must add the names of the JAR or class files or both in the server.ini or server.bat file in Windows or your environment file in UNIX so the Server application can locate the JMS and JNDI provider. The server.ini and server.bat files are located in the installation directory bin subdirectory. In some cases, you need to add the name of only one JAR file (for example, weblogic.jar), but you might have to include a series of jars or paths.
This window is for configuring JMS document integration for a single company.
Figure 6-22 JMS Options Window
The following describes the fields on the JMS Options window.
The fields are described once for inbound and outbound documents.
The Inbound Documents area is for configuring WebLogic Integration - Business Connect to place documents that have been received from partners and unpackaged on a back-end JMS queue.
The Outbound Documents area is for configuring WebLogic Integration - Business Connect to retrieve documents from a back-end JMS queue and then package and send the documents to partners.
Except for the user name and password, you can obtain the information needed to complete the tab from the JMS or JNDI provider's documentation. The information will vary depending on the provider. If you have questions, contact your JMS or JNDI provider.
This API is an input and output source for documents. This is how it works: WebLogic Integration - Business Connect registers as a listener with the JMS server for the designated inbound queue. This means that any JMSMessage placed in the queue by another process is passed to WebLogic Integration - Business Connect, which verifies that it is a BytesMessage (a type of JMSMessage). If verified, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect packages and sends it to the partner. Likewise, every document WebLogic Integration - Business Connect receives from a partner is unpackaged, converted to a BytesMessage and placed on the designated outbound queue.
The API requires that the JMS messages be in the format BytesMessage. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect does not process any other type of JMSMessage (such as ObjectMessage). WebLogic Integration - Business Connect performs routing decisions based on JMS message string parameters that must be appended to each BytesMessage sent to it. If the required parameters are omitted, WebLogic Integration - Business Connect does not process the message. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect also places the same parameters on each message that it sends to the outbound queue. The parameters WebLogic Integration - Business Connect uses are in the following table.
It would be helpful for you to understand the JMS event integration API to use this API.
The following are the requirements for sending a document:
The following are the requirements for receiving a document:
Use the Inbound Post-processing Options windows for configuring post-processing for inbound documents. To access the windows, select By document type as the integration method on the Company Profile window Integration tab, select an integration option for EDI, XML or binary documents and click Options. For more information see Company Profile Integration Tab.
Note: Under HP-UX, inbound post-processing fails when you use spaces in an EDI qualifier in a profile ID.
Figure 6-23 Inbound Post-Processing Options Windows
The following describes the field on the Inbound Post-processing Options windows. There are three variations of the window: one each for XML and binary inbound document types.
Type the fully qualified path and file name of the batch file, script or executable file for the post process for inbound XML or binary documents. See the following section, Post-Processing Configuration Details.
You can perform post-processing commands on each inbound document immediately after WebLogic Integration - Business Connect has received, processed and written it to the EDI-in, XML-in, or binary-in directory. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can initiate any executable or batch file or script you specify. You can specify the same executable for each document type or a different one for each type.
The post-processing script must be on a drive that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can access and has permission to execute.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect passes 12 command-line parameters to the post process. Your script can use any or all of the parameters. The following table provides an example of the syntax of a command that is executed against an inbound document.
The parameters are described in the following table. The parameter numbers are shown for Windows and UNIX.
server.log file to indicate when a post-processing script is invoked. However, it does not display or log any messages from the post-process itself. WebLogic Integration - Business Connect writes details about receiving a document from a partner and another message that a document has been transferred and that post-processing has been invoked for it.You can use the following languages for writing post-processing scripts:
We recommend using a compiled program for post-processing. Although a batch file often is adequate for this purpose, we recommend changing to a compiled program if problems occur.
The following are examples of post-processing scripts for Windows. These scripts re-direct an inbound file to a local directory and write activity to an external log file. These examples are shown solely to illustrate the correct format for such scripts.
The first example includes the DocumentType parameter. The second example does not.
Listing 6-1 Example 1 Windows Script
@echo off
rem WindowsPostprocess.bat to test post-processing.
rem This batch file does two things. It moves the ediin, xmlin,
rem or binary-in file to another directory. Then it appends into
rem a log file all the information that CI makes available about
rem that file.
@echo off
move %1 d:\tmp
echo. >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo -----newfile info----- >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
date/t >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
time/t >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The filename is %1 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The SenderID is %2 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The Transport is %3 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The TrueSenderID is %4 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The ReceiverID is %5 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The TrueReceiverID is %6 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The ControlID is %7 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The UniqueID is %8 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The OriginalName is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
shift
echo The DocumentType is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
shift
echo The SequenceID is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
shift
echo The CorrelationID is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
Listing 6-2 Example 2 Windows Script
@echo off
move %1 d:\tmp
echo. >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo -----newfile info----- >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
date/t >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
time/t >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The filename is %1 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The SenderID is %2 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The Transport is %3 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The TrueSenderID is %4 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The ReceiverID is %5 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The TrueReceiverID is %6 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The ControlID is %7 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The UniqueID is %8 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
echo The OriginalName is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
shift
rem Skipping DocumentType
shift
echo The SequenceID is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
shift
echo The CorrelationID is %9 >> d:\tmp\postprocess.log
The following is an example of a post-processing script for UNIX. This script re-directs an inbound file to a local directory and writes activity to an external log file. This example is shown solely to illustrate the correct format for such scripts.
Listing 6-3 Example UNIX Script
#!/bin/sh
# $Id: UNIXpostprocess.sh to test post-processing.
# This shell script does two things. It moves the ediin, xmlin,
# or binary-in file to another directory. Then it appends into
# a log file all the information that CI makes available about
# that file.
mv "$1" /home/cyclone/tmp
echo -----newfile info----- >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
date >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The filename is "$1" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The SenderID is "$2" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The Transport is "$3" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The TrueSenderID is "$4" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The ReceiverID is "$5" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The TrueReceiverID is "$6" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The ControlID is "$7" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The UniqueID is "$8" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
echo The OriginalName is "$9" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
shift
echo The DocumentType is "$9" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
shift
echo The SequenceID is "$9" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
shift
echo The CorrelationID is "$9" >> /home/cyclone/tmp/postprocess.log
Use the Company Profile window Tuning tab to adjust the polling rate and documents per cycle of inbound transports and outbound documents by type. For some transports you can use synchronous unpackaging instead of inbound document polling.
The following topics are provided:
Changing any values on this tab is optional and should be considered only if you need to improve system performance.
For procedure about company profiles see Adding, Cloning, or Changing a Company Profile.
The Company Profile window Tuning tab is comprised of two sub-tabs: Inbound Protocols and Outbound Documents. You adjust settings for inbound and outbound documents on the sub-tabs.
The Inbound Protocols sub-tab only displays the inbound transport types you have configured in your company profile. If no transports are configured, no transport types are displayed. The Outbound Documents tab, however, always displays all three possible outbound document types: EDI, XML and binary.
To change values on these sub-tabs, double-click a field to enter edit mode. You can highlight the value, delete it and type a new value, or you can use the Backspace key to delete the value and type a new one. Press Enter or click another field to apply the change. Click OK to save the change and close the profile.
For navigating the sub-tabs without a mouse, use Ctrl-Tab to move into the table and then use the Tab key to move from cell to cell. Use Ctrl-Tab again to leave the table.
Figure 6-24 shows an example of the Tuning, Inbound Protocols tab with all transport types displayed. In practice, you will see only the transport types that have been configured for the company profile.
Figure 6-24 Company Profile Tuning, Inbound Protocols Tab
The following describes the columns on the Tuning, Inbound Protocols tab. For more information see Inbound Protocols Tuning.
The inbound transport types that have been configured in the company profile. Only configured transports are displayed.
If you have configured one or more bundled inbound transports, you can select synchronous unpackaging. This selection turns off the inbound polling enabled with the default asynchronous unpackaging. For more informations see Asynchronous and Synchronous Unpackaging.
The interval in seconds WebLogic Integration - Business Connect waits before polling directories and servers for inbound documents from your partners.
The highest number of documents that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can retrieve from a directory or server each time it polls for incoming documents. Your POP server might override this setting.
The following describes the columns on the Tuning, Outbound Documents tab. For more information see Outbound Documents Tuning.
The interval in seconds WebLogic Integration - Business Connect waits before polling the EDI-out, XML-out or binary-out directories for outbound documents to package and send to your partners.
The highest number of documents that WebLogic Integration - Business Connect can retrieve from an outbound directory each time it polls for outbound documents.
WebLogic Integration - Business Connect processes inbound and outbound documents according to polling rates in seconds and number of documents per cycle. Polling rates control the intervals when the system polls for outbound or inbound documents to process. Documents per cycle control the maximum number of documents the system can retrieve at each polling interval.
These settings, which are built into the application, ensure first-in, first-out (FIFO) document traffic (except POP e-mail).
The following table provides the default settings for polling rates and documents per cycle. These are set by transport for inbound documents and by document type for outbound documents.
For inbound documents, a polling rate of 300 seconds and 100 documents per cycle for the POP transport means the system will poll the POP server for inbound documents every 300 seconds. Finding any, the system will retrieve them, up to a maximum of 100 documents, and then unpackage them. If there are more than 100 documents waiting, they will be retrieved at the next polling interval.
For outbound documents, a polling rate of 30 seconds and 10 documents per cycle for EDI documents means the system will poll the EDI-out directory for outbound documents every 30 seconds. Finding any, the system will retrieve them, up to a maximum of 10 documents, and then package and send them to the addressed partners. If there are more than 10 documents waiting, they will be retrieved at the next polling interval.
To calculate the maximum number of inbound or outbound documents that can be processed per hour, use the following formula: (3600 / polling rate) * documents per cycle. 3600 is the number of seconds in an hour.
On the Tuning, Inbound Protocols tab, you can adjust polling rates and documents per cycle for inbound documents. Provided you choose to adjust any values at all, you can only change those for the transports you set up in your company profile.
Assume for a particular transport you have settings of 30 seconds for a polling rate, 10 documents per cycle and 1 thread. This means WebLogic Integration - Business Connect will poll the transport for inbound documents every 30 seconds. Finding any, it will retrieve them up to a maximum of 10 and then distribute the documents to the single unpackaging thread.
On the Tuning, Outbound Documents tab, you can adjust polling rates and documents per cycle for the document types EDI, XML and binary.
Assume for a particular document type you have settings of 30 seconds for a polling rate, 10 documents per cycle and 1 thread. This means WebLogic Integration - Business Connect will poll the EDI-out, XML-out or binary-out directory for documents every 30 seconds. Finding any, it will retrieve them up to a maximum of 10 and then pass them to a single packaging thread.
You can improve application performance by changing the settings on the Company Profile window Tuning tab. If are unsure whether to change some of the settings, you can safely bypass the tab and use the default values.
You might have to experiment to find the settings best for your trading environment. Factors to consider for your situation include:
If your organization has a relatively low volume of document traffic or handles mostly small documents, you may not see an appreciable gain by adjusting polling rates or documents per cycle or a combination of these. On the other hand, a system with a high volume of traffic or that handles large-size documents may experience significant performance improvements.
With these tuning capabilities, it is possible to generate errors such as "out of memory" and "too many files open." If such errors occur, adjust the polling rate or the number of inbound and outbound threads.
Asynchronous unpackaging of inbound documents is the default for all transport types. This means the system polls and processes inbound documents according to the polling rates, documents per cycle and unpackaging threads on the Tuning, Inbound Protocols tab.
Synchronous unpackaging of inbound documents is available for the three transport servers within WebLogic Integration - Business Connect: SMTP, bundled HTTP and bundled HTTPS. Synchronous unpackaging can significantly speed up document unpackaging and processing of acknowledgements. The benefits can be especially advantageous for organizations that handle a large volume of inbound documents. If you configure one or more bundled inbound transports in your company profile, you can enable synchronous unpackaging.
When synchronous unpackaging is active, the system does not poll for inbound documents. Instead, the transport server hands off inbound documents to unpackaging threads immediately upon receipt. When synchronous unpackaging is active, polling becomes inactive, and you cannot edit the tuning values for that transport on the Tuning, Inbound Protocols tab.
With synchronous unpackaging, the system spawns unpackaging threads on demand. The number of threads that can be active at one time is limited only by your system resources. It is possible that a large number of inbound documents arriving at the same time could overwhelm your system. However, this could be a high threshold not likely to be reached. We recommend that you monitor your system, both to gauge unpackaging performance and for possible pitfalls, when using synchronous unpackaging.
If you select synchronous unpackaging for a bundled inbound transport, the inbound polling agent for the transport appears just as it does for asynchronous unpackaging in Server monitor displays. Those include the agents area of the server monitor page that you view in a browser by selecting Tools
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