Sun Java System Portal Server 7.1 Technical Reference

Chapter 14 Display Profile Document

This chapter contains the following sections:

Document Structure

This chapter describes the overall structure of the display profile documents. The underlying data format for a display profile document is XML.

The display profile format is intended to define the Desktop’s display configuration by defining provider and channel objects and their properties. Thus, a display profile is made up of some number of display profile objects. The display profile objects map directly to the XML tag that defines them. For example, the <Channel name=> XML tag defines a channel object.

In general, the document structure of a display profile document resembles the following:

<DisplayProfile>
    <Properties>...global properties...</Properties>
    <Channels>...channel definitions...</Channels>
    <Providers>...provider definitions...</Providers>
</DisplayProfile>

The hierarchical structuring of the display profile document does not define the visual layering of channel on the portal Desktop. The display profile exists only to provide property values for channels on the Desktop.

The display profile contains definitions that enable you to construct the Desktop. These definitions include providers, channels, containers, and properties. Some of these definitions create the Desktop containers—the frames, tables, and tabs that arrange the content of the Desktop—and others create channels for the Desktop via the respective providers. A display profile provider definition is a template for building channels based on that provider.

The following sections describe the display profile objects in detail.

How are the Display Profile XML Documents Stored?

Display profile documents are stored in their entirety as a single attribute in the Sun Java System Sun Java System Access Manager software services layer. Potentially, the Portal Server software could store a display profile document for a user’s organization or sub-organization, each role the user belongs to, and the user. That is, for the different LDAP nodes (base DN, org DN, role DNs, and uid DN), you can store a display profile document. There is also a global display profile document.

The user’s display profile is a series of XML documents describing container management and properties for channels. (One display profile document is equivalent to one XML document.) The user’s display profile document set is made up from the non-empty documents stored at the user’s organization, various sub-organizations, any roles, and the user LDAP nodes. This display profile document set is “merged” at runtime to form a single configuration for the user’s Desktop.

To change display profile property values, the providers use the provider APIs (PAPI) to get and set the values. When the channel values are set to the display profile, the PAPI internal implementation uses the Sun Java System Access Manager SDK to set the display profile document in the Sun Java System Access Manager software Desktop service attribute.

Note –

Though possible, you should not edit the display profile using the Sun Java System Access Manager SDK.

Types of Display Profile Documents

This section explains the different types of display profile documents and how to use the Sun Java System Portal Server console to administer them.

Global Display Profile Document

Defines display profile elements that are inherited by all users on the system, regardless of the organization or role to which they belong. (Although currently not enforced, you might also want to use the display profile XML document to define the common providers that will be used by everyone.)

Dynamic Display Profile Document

Describes container management and properties for channels. This display profile is not ”used’ to generate a user’s Desktop at runtime, but becomes the default for each newly created organization and role. By default, the dynamic display profile document is blank. To use the dynamic display profile, you need to first populate it.

Organization, Suborganization, or Role Display Profile

Shows the display profile for the selected organization, suborganization, or role. When you create a new organization, suborganization, or role, you create a template for this entity. When you create the template for the Desktop service, the initial display profile is set to the dynamic display profile document as mentioned above. Thus, if the dynamic display profile is blank, nothing is filled in.

Most likely, you use this display profile document to customize container management and channel properties to fit the needs of different organizations and roles.