Administering Composite Services

This chapter covers the following topics:

Overview

Composite services use the native service as building blocks to construct the sequence of business flows. Basically, this interface type orchestrates the invocation sequence of discrete Web services into a meaningful end-to-end business process through a Web service composition language BPEL (business process execution language). For example, use Oracle BPEL Process Manager (BPEL PM) to integrate the Order-to-Receipt business process that contains sales order entry, item availability check, pack and ship, and invoice to Accounts Receivable sub processes handled by various applications. This approach effectively tightens up the control of each individual process and makes the entire business flow more efficiently.

This chapter includes the following topics:

Understanding Composite Service Enablement Process

Composite services use native services as building blocks to orchestrate the business invocation sequence from discreate Web services into a meaningful end-to-end business flow through a Web service composition language BPEL. Strictly speaking, this type of interface is comparatively service enabled without additional service generation process as required by native interface types.

To design a composite service, integration repository developers use the BPEL language to specify the invocation sequence through Oracle JDeveloper. This composite service has its own WSDL definition and endpoint through the creation of a partner link which allows a business event, for example, to be published to the Oracle BPEL Process Manager or to interact with a partner service.

To make composite services available over the Internet for service consumers or Web service clients to use the services, Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway uses various service components to host composite services. The relationship between each component is illustrated in the following composite service enablement diagram:

Note: Integration repository developers use Service Designer (Oracle JDeveloper) to create composite services by orchestrating the invocation sequence of discrete Web services through Web service composition language BPEL. See the Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway Developer's Guide for details.

Composite Service Enablement Process

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Integration repository developers create composite services using Oracle JDeveloper. Service loader then uploads these service artifacts to Oracle Integration Repository. Users granted with the Download Composite Service privilege (FND_REP_DOWNLOAD_CS) can further download the BPEL files to their local machines. The developers can open the downloaded BPEL files using Oracle JDeveloper, modify them if necessary, and deploy them. Oracle BPEL Process Manager (BPEL PM) or 3rd party J2EE BPEL PM will then pick up those deployed composite services.

Note: Unlike native services that they are deployed through the Web Service region of an interface type detail page, composite services are typically not deployed within Oracle E-Business Suite like those of other service enabled interface types. You need a separate BPEL PM (SOA Suite or third party BPEL PM server) to deploy the BPEL composite services. For example, a composite service - BPEL type can be deployed through Oracle JDeveloper to a BPEL server in Oracle SOA Suite BPEL PM (Process Manager) or a third party BPEL PM in a J2EE environment. This deployed composite service - BPEL project can update Oracle E-Business Suite if necessary.

Administering Composite Services

Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway allows you to perform the following tasks on composite services:

Apart from viewing the composite service details, the administrators can also download the .ZIP file for a composite service if it is available for download.

Viewing Composite Services

Once annotated custom composite - BPEL definitions are uploaded to the Integration Repository, 'Composite - BPEL' option can be listed when searching by Interface Type and visible to all users.

Integration repository administrators can view a composite service details for a selected composite service. From the composite service interface details page, the administrators can find composite service name, description, BPEL file, and other annotated information.

To locate a composite service, navigate to the Composite Service interface type directly from the Oracle Integration Repository Browser window or perform a search by selecting Composite Service interface type in the Search page. Click a desired composite service name link from the browser tree or the search result to display the composite service - BPEL interface details page where the administrators can:

Downloading Composite Services

In addition to viewing composite service details and a WSDL file, the administrators can download a BPEL .JAR file containing relevant composite service files to their local directories by clicking Download Service in the composite service - BPEL details page.

Important: In general, only system integration developers and integration repository administrators can download the composite services. However, general users who are granted the Download Composite Service privilege, a permission set FND_REP_DOWNLOAD_PERM_SET, can also perform the download action. Otherwise, general users (or system integration analysts) will not find Download Service available in the BPEL details page.

For more information about how to grant Download Composite Service privilege, see Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) Security.

Composite Details Page with Download Privilege

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Note: A system integration developer can further unzip the BPEL .JAR file and open the BPEL file in Oracle JDeveloper for further modification on service endpoints if needed.

Additionally, the developer can deploy the BPEL process if necessary. Since composite services are typically not deployed within Oracle E-Business Suite, a separate BPEL PM (SOA Suite or a third party BPEL PM server) is needed to deploy the BPEL composite services. For example, deploy the BPEL process to Oracle BPEL server through Oracle BPEL Process Manager. See the Oracle E-Business Suite Integrated SOA Gateway Developer's Guide.

To download a composite service:

  1. Log in to Oracle Integration Repository as a user who has the Integration Repository Administrator role. Select the Integrated SOA Gateway responsibility and the Integration Repository link.

  2. In the Integration Repository tab, select 'Interface Type' from the View By drop-down list.

  3. Expand the Composite Service interface type node to locate a desired composite service.

  4. Click the composite service that you want to download. The Composite Service Interface Details page appears.

  5. Click Download Service to download the selected composite file to your local directory.