This chapter describes the activities required to complete the User Interface deployment of a runtime Oracle Configurator embedded in a host Oracle Application such as Order Management or iStore.
This chapter covers the following topics:
Deployment involves making a runtime Oracle Configurator available to end users. This chapter describes the types of User Interfaces that may be deployed in a runtime Oracle Configurator.
Oracle Configurator can be deployed in these scenarios:
Embedded in a host Oracle Application such as Order Management, using either a User Interface generated in Configurator Developer or the Generic Configurator User Interface.
Embedded in a host application outside of Oracle Applications using a User Interface generated in Configurator Developer.
Embedded in a host application outside of Oracle Applications using an entirely custom-written user interface that accesses the Configuration Interface Object (CIO). This scenario is not described directly in any Oracle Configurator documentation.
The CIO and its basic usage is described in the Oracle Configurator Extensions and Interface Object Developer’s Guide.
Oracle Applications uses an internet server, such as Oracle Application Server, to run the Oracle Configurator (OC) Servlet. The OC Servlet connects the runtime Oracle Configurator’s URL to the CZ schema. The Oracle Configurator’s URL is set by the profile option BOM: Configurator URL of UI Manager.
See the Oracle Configurator Installation Guide for information about installing the OC Servlet and configuring the internet server.
An Oracle Configurator embedded in Oracle Applications uses one of the following user interfaces:
A simple, non-customized UI that shows only BOM items.
For details, see Generic Configurator User Interfaces.
A customized HTML UI that is generated and optionally customized in Configurator Developer.
For more information, see the Oracle Configurator Developer User’s Guide.
For information about activities required to complete deployment of a runtime Oracle Configurator embedded in a host Oracle Application such as Order Management or iStore, see Deployment Considerations.
See Database Uses for an overview of possible deployment environments and architecture.
A Generic Configurator User Interface can be accessed by host applications that are part of the Oracle E-Business Suite to configure a BOM Model. Examples of Oracle E-Business Suite host applications include Order Management, Bills of Material, Quoting, and iStore.
Generic Configurator UIs are not User Interfaces that are created in Oracle Configurator Developer. These UIs display only BOM Model items and enforce only implicit BOM rules. In other words, any Model structure nodes, rules, or UI elements that are defined in Configurator Developer are not available in a Generic Configurator UI. This is because Generic Configurator UIs access BOM Model data directly from the Oracle Bills of Material database tables, not from the CZ schema.
Deploying a configuration model that is based on a BOM Model and uses rules defined in Configurator Developer typically involves creating a UI in Configurator Developer and then publishing both the configuration model and the UI. For details, see the Oracle Configurator Developer User’s Guide.
You may want your end users to use a Generic Configurator UI to configure a BOM Model item if:
Your end users do not need a UI that provides unique selection controls, company-specific logos, custom images, and so on (for example, internal order entry employees or sales representatives).
The BOM Model does not require additional structure or rules to support guided buying or selling questions (that is, structure and rules defined in Configurator Developer).
A Generic Configurator UI is used when an Oracle E-Business Suite host application sends a request to configure:
A BOM Model item that has not been imported into Configurator Developer.
A BOM Model item that has been imported into Configurator Developer, but has not been published.
A BOM Model item for which no matching publication is found.
Note: If the host application sends a request to configure a Model that was created in Configurator Developer and no matching publication is found, Oracle Configurator displays an error.
The available types of Generic Configurator UIs are the HTML Hierarchical Table UI and the Java Applet UI. The HTML Hierarchical Table UI appears in a Web browser, is based on the Oracle Applications Framework, and is available from both Oracle Forms-based and HTML-based host applications. This UI appears when the profile option CZ: Generic Configurator UI Type is set to HTML Hierarchical Table and the item being configured meets the criteria described in Criteria for Launching a Generic Configurator User Interface. In this UI, the BOM Model is presented in a hierarchical table and controls are provided to expand and collapse configurable items, select options, and enter a quantity for each option. For more information, see Generic Configurator User Interfaces: Additional Features and Limitations.
The Java Applet UI does not run in a Web browser and it is available only from Forms-based host applications, such as Oracle Order Management. The Java Applet UI appears when all of the following are true:
The host application is Forms-based
The profile option CZ: Generic Configurator UI Type is set to Java Applet (see Setting Up a Generic Configurator User Interface)
The item being configured meets the criteria described in Criteria for Launching a Generic Configurator User Interface
The Java Applet UI contains three regions. The region on the left displays the BOM Model’s hierarchical structure and enables the end user to navigate to each configurable component. End users use the region at the top of the screen to select options. The region at the bottom of the screen displays a summary of all selected options and the status of the configuration. For more information, see Generic Configurator User Interfaces: Additional Features and Limitations.
For more information about Forms-based applications, see the Oracle E-Business Suite User’s Guide.
The following profile options modify the behavior and appearance of the HTML Hierarchical Table UI:
By default, Forms-based host applications such as Oracle Order Management use the Java Applet UI to configure items that meet the criteria described in Criteria for Launching a Generic Configurator User Interface. For details about the Java Applet UI, see Generic Configurator UI Types.
BOM Models can contain Items that support decimal quantities and some Items may have a default quantity that is a decimal value. To configure such a BOM Model using the Generic Configurator UI, the profile option CZ: Populate Decimal Quantity Flags must be set to Yes. For UIs created in Configurator Developer, this profile option determines whether the BOM Model supports decimal quantities when it is imported into the CZ schema, not when the UI is launched from a host application.
If your host application is either Oracle iStore and Oracle Quoting, verify that the profile option CZ: Use Generic Configurator UI is set correctly for your installation.
For more information about any of the profile options referred to in this section, see the Oracle Configurator Installation Guide.
The Generic Configurator User Interfaces:
Can display pricing and Available To Promise (ATP) information (if implemented).
To set up pricing and ATP, see Pricing and ATP in Oracle Configurator .
Enable end users to search for items based on the item name or description
After the end user searches for an item in the HTML Hierarchical Table UI, the following columns are available: View in Hierarchy and Path. The View in Hierarchy column provides an icon that enables an end user to navigate directly to the item. The Path column indicates the item’s location in the Model using item descriptions. For example:
Premium Custom Laptop Model.Hard Drive Option Class.40 GB Hard Drive
Identify unsatisfied items and items that are required to create a valid configuration
Provide multiple languages support (MLS)
Support secure sockets layer (SSL)
Display currency in the same format as the host application
The Generic Configurator User Interfaces do not support:
Multiple instantiation (creating multiple instances of configurable components)
Connectivity (connecting configurable components)
In other words, an Oracle Configurator end user can connect and create multiple instances of configurable components only in User Interfaces that are created in Configurator Developer.
For more information about multiple instantiation and Connectivity, see the Oracle Configurator Developer User’s Guide.
Oracle Configurator Developer enables end users with disabilities to navigate the runtime Configurator window using only the keyboard. For information on the available keystrokes and the corresponding actions at runtime, see the Oracle Configurator Developer User’s Guide.