Bootstrapping and Configuration

Bootstrapping and configuration consists of using a URL to access a web service, retrieving its WSDL file, and using the WSDL file to create a web service client that can access and consume a web service. The process consists of the following steps, which are shown in Figure 2–2.

Figure 2–2 Bootstrapping and Configuration

1. Client acquires the URL for a web service that it wants to access and consume. How you acquire the URL is outside the scope of this tutorial. For example, you might look up the URL in a Web Services registry.

2. The client uses the URL and the wsimport tool to send a MetadataExchangeRequest to access the web service and retrieve the WSDL file. The WSDL file contains a description of the web service endpoint, including WS-Policy assertions that describe the security and/or reliability capabilities and requirements of the service. The description describes the requirements that must be satisfied to access and consume the web service.

3. The client uses the WSDL file to create the web service client.

4. The web service client accesses and consumes the web service.

Chapter 4, Bootstrapping and Configuration explains how to bootstrap and configure a web service client and a web service endpoint that use the WSIT technologies.