Managing Portal Server Desktop Content

This section discusses how to manage the desktop content. For more information on the desktop, see Understanding the Standard Desktop in Sun Java System Portal Server 7 Technical Overview.

• Administering Portlets

• Managing Channels and Containers

Administering Portlets

This section describes how to deploy and undeploy portlets, and how to modify portlet preferences.

Portlets are web applications that process requests and generate content within the context of a portal. Portlets are managed by the Portlet Container (an implementation of the Portlet Specification as defined by the JSR 168 Expert Group).

A portlet can only be deployed on a selected DN node once. If a portlet has already been deployed on the same DN node, you should undeploy the portlet and deploy it. If your require a portlet to be on multiple sub organizations or roles, then deploy the portlet on the portal global DN or the parent organization.

• To Deploy a Portlet

• To Undeploy a Portlet

• To Modify Portlet Preferences

To Deploy a Portlet

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal server from Portals.

4. From the Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Click Deploy Portlet to start the wizard.

   1. Ensure the selected portal and selected DN are the ones where you want to deploy the portlet, and click Next.

   2. Specify a portlet war file, the roles file, and the users file.

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      Note –

      The roles file and the users files are optional. The war file, the roles file, and the users file can be located either on the local machine, or on the remote portal server system.

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   3. Select the button for either the local system or the remote portal server system.

      • If the upload file is from the local machine, use the browse dialog box to select the file from the local machine.

      • If the upload file is from a remote portal server system, use the file chooser dialog to choose a file from the remote machine

   4. Verify the information provided, and click Next.

   5. An information page appears when the portlet is deployed.

6. Follow the instructions to deploy a portlet.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin deploy-portlet

To Undeploy a Portlet

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal server from Portals.

4. From the Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Click Undeploy Portlet to launch the wizard.

6. Modify the configuration attributes as necessary.

7. Click Undeploy to record the changes.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin undeploy-portlet

To Modify Portlet Preferences

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Click the Common Tasks tab, then Manage Channel and Containers from the submenu.

3. Select a portal and the DN where the portlet is deployed.

   The navigation tree with available channels and portlets is displayed.

4. From the navigation tree on the left frame, select the portlet channel.

   The preferences table and properties table is displayed on the right frame.

5. In the preferences table, click Edit Values link of a preference you want to modify.

6. In the preferences wizard, type the new value in the text field, and click OK.

   • To remove a value, select the value from the list and click Remove.

7. When you are done with modifying preferences, click Save.

8. Click Close.

Managing Channels and Containers

This section describes how to manage portal server channels and containers from the management console.

The following topics are discussed:

• Viewing Channels and Containers

• Modifying Channels and Container Properties

• Creating and Deleting Channels and Containers

• Creating a Tab

• Displaying Channels and Containers

Viewing Channels and Containers

The desktop for a user is rendered by starting a desktop parent container. You can customize the parent container attribute at every organization, role and user DNs. The content for a desktop at a particular DN is provided by iterating the child containers and channels that are selected to be displayed inside the desktop parent container.

Usually, the desktop parent container contains a few tab or table containers. Each tab container under the list of selected nodes of the parent container will display a tab on the user desktop. The channels that appear under the tab are the channels inside the tab container.

The bottom left frame of the Channels and Container Management in the portal management console has two components:

• View Type menu

• Channels and Container tree

Items in the View Type menu and the nodes displayed in the tree are dependent on content of the merged Display Profile XML.

The tree contains container and channel nodes. There are three types of channels that deliver content to the desktop:

• Provider (native) channels

• Portlet channels

• Remote portlet channels

You can click on any of the node links in the tree to display properties and actions on the right frame.

There are two types of items in the View Type menu:

• Display Profile XML Tree

• Desktop Views

See To View Display Profile XML Tree and Desktop Views

Display Profile XML Tree

The tree displays a complete set of channels and containers in the merged Display Profile (DP) XML. The root element in the DP XML Tree is DP_ROOT, which is the parent of all the channels and containers of the display profile. You can create a channel directly under DP_ROOT, or in a container under DP_ROOT.

The nodes listed under the DP XML Tree is not always displayed on the desktop. Some nodes in the display profile are never referenced or included in the hierarchy of the desktop container.

For example, the desktop default container JSPTabContainer has two containers, tab1 and tab2. If tab1 contains ch1 and ch2, and tab2contains ch3 and ch4, then there are five channels defined in the DP XML Tree. The DP XML Tree references ch1 to ch4 in the container hierarchy, but ch5 is not. So, only ch1 to ch4 will display on the desktop.

Desktop Views

Desktop views are top level containers available in the merged display profile. You can set each desktop views as the parent container for the desktop at the DN. When you select a desktop view, the tree provides a visual hierarchy of the channels and containers that has a role in rendering content to the desktop.

Channels and containers displayed under the desktop views have two states:

• Selected and visible on the desktop

• Available for selection

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  Note –

  In this state, channels and containers icons are displayed in grey color.

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You can change the state of channels and containers in a desktop view by clicking the task link on the right frame. To display a tool tip about the state, place the mouse over a container or channel icon. The tool tip also displays the fully qualified name of the node.

To View Display Profile XML Tree and Desktop Views

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal server under Portals, then any DN from the Select DN drop-down menu.

   • You can also select the organization from Select DN menu in the Manage Containers and Channels page.

4. Under Tasks, click Manage Containers and Channels.

5. From the View Type drop-down menu select DP XML Tree or a Desktop View.

Modifying Channels and Container Properties

This section discusses the properties of channels and containers, and how to modify them.

You can perform the following tasks:

• To Create a Property

• To Edit a List

• To Modify Portlet Preferences

• To Modify Channel and Container Properties

• To Upload a Display Profile

Understanding Properties

The properties displayed when you click on the node in the tree are top level properties or channel level properties. These properties are defined at the provider level and you can customize these properties for a channel. However, new properties added to a channel cannot be added to the provider. This is the reason you cannot add new properties at the channel level.

The properties table displays client type and locale. There is no column to show the type of the property, however, the following convention is followed:

String

Value column has a wide text field for a maximum of 30 characters.

Integer

Value column has a narrow text field for a maximum of 5 characters.

Boolean

Value is a radio button.

Map

Name is a link.

List

Value column has an Edit Values link. Clicking this link opens a wizard to add and remove values.

Empty Collection

The name is a link showing Edit Values link. Name and value pairs may be added to an empty collection to behave like a map, and the Edit Values disappears. If values are added to an empty collection using Edit Values wizard, the collection behaves as a List and the name link disappears.

In addition to the Name and Value columns, the properties table has two more columns:

Category

Displays if the property is advanced or basic. The advanced properties generally are for experienced administrators.

State

Any property may be in three possible states:

• Default – Value assigned at the provider.

• Inherited – Values modified at some level above. For example, if the current node is a role, then the property may have been customized at the organization of the role. This organization may be the parent organization, or parent of the parent organization. When the property is inherited it is a link. Clicking this link shows all the possible parent nodes in the hierarchy from where this property was inherited from.

• Customized – Value defined at this node.

There are buttons in the properties table:

Remove Customization

Removes values defined at this node from the display profile. This may result in properties to be inherited from some parent in the hierarchy if the properties are customized there. If the value has not been customized anywhere in the hierarchy, the value defined at the provider is displayed and the state will show as Default.

Save

Saves additions, deletions, and changes of value.

Reset

Ignores changes and resets values to last saved state from the data store.

Clear All Sorts

Clears all sorts.

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Tip –

Table may be sorted by clicking on any column title. When you click the Name button first to sort by name, a + appears next to the Category and State buttons. Click the + to apply the next sort criteria.

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Table Preferences

Sets the table preferences.

Unless modified, the client type and locale are set to default.

To Create a Property

From the New Property wizard you can edit the values and save. You can also add new name and value pairs.

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Under Task, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. Select a container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

7. Click Table Preferences button to set the client and locale attributes.

8. Click the New Property button to launch the wizard.

9. Select the property type, and click Next.

10. Type a Name, select a Value, and specify if the property is advanced or not.

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    Note –

    Collection property behaves like a map when it contains name and value pairs. Property of type Collection can be nested. The property path above the table will change to display the current nesting and you can navigate back.

    Any trailing values are optional. For example, the value may be en or en_US, but cannot be US only. The standard Java format for specifying a locale is followed.

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11. Click Finish to create the property.

12. Click Close to display the new property in the table.

To Edit a List

Collection property behaves like a List when it contains only values.

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Under Task, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. Select a container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

7. Click the Edit Values link of a property to launch the wizard.

8. Make your changes.

   • To add a value, type the name of the value in the New Value text box, and click Add.

   • To delete a value, select a value from the Values list, and click Remove.

9. Click Close.

   The edit properties page will update number of values in the list.

To Modify Channel and Container Properties

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Under Task, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. Select a channel or container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

7. Change the properties, and click Save.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin modify-dp

Creating and Deleting Channels and Containers

This section discusses how to create and delete channels and containers from the portal management console.

• To Create a Channel or Container

• To Delete a Channel or Container

To Create a Channel or Container

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Under Task, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. Select a container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

7. Under Tasks, click New Channel or Container to launch the wizard.

   In the wizard, ensure that the selected portal and selected DN is where you want to create the channel or container and click Next.

8. Create a container or channel from the wizard.

   • To create a container, perform the following steps:

     1. Select a provider from the Container Provider drop-down menu, and click Next.

     2. Type a name in the Channel or Container Name text field, and click Next.

     3. Review your selections, and click Finish.

        A message confirms the creation of the container.

     4. Click Close

   • To create a channel, perform the following steps:

     1. Select a channel type.

        Select a channel from the following three types:

        • If you select Provider Channel, a list of provider channels are displayed.

        • If you select JSR 168 Portlet Channel, a list of portlet channels are displayed.

        • If you select WSRP Remote Portlet Channel, select the registered producer and the remote portlet from the drop-down menu.

     2. Type a name in the Channel or Container Name text field, and click Next.

     3. Review your selections, and click Finish.

        A message confirms the creation of the channel.

     4. Click Close.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin add-dp

To Delete a Channel or Container

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select any DN.

5. Under Tasks, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. Select a container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

7. Under Tasks, click Select Channels or Containers to Delete.

8. Under Type, select Channel or Container.

   Available channels and containers are displayed.

9. Select a channel or container, and click Delete.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin remove-dp

Creating a Tab

This section describes how to create a tab form the portal server management console.

To Create a Tab

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. From Select DN drop-down menu, select ay DN.

5. Under Tasks, click Manage Channels and Containers.

6. From the tree on the left frame, select JSPTabContainer.

7. Under Tasks in the right frame, click New Tab to launch the wizard.

Displaying Channels and Containers

This section discusses how to display channels and containers on the end-user Desktop. Channels and containers can also be made available on the content page so that the end user can select them to display on the Desktop.

To Display Channels and Containers on Desktop

1. Log in to the Portal Server management console.

2. Select the Portals tab.

3. Select a portal from Portals.

4. Under Tasks, click Manage Containers and Channels.

5. Select a container in the tree on left frame to display Edit Properties page on the right frame.

6. Under Tasks, click Show or Hide Channels and Containers on Portal Desktop.

7. Under Ready For Use, select a channel or container.

8. Using the Add button, move the channels to appear on the Content Page or Portal Desktop.

   • Using the Remove button, you can move the channels or containers back to Ready For Use.

9. Click Save.

Equivalent psadmin Command

psadmin modify-dp.