Understanding Component Interfaces

A component interface enables exposure of a PeopleSoft component (a set of pages grouped together for a business purpose) for synchronous access from another application (such as PeopleCode, Java, C/C++, or XML). Component interfaces can be viewed as "black boxes" that encapsulate PeopleSoft data and business processes, and hide the details of the underlying page and data. Component interfaces can be used to integrate one application with another application or with external systems. Component interfaces execute the business logic built into the component and as a result, they provide a higher level of data validation than a simple SQL insert.

A component interface maps to one, and only one, PeopleSoft component. However, you can create multiple component interfaces for the same component. You create component interfaces in PeopleSoft Application Designer. Record fields on the component are mapped to the keys and properties of the component interface. Methods are used to find, create, modify, or delete data.