1 Introduction

Adapter Features

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld provides a means to exchange real-time business data between J.D. Edwards OneWorld systems and other applications, databases, or external business partner systems. The adapter enables inbound and outbound processing with J.D. Edwards OneWorld.

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld can be deployed as a J2EE Connector Architecture (J2CA) 1.0 resource adapter. This deployment is referred to as OracleAS J2CA adapter. It can also be deployed as a Web services servlet and is referred to as OracleAS Adapter Business Services Engine (BSE).

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld uses XML messages to enable non-J.D. Edwards applications to communicate and exchange transactions with J.D. Edwards using services and events. Services and events are described as follows:

• Services: Enables applications to initiate a J.D. Edwards business event.

• Events: Enables applications to access J.D. Edwards data only when a J.D. Edwards business event occurs.

To support event functionality, channels are supported. A channel represents configured connections to particular instances of back-end or other types of systems.

The channel is the adapter component that receives events in real time from the Enterprise Information System (EIS) application. The channel component can be a File reader, an HTTP listener, a TCP/IP listener, or an FTP listener. A channel is always EIS specific. The adapter supports multiple channels for a particular EIS, which enables the user to choose the optimal channel component based on deployment requirements.

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld provides:

• XML schemas and WSDLs for the J2CA 1.0 and 1.5 resource adapter.

• Web services for BSE.

J.D. Edwards OneWorld Platforms, Products, and Releases Supported

The following table indicates which combinations of adapter platforms and J.D. Edwards OneWorld platforms are supported, and for each combination, which J.D. Edwards OneWorld products and releases are supported.

J.D. Edwards OneWorld Concepts

You can use OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld to call a J.D. Edwards OneWorld Master Business Function, such as Address Book, Purchase Order, and Sales Order. You can also use the adapter as a part of an integration effort to connect OneWorld with non-OneWorld systems. OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld can receive an XML document, or it can run one or more J.D. Edwards Master Business Functions (MBF) by passing an XML document into OneWorld through the J.D. Edwards OneWorld ThinNet API.

Integration with J.D. Edwards OneWorld

J.D. Edwards OneWorld supports multiple methods and technologies to provide interoperability. The three supported entry points are:

• Flat files

• Database tables

• Master Business Function (MBF) interactive calls

You configure Oracle AS Adapter to send requests to J.D. Edwards OneWorld. The adapter processes requests for J.D. Edwards OneWorld Master Business Functions (MBF), embedded in XML documents, and forwards them to a back-end J.D. Edwards OneWorld system. The resulting response information is then returned and processed for further routing.OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld can receive an XML request document from a client and call a specific function in the target Enterprise Information System (EIS). OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld acts as a consumer of request messages and provides a response. An adapter performs the following functions:

• Receives requests from a legacy system, another EIS, or a non-EIS client.

• Transforms the XML request document into the EIS-specific format.

The request document conforms to a request XML schema.

The schema is based on metadata in the EIS.

• Calls the underlying function in the EIS and waits for its response.

• Transforms the response from the EIS-specific data format to an XML document.

The response document conforms to a response XML schema that is generated by the adapter.

The schema is based on metadata in the EIS.

You can configure a channel for the adapter to receive messages from J.D. Edwards OneWorld. The information the channel receives is used to build an XML record and is forwarded to any specified disposition for further processing.Channels are consumers of EIS-specific messages and may or may not provide a response. A channel performs the following functions:

• Receives messages from an EIS client

• Transforms the EIS-specific message format into an XML format.

Propagating Internal Listeners out of J.D. Edwards OneWorld

Integrating a J.D. Edwards OneWorld listener with external systems is similar to the outbound process, except in reverse. The Data Export Control table maintains the determination of whether a transaction must be integrated with an external system. When a transaction must be integrated, the MBF handles logging of all additions, changes, and deletions to the unedited transaction table. After the transaction information writes to the table, a key for that record is sent from the MBF to the subsystem data queue.The subsystem data queue triggers the processing of the new record by launching an outbound subsystem batch process that is generic and handles all inbound transactions. The J. D. Edwards outbound subsystem then accesses the Data Export Control table to determine the configured external subscriber to run.

J.D. Edwards OneWorld Interoperability Framework

J.D. Edwards OneWorld enables integration with systems through its interoperability framework. The adapter uses the OneWorld framework and leverages various integration access methods to provide the greatest amount of flexibility and functionality.OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld supports the following integration access methods:

• J.D. Edwards OneWorld ThinNet API

• J.D. Edwards OneWorld XML

• J.D. Edwards unedited transaction tables (Z tables)

Figure 1-1 illustrates the outbound processing framework.

The adapter uses the J.D. Edwards OneWorld ThinNet API to communicate with the OneWorld application. Using the ThinNet API, the adapter can run one or more MBF in a single Unit Of Work (UOW). When any of the MBF fail, the entire UOW fails, preventing partial updates. Validation of data, business rules, and communications to the underlying database are handled by the OneWorld application because the adapter runs the MBF.

Figure 1-1 J.D. Edwards OneWorld Outbound Processing

Description of "Figure 1-1 J.D. Edwards OneWorld Outbound Processing"

Figure 1-2 illustrates the inbound processing framework.

Figure 1-2 J.D. Edwards OneWorld Inbound Processing

Description of "Figure 1-2 J.D. Edwards OneWorld Inbound Processing"

In the outbound process, the event starts when a specific MBF is executed in the J.D. Edwards OneWorld environment. The MBF writes the required information for the event into the appropriate interface table and then notifies the subsystem Batch Function (BF) that an event occurred. The subsystem BF then places an entry about the event on the Subsystem Data Queue.The J.D. Edwards outbound subsystem retrieves the data queue entry and looks in the Data Export Control table for the external processes to notify. The J.D. Edwards outbound subsystem then calls the Oracle Application Server Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld listener with notification. The listener passes the notification to the generator. The generator then uses the J.D. Edwards OneWorld ThinNet API to retrieve the appropriate information from the interface table.

Adapter Architecture

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld uses Application Explorer with one of the following components:

• Oracle Application Server Adapter Business Services Engine (BSE)

• Enterprise Connector for J2EE Connector Architecture (J2CA)

OracleAS Adapter Application Explorer (Application Explorer)

Application Explorer is used to configure database connections and create Web services and events. It can be configured to work in a Web services environment with BSE or with the Enterprise Connector for J2EE Connector Architecture (J2CA). When working in a J2CA environment, the connector uses the Common Client Interface (CCI) to provide fast integration services using Adapters instead of using Web services. Both BSE and the connector for J2CA are deployed to an application server with Application Explorer and the adapters.

Application Explorer uses an explorer metaphor for browsing the J.D. Edwards OneWorld system for business functions. Application Explorer enables you to create XML schemas and Web services for the associated business function.

Resource Adapters

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld is a J2CA-based component also known as resource adapter. Resource adapters connect applications that were not originally designed to communicate with each other. Adapters are bidirectional, that is, they can send requests to an Enterprise Information System (EIS), and receive notification of events occurring in an EIS.

Oracle Application Server Adapter Business Services Engine (BSE) Architecture

Figure 1-3 shows the generic architecture for the Oracle Web service adapter for packaged applications. The adapter works with BSE, as deployed to a Web container in a J2EE application server.

Figure 1-3 OracleAS Adapter Business Services Engine (BSE) Architecture

Description of "Figure 1-3 OracleAS Adapter Business Services Engine (BSE) Architecture"

Application Explorer, a design-time tool deployed along with BSE, is used to configure adapter connections, browse EIS objects, configure services, and configure listeners to listen for EIS events. Metadata created while you perform these operations are stored in the repository by BSE.

BSE uses SOAP as a protocol for receiving requests from clients, interacting with the EIS, and sending responses from the EIS back to clients.

Oracle Application Server Adapter Generic J2CA Architecture

Figure 1-4 shows the generic architecture for Oracle J2CA adapter for packaged applications. The J2CA connector is deployed to a standard J2CA Container and serves as host container to the adapters. The connector is configured with a repository.

Figure 1-4 OracleAS Adapter Generic J2CA Architecture

Description of "Figure 1-4 OracleAS Adapter Generic J2CA Architecture"

Application Explorer, a design tool that works with the connector, is used to configure adapter connections, browse EIS objects, configure services, and configure listeners to listen for EIS events. Metadata created during these operations is stored in the repository by the connector. The repository can be a file system or an Oracle database. It is deployed as a RAR file and has an associated deployment descriptor called ra.xml. You can create multiple connector factories by editing the OC4J deployment descriptor oc4j-ra.xml. See Chapter 3, "OC4J Deployment and Integration" for more information on OC4J deployment.

Processing Business Functions

OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld enables the processing of OneWorld business functions through the J.D. Edwards OneWorld ThinNet API. Using the API eliminates the requirement of creating complex and impractical batch processes. In addition, a transport layer, such as IBM MQSeries, File, or HTTP is not required because a listener is defined through a TCP connection.External applications that access OneWorld through OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld use either XML schemas or Web services to pass data between the external application and the adapter. Chapter 2, "Configuring OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards One World" describes how to use Application Explorer to create XML schemas and Web services for the J.D. Edwards Master Business Functions (MBF) used with the adapter.

BSE Versus OracleAS Adapter J2CA Deployment

If you are using OracleAS Adapter for J.D. Edwards OneWorld with BPEL Process Manager, please note that:

• Only OracleAS Adapter J2CA deployment supports inbound integration (event notification) with BPEL Process Manager.

• Both OracleAS Adapter J2CA and BSE deployments support outbound integration (request-response service) with BPEL Process Manager.

The following three factors explain the differences between deploying BSE and OracleAS Adapter J2CA. Understanding the factors can help in selecting a deployment option.

1. BSE is the preferred deployment option because it:

   • Can be deployed in a separate instance of Oracle Application Server.

   • Provides better distribution of load.

   • Provides better isolation from any errors from third party libraries.

   • Provides better capability to isolate issues for debugging purposes.

   • Conforms more closely to the Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) model for building applications.

2. OracleAS Adapter J2CA provides slightly better performance.

   OracleAS Adapter J2CA does provide slightly better performance than BSE. However, the difference decreases as the transaction rate increases.

3. OracleAS Adapter J2CA and the BSE option both provide identity propagation at run-time.

   The BSE option provides the capability to pass identity using the SOAP header. For OracleAS Adapter J2CA, user name and password can be passed using the connection specification of the CCI.