Rational Software Architect Design Manager Import Engine

The Rational® Software Architect Design Manager Import Engine is a small application that can run on any computer on the network, but the engine is typically set up on a computer that can serve model data; that is, which can check out data from a configuration management system.

You use the import engine to place model content on the Design Management Server, index it, and make it generally available through the API of the Design Management Server and web interface. The import engine reads the model content from the files, compresses them, and sends them to the Design Management Server; the import service on the Design Management Server checks to see if any of the resources on the server needs to be modified. Each import engine instance is identified by a simple text identifier; this identifier is usually associated with a particular project, and represents an import definition that the engine is able to provide. This simple text identifier can span a file system with model content from multiple projects.

Ensure that you place Rational Software Architect Design Manager Import Engines on computers that have efficient access to authoritative sources, such as a software configuration management system or shared network locations.

In a simple configuration, which is appropriate for low volume servers, the import engine can be on the same computer as the Design Management Server. You can also configure the import definition to run an Ant script before gathering the file content. This script can invoke a checkout in a source control repository to update the local file system with the latest content, or validate the content or state of the project before sending it to the Design Management Server.

The Design Management Server operates in a pull mode, not a push mode, which means that the server controls the flow of data. Instead of individual content suppliers pushing new and updated content to the server, the Design Management Server retrieves updates when it is ready to accept content.

Import engines poll the server periodically and query whether it is ready for updated content. If the Design Management Server is ready for updated content, the server sends a manifest of the content that it currently has, and the import engine searches the file system for changes by comparing file names and time stamps. Therefore, the import engine sends the server only updated content. When the Design Management Server receives the updated content, it processes the information and makes that content available.


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