Rational Developer for System z

2. Associating a service interface

The second page of the New Service Flow Project wizard, titled Associate service interface, allows you to specify a service interface to be associated with the new flow that the wizard is going to create inside the new service flow project.
Recall the definitions of operation, associating, and service interface: This page of the New Service Flow Project wizard allows you to associate a service interface with the new flow that the wizard is going to create inside the new service flow project. That is, this page of the wizard allows you to create a new operation and bind it to the new flow. Because this new flow is initially the only flow in the service flow project, it is assumed for now to be the primary flow of the service flow that will eventually be generated.

To use this page of the New Service Flow Project wizard, see one of the following subtopics:

Importing from another WSDL document

This option allows you to select an existing operation from an existing operations file to serve as the service interface for your primary flow.

To import a service interface (that is, an operation) from another WSDL document:
  1. Click the radio button Import from a WSDL document.
  2. In the WSDL location input field, type the path and file name of the WSDL document from which you want to import an operation, or click Browse to browse for a WSDL document. The following list contains links to two WSDL documents, each containing a sample service interface definition:
    Note: A WSDL document is a generic document type that can be used for various purposes. For information on the structure of a service interface definition in a WSDL document, see WSDL interfaces.
  3. The WSDL document might contain no operations, one operation, or multiple operations. If the WSDL document contains one or more operations, then the New Service Flow Project wizard displays a list of the operations that it finds in the file. Each list entry includes the name of the operation, the port type to which the operation belongs, an associated input message, and an associated output message.
  4. From the list, select the operation that you want to associate with the new flow that the wizard is going to create in the new service flow project.
  5. Click Next to go to the next page of the wizard.

Importing from a COBOL file or a PL/I file

This option allows you to create the service interface for your primary flow by selecting data structures from existing COBOL source files or from existing PL/I files to use as the patterns for the input message, the output message, and the fault message of the service interface.

You must select both a pattern for the input message and a pattern for the output message of the service interface. You can select these patterns from the same COBOL or PL/I file or from different COBOL files or PL/I files.

The fault message is optional. You select a pattern for a fault message in the same way that you select a pattern for the input message or the output message.
Note: You can create additional fault messages later, by opening the operations file with the operations editor and adding fault messages.

The operation and port type for the service interface do not come from a COBOL file or PL/I file. Instead, you must type the name of the operation into an input field on the wizard page, and the wizard uses a default port type of "programs".

To import information from a COBOL file or PL/I file:
  1. Click the radio button Import from COBOL or PL/I files.
  2. Click File System, Workspace, or Remote and then select the COBOL or PL/I file or files from which you want to import the patterns for the input message and the output message of the operation:
    • Click File System to select a file from a directory on your workstation's hard disk.
    • Click Workspace to select a file from the workbench's current workspace.
    • Click Remote to select a file from a remote system.
    The following list contains a link to a sample COBOL file:
  3. In the Interface Operation input field, type the name that you want to use for the operation. The default name is "InterfaceOperation".
  4. To select a pattern for the input message of the service interface, click the Select button at the right of the Input Data field and then select the COBOL or PL/I structure that you want to use.
  5. To select a pattern for the output message of the service interface, click the Select button at the right of the Output Data field and then select the COBOL for PL/I structure that you want to use.
  6. To select a pattern for a fault message for the service interface, click the Select button at the right of the Fault Data field and then select the COBOL or PL/I structure that you want to use.
  7. Click Next to go to the next page of the wizard.
Note: When you choose to import from a COBOL file on this page of the wizard, the wizard adds an additional final page that allows you to set COBOL compile options (see 5. COBOL import settings Similarly, when you choose to import from a PL/I file on this page of the wizard, the wizard adds an additional final page that allows you to set PL/I compile options (see 6. PL/I import settings).

Defining a service interface later

To define a service interface (operation) later:
  1. Click the radio button Define later.
  2. Click Next to go to the next page of the wizard.
Even in this situation, the wizard creates a default operation for the new flow. If you click the Define later radio button on this page, and then on the next page of the wizard click the Defining later radio button and click Finish, the wizard creates the new service flow project with the resources shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Resources created in the new service flow project
Resource: Status:
Folders and subprojects: The following folders and subprojects are created:
  • Flows folder, containing:
    • An empty flow file
  • Interface definition subproject, containing:
    • In the Operations subfolder, a default operations file (extension .wsdl) containing a default port type and operation name and referencing the default input and output messages in the Messages folder.
    • In the Messages subfolder, a default input message and a default output message.
  • Terminal applications subproject (empty)
  • Nonterminal applications subproject (empty)
  • Outbound Web servcies subproject (empty)
For more information on these folders and subprojects see The folders and subprojects in a service flow project.
Operation The wizard creates a default operation and stores the operation information into the operations file and message files described in the cell above.
Flow The wizard creates an empty flow and opens it with the flow editor.

This default operation is not yet associated with a flow. When you add nodes to the new, empty flow or create another flow, then you can specify an existing operation to associate with it.


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