The kBOS Web ServicesThrough the web services, we expose the functionality provided by kBOS to external applications through standard protocols. Each service describes a functional part of our current kBOS clients Web services can be used to create a fully functional kBOS client handling all the possible operations or to create small external applications performing specific actions to kBOS. There are two types of web services; services providing information about the metadata of kBOS, and services simulating the interaction with kBOS. The security mechanism relies on digital certificates. Besides that, other custom authentication mechanisms can be used, like IP checking. The authentication is applied per call to the Web Service. At the first call the client acquires a session id, which is used throughout his calls. It is refreshed at each preceding call and has a timeout. The response from certain web services will result in large volume data manipulation. This will happen mainly in the loading of a folder. For these occasions a paging mechanism is provided. The web services exposed are registered in the UDDI. Apart from exposing Web Services, the need for consuming Web Services exposed by third parties may arise. This need may come up for an event execution, or in the agent’s framework. A common methodology has been developed, implemented by a set of classes. The kBOS Web Services management approach The Web Services that are exposed to the clients comprise of the following layers; Ø A front-end layer, in which the web services will be defined. An intermediate layer where the logic of the process for the web service will rely on. Here three main operations will be made. The first will be the communication with kBOS Server, the second will be the process of the messages passed to the web services, and the third will be the application of various formats to the web service messages. The second layer termed kBOS Interaction Layer provides any formatting required to the various data types and can easily incorporate processing rules.A schematic representation of the kBOS Interaction Layer follows.
Web services can be used to create a fully functional kBOS client handling all the possible operations or to create small external applications performing specific actions to kBOS.
There are two types of web services; services providing information about the metadata of kBOS, and services simulating the interaction with kBOS.
The security mechanism relies on digital certificates. Besides that, other custom authentication mechanisms can be used, like IP checking.
The authentication is applied per call to the Web Service. At the first call the client acquires a session id, which is used throughout his calls. It is refreshed at each preceding call and has a timeout.
The response from certain web services will result in large volume data manipulation. This will happen mainly in the loading of a folder. For these occasions a paging mechanism is provided.
The web services exposed are registered in the UDDI.
Apart from exposing Web Services, the need for consuming Web Services exposed by third parties may arise. This need may come up for an event execution, or in the agent’s framework. A common methodology has been developed, implemented by a set of classes.
The kBOS Web Services management approach
The Web Services that are exposed to the clients comprise of the following layers;
Ø A front-end layer, in which the web services will be defined.
An intermediate layer where the logic of the process for the web service will rely on. Here three main operations will be made. The first will be the communication with kBOS Server, the second will be the process of the messages passed to the web services, and the third will be the application of various formats to the web service messages. The second layer termed kBOS Interaction Layer provides any formatting required to the various data types and can easily incorporate processing rules.A schematic representation of the kBOS Interaction Layer follows.