Collaboration objects created from these collaboration templates validate
the item data, help manage the item approval process, manage the processes
used to temporarily store, update, retrieve, and delete data during the review
and approval processes, and allow e-mail notifications to be sent for various
processing results and error conditions. The collaboration templates include
the following:
- ItemValidation collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the ItemValidation collaboration template
validates the item data to ensure it is correct, complete, and of the proper
format. It accepts or rejects a business object based on customized business
policy rules, evaluates an accepted business object based on a customized
list of required attribute data, and directs the business object to the appropriate
processing port based on the results of the evaluation. If the data does not
pass the validation processes, the collaboration object can automatically
enable notification to an appropriate user, stating that additional information
is needed to continue with the approval process. It can also be configured
to log the processed business object and to enable persistence of the business
object to a local item store. See ItemValidation collaboration template for
detailed information on this collaboration template.
- ItemCollector collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the ItemCollector collaboration template
builds a complete business object by merging partial business objects containing
updated information obtained from other collaboration objects or connectors,
such as review/approval information from WebSphere® MQ Workflow, with a complete
copy of the business object retrieved from a local item store. An ItemCollector
collaboration object copies the updated attribute values from the partial
objects into the retrieved one through the use of configuration properties.
See ItemCollector collaboration template for detailed
information on this collaboration template.
- Process_Reviewed_Item collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the Process_Reviewed_Item collaboration
template synchronizes a business object to back-end applications based on
the status of the object following the review/approval process. It also sends
the business object to a port to notify the source application of the status
of the processed business object. It can also be configured to log the processing
business object, to enable notification to an appropriate user of the status
of business object processing, and to enable saving a business object in or
deleting a business object from a persistent item store. See Process_Reviewed_Item collaboration template for
detailed information on this collaboration template.
- ItemDispatcher collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the ItemDispatcher collaboration template
is used to control how approval requests generated by an ItemValidation collaboration
object are sent to a WebSphere MQ Workflow process. If a Retail_Item
business object that requires approval contains a cascaded GLN, the ItemDispatcher
collaboration object breaks up the request for approval into multiple smaller
messages, each containing one or more of the individual GLNs. How the collaboration
object handles any particular GLN is determined by a user-defined configuration
file. Items without a cascaded GLN are passed through the collaboration object
without processing. See ItemDispatcher collaboration template for
detailed information on this collaboration template.
- DataStore collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the DataStore collaboration template persists
the incoming business object in XML format, while allowing for retrieval,
updating, and deletion through either auto-generated keys or user-specified
keys based on business object attributes. This collaboration template must
be configured to accommodate a specific business object. To simplify solution
configuration, collaboration templates built from the DataStore collaboration
template are supplied, which store item identifiers, messages, and items themselves.
These templates are preconfigured to accept and serialize specific business
objects into XML and store them in database tables. See DataStore collaboration template for
detailed information on the DataStore collaboration template; see IdentifierStore collaboration template, MessageStore collaboration template, and ItemStore collaboration template for
more information on the supplied, prebuilt collaboration templates based on
the DataStore collaboration template.
- ItemStore collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the ItemStore collaboration template serializes
a Retail_Item business object. In the context of the solution, an ItemStore
collaboration object is called by ItemValidation, Process_Reviewed_Item, ItemDispatcher,
and ItemCollector collaboration objects to store, retrieve, update, or delete
the Retail_Item in or from an item store. Having the Retail_Item stored enables
the business object to be persisted for use by other parts of the solution
while long-running review/approval processes complete. To simplify solution
configuration, this collaboration template is built from the DataStore collaboration
template and is preconfigured to accept and serialize a specific business
object into XML and store it in a database table. See ItemStore collaboration template for
detailed information on this collaboration template and Retail_Item business object for
detailed information on this business object.
- Role_Email collaboration template
- A collaboration object based on the Role_Email collaboration template
is used to extract the e-mail message text, subject text, and recipient or
list of recipients from configurable attributes in a triggering business object,
and use those attribute values as input to the sendEmail API. The attributes
of the business object can contain the actual message text, subject text,
or address(es), or point to filenames that contain those values. Use of filenames
to hold values allows e-mail message text, subject text, and recipients to
be shared among multiple collaboration objects. For instance, by enclosing
the actual attribute value identifying an e-mail address within a filename,
an e-mail message can be sent to a Role, which corresponds to the filename.
The actual e-mail address contained in the file can be easily changed as ownership
of the Role changes, without needing to make any changes to the collaboration
objects requesting the e-mail. See Role_Email collaboration template for
detailed information on this collaboration template.