Working with components in an InterChange Server Express repository

The InterChange Server Express Component Management view allows you to manage the repositories of the InterChange Server Express you have registered, and to manage the components in those repositories.

Validating the components in the repository

As described in InterChange Server Express modes, InterChange Server Express has different restrictions regarding the integrity of the repository depending on the mode you start it in. Although a server running in design mode allows the repository to be inconsistent so that you can add components as they become available, a server running in production mode requires that all references and dependencies among the components be resolved. When you migrate from a design-mode server to a production-mode server, then, you should validate the repository beforehand to make sure that the repository will be in a consistent state.

Do the following to validate the repository using System Manager:

  1. In the InterChange Server Express Component Management view, right-click the server instance whose repository you want to validate and choose Validate Repository from the context menu.
  2. If the repository is in a consistent state, an informational prompt is displayed.

    Click OK to close the "Validate Repository" prompt.

    If there are unresolved dependencies in the repository then the "Missing Dependencies" dialog is displayed, as shown in Figure 24. Click Finish to close the "Missing Dependencies" dialog.

    Note:
    You must resolve any missing dependencies before the server can start in production mode. For more information about production mode, see Production mode.

    Figure 24. Unresolved dependencies in the repository

Validating database connection pools

To validate a database connection pool, right-click the pool in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Validate database connection from the context menu.

For more information about database connection pools, see Configuring database connection pools.

Managing component states in the repository

You can use the InterChange Server Express Component Management view to manage the states of components in the repository of an InterChange Server Express instance.

This is very useful when you are developing an interface because you have to test the components you are developing. You will frequently test a component and find that you must change it. Then you will deploy the modified component to the server and test it again. To deploy a component to the server, however, it must be in an inactive state, so you must stop the component prior to deployment. Since you can develop, deploy, and test an interface all within the workbench, it is very convenient to also be able to manage the component states from it as well.

To change the state of a component in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view, right-click the component in the navigation tree and choose the desired state from the context menu. Table 7 lists the state operations that you can apply for each of the component types that have runtime states. For more information on the behavior of the system when components are in different states, see the WebSphere InterChange Server: System Administration Guide.

Table 7. State operations available for components in System Manager
Component type State operation
Collaboration object
  • Start
  • Stop
  • Pause
  • Shut Down
Connector
  • Start
  • Stop
  • Pause
  • Shut Down
  • Boot
Map
  • Start
  • Stop
Relationship
  • Start
  • Stop

You can also select multiple components, right-click one of the components, and apply state changes to all of them at the same time. This is very useful when you must deploy a number of components at the same time, because you do not have to perform a separate state-management operation for each one. You can use standard Windows selection techniques to select multiple user projects for deployment at the same time, such as the following:

Note:
If you have any components that do not have states selected when you try to perform a state management operation on a group of selected components, then the state management options will not be displayed in the context-sensitive menu. For instance, if you want to stop several connectors, but accidentally select a business object definition as well, then the state management operations will not be exposed in the context-sensitive menu.

To modify the state all of the components of a particular type, right-click the folder for the component type in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and select Start All or Stop All from the context menu.

It is recommended that you use System Monitor to manage components in a production installation. System Monitor offers greater flexibility and is a dedicated administration tool. For more information on using System Monitor, see the WebSphere InterChange Server: System Administration Guide.

Modifying component properties in the repository

Maps, connectors, and collaboration objects have runtime properties that you can modify to change the behavior of those components. Follow the instructions in the following sections to modify the properties for particular components:

Modifying collaboration object properties

Do the following to modify the properties of a collaboration object:

  1. Right-click the collaboration object whose properties you want to modify in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and select Properties from the context menu.
  2. Set the properties on the "Collaboration General Properties" and "Properties" tabs to the desired values.

    For more information about collaboration object properties, see Right-clicking to configure InterChange Server Express properties.

    Figure 25 shows the "Properties" dialog for collaboration objects:

    Figure 25. Modifying collaboration object properties
  3. Click OK.

Modifying map properties

Do the following to modify the properties of a map:

  1. Right-click the map for which you are changing properties in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and select Properties from the context menu.
  2. Set the properties on the "Maps Property Page" dialog to the desired values.

    For more information about map properties, see the WebSphere InterChange Server: Map Development Guide.

    Figure 26 shows the "Maps Property Page" dialog:

    Figure 26. Modifying map properties
  3. Click OK.

Modifying connector properties

Do the following to modify the properties of a connector:

  1. Right-click the connector whose properties you want to modify in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and select Properties from the context menu.
  2. Set the properties on the "Connector Standard Properties", "Associated Maps", and "Resources" tabs to the desired values. For more information about connector properties, see Configuring connectors.

    Figure 27 shows the "Properties" dialog for connectors:

    Figure 27. Modifying connector properties
  3. Click OK.

Compiling components in the repository

Collaboration templates must be compiled for the collaboration objects that are based on them to run, and maps must be compiled to run as well. You can deploy collaboration templates and maps to an InterChange Server Express running in design mode without compiling them, but must ensure that they are compiled to test them.

To compile a collaboration template in the server, right-click the template in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Compile from the context menu.

To compile all of the collaboration templates in the server, right-click the Collaboration Templates folder in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Compile All from the context menu.

To compile a map in the server, right-click the map in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Compile from the context menu.

To compile all of the maps in the server, right-click the Maps folder in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Compile All from the context menu.

To compile a map along with all of its submaps, right-click the map in the InterChange Server Express Component Management view and choose Compile with submaps from the context menu.

The "Console" view displays messages about the success or failure of compilation attempts.

Deleting components from the repository

As you develop a business integration system, the design of the system frequently changes. New requirements and environmental differences commonly result in the redesign of an interface. You will want to make sure that the repository contains only the components it needs to solve business problems according to the current design, and that will sometimes mean that you have to delete components that belong to designs that have changed.

Deleting the entire repository

To delete all of the components in a server repository using System Manager do the following:

  1. In the InterChange Server Express Component Management view, right-click the server instance whose repository you want to delete and choose Delete Repository from the context menu.
  2. At the "Delete repository confirmation" prompt click OK.
  3. At the next "Delete repository confirmation" prompt click OK.
  4. Reboot the interchange server to update the in-memory data structure.

Deleting components using the component browser

Do the following to delete components from an InterChange Server Express repository by using the component browser:

  1. In the InterChange Server Express Component Management view, select the components you want to delete in the browser.

    You can use standard Windows techniques for selecting multiple items, such as holding Shift to select multiple contiguous items, and holding Ctrl to select multiple non-contiguous items.

  2. To delete a component you must first make sure it is in an inactive state. Before attempting to delete any components, ensure that they are in an inactive state by stopping them.

    To stop a component using the InterChange Server Express Component Management view in System Manager, see Managing component states in the repository.

    To stop a component using System Monitor, see the WebSphere InterChange Server: System Administration Guide.

  3. Do one of the following to delete the selected components: Figure 28 shows System Manager when the component browser is used to delete components.
    Figure 28. Deleting components using the component browser
  4. Do the following when presented with the dialog:
  5. Click Finish.

    If the delete operation is successful then the wizard exits.

    If the delete operation failed, click OK to close the error prompt, then resolve the problem and try the operation again. The error information in the prompt can be very difficult to use in troubleshooting, so it is recommended that you use the server logging output to determine the cause of the failure.

Deleting components using the Server Object Delete Wizard

Do the following to use System Manager to delete components from an InterChange Server Express repository by using the Server Object Delete Wizard:

  1. In the InterChange Server Express Component Management view, right-click the server instance from whose repository you want to delete components and choose Server object delete from the context menu.
  2. To delete a component you must first make sure it is in an inactive state. Before attempting to delete any components, ensure that they are in an inactive state by stopping them.

    To stop a component using the InterChange Server Express Component Management view in System Manager, see Managing component states in the repository.

    To stop a component using System Monitor, see the WebSphere InterChange Server: System Administration Guide.

  3. Do the following to select which components you want to delete:
  4. Enable the Force remove even if other objects depend on this object checkbox to delete the component even if other components reference it.

    For instance, a business object cannot be deleted if it contains other business objects because they depend on it, even if those dependent components are also selected for deletion, unless this option is enabled.

  5. Enable the Delete dependent objects also checkbox to also delete the dependencies of the selected components. For more information about dependencies, see Dependencies and references.

    Figure 29 shows the "Server Objects Delete Wizard".

    Figure 29. Deleting objects from the server
  6. Click Finish.

    If the delete operation is successful then the wizard exits.

    If the delete operation failed, click OK to close the error prompt, then resolve the problem and try the operation again. The error information in the prompt can be very difficult to use in troubleshooting, so it is recommended that you use the server logging output to determine the cause of the failure.

Copyright IBM Corp. 2004, 2005