Working With a Target

In this section:

How to:

To browse the metadata and objects of an application system, you must create a target for that system. The target is the means by which you connect to the system. It contains the logon properties used to access the system.

Using the target, you must establish a connection to an application system every time you want to browse the system in iWay Explorer.


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Procedure: How to Create a Target
  1. Right-click the Adapters node, and click Connect from the menu, as shown in the following image.

  2. Once you are connected, expand the Adapters node.
  3. Right-click DOTNET, and click Add Target from the menu.

    The Add Target dialog opens and displays the Generic Target Properties pane.

  4. Supply the values for the fields on the dialog box as follows.
    1. In the Name field, type a descriptive name for the target (for example, DOTNET_Target).
    2. In the Description field, optionally type a brief description of the target.
  5. Select the Connect to target upon wizard completion check box if you want iWay Explorer to automatically connect to this target after it has been created.

    If you deselect this option, iWay Explorer will not automatically connect to the target. From the tree, you can connect to an individual target when you want to access the associated application system.

  6. Click Next.

    The Add Target dialog opens and displays the Target Properties pane, as shown in the following image.

  7. Supply the connection information for the .NET application to which you are connecting.

    The following table lists and describes the .NET connection parameters.

    Parameter

    Description

    Assemblies Directory

    Enter the starting folder to look for the .NET assembly to introspect.

    Note: The drive for the Assembly must reside on the same machine where iWay Service Manager (iSM) is installed. Mapped and network drives do not qualify for inspection. This is a limitation of .NET, not the adapter.

    Search Recursively

    Select true or false from the drop-down list.

    Search only the current folder entered in the directory box, or explore down the hierarchy. The adapter will generate an explorer type interface for all of the folders from the entered folder down. If a drive letter is entered, then all top level folders are displayed, and you can navigate down to locate the assembly.

    Look for

    Select one of the following options from the drop-down list:

    • iWay Decorated Assemblies. Enables legacy mode.
    • All Native Assemblies. Enables browse mode if Search Recursively is set to true.

    Assembly List

    Enter a comma-delimited list of .NET assemblies to introspect.

    Infer Complex Schemas

    Select one of the following options from the drop-down list:

    • true. Infer complex relationships between assembly elements (recommended).
    • false. Present only assembly elements.

    Hide System.Object Methods

    Select one of the following options from the drop-down list:

    • true. Hide all methods inherited from object (ToString, GetHashCode, and so on) for each object.
    • false. Display all methods including inherited method, for each object.

    Note: Hiding inherited methods is useful when you know the method(s) you wish to access and want to retrieve them quickly without viewing a long list.

  8. Click Finish when you are done.

    The new .NET target is added to the Adapters node of iWay Explorer.



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Application Domain Boundary

Only native drives on the current machine where iWay Service Manager is running are eligible for introspection. Mapped drives will generate errors. The adapter does not support the Microsoft deprecated technique called .NET remoting. For more information, see the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) topic on this subject for .NET Framework Version 4 or 4.5:

http://msdn.microsoft.com


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Accessing .NET Classes in iWay Explorer

The default accessibility of a .NET class is not public. Classes and methods that are to be exposed using the iWay .NET Technology Adapter must use the public keyword in the declaration to be visible in iWay Explorer.


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Calling Distributed Assemblies on Different Machines

The iWay .NET Technology Adapter does not support the .NET remoting protocol as either a client or server. In addition, the adapter does not support the Windows Communication Foundation as either client or server. If the user application requires calling distributed Assemblies on different machines, then instances of iWay Service Manager (iSM) and the iWay .NET Technology Adapter must be installed on the machines and use supported iSM methods of integration (TCP, FTP, web services, and so on).


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Determining if a Method can be Called

Using the Parameters tab in iWay Integration Tools, click on the parameter in the method and find the type of the parameter. Verify that the type is an XML serializable type. If the type is not an XML serializable type, then special actions will be required to invoke the method, or it may not be possible to invoke the method through the adapter.

For example, the getItemNumber method has type parameter value of type System.Int32, integer. This can be used by the adapter.

The DynamicInvoke method has a parameter args represented as an array of System.Object. This type is not directly XML serializable, as object is an abstract root without a distinctly defined type.


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Procedure: How to Connect to a Target
  1. Expand the DOTNET node to locate the name of the target that you want to connect to, for example, DOTNET_Target.
  2. Right-click the target, and click Connect from the menu.

    The DOTNET_Target node icon changes to green, which indicates a successful connection. You can click a folder and then expand it to display its contents.


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Procedure: How to Disconnect From a Target

Although you can maintain multiple open connections to different application systems, it is a good practice to close a connection when you are not using it.

  1. In the tree, expand the DOTNET node to locate the name of the target from which you want to disconnect, for example, DOTNET_Target.
  2. Right-click the target, and click Disconnect from Target from the menu.

    The connection to the .NET application is closed.


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Procedure: How to Edit a Target

After you create a target, you can edit the information that you provided during the creation procedure.

  1. In the tree, expand the DOTNET node to locate the name of the target that you want to edit, for example, DOTNET_Target.
  2. Right-click the target, and click Edit Target from the menu.

    The Edit Target dialog opens and displays the DOTNET adapter target properties.

  3. Modify the connection properties as required.
  4. Optionally select the Reconnect to target upon wizard completion check box if you want iWay Explorer to automatically connect to this target after it has been edited. iWay Explorer will use the modified properties to connect.
  5. Click Finish when you have made your edits.

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Procedure: How to Delete a Target

You can delete a target that is no longer needed. You can delete it whether or not it is closed. If open, the target automatically closes before it is deleted.

  1. In the tree, expand the DOTNET node to locate the name of the target that you want to delete, for example, DOTNET_Target.
  2. Right-click the target, and click Delete Target from the menu.

    iWay Explorer displays a prompt, asking you to confirm the deletion of the selected target.

  3. Click OK to proceed with the deletion.

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