One of the TaskCentre administrator’s responsibilities is the global configuration of connections, to make them available for use by task designers. This includes the configuration of web service connections.
Both SOAP and REST web services are configurable in TaskCentre.
In addition to creating new web service configurations in TaskCentre, you can also import web service configurations that have already been created.
Such configurations must previously have been exported as data files to a network folder location, where they are available for selection.
These XML-based files are in a particular format called a “TaskCentre Web Service Configuration” file, which has the file extension TCWX. Both the importing and the exporting of TCWX files is done in the Web Service Connector tool.
Above: You access this tool in the Execute tool group.You can now see listed in the pane on the right.
Double-clicking the Web Service Connector tool icon opens the Web Service Configurations dialog box.
Above: The Web Service Configurations dialog box lists any web services already configured and allows you to;
- edit or remove them
- add new REST and SOAP web service configurations
- import pre-existing Web Service Configuration files from other locations
- export any of the listed configurations
Importing a Configuration #
We will now click the Import button.
Above: The Open Web Service Configuration file dialog box opens. It opens at a default location and lists any TCWX files saved there.
To import a file, you select the file (first navigating to the appropriate folder if necessary) and open it.
Above: Alternative Import method
This opens the New Configuration dialog box, where you select the option “I have a TaskCentre Web Service Configuration (tcwx) file”). The Browse button then opens the same “Open…file” dialog box as you reach using the Import button.
For this example, we’re importing a file configured for the Wufoo web service. This provides an online form-building tool for collecting information over the Internet. The details about this particular web service are not relevant to the process of importing the configuration file: you follow the same steps to import any TCWX file.
In our example several TCWX files are listed; we will import the file Wufoo_01.tcwx and click Open.
Above: Opening a web service configuration file causes the Import Web Service Configuration dialog box for the file to open.
Importing a file implies that there is a pre-existing configuration; it will therefore already have a name and one or more listed parameters, which will be displayed here. You can change the name if you like. Before you can add the imported configuration to your list of web service configurations, you have to update it by entering values for the listed parameters. If you try to save the configuration without doing this, you will get an error message advising you to enter a value.
Not every parameter will require a value. Default values would have been specified when the configuration was created. By clicking each parameter name and looking at the Tip area, you may find some guidance about the parameter, such as a brief description or possible values. Tips that were created at the time the configuration was prepared for export will be displayed there.
In our example, no tips have been provided. Another source for information about the parameters and their values is usually the online resources of the web service.
For this example, we have entered the following values for the three listed parameters:
Wufoo_URL: www.wufoo.com
Wufoo_Username: Wufoo_1
Wufoo_Password: Password_1
We have also named this configuration Wufoo 1.
Click OK to save this imported configuration.
Above: You can now see the imported configuration, Wufoo 1, displayed as an available web service configuration in the Web Service Connector tool.
Exporting a Configuration #
Above: Just as with any other added configuration, you can now edit it or remove it from the list. You can also export it (or any other listed configuration) as a TCWX file. To do this, you select it and click the Export button.
Above: From the Export Web Service Configuration you can choose to include one or more of the available parameters in the new file to be exported.
Clicking the > (Add) button in the centre moves each highlighted parameter across from the list on the left to the right. By doing this, you make the parameters available for update at the point of import of this web service definition file.
Now you can provide each parameter that you have moved across with a default value.
Using parameters in this way is a method of preventing sensitive data (such as logon information) from falling into the hands of recipients of the configuration file.
It protects your own information and forces users of the file to enter their own data in the specified fields.
In addition to default values, you can also provide each parameter with a user-friendly name and enter “tip” text to provide guidance, for example about the default parameter values, to users importing the file.
Clicking OK accepts your settings and brings up a save file dialog box.
Above: From here you give your exported web service configuration file a name and save it as a TCWX file to a network location.Your file is now available for others to import and use.
Importing a TaskCentre Web Service Configuration File: In Summary #
Configured SOAP and REST web service connections can be saved as XML-based files called TaskCentre Web Service Configuration files, which have the extension TCWX.
TCWX files can then be exported from TaskCentre to network locations, where the configurations they describe are available for re-use. For this purpose, the saved TCWX files are imported into other TaskCentre deployments.
Importing and exporting TCWX files is done with the Web Service Connector tool.
When saving a configuration for export, you can select which parameters to include and specify default values for those parameters. You would export parameters when you wish to protect the original data from being re-used or known. Then when importing the TCWX file, you would have to enter values for these parameters.