Connection bundle management

Manage connection bundle entry names and usage by web services to ensure stable and predictable SOAP Gateway server behavior.

A connection bundle entry contains properties that define how SOAP Gateway interacts with IMS Connect host systems and with external web services. Each connection bundle entry has a unique name. However, a single connection bundle entry can contain properties for both callout applications and web services. Any number of correlator XML files, and therefore any number of web services or callout applications, can share a single connection bundle entry. To ensure that SOAP Gateway web services and applications behave predictably, it is important to understand how the SOAP Gateway server handles commands that affect connection bundle behavior.

Server startup behavior

When the SOAP Gateway server starts, all valid connection bundles in the master configuration are loaded into the server runtime configuration. A connection bundle entry is considered valid if it references a valid WSDL file.

Behavior of SOAP Gateway management utility commands sent to an active SOAP Gateway server

Active connection bundles are protected to ensure the integrity of web services and in-flight messages on the server. Commands from the SOAP Gateway management utility to create, modify, or delete connection bundles are carried out in the master configuration and do not take effect until the next time the SOAP Gateway starts.

When a web service or callout application is deployed to an active SOAP Gateway, the associated correlator XML file is checked for the connection bundle name or callout connection bundle name that is used by the web service. If the specified connection bundle does not exist in the runtime configuration, it is loaded from the master configuration so that the web service is immediately available for use. However, if the specified connection bundle does exist in the runtime configuration, it is not updated from the master configuration. If your web service requires a change to the runtime version of the connection bundle, you can either:
  • Change the connection bundle entry properties and then restart the server. The updated properties are propagated from the master configuration to the runtime configuration when the server starts.
  • Create a connection bundle entry with an unused name, and modify the correlator XML file for the new web service or callout application to use the new connection bundle entry. The new connection bundle entry is loaded in the runtime configuration when the web service or application is deployed.

Behavior of shared connection bundle entries

A single connection bundle entry can be shared by any number of web services or callout applications. Referencing a single connection bundle entry in multiple correlator XML files can improve the manageability of the server. However, consider the following guidelines when you configure multiple web services to share a single connection bundle entry:

  • A connection bundle entry is only valid for callout applications if it specifies at least one callout tpipe name. Ensure that all of the listed tpipe names are valid for all of the callout applications that use the connection bundle entry. Secure callout web services must use a different tpipe from non-secure callout web services.
  • A connection bundle entry with callout tpipe names cannot be used for a web service provider correlator
  • Each connection bundle entry can specify only one IMS Connect host system, port number, and data store.
  • A connection bundle entry can contain only one set of security authentication properties. However, WS-Security is service-specific and is not defined in the connection bundle entry.