RE: [wsbpel] RE: Issue - 77 - Motion to require access to values not defined in portType

["Yaron Goland" <ygoland@bea.com>]

I'm unsure how one differentiates between middleware payload and endpoint
payload. For example, there are many good reasons why an endpoint would want
to be able to access a SOAP header containing digital signature or
correlation information. So I don't think we can ever say that it's o.k. not
to be able to get to the SOAP headers.

It has been suggested that perhaps we could tell people to write enhanced
WSDL definitions that contain headers that are present at the SOAP level but
weren't defined in the original WSDL.

Unfortunately this isn't a workable solution in a case where the SOAP header
is itself optional. For example, one could have an operation that MAY be
digital signed which means that in some cases you will have a digital
signature header and in other cases you wouldn't. WSDL 1.1 is incapable of
expressing the concept of 'optional' headers.

I think the easiest way to get around this problem would be for the group to
introduce a new attribute for use with WSDL that would specify when a
message part is optional both for incoming and outgoing messages. The
normative behavior would then become that you would have to take the
original WSDL, which doesn't mention the optional headers, mark it up to
include those headers (i.e. the previously suggested 'enhanced' WSDL) and
then mark those headers as optional.

If a message is received without the optional part then that part would be
left as uninitialized in the message variable and accessing that part of the
message variable would throw a fault. We would have to introduce a function
to allow one to test if a part is uninitialized.

If a message is sent whose definition contains an optional part then if the
part is never assigned to, that's fine, it just means that the part won't
appear in the outgoing message.

The main downside I see to this proposal is that if someone sends you a
message with content you just weren't expecting (For example, an
intermediary throws in a SOAP header that is made up) then you can't get to
it. But the only use case I can see for wanting access to that information
is for logging purposes and I'm not sure that is a compelling enough use
case to worry about this in V1.

But I believe it is important that one be able to both send and receive
optional message parts (e.g. optional SOAP headers) so some change to the
BPEL standard seems called for.

	Just an opening thought,

		Yaron


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Frank Leymann [mailto:LEY1@de.ibm.com]
> Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 6:47 AM
> To: wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org
> Subject: RE: [wsbpel] RE: Issue - 77 - Motion to require access to
> values not defined in portType
>
>
>
> The WSDL 1.2/2.0 group is currently considering to remove headers from
> messages at all, and replacing this by appropriate applications of
> "policies".  I read this as another indicator that application data is
> assumed to be part of the message body, and that headers should carry
> "middleware payload" (indicated by appropriate "policies").
>
> Regards,
> Frank
>
> -------------------
> Prof. Dr. Frank Leymann, Distinguished Engineer
> IBM Software Group
> Member, IBM Academy of Technology
>
> Phone 1:  +49-7031-16 39 98
> Phone 2:  +49-7056-96 50 67
> Mobile:  +49-172-731 5858
> --------------------
>
>
>
>
>
> To:    Frank Leymann/Germany/IBM@IBMDE, <wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org>
> cc:
> Subject:    RE: [wsbpel] RE:  Issue - 77 - Motion to require access to
>        values not defined in portType
>
>
> I'm still not clear whether it's expected that bpel users
> will sometimes
> have to construct
> bpel-convenient wsdl for web-services that already have wsdl
> defintions
> but which don't give
> the required accessiblity/granularity in the existing wsdl. The wsdl,
> with some accompanying
> free text description of what the parameters are, might have been good
> enough for implementation
> of client and service by hand, but now bpel wants a standard
> expression
> of some of that free text.
> Or would such wsdl reworking be regarded as a Bad Thing ? it's
> conceptually a refinement,
> though whether it would be visibly such in the two wsdl
> descriptions I'm
> not sure).
>
> If the bpel user is expected to have such a trick in his mind (and
> perhaps his tools), would an
> alternative solution to the underlying problem here be say if the
> abstract wsdl doesn't give you
> the access you want, then write one that does. The bindings are then
> more explicit, but still below
> the woodwork from the bpel position.
>
> Peter
>
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Frank Leymann [mailto:LEY1@de.ibm.com]
> > Sent: 23 October 2003 11:57
> > To: wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org
> > Subject: Re: [wsbpel] RE: Issue - 77 - Motion to require
> > access to values not defined in portType
> >
> >
> >
> > I wholeheartedly support Satish's position!
> >
> > Regards,
> > Frank
> >
> > -------------------
> > Prof. Dr. Frank Leymann, Distinguished Engineer
> > IBM Software Group
> > Member, IBM Academy of Technology
> >
> > Phone 1:  +49-7031-16 39 98
> > Phone 2:  +49-7056-96 50 67
> > Mobile:  +49-172-731 5858
> > --------------------
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > To:    <ygoland@bea.com>, "Furniss, Peter"
> > <Peter.Furniss@choreology.com>,
> >        <wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org>
> > cc:
> > Subject:    [wsbpel] RE:  Issue - 77 - Motion to require
> > access to values
> >        not defined in portType
> >
> >
> > I was simply making the point that BPEL is deliberately
> > agnostic about bindings, thus allowing deployment
> > flexibility.  Process models that are meant to capture the
> > essence of business process logic in a portable way should
> > not become dependent on deployment descriptors, which is at
> > least the intent of the binding element of WSDL 1.1 service
> > descriptions.  The fact that the intent may be imperfectly
> > realized is not a reason to throw the principle out.
> >
> >
> > From: Yaron Goland [mailto:ygoland@bea.com]
> > Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2003 3:27 PM
> > To: 'Furniss, Peter'; wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org; Satish Thatte
> > Subject: Issue - 77 - Motion to require access to values not
> > defined in portType
> >
> > In a previous mail in this thread Satish Thatte said:
> >
> >
> > We must assume that the design of a portType is done
> > properly, i.e., the "application level" data required to
> > process a message in a business process is part of the
> > definition of each message. If this assumption is violated
> > there is not much we can do.
> >
> >
> > Section 3.7 of the WSDL 1.1 states " It is not necessary to
> > exhaustively list all headers that appear in the SOAP
> > Envelope using soap:header. " This means that even a portType
> > which has been done 'properly' may not necessarily have
> > messages for every header that may appear in the SOAP
> > envelope received over the wire. Given that even WSDL 1.1
> > recognizes that one can reasonably receive SOAP headers that
> > weren't defined in the portType it would seem reasonable for
> > BPEL to provide a mechanism to access such values.
> >
> >
> > I would therefore propose that we put forward a motion that
> > requires the group to define a mechanism that will enable
> > access to the full contents of a WSDL described message as
> > transmitted over the wire including contents not specifically
> > defined in the portType definition.
> >
> >
> >     Yaron
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Furniss, Peter [mailto:Peter.Furniss@choreology.com]
> > Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2003 5:14 PM
> > To: wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org
> > Subject: [wsbpel] Reannouncement - Issue - 77 - BPEL cannot
> > handle some SOAP header bindings Due to a mistake on my part,
> > this issue was erroneously announced as number 78. It is
> > really number 77 and is in the issues list with that number.
> > Here it is again with a hand-edit of the number.
> >
> > This issue has already had considerable discussion as
> > "Possible new issue ...", which I've grandfathered into the
> > links list - please use an Issue - 77 - subject line on
> > further discussion messages.
> >
> > Peter
> >  -----Original Message-----
> >  From: Furniss, Peter
> >  Sent: 21 October 2003 21:36
> >  To: wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org
> >  Subject: [wsbpel] Issue - 78 - BPEL cannot handle some SOAP
> > header  bindings
> >
> >
> >  This issue has been added to the wsbpel issue list. The
> > issues list is  posted as a Technical Committee document to
> > the OASIS WSBPEL TC pages on a  regular basis. The current
> > edition, as a TC document, is the most recent  document with
> > the title in the "Issues" folder of the WSBPEL TC document
> > list - the next posting will include this issue. The list
> > editor's working  copy, which will normally include an issue
> > when it is announced, is  available at this constant URL.
> >
> >
> >  Issue - 77   - BPEL cannot handle some SOAP header bindings
> >  Status: open
> >  Date added: 21 Oct 2003
> >  Submitter: Ugo Corda
> >  Date submitted: 21 October 2003
> >  Description: Let's suppose we have the following WSDL file:
> > <message name="In">
> >      <part name="InPart" element="InElement"/>
> >  </message>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >  <message name="Header">
> >
> >
> >      <part name="HeaderPart" element="HeaderElement"/>
> >
> >
> >  </message>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >  <portType name="myPortType">
> >
> >
> >      <operation name="op1">
> >
> >
> >          <input message="In"/>
> >
> >
> >      </operation>
> >
> >
> >  </portType>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >  <binding type="myPortType" ... >
> >
> >
> >      <soap:binding ..../>
> >
> >
> >      <operation name="op1">
> >
> >
> >          <input>
> >
> >
> >              <soap:body parts="InPart" ...>
> >
> >
> >              <soap:header message="Header" part="HeaderPart" .../>
> >
> >
> >          </input>
> >
> >
> >      </operation>
> >
> >
> >  </binding>
> >  In this example, the abstract operation "op1" refers to
> > message "In", but  the binding brings in an additional second
> > message, "Header", for the  concrete operation.
> >
> >
> >  It seems that BPEL would not be able to process the "Header"
> > information  in any way. For instance, a "receive" operation
> > would only be able to  specify one inputVariable, which would
> > be associated with the "In" message  and not the "Header"
> > message. In other words, the "Header" message would  carry
> > information to the "receive" operation that BPEL would have
> > no  access to.
> >
> >
> >  If this is the case, new Web services defined with BPEL in
> > mind could  easily modify this scenario by defining both body
> > and header as being part  of a single message, but legacy Web
> > services might be out of reach for  BPEL.
> >  Links: Ugo Corda, 20 Oct 2003     Frank Leymann, 21 Oct
> 2003     Ugo
> >  Corda, 21 Oct 2003     Satish Thatte, 21 Oct 2003     Peter
> > Furniss, 21
> >  Oct 2003     Ugo Corda, 21 Oct 2003     Satish Thatte, 21
> > Oct 2003     Ugo
> >  Corda, 21 Oct 2003     Satish Thatte, 21 Oct 2003     Ugo
> > Corda, 21 Oct
> >  2003
> >  Changes: 21 Oct 2003 - new issue
> >
> >
> >
> >  To comment on this issue, please follow-up to this
> > announcement on the  wsbpel@lists.oasis-open.org list
> > (replying to this message should  automatically send your
> > message to that list), or ensure the subject line  as you
> > send it starts "Issue - 78 - [anything]" or is a reply to
> > such a  message.
> >
> >
> >  To add a new issue, see the issues procedures document (but
> > the address  for new issue submission is the sender of this
> > announcement).
> >
> >
> >  To unsubscribe from this mailing list (and be removed from
> > the roster of  the OASIS TC), go to
> > http://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/wsbpel/members/le
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