using dfc in documentum applications - dell emc · using dfc in documentum applications iii preface...

Using DFC in Documentum Applications

June 2002

Copyright © 2002Documentum, Inc.6801 Koll Center ParkwayPleasanton, CA 94566All Rights Reserved.

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Preface

1 Getting Started With DFCWhat is DFC? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1Where is DFC? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2Programming with DFC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2Using DFC From Application Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5Visual Basic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

Establishing the Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5Using Interface Inheritance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6Syntax Differences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7

Creating DFC Client Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8Java Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8Visual Basic Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8

Using DFC Tracing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9Using the DFC Online Reference Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11

2 Working With DocumentsIntroduction to Documents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1

Virtual Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1XML Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Introduction to Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4Types of Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5Basic Steps for Manipulating Documents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

Steps for Manipulating Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6Details of Manipulating Documents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7

Obtaining the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7Setting Parameters for the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7Adding Documents to the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8Executing the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8Processing the Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9Working With Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9

Operations for Manipulating Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10Importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11

Special Considerations for Import Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11Setting up the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11XML Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12Processing the Imported Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12

Using DFC in Documentum Applications iii

Exporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-13Special Considerations for Export Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-13

Checking Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-14Special Considerations for Checkout Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-14

Checking In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-15Special Considerations for Checkin Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-15

Setting up the Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-16Processing the Checked In Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-16

Cancelling Checkout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-17Special Considerations for CancelCheckout Operations . . . . . . . . . . .2-17

Copying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-18Special Considerations for Copy Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-18

Moving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-19Special Considerations for Move Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-19

Deleting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-20Special Considerations for Delete Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-20

Validating an XML Document Against a DTD or Schema . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-21Special Considerations for Validation Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-22

Performing an XSL Transformation of an XML Document . . . . . . . . . . . .2-23Special Considerations for XMLTransform Operations. . . . . . . . . . . .2-25

Handling Document Manipulation Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-26The add Method Cannot Create a Node . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-26The execute Method Encounters Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-26

Examining Errors After Execution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-26Examining Errors in an Operation Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-27

Operations and Transactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-28

3 DFC Methods by TaskCommunicating with the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2

IDfClient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3

Administering the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3IDfClient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5

Handling Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5IDfPersistentObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6IDfAcl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9

iv Using DFC in Documentum Applications

Retrieving and Setting Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10IDfTypedObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10

Searching the Docbase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12IDfQuery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13IDfCollection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13

Handling Content Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15

Printing Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16

Handling Virtual Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16IDfVirtualDocument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18

Handling Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18IDfWorkflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19

Handling Workflow Process Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-20IDfProcess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-20

Handling Workflow Activity Definitions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21IDfActivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21

Handling Workflow Work Items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-22IDfWorkitem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-22

Managing Inboxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23

4 Managing DFC SessionsAbout Sessions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1

Shared Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2Adopted Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2

Connecting and Disconnecting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2connectToDocbase in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3disconnectFromDocbase in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4displaySessionInfo in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4connectToDocbase in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4disconnectFromDocbase in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5displaySessionInfo in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5

Using DFC in Documentum Applications v

Using a Docbase Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6displayDocbaseInfo in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6connectToDocbase(map, index) in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6Step through Docbases in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6displayDocbaseInfo in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7connectToDocbase(name) in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7

5 Managing Docbase Queries with DFCQueries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1

Flow of Query Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1IDfQuery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2IDfCollection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3

Basic Query Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3execQuery in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3displayResults in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4execQuery in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5displayResults in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5

6 Automating Business Rules with DFCChecking Objects Against Validation Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1

validate in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1Changing Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2

changeBasicPermissions in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2changeExtendedPermissions in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3changeBasicPermissions in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3changeExtendedPermissions in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4

Using Private ACLs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5privateACLs in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5privateACLs in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6

ACL Utility Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7permissionToString in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7extendedPermissionToString in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7displayBasicPermissions in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7displayExtendedPermissions in Visual Basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8permissionToString in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8extendedPermissionToString in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9displayBasicPermissions in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9displayExtendedPermissions in Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

vi Using DFC in Documentum Applications

7 Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyDocumentum Object Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1

Subtypes and Supertypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2Persistence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3

DFC Interface Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3Typed Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8

Session and Identifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8Getting and Setting Attribute Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8Additional Methods for Operating on Repeating Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10Attribute Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-11

Persistent Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12Methods Relating to the Basic Properties of Persistent Objects. . . . . . . . . . 7-12Basic Operations on an Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13Audit Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14Convenience Methods for Creating Object Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14Validation Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14Pass-Through Methods to the DMCL API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15

Persistent Objects Without Associated Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-16IDfACL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-16IDfFormat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-16IDfUser and IDfGroup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-17IDfType . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-17

Basic Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-17Parent Type Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-17Type Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-18

SysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-20Basic Operations on SysObjects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-20Types That Derive From IDfSysObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-21

IDfSession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-22Provide Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-22Create Objects and Obtain Object References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-23Configuration Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-24Transaction Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-24Docbase Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-24Multithreading Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-25API Calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-25Inbox and Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-26Administration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-26Session State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-27Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-27

Using DFC in Documentum Applications vii

IDfClient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7-27Creating Sessions and Obtaining References to Existing Sessions. . . . . . . . .7-28Maps and Config Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7-29Service Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7-29

Common Package. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7-30

8 DFC and DMCLRelationship to DMCL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1Calling DMCL Directly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3DMCL to DFC Correspondence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4

Index

viii Using DFC in Documentum Applications


P R E F A C E

Purpose of the Manual

This manual shows how to use Documentum Foundation Classes (DFC) in building or customizing Documentum applications. It provides an overview of DFC and includes sample code that uses DFC to perform common Documentum operations.

Intended Audience

This manual is intended for application developers. It assumes a knowledge of object-oriented programming, Java, interfaces, and, in some places, the Microsoft component object model (COM).

Sample Code

Some sample code in this manual is extracted and simplified from sample classes that Documentum makes available to customers at www.documentum.com/developer/samplecode.htm.

The sample classes provide complete working examples that you can run, modify, and experiment with. They are not part of the product, and while we have made every effort to ensure that they work properly, Documentum does not support them.

The simplified examples focus on specific DFC tasks and omit code from the sample classes that is not specific to DFC.

This manual does not cover workflows, or document lifecycles.

ix

http://www.documentum.com/developer/samplecode.htm

Organization of the Manual

The table summarizes the topics that this manual covers. The classes referred to in the descriptions of chapter contents are the sample classes referred to in “Sample Code” on page ix.

Chapter/Appendix Contents

Chapter 1, Getting Started With DFC

What DFC is, where it resides, and how to start using it.

Chapter 2, Working With Documents

How to perform basic operations like checkin and checkout. How to work with XML documents.

Chapter 3, DFC Methods by Task

An index to the major DFC methods, organized by the tasks the methods accomplish.

Chapter 4, Managing DFC Sessions

Annotated examples, based on the classes DfExSession and DfExDocbaseMap, of how to work with DFC sessions and a Docbase map.

Chapter 5, Managing Docbase Queries with DFC

Annotated examples, based on the class DfExSimpleQuery, of how to create and execute Docbase queries.

Chapter 6, Automating Business Rules with DFC

Annotated examples, based on the classes DfExSimpleValidation and DfExACL, of how to use Documentum to enforce business rules.

Chapter 7, Overview of the DFC Interface Hierarchy

How DFC gives you an object oriented interface to the Documentum object hierarchy.

Chapter 8, DFC and DMCL An explanation of DFC in terms of the methods that previous Documentum client products use to access server capabilities.

x Using DFC in Documentum Applications

Conventions

This manual uses the following conventions:

Using Links in PDF Files

If you are reading this document as a Portable Document Format (PDF) file, cross-references and page numbers in the index are clickable blue hypertext links. Table of contents page numbers are also clickable links, but they appear in black.

Some Documentum manuals contain clickable cross-references to other manuals. Click the link to go to the referenced section.

Note: These references assume that the referenced file is in the current directory and that it has the name that Documentum originally assigned it. If you change file names or store documents in separate directories, the references do not work.

Convention Description

➤ Represents a pop-up or pull-down menu.

Indicates the introduction to a procedure.

italics Represents a variable name for which you must provide a value, or a defined term.

typewriter Represents code samples, user input, and computer output.

[] square brackets Indicates an optional argument.

{} braces (curly brackets)

Indicates an optional argument that can be repeated more than once.

Using DFC in Documentum Applications xi

Bug Lists and Documentation Online

Customers with a software support agreement can access the support area of www.documentum.com to download product documentation and, after commercial release of a product, view lists of fixed bugs.

To access the support area, follow the links to request a user name and password. Documentum responds to access requests within two business days. Once you have a user name and password, you can access the support area without delay.

Fixed Bug Lists

Two weeks after the release, we post a list of customer-reported bugs that have been fixed in that release to the support area of www.documentum.com.

Product Documentation

Concurrently with a release, we post product documentation to the support area of www.documentum.com.

Purchasing Bound Paper Manuals

You can order any of our documentation in the form of bound manuals. We print and stock widely used manuals, usually several months after we publish the online version. We print other documentation to order.

To place an order or to ask about prices, call the documentation order line at (925) 600-6666. You can pay with a purchase order, check, or credit card. We do not sell bound manuals through www.documentum.com.

xii Using DFC in Documentum Applications

http://www.documentum.com/



1
Getting Started With DFC 1
This chapter introduces DFC. It contains the following major sections:

■ “What is DFC?” on page 1-1

■ “Programming with DFC” on page 1-2

■ “Using DFC From Application Programs” on page 1-5

■ “Creating DFC Client Objects” on page 1-8

■ “Using DFC Tracing” on page 1-9

■ “Using DFC Tracing” on page 1-9

■ “Packages” on page 1-9

■ “Using the DFC Online Reference Documentation” on page 1-11

What is DFC?

DFC is a set of Java classes and interfaces. It provides an object oriented application programming interface (API) for accessing Documentum functionality. You can use DFC in any of the following ways:

■ Access Documentum functionality from within one of your company’s enterprise applications.

For example, your corporate purchasing application can retrieve a contract from your Documentum system.

■ Customize or extend Documentum products like Desktop Client or WDK.

For example, you can modify the Desktop Client functionality to implement one of your company’s business rules.

■ Write a method or procedure for eContent Server to execute as part of a workflow or document lifecycle.

Using DFC in Documentum Applications 1–1

Getting Started With DFCWhere is DFC?

For example, the procedure that runs when you promote an XML document might apply a transform to it and start a workflow to subject the transformed document to a predefined business process.

The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual provides a conceptual explanation of the capabilities of eContent Server and how they work. DFC provides a framework for accessing those capabilities. Using this framework makes your code much more likely to survive future architectural changes in the Documentum system.

The core of DFC is a set of Java classes, but it includes other elements as well:

■ A collection of DLLs to provide the DFC functionality.

■ A type library for accessing DFC via COM from Visual Basic or Visual C++.

■ A set of C++ wrapper classes that hide many details of the DFC/COM interface when you access DFC through the Microsoft foundation classes (MFC) framework.

Where is DFC?

DFC runs on a JVM, which can be on:

■ The machine that runs eContent Server

For example, to execute a method as part of a workflow or document lifecycle.

■ A middle-tier system

For example, to support WDK on an application server.

■ An end user’s computer

For example, to support Desktop Client.

Programming with DFC

Before you begin to use DFC, it is important to understand the DFC programming approach. Because of the complexities of accessing Docbases efficiently and reliably from remote client machines, Documentum centralizes

1–2 Using DFC in Documentum Applications

Getting Started With DFCProgramming with DFC

this access in client-side software that establishes and maintains communication sessions with eContent Server and Docbases. DFC encapsulates this client-side software in the IDfClient interface, which serves as the entry point for DFC code.

IDfClient handles basic connection details. It loads the necessary shared libraries. You obtain the initial IDfClient interface by calling the static method DfClient.getLocalClient. The IDfClient interface then serves as a factory for IDfSession objects. If you are familiar with the standard Java database connectivity package, JDBC, you can see an analogy between that programming model and this one.

An object that implements IDfSession represents a connection with the Documentum server and provides services related to that session. DFC programmers create new Docbase objects or obtain references to existing Docbase objects through the IDfSession interface.

With DFC you usually don’t create objects directly. Instead, you obtain objects by calling the methods of other objects. Those methods create or obtain the requested object. Methods that create new Docbase objects or fetch existing ones return objects that implement IDfPersistentObject.

The following general procedure may help to clarify the DFC approach. Don’t worry if you don’t completely understand the references to the interface hierarchy. Subsequent sections deal with that subject.

➤ To process a Docbase object:

1. Obtain an IDfClient object by calling DfClient.getLocalClient.

2. Call the IDfClient method newSession or getSharedSession to create a session with the Docbase (see “connectToDocbase in Java” on page 4-3).

3. If you do not have a reference to the object, call an IDfSession method (for example, newObject or getObjectByQualification) to create an object or to obtain a reference to an existing object.

4. Use routines of the operations package (see Chapter 2, Working With Documents) to manipulate the object—check it out, check it in, and so forth.

5. Close the session if you are done with it.


Getting Started With DFCProgramming with DFC

The following fragment from a Java program that uses DFC contains three parts. They implement the first three steps of the procedure.

Example IDfClient client = DfClient.getLocalClient();

IDfLoginInfo loginInfo = new DfLoginInfo(); loginInfo.setUser("Mary"); loginInfo.setPassword("ganDalF"); loginInfo.setDomain("");session = client.newSession("MyDocbase", loginInfo);

IDfDocument document = null;document = (IDfDocument) session.newObject("dm_document"); document.setObjectName("Report on Wizards"); document.setContentType("crtext"); document.setFile("C:\Temp\Wiz.txt");document.save();

The first part creates the client object, which encapsulates the Documentum client software.

The second block creates and populates an object to hold login information and uses it to manufacture an IDfSession object, which encapsulates a session for this application program with the specified Docbase.

The third block of code creates and populates an IDfDocument object and saves it in the Docbase. Notice that the newObject method of the session object manufactures the object.

The newObject method returns an IDfPersistentObject object. The program explicitly casts it to an IDfDocument object, then uses the document object’s save method, a method that IDfDocument inherits from IDfPersistentObject. COM does not support interface inheritance, so the Visual Basic and C++ versions of the above code explicitly cast the document object to a persistent object before saving it.

Most DFC methods report errors by throwing a DfException object. Java code like that in the above example normally appears within a try/catch/finally block, with an error handler in the catch block. Visual Basic code uses the On Error Goto statement to handle exceptions.

Note: When writing code that calls DFC , it is a good idea to include a finally block to ensure that you can release storage and close open sessions.


Getting Started With DFCUsing DFC From Application Programs

Using DFC From Application Programs

You can use COM or Java to access DFC. Your choices depend on your programming language.

Java

From Java, use the Java interface. Add the DFC class and interface files (for example, ...Documentum\DFCre40\lib\dfc.jar) to your CLASSPATH. In your Java source code, import the classes you wish to use.

Visual Basic

Using DFC from Visual Basic requires a small setup procedure.

You must use a workaround to allow an object to use methods inherited from a superclass of its base class.

Establishing the Environment

The DFC installer establishes the software environment to allow Visual Basic to access DFC using COM. From a Visual Basic project, you need only establish a reference to the DFC type library.

➤ To establish a reference to the DFC type library:

1. Choose Properties ➤ References

The References dialog box appears.

2. Check the checkbox for Documentum Foundation Classes Type Library.

Using Interface Inheritance

Interface inheritance requires a workaround if you access DFC from Visual Basic, because the Microsoft Java virtual machine (JVM) does not support COM interface inheritance.



Example For example, in Java you can use the save method that an object of type IDfSysObject inherits from IDfPersistentObject.

//JavaIDfSysObject sysObj = session.newObject("dm_document");sysObj.setObjectName("test");sysObj.save();

In Visual Basic, however, you must assign the IDfSysObject object to an IDfPersistentObject object before calling its save method:

'Visual BasicDim sysObj As IDfSysObjectDim perObj As IDfPersistentObject

Set sysObj = session.newObject("dm_document")sysObj.setObjectName ("test")

set perObj = sysObjperObj.save

C++

From C++, use COM directly, or, if you use MFC, you can use classes, called wrapper classes, that Documentum provides to hide some of the complexities of the COM interface. To use these classes with MFC, include the following files in your Visual C++ project: DfClientX.h, DfClientX.cpp, dfc.h, and dfc_i.c

If you don’t use MFC or if you wish to write your own wrapper classes, include only dfc.h and dfc_i.c.

Note: Interface inheritance requires a workaround if you access DFC from C++, because the Microsoft Java virtual machine does not support COM interface inheritance. See the example in the previous section.

Follow these rules for objects and pointers:

■ Always assign a DFC object to a new pointer.

First delete the old pointer, then create a new CDfSysObject, as in the following C++ example://Get a DFC objectCDfSysObject sobj1 = session.getObject(id);CDfSysObject *pSysObj = null;

//Delete the old pointerif (pSysObj) delete pSysObj;



//Create new CDfSysObjectpSysObj = new CDfSysObject(sobj1);

■ A procedure that returns a DFC object should return a pointer to the object, as demonstrated in the following Visual C++ example:CDfSysObject *myFunction();{

CDfSysObject sobj1 = session.getObject(id);CDfSysObject *retval = new CDfSysObject (sobj1);return retval;

}

Syntax Differences

COM and Java give you access to the same DFC classes and interfaces, but COM datatypes differ slightly from Java datatypes. Table 1-1 shows the COM equivalents of DFC datatypes.

Table 1-1 Equivalents for DFC Datatypes

Java (DFC datatype) Visual Basic (and Docbasic)

C++ with MFC wrapper classes

C++ directly to COM

boolean Boolean BOOL VARIANT_BOOL

int Long long int

String String CString BSTR

double Double double double

IDfinterfacename IDfinterfacenameor Object

CDfinterfacename IDfinterfacename


Getting Started With DFCCreating DFC Client Objects

Creating DFC Client Objects

➤ Perform the following steps before calling DFC methods:

1. Create a DFC client object as an interface to DFC.

The DFC client object must reside in the same process as the Documentum client library, DMCL. DFC client objects are also called local DFC clients. Java and COM use different interfaces to create the DFC client object, as shown in the examples.

2. Provide login information and establish a DFC session (see “Connecting and Disconnecting” on page 4-2).

Java Example

Use the DfClient.getLocalClient method.IDfClient myclient = DfClient.getLocalClient();

This line of code creates a DFC client object. The object’s methods provide access to the services of the local DFC client.

Visual Basic Example

IDfClientX creates DFC objects in COM development environments. You must obtain an IDfClientX object before you can create DFC objects. Use the IDfClientX interface’s getLocalClient method. The following example demonstrates how to create a DFC client object in Visual Basic.

Dim myclient As IDfClientDim myclientx As DfClientXSet myclientX = CreateObject(“Documentum.Dfc”)Set myclient = myclientX.getLocalClient


Getting Started With DFCUsing DFC Tracing

Using DFC Tracing

DFC provides a tracing mechanism through static methods of the DfTrace class. The principal ones are:

setTraceLevel (int traceLevel)setTraceFileName (String fileName)traceMsgCond (int triggerLevel, String msg)

The fact that these methods are static allows you to set up tracing before establishing sessions or creating objects.

Visual Basic programs must access these methods through the IDfClientX interface.

Trace levels range are integers in the range 0–10. The level controls the amount of information DFC places into the trace file. The level 0 means no tracing, and each increment asks DFC to provide more information. Each level includes all of the information of the smaller numbered levels.

If you don’t set a trace file, the information goes to the standard output.

Packages

DFC comprises a number of packages, that is, sets of related classes and interfaces.

■ The names of DFC Java classes begin with Df (for example, DfWorkflow).

■ Names of interfaces begin with IDf (for example, IDfWorkflow).

Interfaces expose DFC’s public methods and constants. Each interface contains a set of related methods.

Table 1-2 describes the purpose of the classes and interfaces of DFC packages.


Getting Started With DFCPackages

Note: The com.documentum.operations package and the IDfSysObject interface in the com.documentum.fc.client package have some methods for the same basic tasks (for example, checkin, checkout). The IDfSysObject methods are mostly for internal use and for supporting legacy applications. The methods in the operations package perform the corresponding tasks at a higher level—keeping track of client-side files and implementing eContent Server XML functionality.

Note: The name of the com.documentum.com interface might lead you to believe that it is only for accessing DFC through COM. In fact, you should use its factory methods (all of its getxxx methods, except for those dealing with the DFC version or trace levels) from Java code as well. Never use the corresponding new xxx, even if you know the name of the implementing class.

Table 1-2 Description of DFC Packages

Java Package Name Purpose

com.documentum.fc.client Provides basic functionality:

■ Establishing DFC sessions

■ Retrieving and validating data

■ Managing workflows

■ Manipulating virtual documents

■ Working with document versions

com.documentum.operations Provides high-level functionality, such as checking documents or virtual documents in and out. Provides XML support.

common.documentum.fc.client.qb Constructs and runs queries and SmartLists.

com.documentum.xml.xql Facilitates constructing Docbase queries that return results in an XML format.

com.documentum.fc.common Supplies utility methods for other DFC classes.

com.documentum.registry Maintains Documentum information on the client’s system, using the Windows registry on Win32 platforms, and .ini files otherwise.

com.documentum.com Provides factory methods for constructing DFC objects. Facilitates access to DFC through COM.


Getting Started With DFCUsing the DFC Online Reference Documentation

The DFC interfaces form a hierarchy; some derive methods and constants from others. Use the Tree link from the home page of the DFC online reference (see “Using the DFC Online Reference Documentation” on page 1-11) to examine the interface hierarchy. Click any interface to go to its definition.

Each interface inherits the methods and constants of the interfaces above it in the hierarchy. For example, IDfPersistentObject has a save method. IDfSysObject is a subclass of IDfPersistentObject, so it inherits the save method (see “Persistent Objects” on page 7-12 and “SysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content” on page 7-20).

In Java, you can call the save method of an object of type IDfSysobject.

COM does not support interface inheritance. Visual Basic or C++ programs access DFC via COM and see DFC as a type library. The library is flat, that is, it contains all of the interfaces but none of the inheritance information. In Visual Basic, you must assign an object of type IDfSysObject to an object of type IDfPersistent object before you can save it.

Using the DFC Online Reference Documentation

This section explains how to use the DFC online reference documentation to find greater detail about DFC structure and syntax.

Documentum uses the Javadoc facility to produce a DFC reference. This reference is available online in HTML form, both by itself and as part of the Developer Studio online help.

From the home page of the reference, you can choose a variety of views. The Help link provides a description of how the reference is organized.

The DFC library is large, and programmers sometimes have difficultly determining where to find or look for functionality. If this happens, consider using the following decision sequence.


Getting Started With DFCUsing the DFC Online Reference Documentation

➤ To find the interface that provides a specified operation:

1. If you wish to operate on an object in the Docbase, determine the most general interface that should support the operation, and look there.

For example, you can save any persistent object, so look for a save method in IDfPersistentObject.

If the functionality involves content, security, versioning, or checkout/checkin, look at IDfSysObject or interfaces derived from it.

2. If you wish to create an object, obtain a reference to an object, or perform a general operation,

a. If the operation depends on having a session, look in IDfSession.

b. Otherwise, look in IDfClientX.


2
Working With Documents 2
This chapter describes the way to use DFC to perform the most common operations on documents. It contains the following main sections:

■ “Introduction to Documents” on page 2-1

■ “Introduction to Operations” on page 2-4

■ “Types of Operations” on page 2-5

■ “Basic Steps for Manipulating Documents” on page 2-5

■ “Operations for Manipulating Documents” on page 2-10

■ “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26

■ “Operations and Transactions” on page 2-28

Introduction to Documents

The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual explains the Documentum facilities for managing documents. This section provides a concise summary of what you need to know to understand the remainder of this chapter.

Documentum maintains a repository of objects that it classifies according to a type hierarchy. For this discussion, SysObjects are at the top of the hierarchy (see “SysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content” on page 7-20). A document is a specific kind of SysObject. Its primary purpose is to help you manage content.

Virtual Documents

A virtual document is a container document that includes one or more objects called components structured as an ordered hierarchy. A component is another virtual document or any SysObject subtype except folders, cabinets, or subtypes of


Working With DocumentsIntroduction to Documents

folders and cabinets. A virtual document can have any number of components, nested to any level. Documentum imposes no limit on the depth of nesting in a virtual document.

Documentum uses two sets of terminology for virtual documents. In the first set, a virtual document that contains a component is called the component’s parent, and the component is called the virtual document’s child. Children, or children of children to any depth, are called descendants.

Note: Descendants are sometimes called descendents in internal variables, Javadoc comments, and registry keys.

The second set of terminology derives from graph theory. The virtual document and all of its descendants are called nodes. The directed relationship between a parent node and a child node is called an edge.

In both sets of terminology, the original virtual document is sometimes called the root.

Documentum maintains more than one version of a document. A version tree is an original document and all of its versions. Every version of the document has a unique object ID, but every version has the same chronicle ID—the object ID of the original document.

You can associate a particular version of a component with the virtual document (this is called early binding) or you can associate the component’s entire version tree with the virtual document. The latter allows you to select which version to include at the time you assemble the document (this is called late binding). Documentum provides an extremely flexible set of rules for controlling the way it assembles documents.

An assembly is a snapshot of a virtual document. It consists of the set of specific component versions that resulted from assembling the virtual document according to a set of binding rules. To preserve it, you must attach it to an existing SysObject—usually the virtual document. A SysObject can have at most one attached assembly.

Documentum represents the components of virtual documents by containment objects and the components of assemblies by assembly objects. An assembly object refers to the SysObject to which the assembly is attached, and to the virtual document from which the assembly came.

If an object appears more than once as a node in a virtual document or assembly, each node has a separate associated containment or assembly object. No object can appear as a descendant of itself in a virtual document.


Working With DocumentsIntroduction to Documents

You can version a virtual document and manage its versions just as you do a simple document. Deleting a virtual document version also removes any containment objects or assembly objects associated with that version.

When you copy a virtual document, the server can make a copy of each component or it can create an internal reference or pointer to the source component. It maintains information in the containment object about which of these possibilities to choose. One option is to require the copy operation to specify the choice.

Whether it copies a component or creates a reference, Documentum creates a new containment object corresponding to that component.

Note: DFC allows you to process the root of a virtual document as an ordinary document. For example, suppose that doc is an object of type IDfDocument and also happens to be the root of a virtual document. If you tell DFC to check doc out, it does not check out any of the descendants. If you wish to check out the descendants, you must first execute an instruction like

IDfVirtualDocument vDoc = doc.asVirtualDocument(CURRENT, “false”)

If you tell DFC to check vDoc out, it processes doc and all of its descendants.

XML Documents

When you import an XML document, DFC creates a virtual document. It imports other documents that the XML document refers to as entity references or links, and makes them components of the virtual document. It uses attributes of the containment object associated with a component to remember whether it came from an entity or a link and to maintain other necessary information. Assembly objects have the same XML-related attributes.

Documentum’s XML support has many more features. It also requires you to provide a controlling XML application. Information about those subjects appears in Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals and in Managing XML Content in Documentum.


Working With DocumentsIntroduction to Operations

Introduction to Operations

To manipulate documents in Documentum, you must understand operations. Operations are like the document carriers you use to put small pieces of paper through the feeder of a copying machine. Operations provide interfaces and a processing environment to ensure that Documentum can handle a variety of documents and collections of documents in a standard way. You obtain an operation of the appropriate kind, place one or more documents into it, and “run it through the machine,” that is, execute the operation.

The operations apply to objects of type IDfSysObject, not just the subtype IDfDocument, but all of the examples in this chapter pertain only to documents.

For example, to check out a document, take the following steps:

1. Obtain a checkout operation.

2. Add the document to the operation.

3. Execute the operation.

DFC carries out the behind-the-scenes tasks associated with checking out a document. For a virtual document, for example, DFC adds all of its components to the operation and ensures that links between them are still valid when it stores the documents into the checkout directory on the file system. It corrects filename conflicts, and it keeps a local record of which documents it checked out. This is only a partial description of what DFC does when you check out a document. Because of the number and complexity of the underlying tasks, DFC wraps seemingly elementary document-manipulation tasks in constructs called operations.

An object that implements the IDfClientX interface has methods for creating operations. For this reason, we call it a factory for operations. Once you have the factory object (say cX) and a sysobject representing the document (say doc), the code for the checkout looks like this:

// Obtain a checkout operationIDfCheckoutOperation checkout =

(IDfCheckoutOperation) cX.getOperation("Checkout");

// Add the document to the checkout operationcheckout.add(doc); //This might fail and return a null

// Check the document out checkout.execute(); //This might produce errors without

//throwing an exception


Working With DocumentsTypes of Operations

In real code, you would check to see if the add method returns a null or the execute method returns errors.

Types of Operations

There are operation types for many of the tasks you might wish to perform on documents or, where appropriate, files or folders.

The names of the DFC interfaces associated with operations follow a naming convention based on a root character string for each operation. In the following list of tasks, the root string for naming the associated interfaces appears in parentheses after the task.

■ Import into a Docbase (Import)

■ Export from a Docbase (Export)

■ Check into a Docbase (Checkin)

■ Check out of a Docbase (Checkout)

■ Cancel checkout (CancelCheckout)

■ Delete (Delete)

■ Copy from one Docbase location to another (Copy)

■ Move from one Docbase location to another (Move)

■ Validate an XML document against a DTD or Schema (Validation)

■ Transform an XML document using XSLT (XMLTransform)

Note: When you use the root string, you must reproduce the capitalization exactly. Java is case sensitive, as is the factory method that creates operations.

Basic Steps for Manipulating Documents

This section describes the basic steps common to using the facilities of the operations package to manipulate documents. It sets forth the basic steps, then discusses the steps in greater detail.


Working With DocumentsBasic Steps for Manipulating Documents

Steps for Manipulating Documents

➤ To perform a document-manipulation task:

1. Use the getOperation method of an object of type IDfClientX to obtain an operation of the type appropriate to the document-manipulation task.

For example, if you wish to check documents into a Docbase, start by calling clientX.getOperation (“Checkin”). Note that the calling argument is the root string for the operation and that getOperation interprets the string in a case-sensitive way.

2. Set parameters to control the way the operation performs the task.

Each operation type has setXxx methods for setting its parameters.

The operation behaves in predefined (default) ways if you do not set optional parameters. Some parameters (the session for an import, for example) are mandatory.

3. Add documents to the operation:

a. Use its inherited add method to place a document, file, or folder into the operation.

See the note about inherited methods on page page 2-7. The add method returns the newly created node (or a null if it fails).

b. Set parameters to change the way the operation handles this item and its descendants.

Each type of operation node has methods for setting parameters that are important for that type of operation. These are generally the same as the methods for the corresponding type of operation. If you do not set parameters, the operation handles this item according to the settings you give it in Step 2.

c. Repeat Step a and Step b for all items you wish to place into the operation.

4. Invoke the operation’s inherited execute method to perform the task.

See the note about inherited methods on page page 2-7.

Note that this step may add and process additional nodes. For example, if part of the execution entails scanning an XML document for links, DFC may add the linked documents to the operation.

5. Process the results



a. Handle errors.

If it detects errors, the execute method returns the boolean value false. You can use the operation’s inherited getErrors method to obtain a list of failures (see the note about inherited methods on page page 2-7). For details of how to process errors, see “Processing the Results” on page 2-9.

b. Perform tasks specific to the operation.

For example, after an import operation, you may wish to take note of all of the new objects that the operation created in the repository. You might wish to display or modify their properties.

Details of Manipulating Documents

This section discusses some issues and background for the steps of the general procedure in the previous section, “Steps for Manipulating Documents” on page 6.

Note: Each operation has a type (for example, IDfCheckinOperation) that inherits most of its methods (in particular, its add and execute methods) from IDfOperation. To use an operation from Visual Basic, you must assign the operation to an object of type IDfOperation before using inherited methods. See “Using Interface Inheritance” on page 1-5 for more details.

Obtaining the Operation

The getOperation method of an IDfClientX object manufactures an object of the type you specify in the calling argument. Because the calling argument is a character string, the method cannot know before it is called which type of operation it will manufacture, so it returns the operation as an object of type IDfOperation. You must then cast that object to the appropriate type.

Setting Parameters for the Operation

Different operations accept different parameters to control the way they carry out their tasks. Some parameters are optional, some mandatory.

In some cases you can also use the getProperties method of IDfOperation to obtain an IDfProperties object associated with the operation. The DFC Javadocs explain how to use this object to fine tune operation behavior.



Note: You must use the setSession method of IDfImportOperation or IDfXMLTransformOperation to set a Docbase session before adding nodes to either of these types of operation. No other operation type has a setSession method.

Adding Documents to the Operation

An operation contains a structure of nodes and descendants. When you obtain the operation, it has no nodes (DFC does not regard the operation itself as a node). When you use the operation’s add method to add documents to the operation, it creates new root nodes. The add method returns the node as an IDfOperationNode object. You must cast it to the appropriate operation node type (see “Working With Nodes” on page 2-9).

Note: If the add method cannot create a node for the specified document, it returns a null argument. Be sure to test for this case.

DFC may add additional nodes to the operation. For example, if you add a Docbase folder, DFC adds nodes for the documents linked to that folder, as children of the folder’s node in the operation.

Each node can have zero or more child nodes. If you add a virtual document, the add method creates as many descendant nodes as necessary to create an image of the virtual document’s structure within the operation.

You can add objects from more than one Docbase to an operation.

You can use a variety of methods to obtain and step through all nodes of the operation (see “Working With Nodes” on page 2-9). You may wish to set parameters on individual nodes differently from the way you set them on the operation.

Executing the Operation

The operations package processes the objects in an operation as a group, possibly invoking many DFC calls for each object. Operations encapsulate Documentum client conventions for registering, naming, and managing local content files.

DFC executes the operation in a predefined set of steps, applying each step to all of the documents in the operation before proceeding to the next step. It processes each document in an operation only once, even if the document appears at more than one node.



Once DFC has executed a step of the operation on all of the documents in the operation, it cannot execute that step again. If you wish to perform the same task again, you must construct a new operation to do so.

Normally, you use the operation’s execute method and let DFC proceed through the execution steps. DFC provides a limited ability for you to execute an operation in steps, so that you can perform special processing between steps. Documentum does not recommend this approach, because the number and identity of steps in an operation may change with future versions of DFC. If you have a programming hurdle that you cannot get over any other way, work with Documentum Technical Support or Consulting to design a solution.

Processing the Results

If DFC encounters an error while processing one node in an operation, it continues to process the other nodes. For example, if one object in a checkout operation is locked, the operation checks out the others. Only fatal conditions cause an operation to throw an exception. DFC catches other exceptions internally and converts them into IDfOperationError objects. The getErrors method returns an IDfList object containing those errors, or a null if there are no errors. The calling program can examine the errors, and decide whether to undo the operation, or to accept the results for those objects that did not generate errors.

Once you have checked the errors you may wish to examine and further process the results of the operation. “Details of Manipulating Documents” on page 2-7 shows some of the ways you can process the results. The next section, “Working With Nodes,” shows how to access the objects and results associated with the nodes of the operation.

Working With Nodes

Note: Each operation node type (for example, IDfCheckinOperationNode) inherits most of its methods from IDfOperationNode. To use an operation node from Visual Basic, you must assign the node to an object of type IDfOperationNode before using inherited methods. See “Using Interface Inheritance” on page 1-5 for more details.


Working With DocumentsOperations for Manipulating Documents

The getChildren method of an IDfOperationNode object returns the first level of nodes under the given node. You can use this method recursively to step through all of the descendant nodes. Alternatively, you can use the operation’s getNodes method to obtain a list of all of its descendant nodes.

These methods return nodes as objects of type IDfOperationNode, not as the specific node type (for example, IDfCheckinOperationNode).

The getId method of an IDfOperationNode object returns a unique identifier for the node, not the object ID of the corresponding document. IDfOperationNode does not have a method for obtaining the object ID of the corresponding object. Each operation node type (for example, IDfCheckinOperationNode) has its own getObjectID method. You must cast the IDfOperationNode object to a node of the specific type before obtaining the object ID.

Operations for Manipulating Documents

This section provides sample code and discusses specific details of the following kinds of document manipulation operations:

■ “Importing” on page 2-11

■ “Exporting” on page 2-13

■ “Checking Out” on page 2-14

■ “Checking In” on page 2-15

■ “Cancelling Checkout” on page 2-17

■ “Copying” on page 2-18

■ “Moving” on page 2-19

■ “Deleting” on page 2-20

■ “Validating an XML Document Against a DTD or Schema” on page 2-21

■ “Performing an XSL Transformation of an XML Document” on page 2-23

The examples use the term file to refer to files on the file system and the terms document and folder to refer to Docbase documents and folders, as represented by DFC objects of type IDfDocument and IDfFolder.



Importing

The execute method of an IDfImportOperation object imports files into the repository. It creates objects as required, transfers the content to the repository, and removes local files if appropriate. If any of the nodes of the operation refer to existing objects (for example, through XML or OLE links), it imports those into the repository too.

Example Import an XML document. //Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfID foldId; // ID of the destination folderIDfFile myFile; // the file to import

// Get an import operation from the factoryIDfImportOperation op = (IDfImportOperation) cX.getOperation("Import");

// Set the Docbase session and destination folderop.setSession(sess);op.setDestinationFolderId(foldId);

// Add the file and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfImportNode node = (IDfImportNode) op.add(myFile);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Set the XML application// See “Setting Parameters for the Operation” on page 2-7 for information // about propertiesnode.getProperties().putString("XMLApplication", "CellPhoneCatalog"); // Execute the operationif (!op.execute()) { //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

Special Considerations for Import Operations

Follow the steps in “Steps for Manipulating Documents” on page 2-6.

Setting up the Operation

Use the object’s setSession method to specify a Docbase session and the object’s setDestinationFolder method to specify the Docbase cabinet or folder into which the operation should import documents.

You must set the session before adding files to the operation.

You must set the destination folder, either on the operation or on each node.



You can add an IDfFile object or specify a file system path. You can also specify whether to keep the file on the file system (the default choice) or delete it after the operation is successful.

If you add a file system directory to the operation, DFC imports all files and (recursively) directories in that directory.

You can also control version labels, object names, object types and formats of the imported objects.

XML Processing

The line in the example under the comment “Set the XML application” tells DFC not to determine the controlling XML application automatically but instead to use the application called CellPhoneCatalog.

You can import XML files without doing XML processing. If node is an IDfImportNode object, you can turn off XML processing on the node and all its descendants by calling

node.setFormat(dm_document);

This also turns off content detection, so the operation will not recognize embedded OLE objects.

Turning off these kinds of processing can shorten the time it takes DFC to perform the operation.

Processing the Imported Documents

Executing an import operation results in the creation of new objects in the repository. If impOp is the IDfImportOperation object, you can obtain a complete list of the new objects by calling

IDfList list = impOp.getNewObjects;

The list contains the object IDs of the newly created SysObjects.

In addition, the IDfImportNode objects associated with the operation are still available after you execute the operation (see “Working With Nodes” on page 2-9). You can use their methods to find out many other facts about the new SysObjects associated with those nodes. For example, you can find out object IDs, object names, version labels, file paths, and formats.



Exporting

The execute method of an IDfExportOperation object creates copies of documents on the local file system. If the operation’s add method receives a virtual document as an argument, it also adds all of the document’s descendants (determined by applying the applicable binding rules), creating a separate node for each.

Example Export a document to the default checkout directory. Do not create registry information about the resulting file.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfID docId; // ID of the document

// Get an export operation from the factoryIDfExportOperation operation =

(IDfExportOperation) cX.getOperation("Export");

// Add the document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfExportNode node = (IDfExportNode) operation.add(docID);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Execute the operationif (!op.execute()) { //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

Special Considerations for Export Operations


By default, an export operation creates files on the local system and makes no provision for Documentum to manage them. You can tell DFC to create registry entries for the files by invoking the setRecordInRegistry method of an object of type either IDfExportOperation or IDfExportNode, using the parameters described in the Javadocs.

If any node corresponds to a checked out document, DFC copies the latest Docbase version to the local file system. DFC does not treat this as an error.

You can find out where on the file system the export operation creates files. Use the getDefault DestinationDirectory and getDestinationDirectory methods of IDfExportOperation objects and the getFilePath method of IDfExportNode objects to do this.



Checking Out

The execute method of an IDfCheckoutOperation object checks out the Docbase documents in the operation. Checking out a document is like exporting one, but the checkout operation:

■ Locks the document

■ Always creates registry entries to enable Documentum to manage the files it creates on the file system

If the operation’s add method receives a virtual document as an argument, it also adds all of the document’s descendants (determined by applying the applicable binding rules), creating a separate node for each.

Example Check out a virtual document to the default checkout directory.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfDocument doc; // the root of the virtual documentIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operations

// Create the virtual document object (see note on page 2-3)IDfVirtualDocument vDoc = doc.asVirtualDocument("CURRENT", false);

// Get an export operation from the factoryIDfCheckoutOperation checkout =

(IDfCheckoutOperation) cX.getOperation("Checkout");

// Add the virtual document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfCheckoutNode node = (IDfCheckoutNode) operation.add(vDoc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }


Special Considerations for Checkout Operations


If any node corresponds to a checked out document, there is no need to check it out again. DFC does not treat this as an error.

DFC applies XML processing to XML documents. If necessary it modifies the resulting files to ensure that it has enough information to check the documents in properly.

You can use many of the same methods for setting up checkout operations and processing results that you use for export operations.



Checking In

The execute method of an IDfCheckinOperation object checks documents into the repository. It creates new objects as required, transfers the content to the repository, and removes local files if appropriate. It checks in existing objects that any of the nodes refer to (for example, through XML links).

Example Check in a document as the next minor version, setting the version labels to DRAFT and WIP, and taking the content from C:/myfile.doc.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfDocument doc; // the document

// Get a checkin operation from the factoryIDfCheckinOperation op =

(IDfCheckinOperation) cX.getOperation("Checkin");

// Add the document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfCheckinNode node = (IDfCheckinNode) op.add(doc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Set the version and labels op.setCheckinVersion(IDfCheckinOperation.NEXT_MINOR); op.setVersionLabels("DRAFT,WIP");

// Override the default filepathnode.setFilePath("C:\\myfile.doc"); //See note on this page.


After executing this code, you can obtain the ID of the document you just checked in:

IDfId newId = node.getNewObjectId();

Note: to refer to the Windows files (for example, C:\myfile.doc), represent each backslash by a double backslash (for example, the syntax C:\\myfile.doc). This works in all Java environments.

Special Considerations for Checkin Operations




Setting up the Operation

To check in a document, you pass an object of type IDfSysObject, not the file on the local file system, to the operation’s add method. DFC keeps track of which local files correspond to which objects. If you specify a document that is not checked out, DFC does not check it in. DFC does not treat this as an error.

You can specify checkin version, symbolic label, or alternate content file, and you can direct DFC to preserve the local file.

If between checkout and checkin you remove a link between documents, DFC adds the orphaned document to the checkin operation as a root node, but the relationship between the documents no longer exists in the repository.

Processing the Checked In Documents

Executing a checkin operation normally results in the creation of new objects in the repository. If ciOp is the IDfCheckinOperation object, you can obtain a complete list of the new objects by calling

IDfList list = ciOp.getNewObjects;

The list contains the object IDs of the newly created SysObjects.

In addition, the IDfCheckinNode objects associated with the operation are still available after you execute the operation (see “Working With Nodes” on page 2-9). You can use their methods to find out many other facts about the new SysObjects associated with those nodes.



Cancelling Checkout

The execute method of an IDfCancelCheckoutOperation object cancels the checkout of documents by releasing locks, deleting local files if appropriate, and removing registry entries.


Example Cancel checkout of a virtual document and preserve the local files.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfDocument doc; // the root of the virtual documentIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operations


// Get a cancel checkout operation from the factoryIDfCancelCheckoutOperation op =

(IDfCancelCheckoutOperation) cX.getOperation("CancelCheckout");

// Add the virtual document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfCancelCheckoutNode node = (IDfCancelCheckoutNode) op.add(vDoc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Tell DFC not to remove the local fileop.setKeepLocalFile(true);


Special Considerations for CancelCheckout Operations


If a document in the cancel checkout operation is not checked out, DFC does not process it. DFC does not treat this as an error.



Copying

The execute method of an IDfCopyOperation object copies the current versions of documents or folders from one repository location to another.


If the add method receives a folder (unless you override this default behavior), it adds all documents and folders linked to that folder. This continues recursively until the entire hierarchy of documents and subfolders under the original folder is part of the operation. The execute method replicates this hierarchy at the target location.

Example Copy a folder.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfFolder srcFold; // the source folderIDfID destId; // ID of the destination folder

// Obtain a copy operation from the factoryIDfCopyOperation op = (IDfCopyOperation) cX.getOperation("Copy");

// Tell DFC to copy the folder and all of its descendants// (Unnecessary, because this is the default behavior)op.setDeepFolders(true);

// Add the folder and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfCopyNode node = (IDfCopyNode) op.add(srcFold);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Set the destinationfolderop.setDestinationFolderId(destId);


Special Considerations for Copy Operations


You must set the destination folder, either on the operation or on each node.

You can use the setDeepFolders method of the operation object (node objects do not have this method) to override the default behavior of recursively adding folder contents to the operation.



Moving

The execute method of an IDfMoveOperation object moves the current versions of documents or folders from one repository location to another by unlinking them from the source location and linking them to the destination. Versions other than the current version remain linked to the original location.


If the add method receives a folder (unless you override this default behavior), it adds all documents and folders linked to that folder. This continues recursively until the entire hierarchy of documents and subfolders under the original folder is part of the operation. The execute method links this hierarchy to the target location.

Example Move a virtual document.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfID scrId; // ID of the source folderIDfID destId; // ID of the destination folderIDfDocument doc; // the root of the virtual document

// Obtain a move operation from the factoryIDfMoveOperation op = (IDfMoveOperation) cX.getOperation("Move");

// Set the source and destination foldersop.setSourceFolderId(srcId); op.setDestinationFolderId(destId);


// Add the virtual document and cast the node to the appropriate type IDfMoveNode node = (IDfMoveNode) op.add(vDoc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }


Special Considerations for Move Operations

Follow the steps in “Steps for Manipulating Documents” on page 2-6. Options for moving are essentially the same as for copying.

If the operation entails moving a checked out document, DFC leaves the document unmodified and reports an error.



Deleting

The execute method of an IDfDeleteOperation object removes documents and folders from the repository.


Example Delete a document.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfDocument doc; // the document

// Obtain a delete operation from the factoryIDfDeleteOperation op = (IDfDeleteOperation) cX.getOperation("Delete");

// Add the document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfDeleteNode node = (IDfDeleteNode) op.add(doc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }


Example Delete all versions of all documents in a folder. Assume that fold is an object of type IDfFolder and cX, an IDfClientX object, is a factory for operations.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfFolder fold; // the folder

// Obtain a delete operation from the factoryIDfDeleteOperation op = (IDfDeleteOperation) cX.getOperation("Delete");

// Tell DFC to delete all versions of the objects// Note: You must set this before you add documents or foldersop.setVersionDeletionPolicy(IDfDeleteOperation.ALL_VERSIONS);

// Add the folder and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfDeleteNode node = (IDfDeleteNode) op.add(fold);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }


Special Considerations for Delete Operations


If the operation entails deleting a checked out document, DFC leaves the document unmodified and reports an error.



Validating an XML Document Against a DTD or Schema

DFC uses a modified version of the Xerces XML parser, which it includes in dfc.jar. See the DFC release notes for details about the specific version and the Documentum modifications.

The execute method of an IDfValidateOperation object runs the parser in validation mode to determine whether or not documents are well formed and conform to the DTD or schema. If you do not specify it explicitly, DFC determines the XML application automatically and looks in the application’s folder in the repository for the DTD or schema.

If any argument or the DTD or schema is in the repository, the execute method copies the content to the file system and performs the validation there.

If the parser detects errors, the operation’s execute method returns a value of false, and you can use the operation’s getErrors method to obtain the error information that the parser returns.

Example Validate an XML document, using C:\Temp for a working directory.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfDocument doc; // the root of the XML documentIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operations

// Obtain a validation operation from the factoryIDfValidationOperation op =

(IDfValidationOperation) cX.getOperation("Validation");


// Give DFC a working directoryop.setDestinationDirectory("C:\\Temp"); //See note on page 2-15

// Add the document and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfValidationNode node = (IDfValidationNode) op.add(vDoc);if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }


Example Validate the XML file C:\ContactInfo.xml, using the DTD associated with the XML application called TelephoneBook.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operations

// Obtain a validation operation from the factoryIDfValidationOperation op =

(IDfValidationOperation) cX.getOperation("Validation");



// Add the file and cast the node to the appropriate typeIDfOperationNode node =

op.add("C:\\ContactInfo.xml"); //See note on page 2-15

if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Set the XML application (see “Setting Parameters for the Operation” on page 2-7)node.getProperties().putString("XMLApplication", "TelephoneBook");


Special Considerations for Validation Operations


You can use the operation’s setDestinationDirectory method to specify the file system directory to which the operation exports XML files and DTDs or schemas to pass to the parser.

In order to specify the XML application you must use the node object’s getProperties method, as in the second example (see “Setting Parameters for the Operation” on page 2-7).



Performing an XSL Transformation of an XML Document

DFC uses a version of the Xalan XSL transformation (XSLT) engine, which it includes in dfc.jar. See the DFC release notes for details about the specific version and the Documentum modifications.

The execute method of an IDfXMLTransformOperation object uses the XSLT engine and the specified XSL stylesheet to transform an XML file or document. It places the output into a new document or attaches it to the original document as a rendition. It can also output an object of type IDfFile, or either of the Java types Writer or OutputStream.

Example Transform the file C:\PhoneInfo.xml into an HTML file C:\PhoneDisplay.htm.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfDocument style; // the XSL stylesheet in the repository

// Obtain an XML transform operation from the factoryIDfXMLTransformOperation op =

(IDfXMLTransformOperation) cX.getOperation("XMLTransform");

// Add the file to transform (see note on page 2-15)IDfXMLTransformNode node =

(IDfXMLTransformNode) op.add("C:\\PhoneInfo.xml");if (node == null) { // See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Specify the stylesheetop.setTransformation(style);

// Specify the sessionop.setSession(sess);

// Specify the output file and format (see note on page 2-15)FileOutputStream outputStream = new FileOutputStream("C:\\PhoneDisplay.htm");op.setDestination(outputStream);op.getProperties().putString("FileFormat", "html");


Example Transform the file C:\ContactInfo.xml into a new HTML document in the repository, using the stylesheet C:\PublishContact.xsl.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the Docbase session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfID destId; // ID of the destination folder



// Obtain an XSLT transformation operation from the factoryIDfXMLTransformOperation tOp =


// Add the file to transform (see note on page 2-15)IDfXMLTransformNode tNode =

(IDfXMLTransformNode) tOp.add("C:\\ContactInfo.xml");if (tNode == null) { //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Specify the stylesheet and session for the transformation// (see note on page 2-15)tOp.setTransformation("C:\\PublishContact.xsl");tOp.setSession(sess);

// Obtain an import operation IDfImportOperation iOp = cX.getOperation("Import");

// Set the session and destination folder for importing the HTML dociOp.setSession(sess);iOp.setDestinationFolderId(destId);

// Link the operations by specifying the import operation as the// destination for the transformation operationtOp.setDestination(iOp);

// Specify the output format// (Note: on the transform node, not the import node)tNode.getProperties().putString("FileFormat", "html");

// Execute the transform operationif (!tOp.execute()){ //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

Example Transform an XML document into an HTML rendition of the document.

//Assume that the following objects already exist:IDfSession sess; // the session to useIDfClientX cX; // a factory for operationsIDfDocument doc; // the root of the XML documentIDfDocument style; // the XSL stylesheet in the repository

// Obtain an XML transform operation from the factoryIDfXMLTransformOperation op =



// Add the XML file to the operationIDfXMLTransformNode node = (IDfXMLTransformNode) op.add(vDoc);if (node == null) { //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

// Specify the stylesheet and sessionop.setTransformation(style);op.setSession(sess);

// Tell DFC to add the output to the document as a rendition// (see “Setting Parameters for the Operation” on page 2-7)op.getProperties().putInt("TransformationOption", 0);

// Set up the format for the output node.getProperties().putString("FileFormat", "html");



// Execute the operationif (!op.execute()){ //See “Handling Document Manipulation Errors” on page 2-26 }

Special Considerations for XMLTransform Operations


You must use the operation’s setSession method to specify a Docbase session. This operation requires a session, even if all of the files it operates on are on the file system.

The add method of an IDfXMLTransformOperation object accepts Java types as well as Documentum types. It allows you to specify the file to transform as an object of any of the following types:

■ IDfDocument, IDfVirtualDocument, or IDfVirtualDocumentNode

■ IDfFile

■ String (for example “C:\\PhoneInfo.xml”)

■ InputStream

■ Reader

■ URL


Working With DocumentsHandling Document Manipulation Errors

Handling Document Manipulation Errors

The examples in this chapter illustrate the ways that DFC reports errors that arise in the course of populating or executing operations.

The add Method Cannot Create a Node

The add method of any operation returns a null node if it cannot successfully add the document, file or folder that you pass it as an argument. Test for a null to detect and handle this failure. DFC does not report the reason for returning a null.

The execute Method Encounters Errors

The execute method of an operation throws DfException only in the case of a fatal error. Otherwise it creates a list of errors, which you can examine when the execute method returns or, if you use an operation monitor, as they occur.

Examining Errors After Execution

After you execute an operation, you can use its getErrors method to retrieve an IDfList object containing the errors. You must cast each to IDfOperationError to read its error message.

Example Print errors returned by an operation.

//Assume that the following object already exists:IDfOperation op; // the operation

if (!op.execute()) {IDfList errors = op.getErrors();int errorCount = errors.getCount();

if (errorCount > 0) {for (int i = 0; i < errorCount; i++) {IDfOperationError error = (IDfOperationError) errors.get(i);String errorMsg = error.getMessage();System.out.println(errorMsg);

} } }


Working With DocumentsHandling Document Manipulation Errors

After detecting that the operation’s execute method has returned errors, you can use the operation’s abort method to undo as much of the operation as it can. You cannot undo XML validation or transform operations, nor can you restore deleted objects.

Examining Errors in an Operation Monitor

You can monitor the operation for progress and errors. Create a class that implements the IDfOperationMonitor interface and install it by calling IDfOperation.setOperationMonitor(). The operation periodically notifies the operation monitor of its progress or of errors that it encounters.

Example Execute an operation, monitoring progress and checking for errors.

//Assume that the following object already exists:IDfOperation op; // the operationObserver // a class that implements IDfOperationMonitor

//Tell DFC about your operation monitorop.setOperationMonitor(new Observer());op.execute();

During execution, DFC calls the methods of your Observer instance to report progress or errors. You can display this information to an end user. In each case DFC expects a response that tells it whether or not to continue. You can make this decision in the program or ask an end user to decide.

Your Observer class must implement the following methods:

■ progressReport

DFC supplies the percentage of completion of the operation and of its current step. DFC expects a response that tells it whether to continue or to abort the operation.

■ reportError

DFC passes an object of type IDfOperationError representing the error it has encountered. It expects a response that tells it whether to continue or to abort the operation.

■ getYesNoAnswer

This is the same as reportError, except that DFC gives you more choices. DFC passes an object of type IDfOperationError representing the error it has encountered. It expects a response of yes, no, or abort.

The Javadocs explain these methods and arguments in greater detail.


Working With DocumentsOperations and Transactions

Operations and Transactions

Operations do not use transactions, because operations

■ Support distributed operations involving multiple docbases.

■ May potentially process vast numbers of objects.

■ Manage non-database resources such as the system registry and the local file system.

You can undo most operations by calling an operation’s abort method. The abort method is specific to each operation, but generally undoes Docbase actions and cleans up registry entries and local content files. Some operations (for example, delete) cannot be undone.

If you know an operation only contains objects from a single docbase, and the number of objects being processed is small enough to ensure sufficient database resources, you can wrap the operation execution in a transaction.


3
DFC Methods by Task 3
This chapter provides an index to the major DFC methods, organized by the tasks the methods accomplish. The methods appear under the following categories of Documentum-related activities:

■ “Communicating with the Server” on page 3-2

■ “Administering the System” on page 3-3

■ “Handling Objects” on page 3-5

■ “Retrieving and Setting Attributes” on page 3-10

■ “Searching the Docbase” on page 3-12

■ “Handling Content Objects” on page 3-13

■ “Printing Documents” on page 3-15

■ “Handling Virtual Documents” on page 3-16

■ “Handling Workflows” on page 3-18

■ “Handling Workflow Process Definitions” on page 3-20

■ “Handling Workflow Activity Definitions” on page 3-21

■ “Handling Workflow Work Items” on page 3-22

■ “Managing Inboxes” on page 3-23

Under each category, the methods are grouped by interface.

Some tasks have no associated DFC methods. The apiSet, apiGet, and apiExec methods of the IDfSession interface enable you to use the Documentum client library (DMCL) API to perform those tasks. Such tasks appear under the DMCL headings at the ends of their categories.

The division of Documentum-related tasks into categories that appears in this chapter parallels the breakdown that appears in Documentum eContent Server API Reference.

For concepts and terminology not previously introduced in this manual, refer to Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals.


DFC Methods by TaskCommunicating with the Server

Communicating with the Server

The following methods communicate with the server to disconnect, retrieve messages, or manage explicit transactions.

IDfClient

Establish a session with a Docbase.IDfSession newSession(

String docbaseName, IDfLoginInfo loginInfo)IDfSession getSharedSession(String docbaseName, IDfLoginInfo

loginInfo, String key)

IDfSession

End the transaction opened by the last beginTrans call, and discard (roll back, undo) all of its changes.

void abortTrans()

Start a transaction.void beginTrans()

Save changes made since the last beginTrans call (commit the change log to the Docbase), and end the transaction (stop transaction logging).

void commitTrans()

Disconnect the session.void disconnect()

Obtain a ticket that an application can substitute for the current user’s password as an argument to the Connect method.

String getLoginTicket()

Return all error and informational messages at or above the specified severity level for a session.

String getMessage(int severityLevel)


DFC Methods by TaskAdministering the System

Specify the maximum number of rows an RDBMS call can return (for performance tuning).

void setBatchHint(int batchSize)

Shut down the server connected to the session.void shutdown(boolean immediate, boolean deleteEntry)

Turn on tracing for the server for the session. void traceDMCL(int level, String traceFile)

DMCL (No Associated DFC Methods)

Shut down a session.apiExec("kill,session,session_to_kill"[,immediacy_level] [,message]")

Administering the System

The following methods carry out system administration tasks.

IDfClient

Return information about all Docbases known to the DocBroker.IDfDocbaseMap getDocbaseMap()IDfDocbaseMap getDocbaseMapEx(

String protocol,String hostName,String portNumber)

Return information about known DocBrokers.IDfTypedObject getDocbrokerMap()

Note: Not getDocBrokerMap.

Return information about the servers known to the DocBroker.IDfTypedObject getServerMap(String docbaseName)


DFC Methods by TaskAdministering the System

IDfTypedObject getServerMapEx(String docbaseName,String protocol,String hostName,String portNumber)

IDfSession

Send a DM_ARCHIVE event to the Docbase operator.IDfId archive(

String predicate,String operatorName,int priority,boolean sendMail,IDfTime dueDate)

Change the user’s password.void changePassword(

String oldPasswd,String newPasswd)

Remove query caches, release memory for the server, or remove data dictionary information.

void flush(String flushType,String cacheKey)

Remove objects in server and client caches.void flushCache(boolean discardChanged)

Remove files copied to the local common area during a session.void purgeLocalFiles()

Reinitialize the root process server.void reInit(String serverConfigName)

Reinitialize the session’s server process.void reStart(

String serverConfigName,boolean restartClient)

Queue a restore from archives request to the Docbase operator.IDfId restore(

String predicate,String dumpFile,String operatorName,


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Objects

int priority,boolean sendMail,IDfTime dueDate)


Enable auditing of the specified event.apiSet("audit,session,object_id","event_name")

Return a list of subconnections and the Docbases to which they are connected.apiGet("dumpconnection[,session]")

Return the subconnection identifier for an existing connection or establish a new subconnection.

apiGet("getconnection,session,scoping_value[,connect_flag]")

Indicate whether an object type is in the DMCL type cache.apiGet("iscached,session,typecache,cache_key")

Return the subconnections and the Docbases associated with them for a specified session.

apiGet("listconnection,session")

Stop auditing an event.apiSet("unaudit,session,object_id","event_name")

Handling Objects

The following methods manipulate objects.

IDfSession

Create a new persistent object of the specified type, optionally specifying the fully qualified name of the DFC-derived subclass of IDfPersistentObject.

IDfPersistentObject newObject(String typeName)IDfPersistentObject newObjectWithType(

String typeName,String className)



Resolve an alias, returning its value. String resolveAlias(

IDfId sysObject,String scopeAlias)

IDfPersistentObject

Remove the object from the Docbase.void destroy()

Retrieve but don’t lock the object.boolean fetch(String internalType)

Fetch the object from the Docbase again (discard unsaved changes).void revert()

Save the object, overwriting the copy currently in the Docbase.void save()

IDfSysObject

Attach a dm_note (annotation) to the object.void addNote(

IDfId annotationId,boolean keepPermanent)

Associate a business policy with the object.void attachPolicy(

IDfId policyId,String state,String scope)

Simultaneously check the object out and create a new version branch.IDfId branch(String versionLabel)

Unlock the object.void cancelCheckout()cancelCheckoutEx(

boolean sendMail,String compoundValue,String specialValue)



Create and save a new version of the checked-out object, and unlock the previous version.

IDfId checkin(boolean fRetainLock,String versionLabels)

IDfId checkinEx(boolean fRetainLock,String versionLabels,String oldCompoundArchValue,String oldSpecialAppValue,String newCompoundArchValue,String newSpecialAppValue)

Create and save a new version of the checked-out object and unlock the previous version. This method is intended for use internally and by user-written applications. It differs from checkin by providing arguments that set the a_special_app and a_compound_architecture attributes.

checkinApp()

Obtain a copy of the object from the repository, and lock it.void checkout()IDfId checkoutEx(

String versionLabel,String compoundArchValue,String specialAppValue)

Demote the object to an allowable normal state of its lifecycle.void demote(

String state,boolean toBase)

Mark the object and, optionally, its associated assembly, as unchangeable.void freeze(boolean freezeComponents)

Obtain the ID of the remote object pointed to by the object. This only applies if the object is a local mirror object.

IDfId getRemoteId()

Create an access control entry in the object.void grant(

String accessorName,int accessorPermit,String extendedPermission)

Associate the object with the specified folder or cabinet.void link(String folderSpec)



Assign the specified symbolic labels to the object.void mark(String versionLabels)

Promote the object to the specified state of its lifecycle, optionally overriding entry criteria. Optionally, test the entry criteria without promoting the object.

void promote(String state,boolean override,boolean fTestOnly)

Remove all old versions of the object, optionally keeping labeled versions.void prune(boolean keepSLabel)

Refresh attribute values from the remote object pointed to by the object. This applies only if the object is a local mirror object.

void refreshReference()

Detach the specified annotation from the object.void removeNote(IDfId annotationId)

Resolve an alias, returning its value. String resolveAlias(String scopeAlias)

Move the object from a suspended state to a normal state in its lifecycle.void resume(

String state,boolean toBase,boolean override,boolean fTestOnly)

Discard unsaved permission changes.void revertACL()

Remove all access control entries from this object for the specified user or group.

void revoke(String accessorName,String extendedPermission)

Create a copy of the object, optionally sharing content.IDfId saveAsNew(boolean shareContent)

Save the object, overwriting the copy in the Docbase. Keep the lock, and don’t change the version.

void saveLock()



Move the object from the specified lifecycle state to the associated exception state.

void suspend(String state,boolean override,boolean fTestOnly)

Unfreeze the object and, optionally, unfreeze its associated assembly.void unfreeze(boolean thawComponents)

Unlink the object from the specified folder or cabinet.void unlink(String folderSpec)

Remove one or more symbolic labels from an object.void unmark(String versionLabels)

Specify which ACL to use for the object (folder, user, type, or none).void useACL(String aclType)

IDfAcl

Create an access control entry in the object.void grant(

String accessorName,int accessorPermit,String extendedPermission)

Remove the access control entries or an extended permission for a user or group.

void revoke(String accessorName,String extendedPermission)


DFC Methods by TaskRetrieving and Setting Attributes

Retrieving and Setting Attributes

The following methods manipulate object attributes

IDfSession

Return a description of the attributes of an object type or registered table.String describe(

String type,String objType)

Return the data dictionary description of the specified type or attribute.IDfTypedObject getTypeDescription(

String typeName,String attribute,IDfId businessPolicyId,String state)

IDfTypedObject

Some of the methods of IDfTypedObject that deal with attributes have different versions for each of the allowed attribute types. In this section the notation MethodType represents a collection of methods, one for each of the following values of Type:

Boolean, Double, Id, Int, String, Time, Value

The associated argument or return type declarations, type, are:boolean, double, IDfId, int, String, IDfTime, IDfValue

For example, the notation appendType refers to the methods:appendBoolean, appendDouble, appendId, appendIntappendString, appendTime, appendValue

The declaration of the value parameter for each of these methods is:boolean value, double value, Id value, int valueString value, IDfTime value, IDfValue value

Add a new value to a repeating attribute.void appendType(

String attrName,type value)


DFC Methods by TaskRetrieving and Setting Attributes

Return the names and values of the object’s attributes.String dump()

Return the position of an attribute in the object’s indexed set of attributes.int findAttrIndex(String attrName)

Return the index of the first occurrence of the specified value in the specified repeating attribute.

int findType(String attrName,type value)

Return all the values of the specified repeating attribute, concatenated into a single string.

String getAllRepeatingStrings(String attrName,String separator)

Return the number of attributes the object has.int getAttrCount()

Return the specified attribute’s datatype, encoded as an integer.int getAttrDataType(String attrName)

See the IDfType Javadocs for the associated named constants.

Return the value of the specified attribute.type getType(String attrName)

Return the value at the specified index in the specified repeating attribute.type getRepeatingType(

String attrName,int valueIndex)

Return the number of values the specified attribute has (always 1 for a single-valued attribute).

int getValueCount(String attrName)

Insert a value into a the specified repeating attribute.void insertType(

String attrName,int valueIndex,type value)


DFC Methods by TaskSearching the Docbase

Return True if the specified attribute is repeating, false if it is single-valued. boolean isAttrRepeating(String attrName)

Remove the value at the specified index from the specified repeating attribute.void remove(

String attrName,int valueIndex)

Remove all values from the specified repeating attribute.void removeAll(String attrName)

Set the value of the specified attribute.void setType(

String attrName,type value)

void setRepeatingType(String attrName,int valueIndex,type value)

Remove all values with index greater than or equal to the specified index from the specified repeating attribute.

void truncate(String attrName,int valueIndex)

Searching the Docbase

The following methods execute, process, and close DQL queries.

IDfQuery

Execute a DQL query, and return the results as a collection.void setDQL(String dqlStatement)IDfCollection execute(

IDfSession session,int queryType)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Content Objects

IDfSession

Return the object (or its ID) that satisfies the search condition, which is the portion of a SELECT statement that begins with the keyword FROM.

IDfPersistentObject getObjectByQualification(String qualification)

IDfId getIdByQualification(String qualification)

Return the collection that resulted from the most recently executed query. IDfCollection getLastCollection()

IDfCollection

An IDfCollection object is like an SQL cursor (see “IDfCollection” on page 5-3). It represents an ordered set of objects of type IDfTypedObject. It has a current item. Applying a method of IDfTypedObject to the collection applies that method to the current item (see “Retrieving and Setting Attributes” on page 3-10).

Close the collection.void close()

Make the next item in the collection the current item.boolean next()

Handling Content Objects

The following methods manipulate content objects.

IDfSysObject

Add a rendition to the document, using the specified format and the contents of the specified file.

void addRendition(String fileName,String formatName)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Content Objects

void addRenditionEx(String fileName,String formatName,int pageNumber,String storageName,boolean atomic)

Append information in working memory as the last content file for the document (used in applications to append content to multipaged documents).

void appendContent(ByteArrayOutputStream content)

Append a content file to the document’s list of files.void appendFile(String fileName)

Bind a content object belonging to another document to this document at the specified page number. The content then belongs to both documents.

void bindFile(int pageNumber,IDfId srcId,int srcPageNumber)

Fetch the object’s contents into a byte array stream.ByteArrayInputStream getContent()ByteArrayInputStream getContentEx(

String format,int pageNum)

Fetch the specified content file from the Docbase, and return the file path at which the system places it.

String getFile(String fileName)String getFileEx(

String fileName,String formatName,int pageNumber,boolean getResource)

Insert content from a byte array stream into the document at the specified page. (Used by applications to insert data into multipaged documents.)

void insertContent(ByteArrayOutputStream content,int pageNumber)

Insert content from a file into the document.void insertFile(

String fileName,int pageNumber)


DFC Methods by TaskPrinting Documents

Remove content from the specified page of the object.void removeContent(int pageNumber)

Remove the specified rendition from the document, optionally saving the changes to the Docbase as part of the operation.

void removeRendition(String formatName)void removeRenditionEx(

String formatName,int pageNumber,boolean atomic)

Set data in working memory as new content or use it to replace content. (Used in applications to set the content of an object.)

boolean setContent(ByteArrayOutputStream content)

Identify a file to be new or replacement content for the object. void setFile(String fileName)void setFileEx(

String fileName,String formatName,int pageNumber,String otherFile)


Set the next position (byte range) for reading a content collection.apiExec("seek,session,collection,

position[,direction]")

Printing Documents

The following methods perform print operations.

IDfSysObject

Send a document to a printer.print(String printer,boolean printCover,boolean saveObject,int numCopies,


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Virtual Documents

int startingContentPage,int endingContentPage)


Show the print queue for a printer.apiGet("lpq,session[,printer]")IDfClient::

apiExec

Remove a print job from a print queue.apiExec("unprint,session

[,printer_name],job_id")

Handling Virtual Documents

The following methods manipulate the components of virtual documents.

IDfSysObject

Create an object of type IDfVirtualDocument representing the object.IDfVirtualDocument asVirtualDocument(

String lateBindingValue,boolean followRootAssembly)

Add a new component as the last component the virtual document.IDfId appendPart(

IDfId componentId,String versionLabel,boolean useNodeVerLabel,boolean followAssembly,int copyChild)

DFC recognizes a sequential ordering of the components of a virtual document.


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Virtual Documents

Create an assembly and associate it with the object. IDfCollection assemble(

IDfId virtualDocId,int interruptFreq,String qualification,String nodesortList)

Destroy the object’s assembly. void disassemble()

Mark the object and all components of its assembly as unchangeable. void freeze(boolean freezeComponents)

Insert the specified component at the specified position among the virtual document’s components.

IDfId insertPart(IDfId componentID,String versionLabel,IDfId beforeContainmentId,double orderNo,boolean orderNoFlag,boolean useNodeVerLabel,boolean followAssembly,int copyChild)

Remove the specified component from the object.void removePart(

IDfId containmentId,double orderNo,boolean orderNoFlag)

Force the server to treat the object as a virtual document, even though it may have no components.

void setIsVirtualDocument(boolean treatAsVirtual )

Unfreeze the object and, optionally, its assembly.void unfreeze(boolean thawComponents)

Modify the specified component of the object. void updatePart(

IDfId containmentId,String versionLabel,double orderNo,boolean userNodeVerLabel,boolean followAssembly,int copyChild)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Workflows

IDfVirtualDocument

The IDfVirtualDocument interface provides methods for manipulating virtual documents. Refer to the Javadocs for details.


Return paths to a component in one or more virtual documents. This method provides faster performance than Vdmpathdql but less flexibility in choosing the paths.

apiGet("vdmpath,session,component_id[,root_id][,shortest_path]{,version_list}")

IDfClient::apiGet

Return paths to a component in one or more virtual documents. This method provides more flexibility in choosing the paths but slower performance.

apiGet("vdmpathdql,session,component_id[,root_id][,shortest_path][,type][,binding_condition][,nodesort_by]")

Handling Workflows

Most of the following methods manage running workflows.

IDfSession

Create and start a custom workflow. IDfId sendToDistributionList(

IDfList toUsers,IDfList toGroups,String instructions,IDfList objectIDs,int priority,boolean endNotification)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Workflows

IDfWorkflow

Abort the workflow. void abort()

Attach a package to the specified start activity of the workflow.IDfId addPackage(

String startActivityName,String inputPortName,String packageName,String packageType,String noteText,boolean notePersistent,IDfList componentIds)

Start the workflow.void execute()

Halt the specified activity of the workflow.void halt(int activitySeqNo)

Halt the workflow.void haltAll()

Notify the workflow about the specified event.IDfId queue(

String supervisor,int eventType,int priority,boolean sendMail,IDfTime dueDate,String message)

Remove a package from the specified start activity of the workflow.. void removePackage(

String startActivityName,String portName,String packageName)

Restart the halted workflow or specified failed activity.void restart(int activitySeqNo)

Resume a halted activity of the workflow.void resume(int activitySeqNo)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Workflow Process Definitions

Resume the halted workflow.void resumeAll()

Handling Workflow Process Definitions

The following methods help you create and manage workflow process definitions.

IDfProcess

Add an activity to a process definition.void addActivity(

String actName,IDfId actId,String actType,int actPriority)

Create a link to connect the specified output port of the specified source activity to the specified input port of the specified destination activity (all ports and activities are already part of the process definition).

void addLink(String linkName,String linkSrcActivity,String linkSrcPortName,String linkDestActivity,String linkDstPortName)

Install the validated process definition and, if necessary, its activities. Specify whether to resume or to abort workflows that are based on this definition.

void install(boolean installActivity,boolean resume)

Remove the specified activity from the process definition.void removeActivity(String actName)

Remove the specified link from the process definition.void removeLink(String linkName)

Move the installed process definition back to the validated state.void uninstall()


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Workflow Activity Definitions

Validate the process definition.void validate()

Handling Workflow Activity Definitions

The following methods help you define and manage process activities.

IDfActivity

Add the specified package to the specified port of the activity definition.void addPackageInfo(

String portName,String packageName,String packageType,IDfId packageId,String packageLabel,String packageOperation)

Add the specified port to the activity definition.void addPort(

String portName,String portType)

Add the specified route case (a conditional selection of a set of destination ports—like a line in a case statement) to the activity definition.

void addRouteCase(String routeCaseIdentifier,String condition,IDfList outputPorts)

Install the validated activity definition.void install()

Remove the specified package from the specified port of the activity definition.

void removePackageInfo(String portName,String packageName)

Remove the specified port from the activity definition.void removePort(String portName)


DFC Methods by TaskHandling Workflow Work Items

Remove the specified route case from the activity.void removeRouteCase(String routeCaseIdentifier)

Uninstall the validated activity definition.void uninstall()

Validate the package definitions associated with the activity definition.void validate()

Handling Workflow Work Items

The following methods manage work items.

IDfWorkitem

Acquire the work item for the performer.void acquire()

Attach the specified package to the work item.IDfId addPackage(

String packageName,String packageType,IDfList componentIds)

Mark the work item as finished. If desired, return additional information.void complete()void completeEx(

int returnValue,String execOSError,IDfId execResultId)

Delegate the work item to the specified user.void delegateTask(String user)

Suspend the work item.void pause()

Remove the specified package from the work item.void removePackage(String packageName)


DFC Methods by TaskManaging Inboxes

Designate a list of additional users or groups to receive the work item when the performer finishes it.

void repeat(IDfList list)

Move the paused work item to the dormant state.void resume()

Managing Inboxes

The following methods manage inboxes (user queues).

IDfSession

Remove the specified item from the user’s queue.void dequeue(IDfId stampId)

Return the collection of unread items in the user’s queue.IDfCollection getEvents()

Return True if there are unread items in the user’s queue.boolean hasEvents()

IDfSysObject

Register the user to receive notification if the specified event happens to the object.

void registerEvent(String message,String event,int priority,boolean sendMail)

Remove the specified event registration from the object.void unRegisterEvent(String event)


DFC Methods by TaskManaging Inboxes


4
Managing DFC Sessions 4
This chapter describes the way to work with DFC sessions and a Docbase map. The examples in it are based on the classes DfExSession and DfExDocbaseMap, which are available in Java and Visual Basic versions from www.documentum.com/developer/samplecode.htm.

The chapter contains the following main sections:

■ “About Sessions” on page 4-1

■ “Connecting and Disconnecting” on page 4-2

■ “Using a Docbase Map” on page 4-6

About Sessions

In order to use DFC, you must provide login information and establish a DFC session with a Documentum server. The following section, “Connecting and Disconnecting” on page 4-2, shows how to do this.

The DFC client (see “Creating DFC Client Objects” on page 1-8) issues server commands and accesses data via the session. Table 4-1 describes the types of DFC sessions.

Table 4-1 DFC Session Types

Type Description DFC Method

Shared Can be shared across components getSharedSession

Private Used by only one component newSession

Adopted DMCL session used as a DFC session adoptDMCLSession



Managing DFC SessionsConnecting and Disconnecting

Shared Sessions

If you ask for a shared session, DFC returns an existing one or creates a new one for you. Using shared sessions decreases the number of sessions you must connect and disconnect yourself.

To establish a shared session, you must specify a session key. For security reasons, there is no DFC method to retrieve this key, so you must save it if you need to use it again. To use a specific shared session, you must know its key.

Adopted Sessions

To create an adopted session, DFC uses the ID of an existing DMCL session, that is, a session established by a direct call to the connect method. When migrating pre-DFC customizations, you may find adopted sessions convenient. Otherwise, Documentum recommends establishing sessions through DFC.

To prevent synchronization problems, DFC allows a DMCL session to be adopted only once. Adopted sessions cannot be shared.

Note: You cannot disconnect an adopted session through DFC. After you unadopt an adopted session with the DFC unadopt method, you must use the disconnect server API to disconnect the underlying DMCL session.

Connecting and Disconnecting

As explained in “Programming with DFC” on page 1-2, the IDfClient interface provides the programmer’s gateway into DFC. It handles basic connection details and loads the necessary shared libraries.

You obtain the initial IDfClient interface by calling the static method DfClient.getLocalClient. The IDfClient interface then serves as a factory for IDfSession objects.

In order to create a session to a Docbase, you must provide login information. The examples in DfExSession contain code to obtain this information from the user. The examples in this chapter suppress the user interaction and error checking. For example, the line

li.setUser(DfExUtils.gUsername);



in the Java version and the line li.setUser DfExMainForm.txtUsername.Text

in the Visual Basic version both assume that the corresponding mechanism returns a valid user name.

The code that establishes the session is sess = client.newSession(docbase, li);

in the Java version andSet sess = client.newSession (DfExMainForm.cbxDocbase.Text, li)

in the Visual Basic version. In either case, the call can produce a DfException. The Java code uses a try block followed by a catch statement to handle this exception. The visual Basic code uses an On Error statement and an error handling section to accomplish the same thing.

connectToDocbase in Java

//Connect to the Docbase.IDfSession connectToDocbase() throws IOException { IDfSession sess = null; String docbase = null;

try { //Get local client object that calls into DMCL40 to connect //to Documentum servers - this is the entrance to DFC IDfClient client = DfClient.getLocalClient();

//Set up login credentials. IDfLoginInfo li = new DfLoginInfo();

//Assume user has entered user name, password, //and Docbase via DfExUtils li.setUser(DfExUtils.gUsername); li.setPassword(DfExUtils.gPassword); docbase = DfExUtils.gDocbase; //Connect to docbase sess = client.newSession(docbase, li); if(sess.isConnected()) { System.out.println("\nConnected"); } } catch(DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString()); } return sess;}



disconnectFromDocbase in Java

boolean disconnectFromDocbase(IDfSession sess) { boolean retVal = false; try { if(sess.isConnected()) { //If session is connected sess.disconnect(); // Disconnect if(!sess.isConnected()) { // If disconnect succeeded retVal = true; // Report success } else { // If disconnect failed //ERROR ACTION // Take error action } } else { //If session not connected //ERROR ACTION // Take error action } } catch(DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString()); } return retVal;}

displaySessionInfo in Java

//Display details about the active session.void displaySessionInfo(IDfSession s) { try { System.out.println("\nDocbase : " + s.getDocbaseName()); System.out.println("Srvr Vers : " + s.getServerVersion()); System.out.println("DBMS : " + s.getDBMSName()); System.out.println("Owner : " + s.getDocbaseOwnerName()); System.out.println("Sess Id : " + s.getSessionId()); System.out.println("DMCL Sess Id: " + s.getDMCLSessionId()); System.out.println("Docbase Id : " + s.getDocbaseId()); System.out.println("Scope : " + s.getDocbaseScope()); System.out.println("User : " + s.getLoginUserName()); System.out.println("Login Ticket: " + s.getLoginTicket()); System.out.println("Security : " + s.getSecurityMode()); } catch(DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

connectToDocbase in Visual Basic

Function connectToDocbase(sess As IDfSession) As IDfSession Dim clientx As New DfClientX Dim client As IDfClient Dim li As IDfLoginInfo On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

Set connectToDocbase = Nothing If sess Is Nothing Then Set client = clientx.getLocalClient 'Get client object Set li = clientx.getLoginInfo 'Get login info object li.setUser DfExMainForm.txtUsername.Text 'Assume username, li.setPassword DfExMainForm.txtPassword.Text 'password,domain,



li.setDomain DfExMainForm.txtDomain.Text 'and Docbase 'from DfExMainForm 'Establish the session Set sess = client.newSession(DfExMainForm.cbxDocbase.Text, li) End If Set connectToDocbase = sess Exit FunctionErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Function

disconnectFromDocbase in Visual Basic

Function disconnectFromDocbase(sess As IDfSession) As Boolean Dim retVal As Boolean On Error GoTo ErrorHandler disconnectFromDocbase = retVal If sess.isConnected Then 'If session is connected sess.disconnect ' Disconnect If Not sess.isConnected Then ' If disconnect succeeded retVal = True ' Report success Set sess = Nothing Else ' If disconnect failed 'ERROR ACTION ' Take error action End If Else 'If session not connected 'ERROR ACTION ' Take error action End If disconnectFromDocbase = retVal Exit FunctionErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Function

displaySessionInfo in Visual Basic

Sub displaySessionInfo(sess As IDfSession) On Error GoTo ErrorHandler writeDiagnostic "Docbase: " + sess.getDocbaseName(), False writeDiagnostic "Server Version: " + sess.getServerVersion(), False writeDiagnostic "DBMS: " + sess.getDBMSName(), False writeDiagnostic "Owner: " + sess.getDocbaseOwnerName(), False writeDiagnostic "Session: " + sess.getSessionId(), False writeDiagnostic "DMCL Session: " + sess.getDMCLSessionId(), False writeDiagnostic "Docbase Id: " + sess.getDocbaseId(), False writeDiagnostic "Docbase Scope: " + sess.getDocbaseScope(), False writeDiagnostic "Current User: " + sess.getLoginUserName(), False writeDiagnostic "Login Ticket: " + sess.getLoginTicket(), False writeDiagnostic "Security Mode: " + sess.getSecurityMode(), False Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub


Managing DFC SessionsUsing a Docbase Map

Using a Docbase Map

The Documentum system uses intermediaries called docbrokers to help client programs connect to Docbases. Each Docbase projects (that is, sends its address and identifying information) to one or more docbrokers. A client program connects to a docbroker, after which it can communicate with any Docbase that projects to that docbroker.

displayDocbaseInfo in Java

void displayDocbaseInfo(IDfDocbaseMap m, int idx){ try { System.out.println("Docbase: " + m.getDocbaseName(idx)); System.out.println("Descrip: " + m.getDocbaseDescription(idx)); System.out.println("Id : " + m.getDocbaseId(idx)); System.out.println("Server : " + m.getServerVersion(idx)); } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

connectToDocbase(map, index) in Java

void connectToDocbase(IDfDocbaseMap m, int idx)throws IOException { try { DfExSession exSess = new DfExSession(); //Create session object DfExUtils.gDocbase = m.getDocbaseName(idx); //Connect IDfSession sess = exSess.connectToDocbase(); if (sess != null) { System.out.println("\nConnected: " + m.getDocbaseName(idx)); DfExUtils.getInput("\nRETURN to continue..."); exSess.disconnectFromDocbase(sess); //Disconnect } } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

Step through Docbases in Java

static void main (String argv[]) throws IOException { DfExDocbaseMap exDbMap = new DfExDocbaseMap(); try { // Get a DFC local client object IDfClient client = DfClient.getLocalClient(); IDfDocbaseMap m = client.getDocbaseMap(); System.out.println("\nHost: " + m.getHostName() + "\n");



for (int i = 0; i < m.getDocbaseCount(); i++) { exDbMap.displayDocbaseInfo(m, i); // Display details exDbMap.connectToDocbase(m, i); } } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

displayDocbaseInfo in Visual Basic

Sub displayDocbaseInfo(m As IDfDocbaseMap, idx As Integer) On Error GoTo ErrorHandler writeDiagnostic "Name : " + m.getDocbaseName(idx), False writeDiagnostic "Descrip: " + m.getDocbaseDescription(idx), False writeDiagnostic "Id : " + m.getDocbaseId(idx), False writeDiagnostic "Server : " + m.getServerVersion(idx), False Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub

connectToDocbase(name) in Visual Basic

Sub connectToDocbase(docbaseName As String) On Error GoTo ErrorHandler Dim sess As IDfSession Dim exSess As New DfExSession 'Instantiate session obj

DfExMainForm.cbxDocbase.Text = docbaseName Set sess = exSess.connectToDocbase(sess) 'Connect to Docbase If Not sess Is Nothing Then writeDiagnostic "Connected to: " + docbaseName, False exSess.displaySessionInfo sess 'Display session details exSess.disconnectFromDocbase sess 'Disconnect End If Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub


5
Managing Docbase Queries with DFC 5
This chapter describes the way to use DFC to create and perform queries and to process the results. The examples in it are based on the class DfExSimpleQuery, which is available in Java and Visual Basic versions on www.documentum.com/developer/samplecode.htm.

You can find out more about queries by examining the DfExFullTextQuery class. This manual does not contain examples from that class.

Queries

DFC provides an easy-to-use mechanism for querying the Docbase and processing the query results. You use a query object to submit the query, and receive the results in a collection object.

Flow of Query Processing

The general flow of query processing is as follows.

➤ To query the Docbase and process the results:

1. Obtain an IDfClient interface by calling DfClient.getLocalClient.

2. Create a session, sess, by calling newSession or getSharedSession on the IDfClient object.

3. Obtain an IDfQuery object, q:

■ For Java-based DFC programs, call new DfQuery.

■ For Visual Basic and C++ programs, call the getQuery method of IDfClientX.



Managing Docbase Queries with DFCQueries

4. Create a DQL query as a text string, dq.

5. Call q.setDQL(dq) to set the DQL string into the query object.

6. Call q.execute(sess, querytype) to execute the query.

The arguments of the execute method include a session reference, because the query is not tied to the session, and a code for the type of query to execute.

The method returns an IDfCollection, col. The session remains locked until the execute method returns.

7. Iterate through the IDfCollection by calling col.next() until it returns False.

Obtain values from an IDfCollection by calling the various get methods of IDfTypedObject (the parent type of IDfCollection).

For example, if you know that attribute 0 of the object at the current row of the collection is a string, the following code prints it:

IDfAttr attr = col.getAttr(0)System.out.println(typedObj.getString(attr.getName()))

If you don’t know that the attribute is a string, you can find out what it is by calling

attr.getDataType()

and changing the second line above according to what getDataType returns.

8. Close the IDfCollection and IDfSession objects.

IDfQuery has no close method, because a query object is not tied to a session.

Note: the number of sessions available to an application is limited. If you do not close them, you make it more likely that you will exhaust the supply.

Be careful to close open collections and sessions even in the event of an exception. The best place for a Java program to call close is in a finally block, because Java executes a finally block whether there is an exception or not.

IDfQuery

An IDfQuery object holds a DQL query string and allows you to perform that query in any session. You pass the session and the query to the execute method, and it returns results as an IDfCollection object.


Managing Docbase Queries with DFCBasic Query Examples

IDfCollection

An IDfCollection object is like an SQL cursor. It contains references to the objects that the query returns, in an ordered sequence of rows. The collection points to one row of data at a time. You must call next before accessing the first row (if the collection is empty, the first call to next returns False).

Note: An IDfCollection is a typed object. You access the current row’s data by calling the IDfTypedObject methods getBoolean, getInt, getString, and so forth, as if the collection were the same as its current row. You should not, and do not need, to call the collection’s getTypedObject method unless you want to save the current row for later use (compare the code in Step 7 on page 5-2, which does not call getTypedObject, with the code in “displayResults in Visual Basic” on page 5-4, which does call getTypedObject).

Basic Query Examples

execQuery in Visual Basic

Function execQuery( sess As IDfSession, 'Session queryString As String) 'Query string As IDfCollection 'Return a collection

Dim clientx As New DfClientX Dim col As IDfCollection Dim q As IDfQuery On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

Set execQuery = Nothing 'Initialize return value

Set q = clientx.getQuery 'Create query object q.setDQL queryString 'Give it the query string

Set col = q.execute(sess, 'Execute the query and get DFCLib.IDfQuery_DF_READ_QUERY) ' back a collection

Set execQuery = col 'Set the return value Exit Function

ErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Function



displayResults in Visual Basic

'Step through a collectionSub displayResults(col As IDfCollection)

Dim resItems As Integer Dim attr As IDfAttr Dim tObj As IDfTypedObject Dim msg As String On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

resItems = 0 'Count rows While (col.Next()) 'Step thru rows Set tObj = col.getTypedObject resItems = resItems + 1 writeDiagnostic "\nRow: " + CStr(resItems), False 'Display row num For i = 0 To (tObj.getAttrCount() - 1) 'For each attribute Set attr = tObj.GetAttr(i) msg = attr.getName() + ": " ' Display name If attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_BOOLEAN Then ' Display value writeDiagnostic msg + ' using method CStr(tObj.getBoolean(attr.getName)), False ' for its type ElseIf attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_DOUBLE Then writeDiagnostic msg + CStr(tObj.getDouble(attr.getName())), False ElseIf attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_ID Then writeDiagnostic msg + tObj.getId(attr.getName()).getId, False ElseIf attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_INTEGER Then writeDiagnostic msg + CStr(tObj.getInt(attr.getName())), False ElseIf attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_STRING Then writeDiagnostic msg + tObj.getString(attr.getName()), False ElseIf attr.getDataType = DFCLib.DF_TIME Then writeDiagnostic msg + tObj.getTime(attr.getName()).toString(), False Else 'Unknown type 'ERROR ACTION ' Handle error End If Next i Wend

col.Close Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub



execQuery in Java

IDfCollection execQuery(IDfSession sess, String queryString){ IDfCollection col = null; //For the result try { IDfQuery q = new DfQuery(); //Create query object q.setDQL(queryString); //Give it the query col = q.execute(sess, DfQuery.DF_READ_QUERY); //Execute synchronously } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString()); } return col;}

displayResults in Java

//Step through a collection and display resultsvoid displayResults(IDfCollection col) throws IOException{ try { int resItems = 1; //Count rows while (col.next()) { System.out.println("\nResult row: " + resItems++); //Display row num for (int i = 0; i < col.getAttrCount(); i++) { //For attribute IDfAttr attr = col.getAttr(i); System.out.print("\t" + attr.getName() + ": "); // Display name if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_BOOLEAN) { // Display value System.out.println( // using method col.getBoolean(attr.getName())); // for its type } else if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_DOUBLE) { System.out.println( col.getDouble(attr.getName())); } else if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_ID) { System.out.println( col.getId(attr.getName()).toString()); } else if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_INTEGER) { System.out.println( col.getInt(attr.getName())); } else if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_STRING) { System.out.println( col.getString(attr.getName())); } else if (attr.getDataType() == attr.DM_TIME) { System.out.println( col.getTime(attr.getName()).toString()); } else { //Unknown type //ERROR ACTION // Handle error } } } col.close(); //Close collection } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }


6
Automating Business Rules with DFC 6
This chapter describes the way to work with Documentum features that help you automate your business rules. The examples in it are based on the classes DfExSimpleValidation andDfExACL, which are available in Java and Visual Basic versions at www.documentum.com/developer/samplecode.htm.

Documentum provides other ways to automate business rules (for example workflows and document lifecycles). The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual describes those facilities. This manual does not contain examples of using DFC to work with workflows and document lifecycles.

This chapter contains the following main sections:

■ “Checking Objects Against Validation Rules” on page 6-1

■ “Changing Permissions” on page 6-2

■ “Using Private ACLs” on page 6-5

■ “ACL Utility Methods” on page 6-7

Checking Objects Against Validation Rules

validate in Java

// Perform validationvoid validate( IDfSession sess, //Session String objIdStr, //ID of the object to validate String attrName) //Attribute to validate (null or "" = perform both // object level and attribute level validation)throws DfValidationException, IOException{ try { IDfId objId = new DfId(objIdStr); IDfPersistentObject perObj = sess.getObject(objId);



Automating Business Rules with DFCChanging Permissions

IDfValidator validator = perObj.getValidator(); IDfType type = perObj.getType();

if (attrName == null || attrName.equals("")) { validator.validateAll(null, false); } else { if (type.findTypeAttrIndex(attrName) < 0) { //ERROR ACTION return; } // validate the value of the specific attribute validator.validateAttrRules(attrName, null, null); } } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString()); } }

Changing Permissions

changeBasicPermissions in Visual Basic

'Change and display object permissionsSub changeBasicPermissions( sess As IDfSession, 'Session objId As String, 'ID of obj for which to change permissions anotherUser As String) 'A user to whom to assign permissions

Dim clientx As New DfClientX Dim sysObjId As IDfId Dim sysObj As IDfSysObject Dim pObj As IDfPersistentObject

On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

'Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object Set sysObjId = clientx.getId(objId) Set sysObj = sess.GetObject(sysObjId)

displayBasicPermissions sysObj 'Display the object's permissions

sysObj.grant anotherUser, 6, "" 'Grant the user and dm_world sysObj.grant "dm_world", 6, "" ' WRITE permission

Set pObj = sysObj 'Make the object persistent pObj.save ' then save it

displayBasicPermissions sysObj 'Display the object's permission

sysObj.revoke anotherUser, "" 'Revoke the user's permissions sysObj.grant "dm_world", 3, "" 'Grant dm_world READ permission


displayBasicPermissions sysObj 'Display the object's permission



Set sysObjId = Nothing 'Free memory Set sysObj = Nothing

Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub

changeExtendedPermissions in Visual Basic

'Change and display extended object permissionsSub changeExtendedPermissions( sess As IDfSession, 'Session objId As String, 'ID of obj for which to change permissions anotherUser As String) 'A user to whom to assign permissions

Dim clientx As New DfClientX Dim sysObjId As IDfId Dim sysObj As IDfSysObject Dim pObj As IDfPersistentObject On Error GoTo ErrorHandler 'Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object Set sysObjId = clientx.getId(objId) Set sysObj = sess.GetObject(sysObjId)

displayExtendedPermissions sysObj 'Display the ext permissions

sysObj.grant anotherUser, 6, "CHANGE_STATE" 'Grant WRITE and CHANGE_STATE



sysObj.revoke anotherUser, "CHANGE_STATE" sysObj.revoke anotherUser, ""



Set sysObjId = Nothing 'Free memory Set sysObj = Nothing


changeBasicPermissions in Java

//Change and display object permissionsvoid changeBasicPermissions( IDfSession sess, //Session



String objId, //ID of obj for which to change permissions String anotherUser) //A user to whom to assign permissionsthrows IOException { try { //Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object IDfId sysObjId = new DfId(objId); IDfSysObject sysObj = (IDfSysObject)sess.getObject(sysObjId);

displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display the object's permissions

//Grant the user and dm_world WRITE permission sysObj.grant( anotherUser, 6, ""); sysObj.grant("dm_world", 6, "");

sysObj.save(); //Save the object displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display the object's permissions

//Revoke the user's permissions and grant dm_world READ permission sysObj.revoke(anotherUser, ""); sysObj.grant ("dm_world", 3, "");

sysObj.save(); //Save the object displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display the object's permissions

} catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

changeExtendedPermissions in Java

//Change and display extended object permissionsvoid changeExtendedPermissions( IDfSession sess, //Session String objId, //ID of obj for which to change permissions String anotherUser) //A user to whom to assign permissionsthrows IOException { try { //Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object IDfId sysObjId = new DfId(objId); IDfSysObject sysObj = (IDfSysObject)sess.getObject(sysObjId);

displayExtendedPermissions(sysObj); //Display the ext permissions

//Grant the user WRITE and CHANGE_STATE permissions sysObj.grant(anotherUser, 6, "CHANGE_STATE"); sysObj.save(); //Save the object displayExtendedPermissions(sysObj); //Display the ext permissions

sysObj.revoke(anotherUser, "CHANGE_STATE"); //Revoke user's CHANGE_STATE sysObj.revoke(anotherUser, ""); //Revoke user's basic perms

sysObj.save(); //Save the object displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display the ext permissions



Automating Business Rules with DFCUsing Private ACLs

Using Private ACLs

privateACLs in Visual Basic

'Create a private ACL and apply it to an objectSub privateACLs( sess As IDfSession, 'Session objId As String, 'Object with which to associate the ACL permission As String, 'Permission to grant world and owner extPermission As String, 'Ext permissions to grant world and owner aclName As String) 'Name of ACL to create

Dim clientx As New DfClientX Dim sysObjId As IDfId Dim sysObj As IDfSysObject Dim pObj As IDfPersistentObject Dim oldACL As IDfACL Dim newACL As IDfACL On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

'Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object Set sysObjId = clientx.getId(objId) Set sysObj = sess.GetObject(sysObjId)

'Create a new ACL object and give it the specified name Set pObj = sess.newObject("dm_acl") pObj.apiSet "set", "object_name", aclName

'Grant the specifiedpermissions to owner and world pObj.apiExec "grant", "dm_owner," + permission + "," + extPermission pObj.apiExec "grant", "dm_world," + permission + "," + extPermission

pObj.save 'Save the new private ACL Set oldACL = sysObj.getACL 'Save the object's current ACL

'Instantiate an instance of the new private ACL Set newACL = sess.getACL(sess.getLoginUserName(), aclName)

sysObj.setACL newACL 'Apply new ACL to the sysobject Set pObj = sysObj 'Use persistent obj interface to pObj.save ' save it with its new ACL

displayBasicPermissions sysObj 'Display the new permissions displayExtendedPermissions sysObj

sysObj.setACL oldACL 'Apply old ACL to the sysobject pObj.save 'Save it (pObj & sysObj are the same)

displayBasicPermissions sysObj 'Display restored permissions displayExtendedPermissions sysObj

Set sysObj = Nothing 'Free memory Set sysObjId = Nothing Set oldACL = Nothing Set newACL = Nothing

Exit SubErrorHandler:


Automating Business Rules with DFCUsing Private ACLs

writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub

privateACLs in Java

//Create a private ACL and apply it to an objectvoid privateACLs( IDfSession sess, //Session String objId //Object with which to associate the ACL String permission, //Permission to grant to world and owner String extPermission, //Ext permissions to grant world and owner String aclName //Name of ACL to create) throws IOException { try { //Use ID string to obtain the ID, then the object IDfId sysObjId = new DfId(objId); IDfSysObject sysObj = (IDfSysObject)sess.getObject(sysObjId);

//Create a new ACL object and give it the specified name IDfPersistentObject pObj = (IDfPersistentObject)sess.newObject("dm_acl"); pObj.apiSet("set", "object_name", aclName);

//Grant the specified permissions to owner and world pObj.apiExec("grant", "dm_owner," + permission + "," + extPermission); pObj.apiExec("grant", "dm_world," + permission + "," + extPermission);

pObj.save(); //Save the new private ACL IDfACL oldACL = sysObj.getACL(); //Save the object's current ACL

// Instantiate an instance of the new private ACL IDfACL newACL = sess.getACL(sess.getLoginUserName(), aclName);

sysObj.setACL(newACL); //Apply new ACL to the sysobject sysObj.save(); //Save sysobject with its new ACL

displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display new permissions displayExtendedPermissions(sysObj);

sysObj.setACL(oldACL); //Apply old ACL to the sysobject sysObj.save(); //Save sysobj with restored ACL

displayBasicPermissions(sysObj); //Display restored permissions displayExtendedPermissions(sysObj);



Automating Business Rules with DFCACL Utility Methods

ACL Utility Methods

permissionToString in Visual Basic

'Convert permission code to nameFunction permissionToString(permission As String) As String


If permission = "1" Then permissionToString = "NONE" ElseIf permission = "2" Then permissionToString = "BROWSE" ElseIf permission = "3" Then permissionToString = "READ" ElseIf permission = "4" Then permissionToString = "NOTE" ElseIf permission = "5" Then permissionToString = "VERSION" ElseIf permission = "6" Then permissionToString = "WRITE" ElseIf permission = "7" Then permissionToString = "DELETE" End If

Exit FunctionErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Function

extendedPermissionToString in Visual Basic

'Convert extended permission code to nameFunction extendedPermissionToString(permission As String) As String On Error GoTo ErrorHandler If permission = "1" Then extendedPermissionToString = "CHANGE_STATE" ElseIf permission = "2" Then extendedPermissionToString = "CHANGE_PERMIT" ElseIf permission = "3" Then extendedPermissionToString = "CHANGE_OWNER" ElseIf permission = "4" Then extendedPermissionToString = "EXECUTE_PROC" ElseIf permission = "5" Then extendedPermissionToString = "CHANGE_LOCATION" End If Exit FunctionErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Function

displayBasicPermissions in Visual Basic

'Display object permissionsSub displayBasicPermissions(sysObj As IDfSysObject)


writeDiagnostic " ACL Name: " + sysObj.getACLName, False 'ACL name



For i = 0 To (sysObj.getAccessorCount - 1) 'For each accessor writeDiagnostic " Accessor: " + ' Name sysObj.getAccessorName(i) + " Permission: " + ' Permission permissionToString(sysObj.getAccessorPermit(i)), False Next i


displayExtendedPermissions in Visual Basic

'Display the object's extended permissionsSub displayExtendedPermissions(sysObj As IDfSysObject) On Error GoTo ErrorHandler writeDiagnostic " ACL Name: " + sysObj.getACLName, False 'ACL name For i = 0 To (sysObj.getAccessorCount - 1) 'For each accessor writeDiagnostic " Accessor: " + sysObj.getAccessorName(i) + ' Name " Extended Permissions: " + sysObj.getAccessorXPermitNames(i), False ' Extended permissions Next i Exit SubErrorHandler: writeDiagnostic Err.Description, FalseEnd Sub

permissionToString in Java

//Convert permission code to nameString permissionToString(String permission){ String retVal = null;

if (permission.equals("1")) retVal = "NONE"; else if (permission.equals("2")) retVal = "BROWSE"; else if (permission.equals("3")) retVal = "READ"; else if (permission.equals("4")) retVal = "NOTE"; else if (permission.equals("5")) retVal = "VERSION"; else if (permission.equals("6")) retVal = "WRITE"; else if (permission.equals("7")) retVal = "DELETE";

return retVal;}



extendedPermissionToString in Java

//Convert extended permission code to nameString extendedPermissionToString(String permission){ String retVal = null;

if (permission.equals("1")) retVal = "CHANGE_STATE"; else if (permission.equals("2")) retVal = "CHANGE_PERMIT"; else if (permission.equals("3")) retVal = "CHANGE_OWNER"; else if (permission.equals("4")) retVal = "EXECUTE_PROC"; else if (permission.equals("5")) retVal = "CHANGE_LOCATION";

return retVal;}

displayBasicPermissions in Java

//Display object permissionsvoid displayBasicPermissions(IDfSysObject sysObj){ try { System.out.println( "\tACL Name: " + //ACL name sysObj.getACLName());

for (int i = 0; i < sysObj.getAccessorCount(); i++) { //For each accessor System.out.println( "\tAccessor: " + //Name sysObj.getAccessorName(i) + " Permission: " + //Permission permissionToString(sysObj.getAccessorPermit(i))); } } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }

displayExtendedPermissions in Java

//Display the object's extended permissionsvoid displayExtendedPermissions(IDfSysObject sysObj){ try { System.out.println( "\tACL Name: " + sysObj.getACLName()); //ACL name

for (int i = 0; i < sysObj.getAccessorCount(); i++) { //For each accessor System.out.println( "\tAccessor: " + sysObj.getAccessorName(i) + // Name " Extended Permissions: " + sysObj.getAccessorXPermitNames(i)); // Ext permissions } } catch (DfException dfe) { System.out.println("\n" + dfe.toString());} }


7
Overview of the DFC Interface Hierarchy 7
This chapter moves through the DFC interfaces that derive from the Documentum object type hierarchy, starting from the top. It contains the following major sections:

■ “Documentum Object Hierarchy” on page 7-1

■ “Typed Objects” on page 7-8

■ “Persistent Objects” on page 7-12

■ “Persistent Objects Without Associated Content” on page 7-16

■ “SysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content” on page 7-20

■ “IDfSession” on page 7-22

■ “IDfClient” on page 7-27

■ “Common Package” on page 7-30

Documentum Object Hierarchy

Everything you manipulate in Documentum is an object. Documents, cabinets, folders, and even users are objects. Objects have associated characteristics called attributes (or properties), and associated operations called methods. Each object has a type, which is a template for objects of that kind. All objects of a given type have the same sets of attributes and methods.

When the server creates an object, it uses the type description as a model. For example, document objects belong to the dm_document type. When you create a new document, the server uses the dm_document type description to create the new document object. The names of all system-defined type names begin with the prefix dm_.


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyDocumentum Object Hierarchy

Attributes are fields that are part of the object. The values in these fields describe the object. For example, two of the attributes for a document object are title and subject. When you create a document, you provide a title and subject that are specific to that document. Attributes are either single-valued or multi-valued (repeating). Some are read only and some can be read or written.

Using DFC, you operate on objects through interfaces that represent the object. Because the Documentum model and DFC are both object-oriented, a large part of the DFC structure corresponds directly to the Documentum object type structure. DFC provides interfaces corresponding to most system-defined object types. The interface has separate set and get methods for each of the type’s attributes, and it has methods that pertain to objects of that type. You read or change the attribute values via the get and set methods, and you operate on the object through the interface’s methods.

By the conventions of object-oriented programming, a method without arguments performs the corresponding operation on its associated object. For example, the statement

document.save();

appears in the example on page 1-4. It tells the document object to apply its save method to itself, that is, to save the document in the Docbase. Methods that operate on other objects take references to those objects as arguments.

Subtypes and Supertypes

Documentum object types exist in a hierarchy. A supertype is an object type that is the basis for another object type, called a subtype. The subtype inherits the attributes of the supertype. The subtype can also have additional attributes of its own. Within the hierarchy, an object type can be a supertype, a subtype, both, or neither.

For example, the dm_folder type is a subtype of dm_sysobject. It has all the attributes defined for dm_sysobject plus two defined specifically for dm_folder. A type can be both a supertype and a subtype. For example, dm_folder is a subtype of dm_sysobject and a supertype of dm_cabinet.

Documentum lets you create your own object types. You can create a type with no supertype, defining all of its attributes yourself, or you can create a subtype of any of the following types:

■ dm_sysobject and its subtypes



■ dm_user and its subtypes

■ dm_relation

■ User-defined types

Persistence

Most objects the server manipulates are persistent, that is, they reside in the Docbase and persist across sessions. A document you create and save in one session is still there in another session on another day.

Some objects are not persistent, that is, they do not reside in the Docbase. The server creates them as needed at runtime. For example, collection objects and query result objects, which return the results of DQL statements, are not persistent. When the server executes a DQL query it creates a collection object to contain the results of the query. It creates a query result object for each row that the underlying database returns for the underlying SELECT statement, and it associates the query result objects with the collection object. When you close a collection, the server destroys the collection object and the query result objects.

DFC Interface Hierarchy

DFC exposes most of the Documentum object hierarchy as a set of interfaces. An interface defines a contract between an implementation class and any client that uses instances of that class. Interfaces do not specify implementation. They simply define a set of methods with specific signatures and specific semantics. A class provides the implementation, but as an application programmer, you usually don’t need to know which class. If you hold a reference to a class that implements a given interface, you know that objects of that class have all of the functionality that the interface promises. DFC includes a default implementation for each interface.

For example, to operate on a document object, obtain an IDfDocument interface from DFC (this is an abbreviated way to say “obtain an object that implements the IDfDocument interface”). That interface allows you to read or set the object’s attributes, attach content to the object, check the object into or out of a Docbase, and so forth. It doesn’t matter whether the implementation class is DfDocument (DFC’s default implementation of the IDfDocument interface) or another class that properly implements the functionality. By separating the implementation from the definition, interfaces isolate client



code from changes in the underlying implementation. DFC’s use of interfaces promotes customization, because it allows customers to substitute their own implementations for DFC’s default implementations.

DFC does not provide an interface for every server object type. Sometimes you must use the DFC interface that corresponds to a supertype of a given object type. For example, to write code to operate on cabinets, you must use IDfFolder (dm_folder is the parent, or supertype, of dm_cabinet).

Some DFC interfaces correspond to operations that are independent of server object types. For example, the IDfLoginInfo interface, which allows you to assemble and maintain access information, does not correspond to a server object type.

Another example is IDfPersistentObject. The IDfPersistentObject interface defines functionality common to all server objects that derive from dm_persistentobject. The type dm_persistentobject is the base type of all server objects that persist beyond the current session, but you cannot create a dm_persistentobject in the server, nor can you run a query that selects objects from the type dm_persistentobject. The server only allows the creation and querying of objects of types that are subtypes of dm_persistentobject. In DFC, on the other hand, IDfPersistentObject is a common type for arguments or return values.

You can operate on a more derived type with a less-derived interface, but some methods are available only on more derived interfaces. For example, you cannot perform a save on the IDfTypedObject interface. To save, you must hold a reference to an IDfPersistentObject interface or an interface that derives from IDfPersistentObject. Similarly, to perform checkins and checkouts on an object whose type derives from dm_sysobject, you need to refer to that object with at least an IDfSysObject interface.

A small subset of the Documentum object hierarchy appears in Figure 7-1. DFC interfaces are in the top (white) parts of the boxes. The corresponding server objects are in the lower (gray) parts.



Figure 7-1 DFC Hierarchy Corresponds to Documentum Object Hierarchy

In Figure 7-2 on page 7-6, you can see how the interfaces that derive from the Documentum hierarchy fit into the total DFC interface hierarchy.

IDfTypedObjectNon-Persistent Type

IDfDocbaseMap IDfPersistentObject IDfCollectionDocbase Locator Persistent Object Non-Persistent

IDfACL IDfFormat IDfGroup IDfSysObject IDfType IDfUserdm_acl dm_format dm_group dm_sysobject dm_type dm_user

IDfDocument IDfFolderdm_document dm_folder

<None>dm_cabinet



Figure 7-2 DFC Interface Hierarchy

IDfPersistentObject

IDfSysObjectIDfDocument

IDfFolder

IDfACL

IDfUser

IDfFormat

IDfGroup

IDfType

IDfTypedObject

IDfDocbaseMap

IDfCollection

IDfRouter

IDfPackage

IDfWorkItem

IDfAssembly

IDfContainment

IDfActivity

IDfProcess

IDfWorkflow

IDfQueueItem

IDfAliasSet

IDfRelation

IDfRelationType



DFC interfaces that are not in the above diagrams are not part of the interface hierarchy. They do not derive from other DFC interfaces, and vice versa.

IDfOperation

IDfCancelCheckoutOperation

IDfCheckinOperation

IDfCheckoutOperation

IDfCopyOperation

IDfDeleteOperation

IDfExportOperation

IDfImportOperation

IDfMoveOperation

IDfOperationNode

IDfCancelCheckoutNode

IDfCheckinNode

IDfCheckoutNode

IDfCopyNode

IDfDeleteNode

IDfExportNode

IDfImportNode

IDfMoveNode

IDfClientRegistryObject

IDfCheckedOutObject

IDfLocalObject

IDfViewedObject


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyTyped Objects

Typed Objects

The IDfTypedObject interface provides the basis for both persistent and non-persistent types. Here are the main facts about typed objects:

■ They have attributes (properties) that you can retrieve and set.

■ In almost all cases, you obtain them directly or indirectly through a DFC session; therefore they have a reference to the session that created them.

■ A unique object ID identifies them.

The ID of a persistent object uniquely identifies the object in the Docbase. The ID of a non-persistent object, such as a collection or a Docbase map, identifies the object only for the session that creates it.

The DFC online reference contains signatures of the methods of DFC interfaces (see “Using the DFC Online Reference Documentation” on page 1-11). This section describes the general categories of methods of the IdfTypedObject interface. IDfTypedObject is the base object for most DFC objects.

Session and Identifier

Typed objects have IDs, and they hold references to the session that created them. The IDfTypedObject methods getSession and getObjectId return this information.

Getting and Setting Attribute Values

An attribute of a Documentum object can contain either a single value or multiple values. An attribute that can have multiple values is called a repeating-value attribute or just a repeating attribute.

Documentum defines the following types for attribute values: Boolean, Integer, String, ID, Time, and Double.

The IDfTypedObject methods for setting and getting attribute values reflect these types. For single-valued attributes, call one of the following methods:

boolean getBoolean(String attrName)double getDouble(String attrName)IDfId getId(String attrName)



int getInt(String attrName)String getString(String attrName)IDfTime getTime(String attrName)IDfValue getValue(String attrName)

The argument attrName refers to the attribute, such as object_name. Regardless of the type of the attribute, you can call getString to retrieve the value in the form of a string. If you call a get method that is inappropriate for the type of the attribute, for example, getInt("object_name"), DFC attempts to convert the value to that type.

To set the value of a single-valued attribute, call one of the following methods, where attrName is the name of the attribute and value is the value you want to assign to that attribute:

void setBoolean(String attrName, boolean value) void setDouble(String attrName, double value)void setId(String attrName, IDfId value)void setInt(String attrName, int value) void setString(String attrName, String value)void setTime(String attrName, IDfTime value)void setValue(String attrName, IDfValue value)

There are several sets of methods that relate to repeating attributes. The server maintains an indexed array of values for a repeating attribute.

For example, the authors attribute may contain the following values with the specified indexes:

[0] Sleepy[1] Dopey[2] Happy[3] Sneezy[4] Grumpy[5] Doc[6] Bashful

Methods that operate on repeating attributes often take an index, which specifies which value the operation should affect. The descriptions that follow refer to the authors listed above.

The set and get methods for repeating attributes are similar to the set and get methods for single-valued attributes:

boolean getRepeatingBoolean(String attrName, int index)double getRepeatingDouble(String attrName, int index)IDfId getRepeatingId(String attrName, int index)int getRepeatingInt(String attrName, int index)String getRepeatingString(String attrName, int index)



IDfTime getRepeatingTime(String attrName, int index)IDfValue getRepeatingValue(String attrName, int index)

void setRepeatingBoolean(String attrName, int index, boolean value)

void setRepeatingDouble(String attrName, int index, double value)

void setRepeatingId(String attrName, int index, IDfId value)

void setRepeatingInt(String attrName, int index, int value)

void setRepeatingString(String attrName, int index, String value)

void setRepeatingTime(String attrName, int index, IDfTime value)

void setRepeatingValue(String attrName, int index, IDfValue value)

You can use single-value attribute methods to set/get repeating attributes and repeating-attribute methods to get/set single valued attributes. Single-valued methods always operate on the repeating attribute value at index 0. To use a repeating-attribute method for a single-valued attribute, the index argument must be 0.

The call getAllRepeatingStrings(String attrName, String separator)

returns all values of a repeating attribute as a single string with values delimited by separator, or by a comma if separator is null.

For example, given the authors mentioned above,getAllRepeatingStrings("authors", null)

returns the string Sleepy,Dopey,Happy,Sneezy,Grumpy,Doc,Bashful

Additional Methods for Operating on Repeating Attributes

The following methods operate on repeating attributes. Type stands for Boolean, Double, Id, . . ., and datatype represents boolean, double, IDfId, . . . .

void appendType (String attrName, datatype value)void insertType (String attrName, int index, datatype value)int findType (String attrName, datatype value)int getValueCount (String attrName)void remove (String attrName, int index)



void removeAll (String attrName)void truncate (String attrName, int index)

The appendType methods add values to the end of a repeating attribute’s list of values. For example, to add an eighth dwarf, call

myobj.appendString ("authors", "Burpy")

The insertType methods are similar, but they add the value at the specified index rather than at the end. To make Burpy the fourth dwarf, call

myobj.insertString ("authors", 3, "Burpy")

Generally, appending is more efficient, because insertions can force the server to copy existing values to new index locations.

The find methods retrieve the first index at which a specified value appears. For example, findString ("authors", "Happy") returns 2.

The remove method deletes the value at the specified index. The truncate method deletes all values from the specified index onward. The removeAll method deletes all values from the specified repeating attribute. The getValueCount method returns the number of values the specified repeating attribute has.

Attribute Information

IDfTypedObject has a number of methods that allow you to get information about the object’s attributes:

String dump()int getAttrCount()boolean hasAttr(String attrName)boolean isAttrRepeating(String attrName)int getAttrDataType(String attrName)int findAttrIndex(String attrName)IDfAttr getAttr(int index)Enumeration enumAttrs()

The dump method is for debugging. It returns the object’s attributes and values in a formatted string.

The getAttrCount method returns the number of attributes that the object has.

The hasAttr method returns a boolean value indicating whether the object’s type has the specified attribute.

The isAttrRepeating method returns a boolean value indicating whether the specified attribute is repeating (True) or single (False).


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyPersistent Objects

The getAttrDataType method returns an integer representing the attribute’s type (see the DFC online reference for IDfAttr for the possible return values).

The attributes of a Documentum object have a column order. The findAttrIndex method returns the column index of the specified attribute.

The getAttr and enumAttrs methods provide more detailed information about the specified attribute. The getAttr method returns an IDfAttr object for the attribute at the specified index. An IDfAttr object allows you to get the attribute’s name and type. IDfAttr also allows you to determine whether an attribute is repeating. If an attribute is of type String, the maximum character length of any value stored in that attribute may be obtained by calling IDfAttr’s getLength method.

The enumAttrs method returns an enumeration of IDfAttr objects. This enables you to iterate over all of the object’s attributes.

Persistent Objects

Persistent objects are at the second level of the DFC interface hierarchy. They are typed objects that reside in the Docbase. The IDfPersistentObject interface inherits from the IDfTypedObject interface, and hence, IDfPersistentObject has all the methods of IDfTypedObject. In addition IDfPeristentObject has the following sets of methods.

Methods Relating to the Basic Properties of Persistent Objects

Every object in the Docbase has an i_vstamp attribute, which contains the number of committed transactions that have changed the object. This value is used for versioning, as part of the locking mechanism, to ensure that one user does not overwrite the changes made by another. The getVStamp method returns this value.

You can replicate Documentum objects, that is, have them appear in more than one Docbase. The isReplica method returns True if the object is a local replica of an object in a remote Docbase.

Every object in the Docbase has an object type. DFC exposes the type through the IDfType interface. To obtain an object’s type information, call the getType method.



Basic Operations on an Object

IDfPersistentObject defines the following methods that affect or query the state of an object in the current session or in the Docbase:

void save()void destroy()boolean isDeleted()boolean isNew()boolean isDirty()void fetch()void revert()

The save method directs the server to store the local copy of the object into the Docbase. When you create a new Docbase object, others cannot see it until you explicitly call its save method. Saving an existing object fails if your version of the object is older than the object in the Docbase, that is, if the i_vstamp of your version contains a lower number than the i_vstamp of the object in the Docbase. This happens if another user saves changes to the object between the time you obtain a copy and the time you try to save it. You can prevent this from happening by checking out the object before changing it.

The destroy method directs the server to remove the object from the Docbase.

The isDeleted method tells you whether the object has been destroyed in the current session. This method does not detect deletion by another user or even in another session subsequent to the time that you obtained the local copy.

The isNew method returns False if the object has ever been successfully saved in the Docbase.

The isDirty method returns True if you have made unsaved changes to the local copy of the object.

The fetch method obtains the latest version of the object from the Docbase if and only if the Docbase version has a newer i_vstamp. If the values are the same, the local copy retains any changes you have made.

The revert method obtains the latest version of the object from the Docbase unconditionally. The local copy loses any changes you have made to it.



Audit Trail

Auditing enables you to record information about system events and preserve information in an audit trail, which you can then use to track events and generate reports. You choose which events to monitor, and the audit system logs pertinent data, including the time of the event. To support this process, IDfPersistentObject has the signoff method, which creates an audit trail entry of signoff information for an object.

Convenience Methods for Creating Object Relations

Documentum provides the dm_relation type to enable you to define relationships between objects. The IDfPersistentObject interface has methods that create a relationship between the persistent object and another persistent object specified as an argument.

Other methods return information about the object’s relationships (see the DFC online reference for more information):

IDfRelation addChildRelative(String relationTypeName, IDfId childId, String childLabel, boolean isPermanent, String description)

IDfRelation addParentRelative(String relationTypeName, IDfId parentId, String childLabel, boolean isPermanent, String description)

void removeChildRelative(String relationTypeName, IDfId childId, String childLabel)

public void removeParentRelative(String relationTypeName, IDfId parentId, String childLabel)

public IDfCollection getChildRelatives(String relationTypeName)

public IDfCollection getParentRelatives(String relationTypeName)

Validation Methods

DFC provides the IDfValidator interface, which makes it easy to validate proposed new or changed attribute values against information in the data dictionary. Normally, you need to do this when you interact with a user to obtain the attribute values. A related interface, IDfValueAssistance, supports providing contitional value assistance in the user interface.



The following method returns an IDfValidator object for the persistent object:IDfValidator getValidator()

You can also obtain an IDfValidator interface for an IDfType object:IDfValidator getValidator(IDfID policy, String state)

The IDfValidator interface provides a variety of utilities:void validateAll(IDfProperties attrValues, boolean modifiedAttrsOnly)

void validateAllAttrRules(IDfProperties attrValues, boolean modifiedAttrsOnly)

void validateAllObjRules(IDfProperties attrValues)void validateAttrRules(String attrName, IDfList values, IDfProperties depAttrValues)

IDfValueAssistance getValueAssistance(String attrName, IDfProperties depAttrValues)

boolean hasValueAssistance(String attrName)IDfProperties getValueAssistanceDependencies(String attrName)

void setMaxErrorBeforeStop(int stopAfterNumOfErrors)int getMaxErrorBeforeStop()

String getWidgetType(int environment, String attrName)void setTimePattern(String timePattern)String getTimePattern()IDfPersistentObject getAssociatedObject()String getObjectType()

IDfId getPolicyID()String getStateName()

Pass-Through Methods to the DMCL API

IDfPersistentObject provides methods that invoke the DMCL dmAPIGet, dmAPISet, and dmAPIExec methods. These IDfPersistentObject methods automatically insert the session ID and the object ID in the appropriate places. Use these methods only where necessary, that is, to access functionality that is not available via DFC. Calling these methods bypasses built-in support for validation:

String apiGet(String cmd, String args)boolean apiSet(String cmd, String args, String value)boolean apiExec(String cmd, String args)


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyPersistent Objects Without Associated Content

Persistent Objects Without Associated Content

The level of the object hierarchy below IDfPersistentObject contains IDfSysObject, which is the root type for all objects that have associated content. Most user types extend IDfSysObject. Discussion of IDfSysObject appears in a subsequent section

The other types at the level of the object hierarchy below IDfPersistentObject relate to the administration and operation of the Docbase. The following sections discuss these types.

IDfACL

IDfACL provides the functionality associated with the server type dm_acl. An access control list (ACL), also called a permission set, is the usual server mechanism for controlling who has access to an object. If the Docbase security mode is set to acl, then every sysobject (that is, every object of type dm_sysobject or of a type that derives from dm_sysobject) has an associated ACL that specifies which users can operate on an object and what they can do.

The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual discusses the two kinds of permissions: basic and extended. Chapter 6, Automating Business Rules with DFC contains an extended example of how to use DFC to work with these permissions.

IDfFormat

IDfFormat provides the interface methods for obtaining the attribute information from a dm_format object.

A format object contains information about a file format recognized by the server. All content stored in the Docbase has an associated format such as msw8 (Microsoft Word 97 document), pdf (Acrobat PDF document), or html (an HTML file). All sysobjects that have associated content keep the content type in the a_content_type attribute. This value corresponds to a dm_format object.

Administrators can create new format objects for formats that the server does not support automatically. Format objects provide the information necessary to open a viewer or editor appropriate to the content type.



IDfUser and IDfGroup

The server documentation contains information about how to work with users and groups. Refer to the DFC online reference for details of the IDfUser and IDfGroup interfaces and their methods.

IDfType

IDfType provides methods for getting information about a type. IDfType provides the following categories of information.

Basic Attributes

The getName method returns the type’s name—a string like dm_format or dm_document.

The getDescription method returns the type’s user-friendly name from the data dictionary. The user interface uses the user-friendly name. For example, a search dialog box may display the name Format rather than dm_format.

Parent Type Information

Most types derive from other types. Firms that deploy Documentum usually create several layers of new types to meet their specific needs. IDfType provides the following methods to test whether the type derives from another type:

String getSuperName()IDfType getSuperType()boolean isSubTypeOf(String typeName)

The getSuperName method returns the name of the type’s parent type, or null if the type has no parent type. For example, if you hold an IDfType reference to the dm_document type, getSuperName returns dm_sysobject.

The method getSuperType returns an IDfType reference to the supertype.

You can call isSubTypeOf to test whether a type is a subtype of another type. For example, if you hold an IDfType reference to the dm_document type, isSubTypeOf("dm_sysobject") returns True. By convention, a type is not a subtype of itself, so isSubTypeOf("dm_document") returns False.



Type Information

Programs typically make use of IDfType objects to get information about the attributes of that type. The type dm_type contains several repeating attributes that describe the attributes of the type. The DFC methods for most of these attributes come in two varieties. One takes an index into the array of repeating attributes; the other takes a string specifying the attribute name. The indexed methods are slightly more efficient.

The following IDfType methods return type information:int getTypeAttrCount()String getTypeAttrNameAt(int index)int getTypeAttrDataTypeAt(int index)int getTypeAttrDataType(String attrName)boolean isTypeAttrRepeatingAt(int index)boolean isTypeAttrRepeating(String attrName)int getTypeAttrLengthAt(int index)int getTypeAttrLength(String attrName)int findTypeAttrIndex(String attrName)String getTypeAttrDescriptionAt(int index)String getTypeAttrDescription(String attrName)

The getTypeAttrCount method returns the number of attributes the type has. The method getTypeAttrNameAt returns the attribute name at the specified index. To find an attribute’s index, call findTypeAttrIndex. The indexes start at zero. The above get type attribute methods return the type of the attribute. This is one of the following values:

IDfType.DF_BOOLEANIDfType.DF_INTEGERIDfType.DF_STRINGIDfType.DF_IDIDfType.DF_TIMEIDfType.DF_DOUBLEIDfType.DF_UNDEFINED

They return IDfType.DF_UNDEFINED only in unusual circumstances.

The isRepeating methods indicate whether the attribute is repeating.

For attributes whose type is DF_STRING, the getTypeAttrLengthAt and getTypeAttrLengthAt methods return the maximum character length of any string that can be stored in that attribute. For attributes of other types, these methods return 0.



The get type attribute description methods return attribute descriptions from the data dictionary. This information does not reside in the dm_type object.

Recall that IDfType derives from IDfPersistentObject, which, in turn, derives from IDfTypedObject. IDfTypedObject has the following methods:

Enumeration enumAttrs()int findAttrIndex(String attrName)IDfAttr getAttr(int index)int getAttrCount()int getAttrDataType(String attrName)boolean hasAttr(String attrName)isAttrRepeating(String attrName)

Developers often find this confusing. Calling these methods on an IDfType object returns information about the attributes of the type dm_type, not the type that the IDfType object describes.

For example, suppose that the IDfType object named doctype describes the type dm_document. The method doctype.getAttrCount returns 15, even though dm_document has almost 70 attributes. The reason is that getAttrCount returns the number of attributes that dm_type has, not the number of attributes that dm_document has.

To get the number attributes for dm_document, calldoctype.getTypeAttrCount

Similarly, if you call doctype.getAttrDataType("object_name"), DFC throws an exception, because dm_type does not have an attribute called "object_name". To discover the type of the dm_document attribute object_name, call getTypeAttrDataType("object_name").

All IDfType methods that return attribute information about the type that the IDfType object describes have method names that begin with getTypeAttr. The methods inherited from IDfTypedObject return information about dm_type.


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchySysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content

SysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content

IDfSysObject provides the functionality associated with sysobjects, that is, objects of the type dm_sysobject. Sysobjects can do the following:

■ Own content.

■ Be checked into and out of the Docbase.

■ Have an ACL to control access.

■ Reside in a folder.

■ Be versioned.

■ Be part of a virtual document.

■ Have an attached business policy (document lifecycle).

Types that need any of these capabilities derive from dm_sysobject. Since the primary focus of Docbases is content, most objects in the Docbase are either SysObjects or objects whose type derives from dm_sysobject.

Basic Operations on SysObjects

The IDfSysObject interface has a large number of methods. Some of these methods perform the same basic functions as correspondingly named methods in the operations package. In general, you should always use the version from the operations package.

Refer to the DFC online reference for detailed information. The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual provides the conceptual background. The following functional categories provide an overview of IDfSysObject:

■ Checkout/Checkin

These methods are mainly for internal use. See Chapter 2, Working With Documents, for the correct way to perform these tasks.

■ Content-Related

The eContent Server Fundamentals manual discusses content, renditions, and file formats.

■ Versioning

Documentum provides implicit versions, major and minor version changes, version labels, and branching.Security


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchySysObjects—Persistent Objects With Content

Documentum provides two kinds of permissions: basic and extended. A user can have one basic permission level, and each basic permission level includes the capabilities of all of the lower levels. Users can also have any combination of the extended permissions. “Using Private ACLs” on page 6-5 and “ACL Utility Methods” on page 6-7 contain examples of how to use DFC to work with basic and extended permissions.

■ Folder-Related

Documentum provides folder and cabinet objects to organize the contents of a Docbase. All SysObjects and SysObject subtypes (except cabinets) must reside in a cabinet or in a folder.

■ Virtual Document

A virtual document is a compound document whose components are either simple documents or other virtual documents. The content that users see is the content files associated with these components. A virtual document can also have its own associated content file (or files). The components of virtual documents can have a mixture of formats.

■ Business Policy

Business policies are also known as document lifecycles (DLCs). The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual explains how DLCs work.

Types That Derive From IDfSysObject

An IDfDocument object contains information about a document. Documents can be simple documents or virtual documents. In a simple document, the content generally seen by a user is in one or more content files associated with the document. IDfDocument is a logical interface for operating on documents, but it does not add attributes or methods to those found in IDfSysObject.

Documentum provides a folder and cabinet paradigm for organizing the documents in a Docbase. Cabinet objects are top-level folders and cannot reside in other folders or cabinets. A folder must reside in a cabinet or in another folder. DFC does not provide an IDfCabinet interface, so use an IDfFolder interface to operate on cabinet references.

The dm_cabinet type has an attribute is_private, which is not an attribute of dm_folder. To retrieve this value, call the getBoolean method inherited from IDfTypedObject. For example,


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyIDfSession

boolean bIsPrivate = myCabinet.getBoolean("is_private");

Folders and cabinets do not usually have associated content. They derive from IDfSysObject because folders use the ACL security mechanism.

The preceding sections discuss all of the interfaces in Figure 7-1, except for IDfDocbaseMap and IDfCollection. Discussion of those interfaces follows the discussion of the IDfSession and IDfClient interfaces.

IDfSession

All interaction with a Docbase occurs in a session, that is, using an IDfSession object. In broad terms, a session:

■ Uses the underlying DMCL library to maintain a connection to a Docbase.

■ Maintains the state of the interaction between an application and the Docbase.

■ Caches information to increase performance.

A session keeps track of the objects you fetch and change. It provides explicit and implicit transaction support. The underlying DMCL does most of this, but DFC also caches some information and maintains some state.

■ Provides service methods for creating and fetching objects, performing administrative tasks, and obtaining session information.

An IDfSession provides the following categories of functionality.

Provide Information

The following methods ask for information that the session has access to:IDfClient getClient();IDfLoginInfo getLoginInfo()String getDBMSName()String getDMCLSessionId() String getDocbaseId()String getDocbaseName()String getDocbaseOwnerName()String getLoginUserName()String getSecurityMode()String getServerVersion()



String getSessionId()boolean isACLDocbase()boolean isAdopted()boolean isConnected()boolean isRemote()boolean isShared()

Note: be careful not to write getRDBMSName for getDBMSName. The version without the “R”is correct.

Create Objects and Obtain Object References

Developers sometimes ask why they can’t create a new SysObject as follows:obj = new DfSysObject;

The short answer is that all persistent objects reside in the Docbase, so you can create or fetch them only through a session. “Programming with DFC” on page 1-2 discusses this point in more detail.

The getObject methods return IDfPersistentObject interfaces, because IDfPersistentObject is the most derived interface that is general to all of the possible return types. For example, getObject could return an IDfType, an IDfUser, an IDfDocument, or an IDfFolder (among other possibilities). The only interfaces common to those types are IDfTypedObject and IDfPersistentObject. IDfPersistentObject is the more derived. The effect of this is that Java code must provide an explicit cast. For example

IDfFormat format = (IDfFormat) mysession.getObjectByQualification("dm_format where name = 'tex');

The following methods support creating objects and obtaining object references:

int getDefaultACL()IDfACL getACL(String aclDomain, String aclName)IDfFolder getFolderByPath(String folderPath)IDfFormat getFormat(String formatName)IDfGroup getGroup(String groupName)IDfId getIdByQualification(String qualification)IDfPersistentObject getObject(IDfId objectId)IDfPersistentObject getObjectByPath(String objectPath)IDfPersistentObject getObjectByQualification(String qualification)

IDfPersistentObject getObjectWithType(IDfId objectId, String objType, String className)

DfPersistentObject newObject(String typeName)



DfPersistentObject newObjectWithType(String typeName, String className)

DfType getType(String typeName)DfTypedObject getTypeDescription(String typeName, String attribute, IDfId businessPolicyId, String state)

DfUser getUser(String userName)DfUser getUserByOSName(String userOSName, String userOSDomain)

Configuration Information

The eContent Server documentation discusses configuration objects (see the sections dealing with apiconfig, sessionconfig, and serverconfig).

The IDfClient interface provides the following methods. They return typed objects, because they return configuration information, not Docbase objects.

IDfTypedObject getClientConfig() throws DfException;IDfTypedObject getConnectionConfig()IDfTypedObject getDocbaseConfig()IDfTypedObject getDocbrokerMap()IDfTypedObject getServerConfig()IDfTypedObject getServerMap(String DocbaseName)IDfTypedObject getSessionConfig()

Transaction Support

The following are the basic methods for managing transactions:void abortTrans()void beginTrans()void commitTrans()

Docbase Scope

Docbase scope tells the server which Docbase a method applies to. In many cases this does not change; in other cases, the server can determine it by examining a method argument that conveys the scope implicitly. For example, if one of the method’s arguments is an object ID, the server can determine the Docbase scope from the ID.



The following are the basic methods for managing Docbase scope when necessary:

String getDocbaseScope()String setDocbaseScope(String DocbaseName)String setDocbaseScopeById(IDfId objectId)

Multithreading Support

If more than one thread can access a session, you must take care to lock and unlock the session before using it.

The following IDfSession methods provide this capability:boolean lock(int timeoutInMsec);boolean unlock();

You can lock the session explicitly (calling a method of IDfSession) or implicitly (calling a method of IDfPersistentObject, because persistent objects hold a reference to a session).

Generally, you should lock and unlock blocks of code. If you lock and unlock a session at too fine a granularity, performance suffers and you increase the chance of making a mistake. If you lock too big a chunk of code, you cause other threads to wait needlessly, also hurting performance.

DFC does not enforce the locking mechanism on sessions, so a multithreaded application must be careful to lock and unlock the session. Failure to do so can cause crashes. The need to protect a session against concurrent access applies to both shared sessions and private sessions (sessions obtained through the newSession call), but you must be especially careful if you share sessions across components in a multithreaded environment. You don’t need to lock and unlock a session if only one thread at a time can use it.

Tip: In Java you can use the finally statement to ensure that a thread releases its lock when it dies.

Tip: Lock sessions during transactions to prevent synchronization problems.

API Calls

Occasionally, an application needs to interact directly with the session’s underlying DMCL programs in ways for which DFC does not provide interfaces. The following routines allow such interactions:



ByteArrayInputStream apiGetBytes(String cmd, String args, String buf, String buflen, int length)

IDfCollection apply(String objId, String functionName, IDfList args, IDfList dataType, IDfList values)

IDfCollection getLastCollection()IDfList apiDesc(String api)String apiGet(String cmd, String args)String describe(String type, String objType)String getMessage(int severityLevel)boolean apiExec(String cmd, String args)boolean apiSet(String cmd, String args, String value)boolean apiSetBytes(String cmd, String args, ByteArrayOutputStream content)

void traceDMCL(int level, String traceFile)

Inbox and Workflow

The Documentum eContent Server Fundamentals manual explains the way workflow templates and workflows work.

The following methods pertain to inboxes and workflows:IDfCollection getTasks(String userName, int filter, String additionalAttributes, String orderBy)

IDfId sendToDistributionList(IDfList toUsers, IDfList toGroups, String instructions, IDfList objectIDs, int priority, boolean endNotification)

IDfWorkflowBuilder newWorkflowBuilder(IDfId processId) String resolveAlias(IDfId sysObject, String scopeAlias)void dequeue(IDfId stampId)IDfCollection getEvents()boolean hasEvents()IDfCollection getRunnableProcesses(String additionalAttributes)

Administration

The following methods support system administration:IDfId archive(String predicate, String operatorName, int priority,boolean sendMail, IDfTime dueDate)


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyIDfClient

IDfId restore(String predicate, String dumpFile, String operatorName,int priority, boolean sendMail, IDfTime dueDate)

void changePassword(String oldPasswd, String newPasswd)void reInit(String serverConfigName)void reStart(String serverConfigName, boolean restartClient)void shutdown(boolean immediate, boolean deleteEntry)

Session State

The following methods enable you to control certain aspects of the session: void disconnect()void flush(String flushType, String cacheKey)void flushCache(boolean discardChanged)void purgeLocalFiles()void setBatchHint(int batchSize)

Miscellaneous

IDfRelationType getRelationType(String relationName)IDfVersionTreeLabels getVersionTreeLabels(IDfId chronicleId)String getLoginTicket()

IDfClient

Most DFC programs start by obtaining an object that implements the IDfClient interface, through a call like the following:

IDfClient client = DfClient.getLocalClient();

The IDfClient object loads the DMCL shared library. Its main function is to create and share sessions, but programs also use IDfClient to get information about the available Docbases and to obtain certain DMCL configuration information. IDfClient also enables client programs to cache information.



Creating Sessions and Obtaining References to Existing Sessions

An IDfClient object enables an application to create new sessions, share sessions across components, or obtain references to existing sessions. It has the following session-related methods:

IDfSession newSession(String DocbaseName, IDfLoginInfo loginInfo)

IDfSession getSharedSession(String DocbaseName, IDfLoginInfo loginInfo, String key)

IDfSession adoptDMCLSession(String dmclSessionId)void unadoptDMCLSession(String dmclSessionId)Enumeration enumSharedSessions(String key)IDfSession findSession(String dfcSessionId)

The methods for creating a new session (newSession and getSharedSession) take an IDfLoginInfo object as an argument. An IDfLoginInfo object carries the user name, the password, and, optionally, the domain name. The sample code in“connectToDocbase in Java” on page 4-3 shows how to use IDfLoginInfo.

Shared sessions enable the components of a DFC application to share a DFC session. The getSharedSession method uses a key known to all components that share the session. Internally, DFC checks whether it has already created a session for the same Docbase, the same login information, and same key. If it has, it returns that session. Otherwise, it creates a new session.

Sharing sessions saves resources on both the client and the server sides. The getSharedSession method does not allow sharing sessions among users. It is for sharing sessions across components accessed by the same user for the same Docbase in the same application.

The method newSession always creates a new session. Applications should call newSession if they do not intend to share sessions across components.

The method adoptDMCLSession is intended for integrating with legacy applications that use DMCL. This method takes the identifier for a session created by a DMCL connect call (s0, for example) and wraps the underlying session as a DFC session so DFC code can use it. If you adopt a session, you must call unadoptDMCLSession when you finished with the session. Do not call the close method of IDfSession.

The DFC online reference contains detailed information about the enumSharedSessions and findSession methods.



Maps and Config Information

Client applications often present the user with a list of available Docbases. DFC returns this list through the IDfDocbaseMap interface, which is obtained by calling the IDfClient getDocbaseMap method. The IDfDocbaseMap interface provides methods for getting the number of Docbases in the list, the name of the Docbase at a specified index, a description of the Docbase at the specified index, and the version of the server at the specified index. IDfClient also provides methods for obtaining a docbroker map (the list of docbrokers that you can access) and a server map (the servers that you can access). It returns these maps as IDfTypedObjects. Typical client applications do not need these maps. The server documentation provides more information about them under the headings Docbroker Locator and Server Locator. The examples in “Using a Docbase Map” on page 4-6 show how to work with Docbase maps.

IDfClient allows you to obtain information about your general client configuration through the getClientConfig method. This client configuration object maps to the API Config object discussed in the server documentation. Through this object you can dynamically configure such things as your Docbroker, the maximum number of simultaneous sessions allowed, and the maximum number of open collections allowed. You should alter the default values only after reading the server administration documentation.

Service Methods

The IDfClient object provides an IDfProperties object for caching and sharing information within your application. An IDfProperties object is an object that allows you to store name-value pairs. The method

getContext(String contextId)

returns the properties object for the specified ID or creates a new one if one does not already exist. The method

removeContext(String contextId)

removes the specified properties object. Some applications share data within a session by using this object. In this case, they typically use the session ID returned by the IDfSession method getSessionId as the context ID. You should not use the DMCL session ID (for example, s0) for this purpose. Applications should be careful to remove the properties object associated with a session when they no longer use that session.


Overview of the DFC Interface HierarchyCommon Package

Common Package

The com.documentum.fc.common package contains interfaces that client programs sometimes find useful.

DFC wraps IDs and Time values in IDfId and IDfTime objects. To get an ID as a string you can call either getId or toString (they return the same thing). IDfTime objects allow you to perform time format conversions. Both the IDfId and IDfTime interfaces provide convenience methods.

The getValue method returns an IDfValue object, which contains not only the attribute’s value, but also its type. IDfValue objects are convenient when you need to store an attribute value as an object (such as inserting it into a Java hashtable), but later need to determine its type as well as its value.

Avoid calling getValue if you can, because creating an additional object and obtaining and storing the type information are needless overhead if you don’t use those features.


8
DFC and DMCL 8
This chapter assumes that you are familiar with the methods that previous Documentum client products use to access server capabilities. It explains DFC by relating it to those methods. It contains the following main sections:

■ “Relationship to DMCL” on page 8-1

This section explains the relationship between DFC and the Documentum client library (DMCL).

■ “Calling DMCL Directly” on page 8-3

This section describes a way to bypass DFC and to communicate with the server via DMCL.

■ “DMCL to DFC Correspondence” on page 8-4

This section contains a table of DMCL methods and the corresponding DFC methods.

Relationship to DMCL

The Documentum client library, DMCL, is a library of procedures and functions that implement the server API. DFC implements the API and an additional layer of related business logic, as shown in Figure 8-1. It does so through a set of interfaces that client programs can use to access DFC from Java or COM.


DFC and DMCLRelationship to DMCL

Figure 8-1 DFC Builds Business Logic Above DMCL

Using DFC differs from using DMCL in the following ways:

■ DMCL communicates via strings of arguments and results. DFC creates objects that implement specified interfaces.

■ DMCL reports errors via error messages. DFC uses the Java exception mechanism.

Example The following calls show the ways to use DMCL to access the server.

■ Pass DMCL a method (connect) and its arguments.char *session = dmAPIGet("connect,docbase,user,password")

■ Pass the method (create), the session ID (s0), and the argument.char *object = dmAPIGet("create,s0,dm_document")

■ Pass the method (get), the session ID (s0), the object ID (09017...), and the argument.char *name = dmAPIGet("get,s0,09017...,object_name")

The following code illustrates DMCL error handling:boolean fOK = dmAPIExec(“checkout,s0, 09017...“);if (fOK == FALSE) {

char *err = dmAPIGet(“getmessage,s0“);dmAPIExec(“reset,s0,09017...“);}

DFC’s IDfSession interface hides the session ID and object ID, leading to the following code corresponding to the first DMCL call:

IDfClient client = DfClient.getLocalClient();IDfLoginInfo loginInfo = new DfLoginInfo();loginInfo.setUser("user");loginInfo.setPassword("password");IDfSession session = client.newSession("docbase",loginInfo );

Server API

Data Validation

Workflow Runtime

Version Policy

DMCL

DFC

Operations

DocApp

Object-Oriented Access to Server API

VDM


DFC and DMCLCalling DMCL Directly

The second DMCL call corresponds to the following DFC code:IDfDocument object =

(IDfDocument)session.newObject("dm_document");

The third DMCL call can take either of the following forms with DFC:String name = object.getString("object_name");String name = object.getObjectName();

In the first form, you know that the attribute is a string. In the second form, you know that the object is of type dm_sysobject.

If any of the DFC calls fails, DFC throws DfException, and the getMessage method of the exception object returns the same string that the DMCL getmessage method returns. DFC also performs the reset automatically.

The following code fragments show how to handle the error: first in Java, then in Visual Basic:

try //Java { object.checkout(); } catch (DfException e) { // checkout failed System.out.println(e.getMessage()); }

On Error GoTo errHandler #Visual Basic object.checkout GoTo finish

errHandler: Dim e As IDfException Set e = cx.parseException(Err.Description) MsgBox e.getMessage

finish:

The Visual Basic fragment assumes you have set cx via code like the following:

Dim cx as IDfClientXcx = CreateObject(“Documentum.Dfc“)

Calling DMCL Directly

This section describes a way to bypass DFC and access the server via DMCL.


DFC and DMCLDMCL to DFC Correspondence

DFC provides complete, object-oriented access to the server API. Sometimes, such as when migrating legacy customizations, you may wish to call the server API directly. Table 8-1 describes DFC methods in the IDfSession interface that provide direct access to DMCL.

Note: When you call DMCL directly, you bypass the DFC validation services. You must provide code to validate the data explicitly.

Refer to the eContent Server reference documentation for more information about how to use these methods.

DFC returns a DfException object when a DMCL error occurs. In Java, use a try . . . catch code block to handle the error.

DMCL to DFC Correspondence

This section contains a table of DMCL methods and the corresponding DFC methods.

Table 8-2 shows the DFC methods corresponding to DMCL API commands. If you are familiar with DMCL commands, use the table to find the corresponding DFC interface and method. The DFC column has format Interface :: Method.

Table 8-1 DFC Methods Providing Access to DMCL

Method Description

apiGet Equivalent to calling dmAPIGet from DFC.

apiSet Equivalent to calling dmAPISet from DFC.

apiExec Equivalent to calling dmAPIExec from DFC.

Table 8-2 DFC methods corresponding to DMCL API commands

DMCL DFC

Abort IDfSession :: abortTrans

Acquire IDfRouter :: acquire



Addnote IDfSysObject :: addNote

Addrendition IDfSysObject :: addRenditionIDfSysObject :: addRenditionEx

Anyevents IDfSession :: hasEvents

Append IDfTypedObject :: appendBooleanIDfTypedObject :: appendDoubleIDfTypedObject :: appendIdIDfTypedObject :: appendIntIDfTypedObject :: appendStringIDfTypedObject :: appendTimeIDfTypedObject :: appendValue

Appendcontent IDfSysObject :: appendContent

Appendfile IDfSysObject :: appendFile

Appendpart IDfSysObject :: appendPart

Appendtask IDfRouter :: appendTask

Apply IDfSession :: apply

Archive IDfSession :: archive

Assemble IDfSysObject :: assemble

Attach IDfSysObject :: attachPolicy

Begintran IDfSession :: beginTrans

Bindfile IDfSysObject :: bindFile

Branch IDfSysObject :: branch

Changepassword IDfSession :: changePassword

Checkin IDfSysObject :: CheckinIDfSysObject :: CheckinEx

Checkinapp IDfSysObject :: checkinApp

Checkout IDfSysObject :: CheckoutIDfSysObject :: CheckoutEx

Table 8-2 DFC methods corresponding to DMCL API commands (continued)

DMCL DFC



Close IDfCollection :: close

Commit IDfSession :: commitTrans

Connect IDfClient :: newSessionIDfClient :: getSharedSession

Count IDfTypedObject :: getAttrCount

Create IDfSession :: newObjectIDfSession :: newObjectWithType

Datatype IDfTypedObject :: getAttrDataType

Demote IDfSysObject :: demote

Dequeue IDfSession :: dequeue

Describe IDfSession :: describe

Destroy IDfPersistentObject :: destroy

Disassemble IDfSysObject :: disassemble

Disconnect IDfSession :: disconnect

Dump IDfTypedObject :: dump

End IDfRouter :: end

Fetch IDfPersistentObject :: fetchIDfSession :: getObjectIDfSession :: getObjectWithType

Flush IDfSession :: flush

Flushcache IDfSession :: flushCache

Force IDfRouter :: force

Forward IDfRouter :: forward

Freeze IDfSysObject :: freeze


DMCL DFC



Get IDfTypedObject :: getBooleanIDfTypedObject :: getDoubleIDfTypedObject :: getIdIDfTypedObject :: getIntIDfTypedObject :: getStringIDfTypedObject :: getTimeIDfTypedObject :: getValueIDfTypedObject :: getAllRepeatingStringsIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingBooleanIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingDoubleIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingIdIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingIntIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingStringIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingTimeIDfTypedObject :: getRepeatingValue

Getcontent IDfSysObject :: getContentIDfSysObject :: getContentEx

Getdocbasemap IDfClient :: getDocbaseMapIDfClient :: getDocbaseMapEx

Getdocbrokermap IDfClient :: getDocbrokerMapIDfClient :: getDocbrokerMapEx

Getevents IDfSession :: getEvents

Getfile IDfSysObject :: getFileIDfSysObject :: getFileEx

Getlastcoll IDfSession :: getLastCollection

Getlogin IDfSession :: getLoginTicket

Getmessage this happens automatically when the error occursIDfSession :: getMessage

Getpath IDfSysObject :: getPath

Getservermap IDfClient :: getServerMapIDfClient :: getServerMapEx

Grant IDfACL :: grantIDfSysObject :: grant


DMCL DFC



Halt IDfRouter :: halt

Id IDfSession :: getIdByQualification

Insert IDfTypedObject :: insertBooleanIDfTypedObject :: insertDoubleIDfTypedObject :: insertIdIDfTypedObject :: insertIntIDfTypedObject :: insertStringIDfTypedObject :: insertTimeIDfTypedObject :: insertValue

Insertcontent IDfSysObject :: insertContent

Insertfile IDfSysObject :: insertFile

Insertpart IDfSysObject :: insertPart

Inserttask IDfRouter :: insertTask

Link IDfSysObject :: link

Locate IDfTypedObject :: findBooleanIDfTypedObject :: findDoubleIDfTypedObject :: findIdIDfTypedObject :: findIntIDfTypedObject :: findStringIDfTypedObject :: findTimeIDfTypedObject :: findValue

Mark IDfSysObject :: mark

Next IDfCollection :: next

Offset IDfTypedObject :: findAttrIndex

Pause IDfRouter :: pause

Print IDfSysObject :: print

Promote IDfSysObject :: promote

Prune IDfSysObject :: prune

Purgelocal IDfSession :: purgeLocalFiles


DMCL DFC



Query IDfQuery.execute

Queue IDfSysObject :: queue

Readquery IDfQuery.execute

Reassign IDfRouter :: reAssign

Register IDfSysObject :: register

Reinit IDfSession :: reInit

Remove IDfTypedObject :: removeIDfTypedObject :: removeAll

Removecontent IDfSysObject :: removeContent

Removenote IDfSysObject :: removeNote

Removepart IDfSysObject :: removePart

Removerendition IDfSysObject :: removeRenditionIDfSysObject :: removeRenditionEx

Removetask IDfRouter :: removeTask

Repeating IDfTypedObject :: isAttrRepeating

Reset Happens automatically when the error occurs

Restart IDfSession :: reStart

Restore IDfSession :: restore

Resume IDfRouter :: resumeRouterIDfSysObject :: resume

Retrieve IDfSession :: getObjectByQualification

Reverse IDfRouter :: reverse

Revert IDfPersistentObject :: revertIDfSysObject :: revertACL

Revoke IDfACL :: revokeIDfSysObject :: revoke


DMCL DFC



Save IDfPersistentObject :: saveIDfSysObject :: saveLock

Saveasnew IDfSysObject :: saveAsNew

Scope IDfSession :: setDocbaseScope

Set IDfTypedObject :: setBooleanIDfTypedObject :: setDoubleIDfTypedObject :: setIdIDfTypedObject :: setIntIDfTypedObject :: setStringIDfTypedObject :: setTimeIDfTypedObject :: setValueIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingBooleanIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingDoubleIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingIdIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingIntIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingStringIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingTimeIDfTypedObject :: setRepeatingValue

Setbatchhint IDfSession :: setBatchHint

Setcontent IDfSysObject :: setContentIDfSysObject :: setContentEx

Setdoc IDfSysObject :: setIsVirtualDocument

Setfile IDfSysObject :: setFileIDfSysObject :: setFileEx

Setpath IDfSysObject :: setPath

Shutdown IDfSession :: shutdown

Signoff IDfRouter :: signOff

Start IDfRouter :: start

Suspend IDfSysObject :: suspend

Trace IDfSession :: traceDMCL

Truncate IDfTypedObject :: truncate


DMCL DFC



Type IDfSession :: getTypeDescription

Unfreeze IDfSysObject :: unfreeze

Unlink IDfSysObject :: unlink

Unlock IDfSysObject :: cancelCheckoutIDfSysObject :: cancelCheckoutEx

Unmark IDfSysObject :: unmark

Unregister IDfSysObject :: unRegister

Updatepart IDfSysObject :: updatePart

Useacl IDfSysObject :: useACL

Validate IDfRouter :: validateRouter

Values IDfTypedObject :: getValueCount


DMCL DFC



I N D E X

AabortTrans method 7-24ACLs 6-2

private 6-5adoptDMCLSession method 7-28API calls 7-26API Config object 7-29apiDesc method 7-26apiExec method 6-5, 7-26apiGet method 7-26apiGetBytes method 7-26apiSet method 6-5, 7-26apiSetBytes method 7-26apply method 7-26archive method 7-26attributes

methods related to 3-10

BbeginTrans method 7-24bug lists -xii

CchangePassword method 7-27close method 5-2collections

stepping through 5-4COM

inheritance 1-11com.documentum.com package 1-10com.documentum.fc.client package 1-10com.documentum.fc.common package 1-

10, 7-30com.documentum.operations package 1-10com.documentum.registry package 1-10commitTrans method 7-24

common.documentum.fc.client.qb package 1-10

connectionsmethods related to 3-3

connectToDocbase method 4-7containment objects

copy_child attribute 2-3content objects

methods that work with 3-13copy_child attribute 2-3

Ddequeue method 7-26describe method 7-26DFC (Documentum Foundation Classes)

COM interface 1-2elements 1-2

DFC (Documentum foundation classes)adopted sessions

4-2comparison with DMCL 8-4datatypes 1-7DMCL process 1-8inheritance 1-5migrating to 8-4naming convention 1-9objects and pointers 1-6online reference 1-11server API calls

8-4shared sessions 4-2

DFC interface hierarchy 7-5DfClient class 4-2, 4-3, 4-6, 7-27DfLoginInfo class 4-3DfPersistentObject class 7-24DfQuery class 5-1DfType class 7-24DfTypedObject class 7-24

Index–1

DfUser class 7-24DfValidationException class 6-1disconnect method 7-27disconnectFromDocbase method 4-6dm_cabinet type 7-21dm_folder type 7-21DMCL commands 8-4DMCL shared library 7-27Docbase scope 7-24Docbases

querying with methods 3-12docbrokers 4-6, 7-29documentation -xiidocuments

methods for printing 3-15Documentum foundation classes. See DFCDQL (Document Query Language)

methods that work with 3-12DQL queries 5-2

EeContent Server

communicating with 3-2methods for communicating with 3-2

enumAttrs method 7-19enumSharedSessions method 7-28execute method 5-3External applications

XML support 2-3

FfindAttrIndex method 7-19findSession method 7-28flush method 7-27flushCache method 7-27

GgetACL method 7-23getAllRepeatingStrings method 7-10getAttr method 5-2, 7-19

Index-2

getAttrCount method 7-19getAttrDataType method 7-19getBoolean method 7-8, 7-22getClient method 7-22getClientConfig method 7-24, 7-29getConnectionConfig method 7-24getContext method 7-29getDataType method 5-2getDBMSName method 4-5, 7-22getDefaultACL method 7-23getDMCLSessionId method 4-5, 7-22getDocbaseConfig method 7-24getDocbaseDescription method 4-7getDocbaseId method 4-5, 7-22getDocbaseMap method 4-6, 7-29getDocbaseName method 4-6, 4-7, 7-22getDocbaseOwnerName method 4-5, 7-22getDocbaseScope method 4-5, 7-25getDocbrokerMap method 7-24getDouble method 7-8getEvents method 7-26getFolderByPath method 7-23getFormat method 7-23getGroup method 7-23getId method 7-8getIdByQualification method 7-23getInt method 7-9getLastCollection method 7-26getLocalClient method 4-2getLoginInfo method 7-22getLoginTicket method 4-5, 7-27getLoginUserName method 4-5, 7-22getMessage method 7-26getObject method 7-23getObjectByPath method 7-23getObjectByQualification method 7-23getObjectWithType method 7-23getQuery method 5-1getRDBMSName is incorrect 7-23getRelationType method IDfRelationType

interface 7-27


getRepeatingBoolean method 7-9getRepeatingDouble method 7-9getRepeatingId method 7-9getRepeatingInt method 7-9getRepeatingString method 7-9getRepeatingTime method 7-10getRepeatingValue method 7-10getRunnableProcesses method 7-26getSecurityMode method 4-5, 7-22getServerConfig method 7-24getServerMap method 7-24getServerVersion method 4-5, 4-7, 7-22getSessionConfig method 7-24getSessionId method 4-5, 7-23getSharedSession method 7-28getString method 5-2, 7-9getTasks method 7-26getTime method 7-9getType method 7-24getTypeDescription method 7-24getTypedObject method 5-3getUser method 7-24getUserByOSName method 7-24getValue method 7-9, 7-30

when to avoid 7-30getVersionTreeLabels method 7-27grant method 6-2, 6-3

HhasAttr method 7-19hierarchy, of DFC interfaces 7-5

IIdfACL interface 7-23IDfAttr interface 7-19IDfClient interface 1-3, 4-2, 4-3, 4-6, 7-22,

7-24, 7-27IDfClientX interface 5-1IDfCollection interface 5-2, 5-3, 7-26IDfDocbaseMap interface 4-6, 7-29


IDfDocument interface 7-21IDfFolder interface 7-23IDfFormat interface 7-23IDfGroup interface 7-23IDfId interface 7-8, 7-9, 7-10, 7-23, 7-26,

7-27IDfList interface 7-26IDfLoginInfo interface 4-3, 4-4, 7-22, 7-28IDfPersistentObject interface 7-4, 7-23IDfProperties interface 7-29IDfSession interface 1-3, 7-22, 7-25, 7-28IDfSysObject interface 1-10, 7-20IDfTypedObject interface 7-24IDfValidator interface 6-2IDfValue interface 7-30IDfVersionTreeLabels interface 7-27IDfWorkflowBuilder interface 7-26inboxes

methods related to 3-23isACLDocbase method 7-23isAdopted method 7-23isAttrRepeating method 7-19isConnected method 4-4, 7-23isRemote method 7-23isShared method 7-23

Mmethods

server communication 3-2

NnewObjectWithType method 7-24newSession method 4-3, 7-28newWorkflowBuilder method 7-26

Oobjects

methods for handling 3-5online documentation -xii

Index-3

Ppasswords 7-28permissions 6-2, 6-3persistent objects 7-3, 7-23printing

methods related to 3-15private ACLs 6-5purgeLocalFiles method 7-27

Qqueries 5-3

displaying results 5-4flow of processing 5-1

queues, user. See inboxes

RreInit method 7-27removeContext method 7-29repeating attributes 7-10resolveAlias method 7-26restore method 7-27revoke method 6-3rows 5-3

Ssave method 6-5sendToDistributionList method 7-26sessions 4-2, 7-22, 7-27, 7-28

keys 7-28multithreading 7-25shared 7-28

setACL method 6-5setBatchHint method 7-27setBoolean method 7-9setDocbaseScope method 7-25setDocbaseScopeById method 7-25setDomain method 4-5

Index-4

setDouble method 7-9setId method 7-9setInt method 7-9setPassword method 4-3setRepeatingBoolean method 7-10setRepeatingDouble method 7-10setRepeatingId method 7-10setRepeatingInt method 7-10setRepeatingString method 7-10setRepeatingTime method 7-10setRepeatingValue method 7-10setString method 7-9setTime method 7-9setUser method 4-3setValue method 7-9shared sessions 7-28shutdown method 7-27subconnections

methods related to 3-3subtypes 7-2supertypes 7-2, 7-4support -xiisysobjects 7-20system administration

methods for 3-3

Ttechnical support -xiitraceDMCL method 7-26transactions 7-24type libraries 1-2typed objects 7-24

Uunlock method 7-25user names 7-28


VvalidateAttrRules method 6-2virtual documents

containment objectscopy_child attribute 2-3

copy behavior, defining 2-3defined 2-2methods related to 3-16purpose 2-2versioning 2-3


Wwarnings

COM interface inheritance fails 1-5

workflow templates 7-26workflows 7-26

XXML support 2-3

Index-5

Index-6