Defining metadata

The connector for COM is metadata-driven. In the WebSphere business integration system, metadata is defined as application-specific information that describes a COM application object's data structures. The metadata is used to construct business object definitions, which the connector uses at run time to build business objects.

After installing the connector, but before you can run it, you must create the business objects definitions. The business objects that the connector processes can have any name allowed by the integration broker. For information about naming conventions, see Naming Components Guide.

A metadata-driven connector handles each business object that it supports according to the metadata encoded in the business object definition. This enables the connector to handle new or modified business object definitions without requiring modifications to the code. New objects can be created through the Object Discovery Agent (ODA) in Business Object Designer. To modify an existing object, use Business Object Designer directly (without going through the ODA).

Application-specific metadata includes the structure of the business object and the settings of its attribute properties. Actual data values for each business object are conveyed in message objects at run time.

The connector makes assumptions about the structure of its supported business objects, the relationships between parent and child business objects, and the format of the data. Therefore, it is important that the structure of the business object exactly match the structure defined for the corresponding COM object or the adapter will not be able to process business objects correctly.

If you need to make changes to the business object structure, make them to the corresponding object in COM and then export the changes to the type library for input into the ODA.

For more information on modifying business object definitions, see WebSphere Business Integration Adapters Business Object Development Guide.

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