SOAP with attachments: A definition
We can associate a SOAP message with one or more attachments in their native format (for example GIF or JPEG) by using a multipart MIME structure for transport. There are two main standards that define how to do this:
- SOAP Messages with Attachments W3C Note. This document defines specific use of the Multipart/Related MIME media type, and rules for the use of URI references to refer to entities bundled within the MIME package. It outlines a technique for a SOAP 1.1 message to be carried within a MIME multipart/related message in such a way that the SOAP processing rules for a standard SOAP message are not changed.
- Web Services-Interoperability (WS-I) Attachments Profile Version 1.0. This profile compliments the WS-I Basic Profile 1.1 to add support for conveying interoperable attachments with SOAP messages. There are two main parts to this profile:
- An introduction to the XML Schema type swaref (SOAP with attachments reference). This is used to define content within the SOAP body that refers to attachments within the message.
- A definition of how a WSDL message part that is bound to a MIME attachment is encoded into the SOAP message.
The service integration bus supports both of these standards, subject to the restrictions detailed in Limitations in the support for SOAP with attachments.
Related tasks
Passing SOAP messages with attachments through the service integration bus Locating an attachment by using swaref SOAP Messages with Attachments: WSDL examples Support bound attachments: WSDL examples