WebSphere Commerce data beans

WebSphere Commerce and the WebSphere Commerce development environment include a set of Java beans, called WebSphere Commerce data beans, that access information from the tables in the database. Creating store pages using these beans allows you to display information that may change often, such as catalog groups and product lists, or product prices.

The WebSphere Commerce data beans are grouped into the following areas:

• Access control

• Approval

• Auction

• Catalog

• Common

• Contract

• Coupon promotion, coupon redemption, coupon wallet

• Fulfillment

• Inventory

• Message extension

• Order

• Order management

• Order status

• Payment

• PVC

• Taxation

• User

• User traffic

• Unified Trading Framework

Each WebSphere Commerce data bean accesses information from a particular table. For example, the CatalogGroupDataBean, a catalog bean, accesses information from the CATGROUP table. In that table, the bean accesses information from a particular column through properties. That is, the categoryId property accesses the information in the CATGROUP_ID (catalog group reference number) column in the CATGROUP table.

Some WebSphere Commerce data beans work in conjunction with others. For example, the CategoryDataBean will return a list of the applicable Product or ItemDataBeans within a particular catalog. The ProductDataBean includes the PriceDataBean that allows you to display the price for that product.

Use Page Designer, or a JSP editor of your choice, you can choose any WebSphere Commerce data bean to add to your store page and select which properties you want to display from the Bean Property Selection window.

• Customizing data beans
  A data bean normally extends an access bean. The access bean, which can be generated by Rational Application Developer, provides a simple way to access information from an entity bean. When modifications are made to an entity bean (for example, adding a new field, a new business method or a new finder), the update is reflected in the access bean as soon as the access bean is regenerated. Since the data bean extends the access bean, it automatically inherits the new attributes. As a result of this relationship, no coding is required to enable the data bean to use new attributes from the entity bean.

Related concepts

WebSphere Commerce framework overview

Related tasks

Create a simple data bean
Customizing data beans