Getting Started With WebLogic Web Services Using JAX-RPC

      

Understanding Data Binding

The following sections provide information about data binding and the data types (both built-in and user-defined) that are supported:

 

Overview of Data Binding

With the emergence of XML as the standard for exchanging data across disparate systems, Web Service applications need a way to access documents that are in XML format directly from the Java application. Specifically, the XML content needs to be converted to a format that is readable by the Java application. Data binding describes the conversion of data between its XML and Java representations.

As in previous releases, WebLogic Web Services support a full set of built-in XML Schema, Java, and SOAP types, as specified by the JAX-RPC specification, that you can use in your Web Service operations without performing any additional programming steps. Built-in data types are those such as integer, string, and time.

Additionally, you can use a variety of user-defined XML and Java data types, including Apache XmlBeans (in package org.apache.xmlbeans), as input parameters and return values of your Web Service. User-defined data types are those that you create from XML Schema or Java building blocks, such as <xsd:complexType> or JavaBeans. The WebLogic Web Services Ant tasks, such as jwsc and clientgen, automatically generate the data binding artifacts needed to convert the user-defined data types between their XML and Java representations. The XML representation is used in the SOAP request and response messages, and the Java representation is used in the JWS that implements the Web Service.

As of WebLogic Server 9.1, using XMLBeans 1.x data types (in other words, extensions of com.bea.xml.XmlObject) as parameters or return types of a WebLogic Web Service is deprecated. New applications should use XMLBeans 2.x data types.

 

Supported Built-In Data Types

The following sections describe the built-in data types supported by WebLogic Web Services and the mapping between their XML and Java representations. As long as the data types of the parameters and return values of the back-end components that implement your Web Service are in the set of built-in data types, WebLogic Server automatically converts the data between XML and Java.

If, however, you use user-defined data types, then create the data binding artifacts that convert the data between XML and Java.WebLogic Server includes the jwsc and wsdlc Ant tasks that can automatically generate the data binding artifacts for most user-defined data types. See Supported User-Defined Data Types for a list of supported XML and Java data types.

 

XML-to-Java Mapping for Built-in Data Types

The following table lists the supported XML Schema data types (target namespace http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema) and their corresponding Java data types.

For a list of the supported user-defined XML data types, see Java-to-XML Mapping for Built-In Data Types.

Table 5-1 Mapping XML Schema Built-in Data Types to Java Data Types
XML Schema Data Type Equivalent Java Data Type (lower case indicates a primitive data type)
boolean boolean
byte byte
short short
int int
long long
float float
double double
integer java.math.BigInteger
decimal java.math.BigDecimal
string java.lang.String
dateTime java.util.Calendar
base64Binary byte[]
hexBinary byte[]
duration java.lang.String
time java.util.Calendar
date java.util.Calendar
gYearMonth java.util.Calendar
gYear java.util.Calendar
gMonthDay java.util.Calendar
gDay java.util.Calendar
gMonth java.util.Calendar
anyURI java.net.URI
NOTATION java.lang.String
token java.lang.String
normalizedString java.lang.String
language java.lang.String
Name java.lang.String
NMTOKEN java.lang.String
NCName java.lang.String
NMTOKENS java.lang.String[]
ID java.lang.String
IDREF java.lang.String
ENTITY java.lang.String
IDREFS java.lang.String[]
ENTITIES java.lang.String[]
nonPositiveInteger java.math.BigInteger
nonNegativeInteger java.math.BigInteger
negativeInteger java.math.BigInteger
unsignedLong java.math.BigInteger
positiveInteger java.math.BigInteger
unsignedInt long
unsignedShort int
unsignedByte short
Qname javax.xml.namespace.QName

 

Java-to-XML Mapping for Built-In Data Types

For a list of the supported user-defined Java data types, see Supported Java User-Defined Data Types.

Table 5-2 Mapping Java Data Types to XML Schema Data Types
Java Data Type (lower case indicates a primitive data type) Equivalent XML Schema Data Type
int int
short short
long long
float float
double double
byte byte
boolean boolean
char string (with facet of length=1)
java.lang.Integer int
java.lang.Short short
java.lang.Long long
java.lang.Float float
java.lang.Double double
java.lang.Byte byte
java.lang.Boolean boolean
java.lang.Character string (with facet of length=1)
java.lang.String string
java.math.BigInteger integer
java.math.BigDecimal decimal
java.util.Calendar dateTime
java.util.Date dateTime
byte[] base64Binary
javax.xml.namespace.QName Qname
java.net.URI anyURI
javax.xml.datatype.XMLGregorianCalendar anySimpleType
javax.xml.datatype.Duration duration
java.lang.Object anyType
java.awt.Image base64Binary
javax.activation.DataHandler base64Binary
javax.xml.transform.Source base64Binary
java.util.UUID string

 

Supported User-Defined Data Types

The tables in the following sections list the user-defined XML and Java data types for which the jwsc and wsdlc Ant tasks can automatically generate data binding artifacts, such as the corresponding Java or XML representation, the JAX-RPC type mapping file, and so on.

If your XML or Java data type is not listed in these tables, and it is not one of the built-in data types listed in Supported Built-In Data Types, then create the user-defined data type artifacts manually.

 

Supported XML User-Defined Data Types

The following table lists the XML Schema data types supported by the jwsc and wsdlc Ant tasks and their equivalent Java data type or mapping mechanism.

For details and examples of the data types, see the JAX-RPC specification.

Table 5-3 Supported User-Defined XML Schema Data Types
XML Schema Data Type Equivalent Java Data Type or Mapping Mechanism
<xsd:complexType> with elements of both simple and complex types. JavaBean
<xsd:complexType> with simple content. JavaBean
<xsd:attribute> in <xsd:complexType> Property of a JavaBean
Derivation of new simple types by restriction of an existing simple type. Equivalent Java data type of simple type.
Facets used with restriction element. Facets not enforced during serialization and deserialization.
<xsd:list> Array of the list data type.
Array derived from soapenc:Array by restriction using the wsdl:arrayType attribute. Array of the Java equivalent of the arrayType data type.
Array derived from soapenc:Array by restriction. Array of Java equivalent.
Derivation of a complex type from a simple type. JavaBean with a property called _value whose type is mapped from the simple type according to the rules in this section.
<xsd:anyType> java.lang.Object
<xsd:any> javax.xml.soap.SOAPElement or org.apache.xmlbeans.XmlObject
<xsd:any[]> javax.xml.soap.SOAPElement[] or org.apache.xmlbeans.XmlObject[]
<xsd:union> Common parent type of union members.
<xsi:nil> and <xsd:nillable> attribute Java null value. If the XML data type is built-in and usually maps to a Java primitive data type (such as int or short), then the XML data type is actually mapped to the equivalent object wrapper type (such as java.lang.Integer or java.lang.Short).
Derivation of complex types Mapped using Java inheritance.
Abstract types Abstract Java data type.

 

Supported Java User-Defined Data Types

The following table lists the Java user-defined data types supported by the jwsc and wsdlc Ant tasks and their equivalent XML Schema data type.

Table 5-4 Supported User-Defined Java Data Types
Java Data Type Equivalent XML Schema Data Type
JavaBean whose properties are any supported data type. <xsd:complexType> whose content model is a <xsd:sequence> of elements corresponding to JavaBean properties.
Array and multidimensional array of any supported data type (when used as a JavaBean property) An element in a <xsd:complexType> with the maxOccurs attribute set to unbounded.
java.lang.Object

The data type of the runtime object must be a known type.

<xsd:anyType> Apache XMLBeans (that are inherited from org.apache.xmlbeans.XmlObject only)

The Web Service that uses an Apache XMLBeans data type as a return type or parameter must be defined as document-literal-wrapped or document-literal-bare. See Apache XMLBeans. java.util.Collection Literal Array java.util.List Literal Array java.util.ArrayList Literal Array java.util.LinkedList Literal Array java.util.Vector Literal Array java.util.Stack Literal Array java.util.Set Literal Array java.util.TreeSet Literal Array java.utils.SortedSet Literal Array java.utils.HashSet Literal Array

The following user-defined Java data type, used as a parameter or return value of a WebLogic Web Service in Version 8.1, is no longer supported:

Note: Additionally, generics are not supported when used as a parameter or return value. For example, the following Java method cannot be exposed as a public operation:

Note: public ArrayList<String> echoGeneric(ArrayList<String> in) {
return in;
}