[jboss-dev-forums] [Design of JBoss Portal] - Initial UI Server Prototype Discussion

[sohil.shah@jboss.com]

Here is the first cut for the UI Server that needs to be built out for the next version of JBoss Portal.

For background on what this UI Server is look at http://wiki.jboss.org/wiki/Wiki.jsp?page=PresentationFramework.

So here are the architectural concepts implemented in this prototype:

* A portal request is processed by an entity called the Controller. The controller processes this request in three different phases: processCommand, processCommandResponse, and process the response coming back from handling the CommandResponse

* It is during this third phase, that UI related functions such as markup aggregation for the calling client takes place

* So in this prototype, the UI Server handles the processing of the UI generation in this third phase

* UIServer is a JMX service registered/configured at Portal startup

* UIServer requests are invoked using an object called UIServerRequest

* Data needed by the UIServer to fulfill a UIServerRequest of generating the final UI and sending back to the client is passed in by setting attributes on the UIServerRequest object

* In this prototype and the usecases implemented, the data being passed in by the Controller is ServerInvocation, and a UIIndicator object which signifies which type of client UI should produce the UI to be sent back

* The UIServerResponse object which is a HandlerResponse object carries the UIIndicator object.

* The UIServer has the abstract idea of a ClientUI. A ClientUI can be your classic html request/response based client, or an ajax based rich application, a thick client swing application etc etc. The UIServer manages the lifecycles required for the client uis. And these ClientUI implementations can be easily registered with the UIServer via its JMX configuration. 

* The link between the controller and the client UI is made using the UIIndicator object which is part of the Client UI registration configuration in the JMX bean

Thanks

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