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B2B Console Help

Configuring Conversations

This topic includes the following sections:

- Introduction to Conversation Configuration

- Creating a Conversation Definition

- Modifying a Conversation Definition

- Removing a Conversation Definition

Introduction to Conversation Configuration

The electronic messages exchanged by trading partners for a specific business purpose are referred to collectively as a conversation. A conversation conducted in a B2B integration environment can be characterized as follows:

- It is a series of business messages exchanged by trading partners

- It may be complex and long-running, or short-lived

- It has a unique conversation name

The types of business messages that can be exchanged are determined by the roles played by the participating trading partners. These roles, along with other parameters of a conversation, are specified in a conversation definition. A single conversation is an active instance of a conversation definition. For more information, see Introducing B2B Integration.

Creating a Conversation Definition

A conversation is a series of message exchanges between trading partners. The choreography of the message exchanges is determined by the conversation definition, which is part of the collaboration agreement.

When you create a conversation definition using the WebLogic Integration B2B Console, you can specify a workflow based on a business process management (BPM) template. When you refresh the WebLogic Integration B2B Console, the Conversation Definition tab includes a read-only field indicating which BPM template is being referenced (if any) for a given conversation definition.

To create a conversation definition:

1. Click Conversations in the navigation tree. The Conversation Definition page is displayed.

2. Select Create a new Conversation Definition at the top of the right pane. The General configuration tab is displayed.

3. Enter data as required in the available fields shown in the table below.

   Table 4-1 Conversation Definition Fields on the General Tab

   Field | Description
   --- | ---
   Name | Name of the conversation definition. (Once the instance is created, this field is read-only.)
   Version | Version for the conversation definition. This is a read-only field that is created when the conversation definition is created. Note: For ebXML the conversation version must be 1.0.
   Business Protocol | Business protocol used in this conversation definition. Valid business protocols that B2B integration supports are XOCP 1.1, RosettaNet 1.1, RosettaNet 2.0, ebXML 1.0, and cXML 1.1.
   Default Timeout | Amount of time a transaction remains valid (in microseconds). After the specified amount of time, B2B integration terminates the transaction even if there are outstanding messages. (Optional)
   Roles | Roles available for the selected conversation definitions. Use the Set and Remove buttons to modify roles. Note: For ebXML, the roles Participant and Initiator are predefined for ebXML conversations and should not be modified.
   Name | Name for the new role you want to define. Note: Do not edit this field for the default ebXML roles (Participant and Initiator).
   Description | Description of the role. Note: Do not edit this field for the default ebXML roles (Participant and Initiator).
   WLPI Template Name | If you are using a collaborative (or public) workflow that was created in the WebLogic Integration Studio with the plug-in for B2B integration, enter the case-sensitive name of the workflow's template definition in this field. Alternatively, if you specified the workflow conversation definition name, version, and role at the time you identified the template or the template definition for the workflow, then the workflow name is displayed in this field. Note: Use the template name field only if you are using the WebLogic Integration Studio to create your workflows. Note: This field cannot be used for the default ebXML roles (Participant and Initiator).
   Roles (Continued) | WLPI Organization | Enter the case-sensitive name of the business process management template organization. Note: Use the organization field only if you are using the WebLogic Integration Studio to create your workflows. Note: This field cannot be used for the default ebXML roles (Participant and Initiator).
   Available Roles | List of available roles for the selected conversation definitions. The Participant and Initiator roles are predefined for ebXML conversations. These roles should not be modified, added to, or deleted.

4. Click Create. The conversation definition is added to the list of available conversation definitions.

Modifying a Conversation Definition

To modify an existing conversation definition:

1. Do one of the following:

   - Click the Conversations node in the navigation tree. The Conversation Definition page is displayed. Select the appropriate conversation.

   - Click the navigation tree node for the desired conversation. (This option is available only if the Display entities on the navigation tree option is selected on the Preferences tab, as described in Displaying Entities in the Navigation Tree.)

   The Conversation Definition General tab is displayed, showing the values for the conversation definition you selected.

2. Modify the values on the General tab as desired. For more information, see Creating a Conversation Definition.

3. Click Apply.

Removing a Conversation Definition

Conversation definitions that are no longer valid can be removed from the B2B Console and the repository.

Note: A conversation definition cannot be removed if it is being used by an active conversation agreement.

To remove a conversation definition:

1. Click Conversations in the navigation tree. The Conversation Definition page is displayed.

2. Select the check box next to the conversation definitions you want to delete.

3. Click Remove.