Terminology

The following definitions are provided to clarify the documentation of the concepts and entities that allow the Bank Transformation Toolkit to provide multichannel support:

Client/Server Service

In the client environment, the Client/Server Service is the service that allows an operation to send a request to the server through HTTP. The request is processed on the server by the Java™ Channel (specifically, by the JavaRequestHandler, which is a part of the multichannel support implementation for Java clients). In the server environment, the Client/Server Service is the CSServer, which is a service that is instantiated and accessed by the application, regardless of the kind of client or channel that accesses the server. CSServer communicates with any of the channels that implement the multichannel support architecture. For Java clients using the Client/Server Protocol, CSServer is also responsible for sending events to the client workstations. Therefore there is always a unique CSServer regardless of the channel being used, but there are facilities provided by CSServer that are only available when using the Java Channel.

channel

The mixture of device, communication protocol, and business distribution channel that make up the pathway for communication with the server.

device

The actual type of requester in a client machine; for example: a WAP (Wireless Access Protocol) phone, an HTML browser, a Java application that uses the toolkit Client/Server Mechanism, a C program.

communication protocol

The protocol used by the device to transmit data to the server; for example: HTTP, LU6.2, WebSphere® MQ.

business distribution channel

The ways in which an institution allows access to its information system; for example: a branch teller, a call center, home banking.

session

An object that is used to uniquely identify and maintain the state of a client during a given period of time and application life cycle.

channel session

An object that is used to maintain the state of a client session for a particular channel according to the communication protocol used between the client and the server. Usually handled by the infrastructure only.

application session

An object that is used to maintain the state of a client session, isolated from the channel-specific session management. Managed by the infrastructure and used by the application.

application subsession

An object that is used to maintain the state of several application sessions for a given client session. Isolated from the channel-specific session management. Managed by the infrastructure and used by the application.