Creating a message flow

Create a message flow to specify how to process messages in the broker. You can create any number of message flows and deploy them to one or more brokers.

Before you start:

The message flow and its resources are stored in a file system or in a shared repository. If you are using a file system, this can be the local drive or a shared drive. If you store files in a repository, you can use any of the available repositories that are supported by Eclipse, for example CVS.

Use this process to create a complete message flow that you can deploy, or a subflow that provides a subset of function (for example, a reusable error processing routine) that you cannot deploy on its own.

To create a message flow, perform the following actions:

  1. Switch to the Broker Application Development perspective.
  2. If you have not already created the message flow project in which you want to create the message flow, then you can either create it now, see Creating a message flow project, or you can create the message flow project as an optional step in creating the message flow (see step 4). The project can be empty, or can have message flows defined in it.
  3. Perform one of the following actions to open a new message flow:
    • Click File > New > Message Flow.
    • Right-click any resource in the Broker Development view and click New > Message Flow.
    • Press Ctrl+N. This action displays a dialog box in which you can select the wizard to create a new object:
      1. Click Message Brokers in the left view. The right view displays a list of objects that you can create for WebSphere® Event Broker.
      2. Click Message Flow in the right view, then click Next. The New Message Flow wizard displays.
  4. Start of changeIdentify the project in which you want to define the message flow. This field is filtered to only show resources in the active working set. End of change
    • If you have a resource selected in the Broker Development view, the name of the corresponding project is displayed in the Message Flow Project field.
    • If you do not have a resource selected, the first field is blank.
      • If you have already created the message flow project for this message flow, you can perform either of the following actions:
        • Type the name of the project into the field.
        • Click the down-arrow and select the appropriate project from the list displayed.
      • If you have not already created the message flow project, select New. The New Message Flow Project wizard starts, and you can use it to create the message flow project for your new message flow, see Creating a message flow project. When you have finished creating the new message flow project, the New Message Flow Project wizard closes, and the name of your new message flow project is displayed in the Message Flow Project field of the New Message Flow window.

    If your entry is not a valid project name, the window displays a red cross and the error message The specified project does not exist .

  5. In the Message flow Name field, enter the name of the new message flow. You can use any valid character for the name, but it is helpful to choose a name that reflects its function, for example, OrderProcessing.
  6. Decide whether you want to use the default broker schema. When you create a message flow project, a default schema is created within it, and this default value is assumed unless you deselect it. You can create and use different schemas within a single project to organize message flow resources, and to provide the scope of resource names to ensure uniqueness.
    • If you want the message flow to be created in the default broker schema, ensure that you select Use default in the Flow organization section.
    • If you want to use a different broker schema, deselect Use default. You can now perform either of the following actions:
      • Enter the name of the broker schema into the Schema field.
      • Click Browse to select from any of the broker schemas in the message flow project.
  7. Click Finish.
The new message flow (<message_flow_name>.msgflow) is displayed within its project in the Broker Development view. The Editor view is empty and ready to receive your input.
Next, you can do either of the following tasks:
Related concepts
Development repository
Message flows overview
Broker schemas
Deployment overview
Related tasks
Defining message flow content
Developing message flows
Deciding which nodes to use
Creating a message flow project
Related reference
Broker Application Development perspective
Rules for naming workspace objects
Built-in nodes
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Copyright IBM Corporation 1999, 2009Copyright IBM Corporation 1999, 2009. All Rights Reserved.
Last updated : 2009-01-07 15:39:40

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