Tunis International Centre for Environmental Technologies Small Seminar on Networking Technology Information Centers UNFCCC secretariat offices Bonn, Germany

Tunis International Centre for Environmental Technologies

Small Seminar on Networking Technology Information Centers

UNFCCC secretariat offices

Bonn, Germany

12 - 13 March 2007

March 2007 Tunis International Centre for Environmental Technologies 2

Table of content

Web Services implementation

General description

Methods created

Main access page

Service description (WSDL)

Example: search from a predefined list

Search: using a keywords

The NuSOAP library

Problems encountered during the implementation

Response time

Increasing number of Centers

Technical implementation

Ideas for the future

Cost/effort estimation for WS implementation for new Centers

What could be done to improve the current solution?


Web Service implementation


General description

Web Service prototype could be accessed through: http://www.citet.nat.tn/masc/ws/

Simple interface designed to give a look and feel as that of the CITET’s documentary portal.

Simple iframe page was hosted on the CITET’s portal server. All the client-side solution was hosted on a different platform to avoid any code conflict or shutdown incidents.

The server hosting the client-side solution is powered by :

Linux Redhat EL 4, Core 2.6.9-5 smp

MySQL-4.1.7-4RHE4.1

PHP-4.3.9-3.1

httpd-2.0.52-9.entApache

The SOAP library used to create the Web Service solution is NuSoap


Methods created

The CITETdb (CITET database) is about Environment Actors. Six (6) methods can be invoked :

GetActorByType : returns a list of Actors by Type

GetActorByOrganization : returns the Actor for a specified Organization

GetActorByFieldActivity : returns the Actor for a specified Field Activity

GetActorBySpeciality : returns the Actor for a specified Speciality

GetActorByInstitutionalType : returns the Actor for a specified Institutional Type

GetActorByName : returns the Actor for a specified Name

The page listing the methods made available for testing was created based on the CEP service page.

A WSDL file describes the service, its methods, and the format of inputs and outputs in detail. It can be accessed through the “Service Description” link available on the home page.

The methods results are returned and displayed in XML format.


Main access page


Service description (WSDL)


Example: search from a predefined list


Search: using a keywords


The NuSOAP library

The NuSOAP library used offer a simple interface to describe all the functions made available through the Web Service. The description of each function includes:

function parameters,

function input and output,

request & response messages,

etc.


Problems encountered during the implementation


Response time

While implementing the Web Service and testing the Web client using the CITET Web Service and the TTClear’s, some questions raised and were discussed in the CITET Team. The main objective motivating the implementing of Web Services through the Centre’s Network is to share information between them, but also to avoid the storage of the same information within each Centre’s Database.

However, if the Web Client implemented within the CITET’s portal gathers information from all the Network Centres, problems may raise in terms of response time. Indeed, a user asking for example for Environment Actors through the Network, make the Web Client used send a request to all the Web Services available within the Network, get their answers, gather them and make a certain aggregation before displaying the final result to the visitor. We think that this process could take a long time, and may cause some web server errors like “execution time out”.


Increasing number of Centers

While the number of the Network Centres will be increasing, it may be important to think about the implementation of a Main Server (or Central Server) that would gather central information to facilitate and centralize information about, at least, the content and the information offered by each Centre Web Service. This model could help to get a faster response time to all the Network members.

A Main Server solution could also help to get general and statistics information to allow a preparation of recommendation reports and draw the orientations that should be made available for the Networks Centers as strategic information.


Technical implementation

The CITET team made the necessary lecture, technical work and effort to implement a Web Service solution. We think that this technical side could be made available by the Network Secretariat to:

Offer Less time needed to make implementation

Replace the programming process by training sessions (the Web Service solution could then be provided by the Secretariat)

Propose different implementation solutions to be able to address different platforms specifications (php, java, .net, etc.)


Ideas for the future


Cost/effort estimation for WS implementation for new Centers

ItemEstimatedDuration

Computer purchasing 7 days

Web Service and Web Client programming and integration 45 days

Information & data collecting 7 days

Data exchange with other Network Centres 4 days

Training session 5 days

68 days


What could be done to improve the current solution?

Every Centre could take advantage of using the Web Services. Indeed, valuable information may be offered to the visitors of web sites / portals.

The current test of Web Service implemented on the CITET’s portal offer information about “Environment Actors” in Tunisia and in the near region. The CITET’s portal is a documentary one. An important amount of information is stored on its databases and could be used for Web Services broadcasting and sharing.

The current data used was extracted and prepared manually for prototyping reasons. Therefore, some part of it was altered for incompatibility reasons between platforms. Now that the Web Services techniques are mastered, the CITET team could think about connecting the Web Services directly to all needed data tables existing in the portal database. That will guarantee:

data coherence,

avoid platform incompatibility problems and

offer up to date data in a timely manner.

Finally, this new services should be used largely. Therefore, CITET is planning to inform all the visitors of its portal by sending information through its Newsletter and put the XML logo on the main page to let visitors know about all the functions available.


Thank you for your kind attention

Documents

Tunis International Centre for Environmental Technologies Small Seminar on Networking Technology Information Centers UNFCCC secretariat offices Bonn, Germany