/**
* This file is part of the CRISTAL-iSE kernel.
* Copyright (c) 2001-2014 The CRISTAL Consortium. All rights reserved.
*
* This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
* under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published
* by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3 of the License, or (at
* your option) any later version.
*
* This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT
* ANY WARRANTY; with out even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or
* FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU Lesser General Public
* License for more details.
*
* You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License
* along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation,
* Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA.
*
* http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/lgpl.html
*/
/**
* The Proxy API is a major part of the client-side functionality of the
* CRISTAL API, which provides client-side proxy objects that represent the
* Items and Agents on the server. It is the main entry point for many
* components, such as Scripts and Job execution. An AgentProxy is returned on
* login, and should be used as the root for all user-based CRISTAL interactions.
*
* The Proxy API provides the following functionality:
*
*
* - Transparent storage integration - Combines direct database access
* with remote calls to data retrieval methods on the Items. This allows client
* processes to load Item data directly from databases whenever possible
* without bothering the CRISTAL server. For example, the LDAP Lookup
* implementation allows client processes to load Item Properties directly from
* the LDAP server.
*
* - Data object browsing and loading - The proxy objects allow client
* processes to browse through the storage cluster structure beneath the Item,
* and access the objects directly without having to unmarshall their XML forms.
* All object types have their own get methods, so there's no need to construct
* their paths nor cast.
*
*
- Item object and directory change notification - When a proxy
* object is created, it notifies the CRISTAL server that its Item is located
* on, and it notified of all additions, deletions and modifications of objects
* within that Item so it can remain up-to-date. Client applications may use
* the {@link ProxyObserver} interface to be notified of changes, using
* {@link MemberSubscription} instances to set up push subscriptions to cluster
* contents. It also provides a mechanism for subscribing to directory paths,
* so that domain tree browsers can implement asynchronous loading and update
* themselves when the tree changes.
*
* - Job querying - Job objects may be retrieved directly from an
* ItemProxy, and may also be filtered by Activity name.
*
* - Job execution - The {@link AgentProxy} provides the main
* execution method for Jobs. This method performs outcome validation and
* executes required CRISTAL Scripts in the client process before the execution
* is requested on the server. Additional execution methods to call Predefined
* Steps are also available.
*
*
- Utility methods for resolution and marshalling - The AgentProxy
* provides utility methods for finding Items in the directory by name, path,
* or system key, and gives access to the Castor XML marshalling system to
* transform CRISTAL objects to XML and back again.
*
* The core object of the Proxy API is the ProxyManager, which is initialized
* as a static member of the Gateway on initialization. This object can be used
* to create a Proxy object from a Path from the directory, and maintains a
* connection to the server called the Proxy Update Notification Channel,
* through which it subscribes to Items it holds proxies for so it can be
* informed of changes to Item data through {@link ProxyMessage} objects.
*
*/
package org.cristalise.kernel.entity.proxy;