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SOAP::Lite(3pm) User Contributed Perl Documentation SOAP::Lite(3pm)
NAME
SOAP::Lite - Perl's Web Services Toolkit
DESCRIPTION
SOAP::Lite is a collection of Perl modules which provides a simple and lightweight inter-
face to the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) both on client and server side.
OVERVIEW OF CLASSES AND PACKAGES
lib/SOAP/Lite.pm
SOAP::Lite - Main class provides all logic
SOAP::Transport - Supports transport architecture
SOAP::Data - Provides extensions for serialization architecture
SOAP::Header - Provides extensions for header serialization
SOAP::Parser - Parses XML file into object tree
SOAP::Serializer - Serializes data structures to SOAP package
SOAP::Deserializer - Deserializes results of SOAP::Parser into objects
SOAP::SOM - Provides access to deserialized object tree
SOAP::Constants - Provides access to common constants
SOAP::Trace - Provides tracing facilities
SOAP::Schema - Provides access and stub(s) for schema(s)
SOAP::Schema::WSDL - WSDL implementation for SOAP::Schema
SOAP::Server - Handles requests on server side
SOAP::Server::Object - Handles objects-by-reference
SOAP::Fault - Provides support for Faults on server side
SOAP::Utils - A set of private and public utility subroutines
lib/SOAP/Packager.pm
SOAP::Packager - Provides an abstract class for implementing custom packagers.
SOAP::Packager::MIME - Provides MIME support to SOAP::Lite
SOAP::Packager::DIME - Provides DIME support to SOAP::Lite
lib/SOAP/Transport/HTTP.pm
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::Client - Client interface to HTTP transport
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::Server - Server interface to HTTP transport
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::CGI - CGI implementation of server interface
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::Daemon - Daemon implementation of server interface
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::Apache - mod_perl implementation of server interface
lib/SOAP/Transport/POP3.pm
SOAP::Transport::POP3::Server - Server interface to POP3 protocol
lib/SOAP/Transport/MAILTO.pm
SOAP::Transport::MAILTO::Client - Client interface to SMTP/sendmail
lib/SOAP/Transport/LOCAL.pm
SOAP::Transport::LOCAL::Client - Client interface to local transport
lib/SOAP/Transport/TCP.pm
SOAP::Transport::TCP::Server - Server interface to TCP protocol
SOAP::Transport::TCP::Client - Client interface to TCP protocol
lib/SOAP/Transport/IO.pm
SOAP::Transport::IO::Server - Server interface to IO transport
METHODS
The first group of methods presented are the constructor and the accessor methods. All
accessor methods share the trait of returning the current appropriate value when called
with no arguments, while returning the object reference itself when called with a new
value for the field in question. This allows the set-attribute calls to be chained
together.
new(optional key/value pairs)
$client = SOAP::Lite->new(proxy => $endpoint)
This is the constructor of the class. Many of the accessor methods defined here may be
initialized at creation by providing their name as a key, followed by the desired
value. The example provides the value for the proxy element of the client.
transport(optional transport object)
$transp = $client->transport( );
Provides access to the transport object that the client has allocated to manage the
communication layer operations. You can set this by passing a new object that derives
from "SOAP::Transport", but this is generally not needed or recommended. Several of
the following methods are shortcuts to this object's accessors.
serializer(optional serializer object)
$serial = $client->serializer( )
Provides access to the "SOAP::Serializer" object that the client uses to transform the
elements and data of a request into an XML document for the sake of transport. As with
transport, this may be set by providing a new object reference, but it is generally
not needed.
packager(optional packager object)
$packager = $client->packager( )
Provides access to the "SOAP::Packager" object that the client uses to manage the use
of attachments. The default packager is a MIME packager, but unless you specify parts
to send, no MIME formatting will be done.
See also: SOAP::Packager.
proxy(endpoint, optional extra arguments)
$client->proxy('http://soap.xml.info/ endPoint');
The proxy is the server or endpoint to which the client is going to connect. It
shouldn't be confused with the uri method discussed later, which refers to a different
element of the conversation. This method allows the setting of the endpoint, along
with any extra information that the transport object may need when communicating the
request. Indeed, this method is actually an alias to the proxy method of SOAP::Trans-
port. It is the same as typing:
$client->transport( )->proxy(...arguments);
When extra information is needed, it is also passed in the call to this method.
Connecting to a server that uses browser cookies for authentication can be done by
creating an instance of the HTTP::Cookies class (from the LWP package) and passing it
as the value following a key of cookie_jar. The value for sockettime-outs may also be
set this way. The full range of options vary by transport method. One common theme is
that the endpoint string is always the first argument, with all additional arguments
following it.
The following is a list of optional arguments that may be passed to "proxy()":
options( HASH )
This is for SOAP::Lite specific options. Currently the only option one is allowed
to set is the "compress_threshold" option. See COMPRESSION in HTTP::Transport.
All initialization options from LWP::UserAgent
For example, if you wish to set the HTTP timeout for a SOAP::Lite client to 5 seconds,
use the following code:
my $soap = SOAP::Lite
->uri($uri)
->proxy($proxyUrl, timeout => 5 );
See LWP::UserAgent.
endpoint(optional new endpoint address)
$client->endpoint('http://soap.xml.info/ newPoint')
It may be preferable to set a new endpoint without the additional work of examining
the new address for protocol information and checking to ensure the support code is
loaded and available. This method allows the caller to change the endpoint that the
client is currently set to connect to, without reloading the relevant transport code.
Note that the proxy method must have already been called before this method is used.
service(service URL)
$client->service('http://svc.perl.org/Svc.wsdl');
"SOAP::Lite" offers some support for creating method stubs from service descriptions.
At present, only WSDL support is in place. This method loads the specified WSDL schema
and uses it as the basis for generating stubs.
outputxml(boolean)
$client->outputxml('true');
Controls whether the returned information from a remote method call is the raw XML
from the server. The default is to process the data from the server and present it to
the caller as an object of the SOAP::SOM class. If the application prefers to use a
different parser or do something else entirely with the results, this method may be
used to inhibit the parsing of the returned information.
autotype(boolean)
$client->autotype(0);
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->autotype(boolean);
By default, the serializer tries to automatically deduce types for the data being sent
in a message. Setting a false value with this method disables the behavior.
readable(boolean)
$client->readable(1);
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->readable(boolean);
When this is used to set a true value for this property, the generated XML sent to the
endpoint has extra characters (spaces and new lines) added in to make the XML itself
more readable to human eyes (presumably for debugging). The default is to not send any
additional characters.
default_ns($uri)
Sets the default namespace for the request to the specified uri. This overrides any
previous namespace declaration that may have been set using a previous call to "ns()"
or "default_ns()". Setting the default namespace causes elements to be serialized
without a namespace prefix, like so:
<soap:Envelope>
<soap:Body>
<myMethod xmlns="http://www.someuri.com">
<foo />
</myMethod>
</soap:Body>
</soap:Envelope>
ns($uri,$prefix=undef)
Sets the namespace uri and optionally the namespace prefix for the request to the
specified values. This overrides any previous namespace declaration that may have been
set using a previous call to "ns()" or "default_ns()". If a prefix is not specified,
one will be generated for you automatically. Setting the namespace causes elements to
be serialized with a declared namespace prefix, like so:
<soap:Envelope>
<soap:Body>
<my:myMethod xmlns:my="http://www.someuri.com">
<my:foo />
</my:myMethod>
</soap:Body>
</soap:Envelope>
use_prefix(boolean)
Deprecated - the "use_prefix()" subroutine has been deprecated in order to provide a
more intuitive naming scheme for subroutines that set namespaces. "use_prefix()" was
originally added to allow users to turn on or off the use of a default namespace. This
functionality is being replaced by "ns()" and "default_ns()".
Shortcut for "serializer->use_prefix()". This lets you turn on/off the use of a names-
pace prefix for the children of the /Envelope/Body element. Default is 'true'. (This
was introduced in 0.61 for better .NET compatibility)
When use_prefix is set to 'true', serialized XML will look like this:
<SOAP-ENV:Envelope ...attributes skipped>
<SOAP-ENV:Body>
<namesp1:mymethod xmlns:namesp1="urn:MyURI" />
</SOAP-ENV:Body>
</SOAP-ENV:Envelope>
When use_prefix is set to 'true', serialized XML will look like this:
<SOAP-ENV:Envelope ...attributes skipped>
<SOAP-ENV:Body>
<mymethod xmlns="urn:MyURI" />
</SOAP-ENV:Body>
</SOAP-ENV:Envelope>
soapversion(optional value)
$client->soapversion('1.2');
If no parameter is given, returns the current version of SOAP that is being used by
the client object to encode requests. If a parameter is given, the method attempts to
set that as the version of SOAP being used. The value should be either 1.1 or 1.2.
envprefix(QName)
$client->envprefix('env');
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->envprefix(QName);
The namespace label used for the main SOAP namespace elements (such as Envelope, Body,
and the attributes) defaults to SOAP-ENV. As has been discussed in earlier chapters,
the label itself isn't important. But applications that wish to explicitly choose a
different one (such as env to denote a SOAP 1.2 message) may do so with this method.
encprefix(QName)
$client->encprefix('enc');
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->encprefix(QName);
As with the envprefix method, this gets or sets the label used for the namespace of
the encoding rules. The default value is SOAP-ENC, as is generally used in SOAP 1.1
messages, though the label itself has no actual meaning.
While it may seem to be an unnecessary operation to set a value that isn't relevant to the
message, such as the namespace labels for the envelope and encoding URNs, the ability to
set these labels explicitly can prove to be a great aid in distinguishing and debugging
messages on the server side of operations.
encoding(encoding URN)
$client->encoding($soap_12_encoding_URN);
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->encoding(args);
Where the earlier method dealt with the label used for the attributes related to the
SOAP encoding scheme, this method actually sets the URN to be specified as the encod-
ing scheme for the message. The default is to specify the encoding for SOAP 1.1, so
this is handy for applications that need to encode according to SOAP 1.2 rules.
typelookup
$client->typelookup;
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->typelookup;
Gives the application access to the type-lookup table from the serializer object. See
the section on SOAP::Serializer.
uri(service specifier)
Deprecated - the "uri" subroutine has been deprecated in order to provide a more intu-
itive naming scheme for subroutines that set namespaces. In the future, you will be
required to use either the "ns()" or "default_ns()" subroutines in lieu of "uri()".
$client->uri($service_uri);
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->uri(service);
The URI associated with this accessor on a client object is the service-specifier for
the request, often encoded for HTTP-based requests as the SOAPAction header. While the
names may seem confusing, this method doesn't specify the endpoint itself. In most
circumstances, the "uri" refers to the namespace used for the request.
Often times, the value may look like a valid URL. Despite this, it doesn't have to
point to an existing resource (and often doesn't). This method sets and retrieves this
value from the object. Note that no transport code is triggered by this because it has
no direct effect on the transport of the object.
multirefinplace(boolean)
$client->multirefinplace(1);
This method is a shortcut for:
$client->serializer->multirefinplace(boolean);
Controls how the serializer handles values that have multiple references to them.
Recall from previous SOAP chapters that a value may be tagged with an identifier, then
referred to in several places. When this is the case for a value, the serializer
defaults to putting the data element towards the top of the message, right after the
opening tag of the method-specification. It is serialized as a standalone entity with
an ID that is then referenced at the relevant places later on. If this method is used
to set a true value, the behavior is different. When the multirefinplace attribute is
true, the data is serialized at the first place that references it, rather than as a
separate element higher up in the body. This is more compact but may be harder to read
or trace in a debugging environment.
parts( ARRAY )
Used to specify an array of MIME::Entity's to be attached to the transmitted SOAP mes-
sage. Attachments that are returned in a response can be accessed by
"SOAP::SOM::parts()".
self
$ref = SOAP::Lite->self;
Returns an object reference to the default global object the "SOAP::Lite" package
maintains. This is the object that processes many of the arguments when provided on
the use line.
The following method isn't an accessor style of method but neither does it fit with the
group that immediately follows it:
call(arguments)
$client->call($method => @arguments);
As has been illustrated in previous chapters, the "SOAP::Lite" client objects can man-
age remote calls with auto-dispatching using some of Perl's more elaborate features.
call is used when the application wants a greater degree of control over the details
of the call itself. The method may be built up from a SOAP::Data object, so as to
allow full control over the namespace associated with the tag, as well as other
attributes like encoding. This is also important for calling methods that contain
characters not allowable in Perl function names, such as A.B.C.
The next four methods used in the "SOAP::Lite" class are geared towards handling the types
of events than can occur during the message lifecycle. Each of these sets up a callback
for the event in question:
on_action(callback)
$client->on_action(sub { qq("$_[0]") });
Triggered when the transport object sets up the SOAPAction header for an HTTP-based
call. The default is to set the header to the string, uri#method, in which URI is the
value set by the uri method described earlier, and method is the name of the method
being called. When called, the routine referenced (or the closure, if specified as in
the example) is given two arguments, uri and method, in that order.
on_fault(callback)
$client->on_fault(sub { popup_dialog($_[1]) });
Triggered when a method call results in a fault response from the server. When it is
called, the argument list is first the client object itself, followed by the object
that encapsulates the fault. In the example, the fault object is passed (without the
client object) to a hypothetical GUI function that presents an error dialog with the
text of fault extracted from the object (which is covered shortly under the SOAP::SOM
methods).
on_nonserialized(callback)
$client->on_nonserialized(sub { die "$_[0]?!?" });
Occasionally, the serializer may be given data it can't turn into SOAP-savvy XML; for
example, if a program bug results in a code reference or something similar being
passed in as a parameter to method call. When that happens, this callback is acti-
vated, with one argument. That argument is the data item that could not be understood.
It will be the only argument. If the routine returns, the return value is pasted into
the message as the serialization. Generally, an error is in order, and this callback
allows for control over signaling that error.
on_debug(callback)
$client->on_debug(sub { print @_ });
This is kept for backwards-compatibility with earlier versions of the toolkit. Each
method has a trace step built in, which is called at routine entry. This specifies a
callback to be used when these trace statements are reached. Because this is depre-
cated, it is recommended that applications use the +debug and +trace facilities
described later under SOAP::Trace. Note also that debugging isn't handled on a per-
object basis; if this method is used on a given object, it sets debugging behavior for
all objects of the class.
WRITING A SOAP CLIENT
TODO - soap client example
WRITING A SOAP SERVER
See SOAP::Server, or SOAP::Transport.
FEATURES
ATTACHMENTS
"SOAP::Lite" features support for the SOAP with Attachments specification. Currently,
SOAP::Lite only supports MIME based attachments. DIME based attachments are yet to be
fully functional.
EXAMPLES
Client sending an attachment
"SOAP::Lite" clients can specify attachments to be sent along with a request by using the
"SOAP::Lite::parts()" method, which takes as an argument an ARRAY of "MIME::Entity"'s.
use SOAP::Lite;
use MIME::Entity;
my $ent = build MIME::Entity
Type => "image/gif",
Encoding => "base64",
Path => "somefile.gif",
Filename => "saveme.gif",
Disposition => "attachment";
my $som = SOAP::Lite
->uri($SOME_NAMESPACE)
->parts([ $ent ])
->proxy($SOME_HOST)
->some_method(SOAP::Data->name("foo" => "bar"));
Client retrieving an attachment
A client accessing attachments that were returned in a response by using the
"SOAP::SOM::parts()" accessor.
use SOAP::Lite;
use MIME::Entity;
my $soap = SOAP::Lite
->uri($NS)
->proxy($HOST);
my $som = $soap->foo();
foreach my $part (${$som->parts}) {
print $part->stringify;
}
Server receiving an attachment
Servers, like clients, use the SOAP::SOM module to access attachments trasmitted to it.
package Attachment;
use SOAP::Lite;
use MIME::Entity;
use strict;
use vars qw(@ISA);
@ISA = qw(SOAP::Server::Parameters);
sub someMethod {
my $self = shift;
my $envelope = pop;
foreach my $part (@{$envelope->parts}) {
print "AttachmentService: attachment found! (".ref($part).")\n";
}
# do something
}
Server responding with an attachment
Servers wishing to return an attachment to the calling client need only return
"MIME::Entity" objects along with SOAP::Data elements, or any other data intended for the
response.
package Attachment;
use SOAP::Lite;
use MIME::Entity;
use strict;
use vars qw(@ISA);
@ISA = qw(SOAP::Server::Parameters);
sub someMethod {
my $self = shift;
my $envelope = pop;
my $ent = build MIME::Entity
'Id' => "<1234>",
'Type' => "text/xml",
'Path' => "some.xml",
'Filename' => "some.xml",
'Disposition' => "attachment";
return SOAP::Data->name("foo" => "blah blah blah"),$ent;
}
DEFAULT SETTINGS
Though this feature looks similar to autodispatch they have (almost) nothing in common.
This capability allows you specify default settings so that all objects created after that
will be initialized with the proper default settings.
If you wish to provide common "proxy()" or "uri()" settings for all "SOAP::Lite" objects
in your application you may do:
use SOAP::Lite
proxy => 'http://localhost/cgi-bin/soap.cgi',
uri => 'http://my.own.com/My/Examples';
my $soap1 = new SOAP::Lite; # will get the same proxy()/uri() as above
print $soap1->getStateName(1)->result;
my $soap2 = SOAP::Lite->new; # same thing as above
print $soap2->getStateName(2)->result;
# or you may override any settings you want
my $soap3 = SOAP::Lite->proxy('http://localhost/');
print $soap3->getStateName(1)->result;
Any "SOAP::Lite" properties can be propagated this way. Changes in object copies will not
affect global settings and you may still change global settings with "SOAP::Lite->self"
call which returns reference to global object. Provided parameter will update this object
and you can even set it to "undef":
SOAP::Lite->self(undef);
The "use SOAP::Lite" syntax also lets you specify default event handlers for your code. If
you have different SOAP objects and want to share the same "on_action()" (or "on_fault()"
for that matter) handler. You can specify "on_action()" during initialization for every
object, but you may also do:
use SOAP::Lite
on_action => sub {sprintf '%s#%s', @_};
and this handler will be the default handler for all your SOAP objects. You can override
it if you specify a handler for a particular object. See t/*.t for example of on_fault()
handler.
Be warned, that since "use ..." is executed at compile time all "use" statements will be
executed before script execution that can make unexpected results. Consider code:
use SOAP::Lite proxy => 'http://localhost/';
print SOAP::Lite->getStateName(1)->result;
use SOAP::Lite proxy => 'http://localhost/cgi-bin/soap.cgi';
print SOAP::Lite->getStateName(1)->result;
Both SOAP calls will go to 'http://localhost/cgi-bin/soap.cgi'. If you want to execute
"use" at run-time, put it in "eval":
eval "use SOAP::Lite proxy => 'http://localhost/cgi-bin/soap.cgi'; 1" or die;
Or alternatively,
SOAP::Lite->self->proxy('http://localhost/cgi-bin/soap.cgi');
SETTING MAXIMUM MESSAGE SIZE
One feature of "SOAP::Lite" is the ability to control the maximum size of a message a
SOAP::Lite server will be allowed to process. To control this feature simply define
$SOAP::Constants::MAX_CONTENT_SIZE in your code like so:
use SOAP::Transport::HTTP;
use MIME::Entity;
$SOAP::Constants::MAX_CONTENT_SIZE = 10000;
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::CGI
->dispatch_to('TemperatureService')
->handle;
IN/OUT, OUT PARAMETERS AND AUTOBINDING
"SOAP::Lite" gives you access to all parameters (both in/out and out) and also does some
additional work for you. Lets consider following example:
<mehodResponse>
<res1>name1</res1>
<res2>name2</res2>
<res3>name3</res3>
</mehodResponse>
In that case:
$result = $r->result; # gives you 'name1'
$paramout1 = $r->paramsout; # gives you 'name2', because of scalar context
$paramout1 = ($r->paramsout)[0]; # gives you 'name2' also
$paramout2 = ($r->paramsout)[1]; # gives you 'name3'
or
@paramsout = $r->paramsout; # gives you ARRAY of out parameters
$paramout1 = $paramsout[0]; # gives you 'res2', same as ($r->paramsout)[0]
$paramout2 = $paramsout[1]; # gives you 'res3', same as ($r->paramsout)[1]
Generally, if server returns "return (1,2,3)" you will get 1 as the result and 2 and 3 as
out parameters.
If the server returns "return [1,2,3]" you will get an ARRAY from "result()" and "undef"
from "paramsout()".
Results can be arbitrary complex: they can be an array, they can be objects, they can be
anything and still be returned by "result()" . If only one parameter is returned, "param-
sout()" will return "undef".
Furthermore, if you have in your output parameters a parameter with the same signature
(name+type) as in the input parameters this parameter will be mapped into your input auto-
matically. For example:
Server Code:
sub mymethod {
shift; # object/class reference
my $param1 = shift;
my $param2 = SOAP::Data->name('myparam' => shift() * 2);
return $param1, $param2;
}
Client Code:
$a = 10;
$b = SOAP::Data->name('myparam' => 12);
$result = $soap->mymethod($a, $b);
After that, "$result == 10 and $b->value == 24"! Magic? Sort of. Autobinding gives it to
you. That will work with objects also with one difference: you do not need to worry about
the name and the type of object parameter. Consider the "PingPong" example (exam-
ples/My/PingPong.pm and examples/pingpong.pl):
Server Code:
package My::PingPong;
sub new {
my $self = shift;
my $class = ref($self) || $self;
bless {_num=>shift} => $class;
}
sub next {
my $self = shift;
$self->{_num}++;
}
Client Code:
use SOAP::Lite +autodispatch =>
uri => 'urn:',
proxy => 'http://localhost/';
my $p = My::PingPong->new(10); # $p->{_num} is 10 now, real object returned
print $p->next, "\n"; # $p->{_num} is 11 now!, object autobinded
STATIC AND DYNAMIC SERVICE DEPLOYMENT
Let us scrutinize the deployment process. When designing your SOAP server you can consider
two kind of deployment: static and dynamic. For both, static and dynamic, you should
specify "MODULE", "MODULE::method", "method" or "PATH/" when creating "use"ing the
SOAP::Lite module. The difference between static and dynamic deployment is that in case of
'dynamic', any module which is not present will be loaded on demand. See the "SECURITY"
section for detailed description.
STATIC DEPLOYMENT EXAMPLE
use SOAP::Transport::HTTP;
use My::Examples; # module is preloaded
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::CGI
# deployed module should be present here or client will get 'access denied'
-> dispatch_to('My::Examples')
-> handle;
For static deployment you should specify the MODULE name directly.
You should also use static binding when you have several different classes in one file and
want to make them available for SOAP calls.
DYNAMIC DEPLOYMENT EXAMPLE
use SOAP::Transport::HTTP;
# name is unknown, module will be loaded on demand
SOAP::Transport::HTTP::CGI
# deployed module should be present here or client will get 'access denied'
-> dispatch_to('/Your/Path/To/Deployed/Modules', 'My::Examples')
-> handle;
For dynamic deployment you can specify the name either directly (in that case it will be
"require"d without any restriction) or indirectly, with a PATH. In that case, the ONLY
path that will be available will be the PATH given to the dispatch_to() method). For
information how to handle this situation see "SECURITY" section.
SUMMARY
dispatch_to(
# dynamic dispatch that allows access to ALL modules in specified directory
PATH/TO/MODULES
# 1. specifies directory
# -- AND --
# 2. gives access to ALL modules in this directory without limits
# static dispatch that allows access to ALL methods in particular MODULE
MODULE
# 1. gives access to particular module (all available methods)
# PREREQUISITES:
# module should be loaded manually (for example with 'use ...')
# -- OR --
# you can still specify it in PATH/TO/MODULES
# static dispatch that allows access to particular method ONLY
MODULE::method
# same as MODULE, but gives access to ONLY particular method,
# so there is not much sense to use both MODULE and MODULE::method
# for the same MODULE
)
In addition to this "SOAP::Lite" also supports an experimental syntax that allows you to
bind a specific URL or SOAPAction to a CLASS/MODULE or object. For example:
dispatch_with({
URI => MODULE, # 'http://www.soaplite.com/' => 'My::Class',
SOAPAction => MODULE, # 'http://www.soaplite.com/method' => 'Another::Class',
URI => object, # 'http://www.soaplite.com/obj' => My::Class->new,
})
"URI" is checked before "SOAPAction". You may use both the "dispatch_to()" and "dis-
patch_with()" methods in the same server, but note that "dispatch_with()" has a higher
order of precedence. "dispatch_to()" will be checked only after "URI" and "SOAPAction" has
been checked. See t/03-server.t for more information and examples.
See also: EXAMPLE APACHE::REGISTRY USAGE, "SECURITY"
COMPRESSION
"SOAP::Lite" provides you option to enable transparent compression over the wire. Compres-
sion can be enabled by specifying a threshold value (in the form of kilobytes) for com-
pression on both the client and server sides:
Note: Compression currently only works for HTTP based servers and clients.
Client Code
print SOAP::Lite
->uri('http://localhost/My/Parameters')
->proxy('http://localhost/', options => {compress_threshold => 10000})
->echo(1 x 10000)
->result;
Server Code
my $server = SOAP::Transport::HTTP::CGI
->dispatch_to('My::Parameters')
->options({compress_threshold => 10000})
->handle;
For more information see COMPRESSION in HTTP::Transport.
SECURITY
For security reasons, the exisiting path for Perl modules (@INC) will be disabled once you
have chosen dynamic deployment and specified your own "PATH/". If you wish to access other
modules in your included package you have several options:
1 Switch to static linking:
use MODULE;
$server->dispatch_to('MODULE');
Which can also be useful when you want to import something specific from the deployed
modules:
use MODULE qw(import_list);
2 Change "use" to "require". The path is only unavailable during the initialization
phase. It is available once more during execution. Therefore, if you utilize "require"
somewhere in your package, it will work.
3 Wrap "use" in an "eval" block:
eval 'use MODULE qw(import_list)'; die if $@;
4 Set your include path in your package and then specify "use". Don't forget to put @INC
in a "BEGIN{}" block or it won't work. For example,
BEGIN { @INC = qw(my_directory); use MODULE }
INTEROPERABILITY
Microsoft .NET client with SOAP::Lite Server
In order to use a .NET client with a SOAP::Lite server, be sure you use fully qualified
names for your return values. For example:
return SOAP::Data->name('myname')
->type('string')
->uri($MY_NAMESPACE)
->value($output);
In addition see comment about default incoding in .NET Web Services below.
SOAP::Lite client with a .NET server
If experiencing problems when using a SOAP::Lite client to call a .NET Web service, it is
recommended you check, or adhere to all of the following recommendations:
Declare a proper soapAction in your call
For example, use "on_action( sub { 'http://www.myuri.com/WebService.aspx#someMethod';
} )".
Disable charset definition in Content-type header
Some users have said that Microsoft .NET prefers the value of the Content-type header
to be a mimetype exclusively, but SOAP::Lite specifies a character set in addition to
the mimetype. This results in an error similar to:
Server found request content type to be 'text/xml; charset=utf-8',
but expected 'text/xml'
To turn off this behavior specify use the following code:
use SOAP::Lite;
$SOAP::Constants::DO_NOT_USE_CHARSET = 1;
# The rest of your code
Use fully qualified name for method parameters
For example, the following code is preferred:
SOAP::Data->name(Query => 'biztalk')
->uri('http://tempuri.org/')
As opposed to:
SOAP::Data->name('Query' => 'biztalk')
Place method in default namespace
For example, the following code is preferred:
my $method = SOAP::Data->name('add')
->attr({xmlns => 'http://tempuri.org/'});
my @rc = $soap->call($method => @parms)->result;
As opposed to:
my @rc = $soap->call(add => @parms)->result;
# -- OR --
my @rc = $soap->add(@parms)->result;
Disable use of explicit namespace prefixes
Some user's have reported that .NET will simply not parse messages that use namespace
prefixes on anything but SOAP elements themselves. For example, the following XML
would not be parsed:
<SOAP-ENV:Envelope ...attributes skipped>
<SOAP-ENV:Body>
<namesp1:mymethod xmlns:namesp1="urn:MyURI" />
</SOAP-ENV:Body>
</SOAP-ENV:Envelope>
SOAP::Lite allows users to disable the use of explicit namespaces through the
"use_prefix()" method. For example, the following code:
$som = SOAP::Lite->uri('urn:MyURI')
->proxy($HOST)
->use_prefix(0)
->myMethod();
Will result in the following XML, which is more pallatable by .NET:
<SOAP-ENV:Envelope ...attributes skipped>
<SOAP-ENV:Body>
<mymethod xmlns="urn:MyURI" />
</SOAP-ENV:Body>
</SOAP-ENV:Envelope>
Modify your .NET server, if possible
Stefan Pharies <stefanph AT microsoft.com>:
SOAP::Lite uses the SOAP encoding (section 5 of the soap 1.1 spec), and the default
for .NET Web Services is to use a literal encoding. So elements in the request are
unqualified, but your service expects them to be qualified. .Net Web Services has a
way for you to change the expected message format, which should allow you to get your
interop working. At the top of your class in the asmx, add this attribute (for Beta
1):
[SoapService(Style=SoapServiceStyle.RPC)]
Another source said it might be this attribute (for Beta 2):
[SoapRpcService]
Full Web Service text may look like:
<%@ WebService Language="C#" Class="Test" %>
using System;
using System.Web.Services;
using System.Xml.Serialization;
[SoapService(Style=SoapServiceStyle.RPC)]
public class Test : WebService {
[WebMethod]
public int add(int a, int b) {
return a + b;
}
}
Another example from Kirill Gavrylyuk <kirillg AT microsoft.com>:
"You can insert [SoapRpcService()] attribute either on your class or on operation
level".
<%@ WebService Language=CS class="DataType.StringTest"%>
namespace DataType {
using System;
using System.Web.Services;
using System.Web.Services.Protocols;
using System.Web.Services.Description;
[SoapRpcService()]
public class StringTest: WebService {
[WebMethod]
[SoapRpcMethod()]
public string RetString(string x) {
return(x);
}
}
}
Example from Yann Christensen <yannc AT microsoft.com>:
using System;
using System.Web.Services;
using System.Web.Services.Protocols;
namespace Currency {
[WebService(Namespace="http://www.yourdomain.com/example")]
[SoapRpcService]
public class Exchange {
[WebMethod]
public double getRate(String country, String country2) {
return 122.69;
}
}
}
Special thanks goes to the following people for providing the above description and
details on .NET interoperability issues:
Petr Janata <petr.janata AT i.cz>,
Stefan Pharies <stefanph AT microsoft.com>,
Brian Jepson <bjepson AT jepstone.net>, and others
TROUBLESHOOTING
SOAP::Lite serializes "18373" as an integer, but I want it to be a string!
Because Perl is loosely typed, there is no 100% reliable way to predict what the
*intended* type of a variable is. So SOAP::Lite has a system of guessing what a type
is. But it is not 100% reliable. You do however, have the control to override this
autotyping behavior with your own.
Suppose you wanted to case every element of an array as a string. Then the following
code will change the precedence of SOAP::Seriailizer's is-a-string test to be the
first test run. Because the is-a-string test always returns "true" every element will
be determined to be a string.
my @list = qw(-1 45 foo bar 3838);
my $proxy = SOAP::Lite->uri($uri)->proxy($proxyUrl);
$proxy->serializer->typelookup->{string}->[0] = 0;
$proxy->myMethod(\@list);
Alternatively, you can build the XML data structure manually...
See SOAP::Serializer.
"+autodispatch" doesn't work in Perl 5.8
There is a bug in Perl 5.8's "UNIVERSAL::AUTOLOAD" functionality that prevents the
"+autodispatch" functionality from working properly. The workaround is to use
"dispatch_from" instead. Where you might normally do something like this:
use Some::Module;
use SOAP::Lite +autodispatch =>
uri => 'urn:Foo'
proxy => 'http://...';
You would do something like this:
use SOAP::Lite dispatch_from(Some::Module) =>
uri => 'urn:Foo'
proxy => 'http://...';
Problems using SOAP::Lite's COM Interface
Can't call method "server" on undefined value
You probably did not register Lite.dll using "regsvr32 Lite.dll"
Failed to load PerlCtrl Runtime
It is likely that you have install Perl in two different locations and the loca-
tion of ActiveState's Perl is not the first instance of Perl specified in your
PATH. To rectify, rename the directory in which the non-ActiveState Perl is
installed, or be sure the path to ActiveState's Perl is specified prior to any
other instance of Perl in your PATH.
Dynamic libraries are not found
If you are using the Apache web server, and you are seeing something like the follow-
ing in your webserver log file:
Can't load '/usr/local/lib/perl5/site_perl/.../XML/Parser/Expat/Expat.so'
for module XML::Parser::Expat: dynamic linker: /usr/local/bin/perl:
libexpat.so.0 is NEEDED, but object does not exist at
/usr/local/lib/perl5/.../DynaLoader.pm line 200.
Then try placing the following into your httpd.conf file and see if it fixes your
problem.
<IfModule mod_env.c>
PassEnv LD_LIBRARY_PATH
</IfModule>
SOAP client reports "500 unexpected EOF before status line seen
See "Apache is crashing with segfaults"
Apache is crashing with segfaults
Using "SOAP::Lite" (or XML::Parser::Expat) in combination with mod_perl causes random
segmentation faults in httpd processes. To fix, try configuring Apache with the fol-
lowing:
RULE_EXPAT=no
If you are using Apache 1.3.20 and later, try configuring Apache with the following
option:
./configure --disable-rule=EXPAT
See http://archive.covalent.net/modperl/2000/04/0185.xml for more details and lot of
thanks to Robert Barta <rho AT bigpond.au> for explaining this weird behavior.
If this doesn't address the problem, you may wish to try "-Uusemymalloc", or a similar
option in order to instruct Perl to use the system's own "malloc".
Thanks to Tim Bunce <Tim.Bunce AT pobox.com>.
CGI scripts do not work under Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS)
CGI scripts may not work under IIS unless scripts use the ".pl" extension, opposed to
".cgi".
Java SAX parser unable to parse message composed by SOAP::Lite
In some cases SOAP messages created by "SOAP::Lite" may not be parsed properly by a
SAX2/Java XML parser. This is due to a known bug in
"org.xml.sax.helpers.ParserAdapter". This bug manifests itself when an attribute in an
XML element occurs prior to the XML namespace declaration on which it depends. How-
ever, according to the XML specification, the order of these attributes is not signif-
icant.
http://www.megginson.com/SAX/index.html
Thanks to Steve Alpert (Steve_Alpert AT idx.com) for pointing on it.
PERFORMANCE
Processing of XML encoded fragments
"SOAP::Lite" is based on XML::Parser which is basically wrapper around James Clark's
expat parser. Expat's behavior for parsing XML encoded string can affect processing
messages that have lot of encoded entities, like XML fragments, encoded as strings.
Providing low-level details, parser will call char() callback for every portion of
processed stream, but individually for every processed entity or newline. It can lead
to lot of calls and additional memory manager expenses even for small messages. By
contrast, XML messages which are encoded as base64Binary, don't have this problem and
difference in processing time can be significant. For XML encoded string that has
about 20 lines and 30 tags, number of call could be about 100 instead of one for the
same string encoded as base64Binary.
Since it is parser's feature there is NO fix for this behavior (let me know if you
find one), especially because you need to parse message you already got (and you can-
not control content of this message), however, if your are in charge for both ends of
processing you can switch encoding to base64 on sender's side. It will definitely work
with SOAP::Lite and it may work with other toolkits/implementations also, but obvi-
ously I cannot guarantee that.
If you want to encode specific string as base64, just do "SOAP::Data->type(base64 =>
$string)" either on client or on server side. If you want change behavior for specific
instance of SOAP::Lite, you may subclass "SOAP::Serializer", override "as_string()"
method that is responsible for string encoding (take a look into "as_base64Binary()")
and specify new serializer class for your SOAP::Lite object with:
my $soap = new SOAP::Lite
serializer => My::Serializer->new,
..... other parameters
or on server side:
my $server = new SOAP::Transport::HTTP::Daemon # or any other server
serializer => My::Serializer->new,
..... other parameters
If you want to change this behavior for all instances of SOAP::Lite, just substitute
"as_string()" method with "as_base64Binary()" somewhere in your code after "use
SOAP::Lite" and before actual processing/sending:
*SOAP::Serializer::as_string = \&SOAP::Serializer::as_base64Binary;
Be warned that last two methods will affect all strings and convert them into base64
encoded. It doesn't make any difference for SOAP::Lite, but it may make a difference
for other toolkits.
BUGS AND LIMITATIONS
o No support for multidimensional, partially transmitted and sparse arrays (however
arrays of arrays are supported, as well as any other data structures, and you can add
your own implementation with SOAP::Data).
o Limited support for WSDL schema.
o XML::Parser::Lite relies on Unicode support in Perl and doesn't do entity decoding.
o Limited support for mustUnderstand and Actor attributes.
PLATFORM SPECIFICS
MacOS
Information about XML::Parser for MacPerl could be found here:
http://bumppo.net/lists/macperl-modules/1999/07/msg00047.html
Compiled XML::Parser for MacOS could be found here:
http://www.perl.com/CPAN-local/authors/id/A/AS/ASAND-
STRM/XML-Parser-2.27-bin-1-MacOS.tgz
AVAILABILITY
You can download the latest version SOAP::Lite for Unix or SOAP::Lite for Win32 from the
following sources:
* SOAP::Lite Homepage: http://soaplite.com/
* CPAN: http://search.cpan.org/search?dist=SOAP-Lite
* Sourceforge: http://sourceforge.net/projects/soaplite/
You are welcome to send e-mail to the maintainers of SOAP::Lite with your with your com-
ments, suggestions, bug reports and complaints.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Special thanks to Randy J. Ray, author of Programming Web Services with Perl, who has con-
tributed greatly to the documentation effort of SOAP::Lite.
Special thanks to O'Reilly publishing which has graciously allowed SOAP::Lite to republish
and redistribute the SOAP::Lite reference manual found in Appendix B of Programming Web
Services with Perl.
And special gratitude to all the developers who have contributed patches, ideas, time,
energy, and help in a million different forms to the development of this software.
REPORTING BUGS
Please report all suspected SOAP::Lite bugs using Sourceforge. This ensures proper track-
ing of the issue and allows you the reporter to know when something gets fixed.
http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=66000&atid=513017
If under dire circumstances you need immediate assistance with the resolution of an issue,
you are welcome to contact Byrne Reese at <byrne at majordojo dot com>.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 2000-2005 Paul Kulchenko. All rights reserved.
This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same
terms as Perl itself.
This text and all associated documentation for this library is made available under the
Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 license. http://creativecom-
mons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/
AUTHORS
Paul Kulchenko (paulclinger AT yahoo.com)
Randy J. Ray (rjray AT blackperl.com)
Byrne Reese (byrne AT majordojo.com)
perl v5.8.4 2004-10-26 SOAP::Lite(3pm)
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