adapters

[Former Member]

hi xi experts,

can u explan the diffreence between adapters and proxies

[Former Member]

HI

Adapters enable the Integration Engine to communicate with applications that either use different message format (non XML, like: flat files, EDI documents) or different protocols (not HTTP, like: FTP, JMS, JDBC).

Adapters enable us to connect interfaces from external systems or from SAP systems with SAP Release 4.6 or earlier to the integration server.

SAP XI includes the Adapter Framework for developing adapters to non-SAP systems that can be executed by the Adapter Engine. The Adapter framework is a JCA-compliant framework for developing connectors to the XI.

The XI Adapter Engine is bases on the integrated J2EE engine of the SAP Web AS; it allows for central configuration and monitoring of all adapters.

The Adapter Engine includes its own security, message processing, and message queueing functionality.

Types of Adapters:

Application Adapters

Technical Adapters

Industry Standard Adapters

Adapter Engines:

Central Adapter Engine

Non Central Adapter Engine

J2se Adapter engine

PCK

Adapter Framework: It runs on the j2ee stack of the sap web as. It provides functionality for adapter engine and PCK. It supports J2EE Connector architecture. It provides functionality like scalability, thread management, queuing and logging services to adapter engine and PCK.

Adapters are part of adapter framework. They provide technical connectivity to enable the integration of sap and non sap applications.

Proxies do not convert from any format to any format.

They are native connections in XI.

Adapters convert from any format like File, Jdbc etc

to XML format.

Proxies can be used from Web server >6.2. Other than that Adapters are used. It all depending upon the Scenario what we have to use

[Former Member]

HI,

Refer the blog to discuss to choose right adapter or proxy

/people/ravikumar.allampallam/blog/2005/08/14/choose-the-right-adapter-to-integrate-with-sap-systems

Proxies,

Proxy generation converts non-language-specific interface descriptions in WSDL into executable interfaces known as Proxies.

You can generate Java proxies for J2EE applications on the SAP Web AS. Proxy generation generates J2EE beans and proxy classes for this purpose. The generated beans satisfy the EJB 2.0 standard.

ABAP proxies have many advantages for instance; they communicate with the XI server by means of native SOAP calls over HTTP (RFC does not, so you have to convert from SOAP to RFC calls and vice versa). ABAP proxies supports two different protocols; XI and Web Services. Most important is that they can be used for both synchronous and asynchronous communication (RFC/BAPI is basically only intended for Synchronous comm. which asks much more system resources from your XI system).

If you use ABAP proxies you can also avoid mappings, i.e. you can use the same message type definition for both input and output interfaces.

Adapters connect the Integration Engine to SAP legacy systems, as well as to external systems.

In this way, adapters integrate existing SAP components with SAP Exchange Infrastructure,

the J2EE-based Adapter Engine provides you with various adapters that you can use to connect external systems to your Integration Engine. You can use these adapters to convert XML and HTTP-based messages to the specific protocols and formats of the respective external systems and the other way around. You can specify generic modules for adapters in the Adapter Engine in the module processor. These modules give the adapters additional functions. Modules describes the modules shipped by SAP.

Thanks,

Rajani.

[former_member556603]

Hello Vijaya,

proxies are class implementation of your msg interfaces............

to use proxy communication, you should have systems with Web AS>=6.20

Adapters like file, jdbc are used for communication with systems which support their messages like file systems, database systems etc

Adapters are used to convert the Sender Application Data Format into XML and Vice versa.this has to be needed because XI can understand only XML language.

This will be possible by the help of adapters.

Sender Adapter will take the sender application format into XML and procees it in XI then Again the receiver adapter will comvert that xml into Receiver application format

List of adapters used in XI are.

1) file

2) Idoc

3)RFC

4)HTTP

5)SOAP

6)Mail

To view the list of Adapters those are installed in your XI server

Goto Runtime Workbench-Component monitoring-Click on display--Select Adapter Engine-Display List of adapters

Thanks,

Satya Kumar

Reward if it is useful

[Former Member]

Hi,

The task of an Adapter in SAP XI is to translate from the sender message format to XI message format or XI message format to receiver message format and can also be a called as a communication protocol between sender/receiver and SAP XI. Let us discuss various adapters which are widely and commonly used.

regards

Faisal

[Former Member]

Hi

Adapters are designed for transforing the data from their source format to xml format.

file------> converts the file data to xml

jdbc----> converts the DB data to xml

.....

some predefined adapters are available for some specific formats.

Suppose we are using some other formats so there is no suitable adapter for that one, then we will go for proxies.

Proxies directly interact with integration server, so its execution is faster.

By using Idocs generally we can contact to the R/3, suppose there is no predefined idoc is suitable to our requirement then also we will go for proxies.

[Former Member]

Hi,

in short and sweet

Proxies are used while communicating with systems like SAP WAS >= 6.20 as they are provided with inbuilt integration engines. You will usually create a message interface in the repository and then generate a proxy in the application system. Proxy executables reside either in sender or receiver systems. Proxies are used only when sender/receiver and SAP XI understand XI message format. The one most important difference between a proxy and adapter is that the adapter converts the sender/receiver format to the XI message format but where as proxy does not need to do that as they natively understand the XI message format. ABAP proxies and Java proxies are available in SAP XI which can be used depending upon the requirements.

regards

Faisal

reward pts if useful................

[Former Member]

Hi

just have a look at this quote:

You can use the following approaches when developing interfaces:

· Outside-In: You can develop new, platform-independent message interfaces by using the Integration Builder. Message interfaces are based on the WSDL standard Web Services Description Language), an XML schema for describing network services. Using this description, you can generate platform-specific proxies in Java or ABAP that you can then use to implement the actual message exchange.

· Inside-Out: You can connect interfaces from SAP and non-SAP systems to SAP Exchange Infrastructure by using adapters. The Integration Builder can import interface descriptions in XML format for BAPI, RFC, and IDoc interfaces from SAP systems Release 4.0 or higher.

from:

http://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw04/helpdata/en/ba/d4c23b95c8466ce10000000a114084/content.htm

basically it's all about where you start developing

your interfaces either in XI (and later one in the

system - by proxies ) or in system first and then you try to match

to this interface in XI (by importing IDOCs, RFC, external definitions etc.)

reGARDS

Krishna

[Former Member]

Hi

Adapters are part of the Adapter Framework. Adapters provide the technical connectivity to enable the integration of SAP and non-SAP applications through XI’s Integration Engine.Again, Adapters are used for connectivity from and to external systems with XI that cannot communicate via proxies.Adapters are only required in SAP systems older than 6.20 and external systems.

Systems based on 6.20or higher can communicate directly with proxies.

The literal definition of a proxy is an object / process authorized to act for another; an agent or a substitute. In simpler terms, proxies in the XI context are objects used to encapsulate the creation (from a sender system) or parsing of XML (at a receiver system) as well as the communication with the relevant runtime components required to send or receive those messages.

Proxies are generated from Message Interface in IR.

The Proxy Runtime controls these objects / processes, and can itself be controlled by the applications it communicates with. The Proxy Runtime currently has the following components available: 1. ABAP Proxy Runtime – Communication using XI or Web Services a. Web Service Runtime 2. Java Proxy Runtime – Communication using XI (J2EE) The objects that the Proxy Runtime then controls are created via Proxy Generation, for both ABAP and Java. In the following sections a ‘client’ proxy is used by an application to send messages outside of the system it resides in (normally to the IS in this context). Conversely, a ‘server’ proxy is used by an application to receive messages from sources outside itself (again, normally the IS in this context).

regards

krishna