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Overview: Siebel

Enterprise Application
Integration
Siebel Innovation Pack 2017,
Rev. A
November 2017
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Contents

Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration 1

Chapter 1: What’s New in This Release

Chapter 2: Overview of Siebel EAI


About Siebel EAI 7
Siebel Enterprise Application Integration 7
About Siebel EAI Components 8
Siebel EAI and XML 9
Siebel EAI Adapters and Connectors 9
Siebel EAI and Business Components 10
Siebel EAI with Java and J2EE 11
Siebel EAI and Object Interfaces 13
Siebel EAI and Message Based Integration 14
Siebel EAI and Data Transformation 15
Siebel EAI and Workflow Process Control 15
About Interfaces for Siebel Application Services 15
About Web Services 17
About Siebel EAI and Unicode Support 18
Inbound and Outbound Unicode Scenarios for XML Messages 20
Transcode Business Service Usage with Non XML Data 20
About Siebel EAI and Legacy Systems 21
About Siebel EAI Integration Strategies 22
Peer-to-Peer Integration 23
Application Connection with an Integration Server 23
Other Integration Strategies 24

Chapter 3: Integration with Siebel EAI


Overview of Integration with Siebel EAI 27
Integration Options with Siebel EAI 27
Design for an Application Integration Project 28
Real-Time and Batch Mode Usage Models 29
Data Exchange with a Siebel Application 31
Summary of Integration Options with Siebel EAI 32

Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack 3


2017, Rev. A
Contents ■

Chapter 4: Architecture for Siebel EAI


Overview of Architecture for Siebel EAI 35
Siebel EAI Architecture 36
Integration Requirements for Siebel EAI 37
Business Process Coordination with Siebel Workflow 38
Transport Mechanisms 39
High Volume Data Exchange 40

Chapter 5: Scenarios for Using Siebel EAI


Scenarios for Common Integrations 43
Scenarios for Data that is Accessed, Exported or Replicated 44
Scenarios for Data that Crosses a Boundary 46
Scenarios for Data that is Transformed 47

Index

4 Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack


2017, Rev. A
1 What’s New in This Release

What’s New in Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration,


Siebel Innovation Pack 2017, Rev. A
This guide has been updated to correct or remove obsolete product and component terms. The
following section was deleted as part of the update:

■ Web UI Dynamic Developer's Kit

What’s New in Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration,


Siebel Innovation Pack 2017
No new features have been added to this guide for this release. This guide has been updated to
reflect only product name changes.

Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack 5


2017, Rev. A
What’s New in This Release ■

6 Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack


2017, Rev. A
2 Overview of Siebel EAI

This chapter describes an overview of Oracle’s Siebel Enterprise Application Integration (Siebel EAI).
It includes the following topics:

■ About Siebel EAI on page 7

■ About Siebel EAI Components on page 8

■ About Interfaces for Siebel Application Services on page 15

■ About Web Services on page 17

■ About Siebel EAI and Unicode Support on page 18

■ About Siebel EAI and Legacy Systems on page 21

■ About Siebel EAI Integration Strategies on page 22

About Siebel EAI


In order to drive revenue growth, increase productivity, and gain visibility to business performance,
an organization must integrate business processes across a large number of disparate applications.
Because business is accelerating, an organization must integrate and streamline business processes
in order to achieve the agility that is required to respond to changing customer and market demands.
This integration imperative is even more pressing because supply and demand chains are
increasingly interdependent, requiring an organization to integrate an extended enterprise to make
sure the viability of the entire partner ecosystem.

To meet these requirements, Oracle continues to enhance the integration tool set that exists within
Siebel applications.

Siebel Enterprise Application Integration


Siebel Enterprise Application Integration (Siebel EAI) is the set of products on the Siebel Business
Platform that includes tools, technologies, and prebuilt functional integrations that facilitate
application integration. Some of the features provided by Siebel EAI include:

■ Provides components to integrate Siebel Business Applications with external applications and
technologies within your company

■ Works with third-party solutions, such as solutions from IBM, TIBCO, WebMethods, and so forth

■ Provides bidirectional, real time and batch solutions to integrate Siebel applications with other
applications

■ Provides a set of interfaces that interact with each other and with other components within a
Siebel application. Some of the features that these interfaces provide include:

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Overview of Siebel EAI ■ About Siebel EAI Components

■ Provides a flexible, service based architecture that is built on top of configurable messages
using XML and other formats

■ Provides compatibility with IBM MQSeries, Microsoft MSMQ, Sun Microsystems Java and
J2EE, XML, HTTP, and other standards.

■ Provides access of internal Siebel Objects to an external application

■ Takes advantage of prebuilt adapters and enterprise connectors

■ Provides compatibility with third-party adapters and connectors

■ Provides data transformation

■ Integrates external data through virtual business components and external business
components

■ Provides a graphical business process designer, programmatic interfaces, and a high volume
batch interface

About Siebel EAI Components


This topic describes components in Siebel EAI. It includes the following topics:

■ Siebel EAI and XML on page 9

■ Siebel EAI Adapters and Connectors on page 9

■ Siebel EAI and Business Components on page 10

■ Siebel EAI with Java and J2EE on page 11

■ Siebel EAI and Object Interfaces on page 13

■ Siebel EAI and Message Based Integration on page 14

■ Siebel EAI and Data Transformation on page 15

■ Siebel EAI and Workflow Process Control on page 15

A legacy application, such as purchasing or accounting, can contain critical information that must
coexist and integrate with a Siebel application. A business-to-business interaction requires that
customer, order, and account information be shared with partners across a firewall. Siebel EAI
provides components that can be used individually or together with a toolkit from an EAI vendor,
including XML support in Siebel EAI adapters and connectors, a virtual business component, or Java
Beans.

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Siebel EAI and XML


XML is increasingly the format of choice for data exchange between an application and a partner
organization. The metadata definition for XML is in the form of XML Schema Definitions (XSD) or
Document Types Definitions (DTD). Because Siebel Integration objects can be represented as XSD,
another application can capture metadata from a Siebel application and understand how to format
an XML document that must be sent to a Siebel application. Data in a Siebel application can be
represented as XML and sent over a standard protocol such as HTTP. Siebel EAI provides components
that allow bidirectional exchange of XML documents over the firewall using the HTTP protocol. This
exchange can be made secure at the transport layer by using the HTTPS protocol.

Siebel EAI supports XML for an outgoing or incoming message. Siebel EAI can be configured to use
an XSD or DTD that is externally specified to define external integration objects. Siebel Tools includes
an Integration Object Wizard that can be used to import and process an external XSD or DTD and to
generate these external integration objects that represent the XSD or the DTD.

A transport adapter, whether built by Oracle or built by a partner, can use this business service to
dynamically look up the content in an XML document or in a document that uses another format,
then route the message based on content from the document. The message can be routed to a
workflow process or to another business service within a Siebel application.

Siebel EAI Adapters and Connectors


Siebel EAI provides adapters and connectors to help create an integration between a Siebel
application and an external application. Other connectors are also available through partners for
Siebel Business Applications. For each supported business process, the connectors include data
mapping between the exchanged entities, and sequencing and error handling.

Siebel EAI Adapter


An adapter is a Siebel EAI component that provides a low level interface to allow one application to
talk to another application. The three types of adapters available in Siebel EAI include:

■ EAI Siebel Adapter. The EAI Siebel Adapter business service is specifically designed to interact
with the Siebel business object layer. It is a business service in a Siebel application that can use
an XML document as input, or can use a property set that conforms to an integration object
definition in the Siebel system. EAI Siebel Adapter can then query, insert, update, delete, or
synchronize data with the Siebel business object layer.

■ EAI UI Data Adapter. The EAI UI Data Adapter business service allows a Web application that
is custom built to access business components and business objects. This adapter publishes
strongly typed APIs to allow data centric object manager operations, such as insert, delete,
update, query or execute. The EAI UI Data Adapter supports the query by example and the
predefined query.

■ Transport Adapter. A transport adapter is a business service within Siebel EAI that is designed
to communicate with other protocols and technologies that exist outside of a Siebel application.
A transport adapter transports data from the Siebel system to another system:

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Overview of Siebel EAI ■ About Siebel EAI Components

■ The HTTP transport in Siebel EAI allows a Siebel application to communicate over the HTTP
protocol.

■ The MQSeries adapter allows a Siebel application to communicate with the IBM MQSeries
messaging system.

■ The MSMQ adapter allows a Siebel application to communicate with the Microsoft MQ
messaging system.

For more information on the EAI Siebel Adapter and the EAI UI Data Adapter business services, see
Integration Platform Technologies: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration.

For more information on transport adapters, see Transports and Interfaces: Siebel Enterprise
Application Integration.

NOTE: The Siebel Bookshelf is available on Oracle Technology Network (OTN) and Oracle Software
Delivery Cloud. It might also be installed locally on your intranet or on a network location.

Siebel EAI Connector


A Siebel EAI connector provides low level connectivity to another back office application, such as SAP
or Oracle. It also includes the business processes that are used to connect to the external application.
For example, the Siebel Connector for SAP R/3 provides connectivity using BAPI and IDOC transport
adapters, and predefined business processes. Using the connectors, you can exchange customer,
order, and product information between a Siebel application and another Oracle application or SAP.

For more information, see Siebel Connector for SAP R/3.

Third-Party Connector
Your organization might be required to integrate multiple applications with one another, such as
Siebel applications, SAP, Oracle, I2, and so forth. You might require an EAI solution from an EAI
vendor. These vendors work closely with Oracle to develop adapters for a Siebel application that use
Siebel EAI. Oracle uses a program that makes sure that these adapters work according to Oracle
standards.

Siebel EAI and Business Components


This topic describes Siebel EAI usage with business components.

Siebel EAI and the Virtual Business Component


A Virtual Business Component (VBC) is a mechanism in Siebel EAI by which data from an external
system is viewed in a Siebel application without having to replicate that data within the Siebel
database.

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For example, assume an end user accesses detailed credit card information from a mainframe system
for a particular customer account, which is viewed in the Siebel application interface. In this case,
the basic customer account data, such as account number, name, and so forth, is stored in a Siebel
application while the detailed transaction information on the credit card account for that customer is
stored in an external database. The detailed transaction information for a particular account is
retrieved from the external system on demand without replicating that information in the Siebel
application.

A VBC is configured in Siebel Tools and uses business services to access data from an external
system. A VBC can use a standard transport, such as MQSeries, HTTP, and MSMQ, to query, insert,
and update data. A VBC also uses the XML Gateway Service.

Siebel EAI and the External Business Component


An External Business Component (EBC) is a mechanism in Siebel EAI that provides access to
relational data sources that reside in a non Siebel table or view that uses a Siebel business
component. Unlike a VBC that requires a business service, an EBC can use a Siebel database
connector to access data.

An EBC is configured in Siebel Tools by using a Table object definition in the Siebel Repository, and
a physical table that resides in the same Siebel database instance or subsystem that contains other
Siebel tables.

Siebel EAI with Java and J2EE


Siebel Business Applications provide standards based technologies that allow you to access J2EE
components from a Siebel application, and supports the creation of Java and J2EE components to
access Siebel objects. For more information, see Transports and Interfaces: Siebel Enterprise
Application Integration.

Access to a Java or J2EE Component from a Siebel Application


Siebel Business Applications provide three mechanisms to start Java and J2EE components:

■ Web Services

■ The Outbound HTTP adapter

■ Java Business Service

When interacting with a J2EE component that is published as a Web Service, a Siebel application can
use the Web Service Description Language (WSDL) document that describes the service and
operations, then generate a proxy Business Service that allows the Siebel Business Application to
call the Web Service just like it does with a local object. When the Business Service is called:

1 The Object Manager detects that the Business Service is a proxy to a Web Service

2 The appropriate Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) message is generated

3 The request is dispatched by using a configured transport, such as HTTP

For more information on Web Services, see “About Web Services” on page 17.

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Additionally, Siebel EAI allows you to interact with J2EE components using the Outbound HTTP
transport adapter. You can use this technique when you include external content within the Siebel
user interface, or when the component you must interact with does not support a SOAP or WSDL
interface.

The Java Business Service is a business service that allows a custom business service to be written
in Java and accessed from the Siebel code:

■ Allows a message to be sent or received though a JMS. The JMS Receiver server component,
which is similar to the MQ Series Receiver component, allows for asynchronous receipt of
messages, except you use the EAI JMS Business Service instead of the EAI MQSeries Server
Transport.

■ Uses the Java Native Interface API that is provided by Java Virtual Machines (JVM) and native
code interaction. It is a widely used technology that is used for writing JDBC drivers.

Access to a Siebel Application from a Java or J2EE Component


The ways that a Java and J2EE component can request information from a Siebel application include:

■ Java Data Bean. The Java Data Bean is a collection of Java classes that allow a developer to
interact with a variety of Siebel objects, such as business objects, business components, and so
forth. With this interface, you can develop Java and J2EE components that interact with a Siebel
application.

■ Siebel Resource Adapter. The Siebel Resource Adapter plays a central role in the integration
and connectivity between a Siebel application and a Java application server. It serves as the
point of contact between application components, application servers and enterprise information
systems. Resource adapters, along with the other components, must communicate with each
other based on well defined contracts that are specified by the J2EE Connector Architecture.

■ Web Service. Web Services are emerging as an important technology for exposing application
functionality that is independent of the underlying technology used to provide that functionality.
Release 6.x introduced business services that could be called through XML over HTTP and
MQSeries. This functionality is now the basis for supporting Web Services. Siebel Business
Applications provide support for Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) and Web Services
Definition Language (WSDL). These two standards provide the basis for Web Services and allow
for interoperability between .NET, J2EE, and leading packaged applications, such as Siebel
Business Applications.

For more information, see “About Web Services” on page 17.

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■ Java Message Service. Enterprise messaging is recognized as a tool for building enterprise
applications. The Java Message Service (JMS) is a standard Java API that is used to access an
enterprise messaging system. JMS is part of the Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE). JMS
supports the ability to asynchronously send and receive business data and events. JMS defines
a common enterprise messaging API that supports a wide range of enterprise messaging
products. JMS supports both message queuing and publish and subscribe styles of messaging.

JMS is not a separate product. It is the specification of a common API for enterprise messaging.
A JMS provider that is supplied by an enterprise messaging vendor is required in order to use it.
Using the Java Business Service (JBS) feature, the JMS Transport is a feature that provides
access to the JMS providers for a third-party vendor. A JMS provider is the implementation of
the JMS API for a particular vendor. For example, IBM implements a JMS provider for their
MQSeries product, and BEA implements a JMS provider for their Weblogic product.

For more information, see Transports and Interfaces: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration.

Siebel EAI and Object Interfaces


A Siebel application supports several programmatic interfaces to facilitate communication between
an external application and a Siebel application. These interfaces include:

■ COM Data Control

■ Java Data Bean

■ Web Client Automation Server

■ Mobile Web Client Automation Server

■ COM Data Server

For more information, see Siebel Object Interfaces Reference.

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Siebel EAI and Message Based Integration


Figure 1 illustrates how Siebel EAI supports message based integration with an external application,
where the Siebel application is the initiator of the request or the receiver.

Figure 1. Configurable and Upgradeable Integration

Siebel EAI and Integration Objects


An integration object is the contents of messages that are exchanged, as described in Figure 1 on
page 14. An integration object is defined in Siebel Tools.

The types of integration objects include:

■ Siebel integration object. Data to be loaded into or read from a Siebel Business Object.

■ External integration object. Data received from or sent to the external application.

A configuration engine provides configurable data transformation to match the difference in the way
that entities are represented, while integration objects represent the information exchanged.

A Siebel integration object is defined as a subset of a Siebel business object. The map between an
integration object and the business object is maintained in the Siebel Repository. EAI Siebel Adapter
is a predefined business service that uses a Siebel integration as input, then calls the appropriate
business object APIs to operate on the object called. External integration objects are based on
external metadata. This metadata is in the form of XML Schema Definitions (XSD), Document Type
Definitions (DTD), External Data Representations (XDR), SAP BAPIs and SAP IDOCs, and metadata
for an Oracle application. Siebel Tools provides wizards to access this metadata from the external
application, and to create external integration objects that are based on that metadata within the
Siebel repository.

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Siebel EAI and Data Transformation


Siebel EAI transforms the data that is expected by a Siebel application, which is the internal
integration object, to the data that is expected from the external system, which is the external
integration object. Siebel Data Mapper is a declarative data mapper that is used to perform the
transformation. The EAI Data Mapping Engine is a run-time engine that implements complex domain
and structure mapping.

Siebel EAI and Workflow Process Control


To achieve integration at the process level between a Siebel application and an external application,
the Siebel Business platform supports workflow control. You define the integration process by using
the Workflow Process Designer in Siebel Tools. A workflow process is executed in an application
object manager as a business service. A business service can be a prebuilt component, such as a
transport adapter or the Siebel Data Transformation Engine, or it can be custom developed by using
one of the Siebel Scripting languages. A workflow process can also be executed in the Workflow
Process Manager server component. For more information, see Siebel Business Process Framework:
Workflow Guide.

About Interfaces for Siebel Application


Services
A Siebel Application Services Interface (Siebel ASI) is a prebuilt interface to Siebel business
processes. This interface exposes Siebel functionality as services to the Siebel application
environment, and allows a Siebel business process to use services provided by an external
application. A Siebel ASI provides ease of maintenance and can be configured by an administrator
using the Web Services Administration screens which do not require detailed knowledge of Siebel
EAI.

Because the integration interface to the Siebel application remains unchanged with each upgrade to
a release, the integration interface is independent of a specific release. The interfaces in Siebel ASI
are extensible and are accessible as a Web Service or through a third-party Enterprise Application
Integration (EAI) solution. These benefits simplify integration between a Siebel application and an
external system, resulting in a significant reduction in the costs associated with integration,
maintenance, and upgrades.

An ASI is published in a standard metadata format, such as Extensible Markup Language Document
Type Definitions (XML DTD), and Web Services Descriptive Language/XML Schemas (WSDL/XSD).
They are built using the ASI Framework.

For more information, see Siebel Application Services Interface Reference.

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Types of ASI Interfaces


An ASI is either an inbound ASI and or an outbound ASI.

Inbound ASI
Figure 2 illustrates how an inbound ASI is used to accept data into a Siebel application from an
external system by using Siebel workflow processes, Siebel business services, and Siebel data
synchronization services through the Siebel Object Manager.

Figure 2. Inbound ASI

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Outbound ASI
Figure 3 illustrates how an Outbound ASI is used to send data that is based on a UI event or a trigger
in a Siebel workflow process.

Figure 3. Outbound ASI

About Web Services


A web service is programmable application logic that is accessed by using a standard Internet
protocol, such as HTTP, and data formats, such as XML. Because a web service combines component
based development with the Internet, it is reused regardless of how the service is implemented.

A web service is based on communication protocols that include HTTP, XML, Simple Object
Application Protocol (SOAP), and Web Services Description Language (WSDL). A web service must
be developed on a computer platform and in a development environment that can communicate with
another web service that also uses these common protocols.

Features provided with a web service include:

■ WS Security Support. The Web Services Security specification is a Web Services standard that
supports, integrates, and unifies multiple security models and technologies, allowing a variety of
systems to interoperate in an environment that is independent of a particular platform or
language.

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■ WS-I Compliance. By providing the ability to publish a Siebel Web Service as a Document
Literal or Remote Procedure Calls (RPC) Literal bound Web Service, the Siebel application
conforms to the specification, as defined by the (WS-I) Basic Profile specification from the Web
Services Interoperability Organization. Adherence to this specification makes sure that the Siebel
application can interoperate with an external provider of a Web Service.

■ Web Services Cache Refresh. The Web Services cache stores the global administration
information that is manipulated in the Inbound and Outbound Web Service administration
screens. The information contained in these services might require a refresh in order to provide
more current or correct functionality. An administrator can directly refresh the memory cache in
real time, without stopping and restarting Siebel services.

For more information, see Integration Platform Technologies: Siebel Enterprise Application
Integration.

Data Access Control


You can administer access control by associating responsibilities with business services and business
service methods. The Siebel application is configured so that an end user, who accesses a Siebel
application through a custom built user interface for a Web application, is provided different levels
of access to the Siebel database. For more information, see Siebel Security Guide.

About Siebel EAI and Unicode Support


A multilingual company that includes divisions in different countries who use different languages can
use Unicode to deploy a single instance of a Siebel application release. However, this technique
presents a unique integration challenge because the other systems in the multilingual IT landscape
for the company might or might not allow Unicode. Unicode deployment modes that address this
issue include:

■ Unicode Siebel Server with Unicode database

■ Unicode Siebel Server with traditional code page database

For these deployment modes, integrating Siebel Business Applications with an external application
might involve data replication, data sharing, or both data replication and data sharing. If the code
page database is used, and if the code page of the external system matches the code page of the
Siebel Database, then data replication is allowed.

Exchanging Data Between Applications that use Different Code Pages


If data is exchanged between applications that use different code pages, then the numeric
representation of the code point for each character must be converted from the standard that is used
by the source code page, into the equivalent character that is used by the destination code page.
This conversion requirement is true when a character is converted from:

■ Unicode to a traditional code page. For example, UTF-16 to Shift-JS.

■ A traditional code page to Unicode. For example, Shift-JS to UTF-8.

■ One type of Unicode to another type of Unicode. For example, UTF-8 to UCS-2.

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If there is no equivalent character in the destination code page, and if the conversion cannot be
performed, then a conversion error is generated. Depending on the configuration, the conversion
error might either terminate the current transaction, or the transaction might proceed by
substituting replacement characters, as necessary, and ignoring the conversion error. For more
information, see Transports and Interfaces: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration.

Figure 4 illustrates how Siebel EAI supports different adapters, such as COM and MQSeries, to
integrate with an external application. Abilities inherent with each of these adapters include:

■ Work with the character encoding, as specified in the picklist

■ Perform conversion to or from the external encoding

■ Handle conversion errors

Figure 4. Unicode Conversion

COM and Java Bean Unicode Protocols


COM and Java Bean are Unicode protocols. The sender and the recipient are responsible for
converting the character sets. For example, because interfaces for a Siebel application automatically
handle the conversion, these protocols are not required to perform a conversion. Error handling is
handled differently by these protocols when compared to the other adapters.

Character Set Encoding


Siebel EAI components and adapters support code page conversion and allow you to specify how to
handle a conversion error. The business services in which the Character Set Conversion for the Text
Data argument is available include:

■ EAI MQSeries Server Transport

■ EAI DLL Transport

■ EAI File Transport

■ EAI HTTP Transport

■ EAI MSMQ Transport

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■ EAI XML Converter

■ EAI JMS Business Service

■ Transcode

If one of these business services is called from a workflow process, then the valid set of encodings
is controlled by a picklist. However, if the business service is called through a script or other similar
mechanism, then the character set name is supplied textually. For example, if the Siebel application
communicates with an external system through the EAI MQSeries Server Transport business service,
then the called of EAI MQSeries Server Transport to send or receive a message also specifies the
character set that the external system sends or expects to receive.

Target character encoding choices include:

■ None
■ UTF-8 Unicode

■ UTF-16 Unicode

■ Traditional Code page

For more information, see Siebel Global Deployment Guide.

Inbound and Outbound Unicode Scenarios for XML


Messages
Because the memory format for a Siebel application is Unicode, if an XML message is sent or
received, then the message must be converted to the Siebel format or to a character set for the
external system. It is only necessary to perform this conversion one time for each communication.

The conversion is performed in one of the following ways:

■ Using the EAI XML Converter business service in your workflow process

■ Using the transport business service

■ Using the Transcode business service when neither of the first two conversion techniques
described in this list are available

NOTE: Do not convert your data more than one time for each communication. Double conversion
corrupts your data. If you use an EAI XML Converter in your workflow process, make sure your
transport business service is defined to ignore conversion.

Transcode Business Service Usage with Non XML Data


If non XML data is exchanged, then you can use the Transcode business service in a workflow process
to validate or convert data from one encoding to another encoding. You can use this technique for
inbound and outbound communication.

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Overview of Siebel EAI ■ About Siebel EAI and Legacy Systems

Transcode Business Service Usage with Outbound Communication


Consider an outbound communication between a Unicode Siebel application and a non Unicode
external system that uses a Unicode communication channel, such as XML. In this situation, ways in
which you can use methods on the Transcode business service include:

■ Use the Validate method to execute preemptive logic in order to avoid a character conversion
failure on the external system

■ Use the Validate method to log a character conversion error that occurs on the external system

■ Use the Convert method to use a substitute character to avoid an error on the external system

Transcode Business Service Usage with Inbound Communication


Consider an inbound communication between a non Unicode Siebel Database and a Unicode external
system that uses a Unicode communication channel such as XML. In this situation, ways in which
you can use methods on the Transcode business service include:

■ Use the Validate method to check that the data sent to the Siebel Database is stored without a
character conversion error

■ If there is a character conversion error, then use the Convert method to use substitute
characters, when appropriate

For more information, see the Siebel Global Deployment Guide.

About Siebel EAI and Legacy Systems


In an encapsulated environment, multiple similar legacy applications are rationalized through the
construction of high level APIs that hide underlying complexity. Figure 5 illustrates how message
oriented middleware can help a business perform transaction decomposition, data mapping, legacy
sequencing, and result aggregation. With Siebel EAI, the Siebel Business platform generates and
processes the high level request and response messages that are expected by the encapsulated
environment. Examples of message oriented middleware include:

■ IBM MQSeries Queue Manager and MQSeries Integrator

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■ A custom development environment that is based on Enterprise Java Bean, such as IBM
WebSphere

Figure 5. Legacy Encapsulation

About Siebel EAI Integration Strategies


This topic describes an overview of integration strategies.

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Peer-to-Peer Integration
Figure 6 illustrates peer-to-peer integration, where multiple applications interact with each other
through a central software bus. The software bus provides a uniform interface to each application.
The bus also provides a number of services that can range from simple data transformation, to a
more complex publish and subscribe scheme that allows a set of applications to automatically receive
copies of events that are of interest, thus keeping these applications synchronized with the rest of
the organization. Siebel EAI supports the services that the software bus expects from each
participating application.

Figure 6. Peer-to-Peer Integration

An enterprise can adopt a software bus strategy for application integration. Master data is partitioned
across systems, and the software bus middleware implements a messaging architecture to exchange
application data. The messaging functionality ranges from simple message routing, in batch or real
time, to a publish and subscribe scheme.

NOTE: Siebel EAI supports both batch and real-time integration. Because batch integration
optimizes interactions for high throughput, it uses computing resources more efficiently. By contrast,
real-time integration optimizes response time.

Application Connection with an Integration Server


Integration can be achieved by connecting an application through an integration server that provides
an information bus or a hub and spoke architecture to tie disparate applications together. The benefit
of using an integration server is that it reduces the number of physical connections.

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Figure 7 illustrates how each application connects only one time, through an adapter, to the
integration server. The integration server also provides a reliable integration infrastructure that is
successfully implemented in a large and critical deployment.

Figure 7. Integration Server

A Siebel application can integrate with an integration server by using an adapter provided by a
partner, such as IBM, TIBCO, or WebMethods. For information about supported integration servers,
see Siebel System Requirements and Supported Platforms.

Other Integration Strategies


Some of the other integration strategies that can be used include:

■ Multiple Application Process Integration. A successful business requires business processes


that span multiple applications. For example, a quote to cash business process spans credit
check, inventory management, billing, shipping, and other application services. Siebel EAI
facilitates multiple application business processes.

■ Master Data Partitioning. Master data refers to the set of data that is required by a community
of applications. Master data is partitioned between applications. Although each piece of data is
owned by one application, the community imposes rules for the creation and update of master
data.

■ Data Sharing. Siebel EAI allows Siebel Business Applications to access external data in real time
without having to maintain a local, duplicate copy. This is a common requirement in the financial
services industry, where the file for customer information typically resides on a mainframe.

■ Presentation Layer Integration. Siebel EAI supports client integration in a Web client
environment. Client integration includes integrating applications at the user interface level,
either by juxtaposing the screens within a portal and coordinating the content, or by screen
scraping the content of one screen into the content of another screen.

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■ Data Mapping and Transformation. Data that is shared between applications might not be
structured or encoded in the same way. To facilitate integration of data structures that are not
identical, Siebel EAI specifies mapping and transformation rules, including filtering and structural
changes.

■ Centralized Application Administration. Siebel Business Applications participate in an


application management framework, which facilitates overall administration of applications.

■ Upgradeable Integration. The Siebel Business platform is designed so that integration points
are migrated to a new release of Siebel Business Applications and adapted to new releases of
external application packages. This capability means an organization can use a prior investment
in their integration when upgrading to a new version of a Siebel application, or to a third-party
application.

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3 Integration with Siebel EAI

This chapter describes integration options with Siebel EAI. It includes the following topics:

■ Overview of Integration with Siebel EAI on page 27

Overview of Integration with Siebel EAI


This topic describes an overview of integration with Siebel EAI. It includes the following topics:

■ Integration Options with Siebel EAI on page 27

■ Design for an Application Integration Project on page 28

■ Real-Time and Batch Mode Usage Models on page 29

■ Data Exchange with a Siebel Application on page 31

■ Summary of Integration Options with Siebel EAI on page 32

Before you begin an integration project, you must identify your integration requirements. Siebel
Business Applications must interact with external systems in order to provide an integrated view of
your data. Applications in which data resides are varied. For example, they can include:

■ A back office solution for order fulfillment, manufacturing, or accounting

■ An e-commerce application, such as a Web storefront

■ A help desk application

Integration Options with Siebel EAI


Depending on your requirements, the ways that you can approach your integration include:

■ Use prebuilt Siebel EAI connectors to integrate a Siebel application with your back office system
or your e-commerce application

■ Use custom built Siebel EAI connectors to integrate a Siebel application with an external
application

■ Use a third-party EAI product to integrate a Siebel application with an external application

■ Use a middleware solution to integrate a Siebel application

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Siebel Business Applications provide solutions for each element of the EAI planning process:

■ A programmatic interface, such as COM or Siebel Java Beans, provides a tightly coupled
integration for real-time data exchange.

■ An adapter, such as MQSeries or the HTTP adapters, provides a loosely coupled integration for
real-time data exchange. This means that one system must be aware of the implementation
details that are defined for the integration of the other system. A message or a document is
exchanged between these systems.

■ Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM) provides a solution for a high volume batch
integration. For more information, see “About the Enterprise Integration Manager” on page 41.

Design for an Application Integration Project


The questions you must answer as part of the planning phase for an application integration project
include:

■ How is the data that is used in my organization shared?

■ Which access mechanism makes the most sense for my situation?

■ Which preexisting connector best applies to my situation?

It is important to identify your requirements before you design the integration. Categories on which
your design choice can be based include:

■ Data Transformation. Data transformation between two systems is an important part of an


integration project. You might be required to implement this data transformation by using the
data transformation functions that are provided by Oracle. If your organization is already
standardized on a data transformation tool, then you might choose to model the integration flow
so that it uses this tool for data transformation.

■ Data Sharing. If you must view data from an external source within your Siebel application, and
if you do not need to replicate the data, then you can use a specific set of objects and tools that
are designed specifically for this purpose. For example, you might need to view credit card
transaction details from within a Siebel application while the credit card transaction details are
stored on a mainframe system.

■ Real-Time or Batch. You must consider whether you require real-time or batch mode
integration. For example, you might need to publish to an external system a new opportunity
that is created in a Siebel application as soon as the opportunity occurs. Or you might need to
exchange information in batch mode when you must aggregate product catalog information from
your suppliers.

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Siebel Business Interfaces


After you design your integration requirements for each business process flow, you can apply the
different components of Siebel EAI to implement a solution. Figure 1 illustrates the different types of
applications with which Siebel Business Applications can integrate.

Figure 1. Siebel Business Interfaces

Real-Time and Batch Mode Usage Models


When considering your requirements, you must develop an understanding of how you intend to use
the integration capabilities that are provided by Siebel EAI. You must determine how the integration
behaves under specific circumstances. How are you planning to use this integration? This model is
referred to as the usage model.

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Figure 2 illustrates real-time and batch usage models. Batch mode uses a single mode, while real-
time uses two modes, either tightly coupled or loosely coupled. To help you determine the
appropriate usage model, answer the following questions:

■ How do I plan to integrate Siebel applications with other applications?

■ Do I need to integrate in real time, or in batch mode?

■ If I need to integrate in real time, do I need the solution to be tightly coupled or loosely coupled?

Figure 2. Integration Usage Model

Integration with the Real-Time Model


With a real-time model, you might choose to deploy Siebel applications as a client or as a service.
As a client, Siebel applications access another program or initiate a transaction on an external
system. As a service, Siebel applications are accessed by an external program to query, insert,
update, or delete data without initiation from Siebel applications.

Typical scenarios that involve Siebel applications as a client include:

■ Replicate data. For example, to maintain the SAP order number in the Siebel application so that
an end user can relate a Siebel order to a SAP order.

■ Access a mainframe system to retrieve information for a customer account in real time, then
display it within the interface for the Siebel application.

■ Send a sales opportunity to a trading partner over your corporate firewall without compromising
system security.

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■ Access a function for an external system to check inventory, then display the results in a Siebel
application.

Typical scenarios that involve Siebel applications as a service include:

■ An external Web application that accesses a Siebel application in order to retrieve information
for a contact.

■ Call center software that extracts information for a service request from a Siebel application.

Integration with the Batch Model


Batch processing is typically used to periodically upload or download a large amount of information
into or out of the Siebel Database. Typical batch scenarios that involve Siebel applications include:

■ Uploading a batch of product catalog and item information into a Siebel application from an
external system.

■ Downloading a batch of opportunities from Siebel applications to another database.

Data Exchange with a Siebel Application


If your business requirement is to access another application from within a Siebel application, or to
access a Siebel application from within another application, then you must determine exactly the
type of data exchange that is required, which can include:

■ Data Sharing. You might be required to share data that exists outside of the Siebel Business
Application. For example, several legacy mainframe systems might exist in your environment
that you must access with Siebel Call Center in order to provide a customer with information on
their account. Instead of replicating this information across Siebel Business Applications, you can
dynamically share it and display it within a single Siebel application. For data sharing, use a
virtual business component.

■ Replication. Replication of data is often useful. For example, you might be required to integrate
data in SAP with data in a Siebel application, keeping information about order status in both
systems. To mass replicate information about the order status in a Siebel application, use Siebel
Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM).

■ Presentation Layer (UI) Integration. If you only need to consider the user interface for the
other application, then integration at the presentation layer is useful. The data itself does not
need to be retrieved for the Siebel application. In this case, you use ActiveX Data Controls (ADC)
to capture only the screen from the external system, then represent it natively within a Siebel
application. Although this technique is a cost effective way to integrate two applications, it is also
less flexible. Presentation Layer Integration is sometimes referred to as screen scraping.

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Summary of Integration Options with Siebel EAI


Table 1 provides a summary of the Siebel integration options that can be used in your integration
strategy.

Table 1. Summary of Siebel Integration Options

Integration Strategy Description Siebel Integration Tool

Real-time Data Replication In real time, synchronize the Siebel integration tools include:
data in one system with the data
■ Integration Workflow
in another system.
Process

■ EAI Connector

■ EAI Dispatch Service

■ Object Interface

Batch Data Replication At certain times, synchronize Siebel integration tools include:
the data in one system with the
■ Enterprise Integration
data in another system.
Manager

■ Integration Workflow
Process

■ Object Interface

Data Sharing From System A, access and Siebel integration tools include:
change data in System B. Do not
■ Virtual Business Component
store the data in System A.
■ Object Interface

Presentation Layer From Application A, access Siebel integration tools include:


Integration screens from Application B.
■ ActiveX Controls

■ Object Interface

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Figure 3 illustrates the various access options and where they fit within an integration strategy. These
Siebel solutions are either real-time or batch.

Figure 3. Siebel Solutions

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4 Architecture for Siebel EAI

This chapter describes the Siebel EAI architecture. It includes the following topics:

■ Overview of Architecture for Siebel EAI on page 35

Overview of Architecture for Siebel EAI


This topic describes an overview of architecture with Siebel EAI. It includes the following topics:

■ Siebel EAI Architecture on page 36

■ Integration Requirements for Siebel EAI on page 37

■ Business Process Coordination with Siebel Workflow on page 38

■ Transport Mechanisms on page 39

■ High Volume Data Exchange on page 40

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Siebel EAI Architecture


Figure 1 illustrates the Siebel EAI architecture, which includes the EAI Siebel Adapter, the EAI Data
Mapping Engine, and multiple transports that can facilitate data integration with different external
systems.

Figure 1. Siebel EAI Architecture

Because data management functions are abstracted to the object layer, declarative configuration can
be used instead of a procedural configuration, such as scripting. Declarative configuration improves
and simplifies configuration work while lowering the costs associated with maintenance.

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Integration Requirements for Siebel EAI


Table 1 describes data and application integration requirements and their corresponding Siebel EAI
features.

Table 1. Integration Requirements and How They Relate to Siebel EAI

Integration Siebel EAI Feature or


Requirement Component Description

Integration Siebel EAI features and In an integration project, you must


requirements include: components include: supply metadata. Siebel applications
provide XML as the common format for
■ Metadata definition ■ Integration objects based
representing external application data.
on Siebel business objects
■ XML metadata
Siebel applications provide an object
■ Integration objects based
■ Metadata for an type in Siebel Tools, the Integration
on external metadata
external Object, and an Integration Object
application. For ■ Integration Object Wizard Wizard, which simplifies the work of
example, from an creating an integration object.
SAP application to
an Oracle
application, and so
forth.

Integration Siebel EAI features and Siebel EAI allows you to define the type
requirements include: components include: of data to exchange, and allows you to
export an XSD or a DTD for a Siebel
■ Data ■ Siebel Data Mapper
integration object.
transformation

■ Data
transformation
mapping through
declarative
configuration

■ High performance
transformation
engine

Integration Siebel EAI features and For more information, see Business
requirements include: components include: Process Coordination with Siebel
Workflow on page 38.
■ Business process ■ Siebel Workflow Process
coordination Designer

■ Workflow Process Manager

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Table 1. Integration Requirements and How They Relate to Siebel EAI

Integration Siebel EAI Feature or


Requirement Component Description

Integration Siebel EAI features and For more information, see Transport
requirements include: components include transport Mechanisms on page 39.
adapters, such as:
■ Transport
mechanisms for ■ IBM MQSeries
interfacing with
■ Microsoft MSMQ
other technologies
■ HTTP

■ Java Message Service

Integration Siebel EAI features and For more information, see High Volume
requirements include: components include: Data Exchange on page 40.

■ High volume data ■ Enterprise Integration


exchange Manager (EIM)

Integration Siebel EAI features and Not applicable.


requirements include: components include:

■ Standards based ■ XML as a format for data


Integration exchange
mechanisms
■ COM programmatic
interfaces

■ Programmatic interfaces
based on Java

■ HTTP as a transport
protocol

Business Process Coordination with Siebel Workflow


Coordination between multiple business processes requires that the information systems in an
enterprise each possess access to the same, up to date information. For example, if a customer
address is changed, then the change is reflected in every system that stores the address. The Siebel
Workflow Process Designer helps you define the business process flows for your data integration.

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Figure 2 illustrates how a workflow process can respond to a trigger that is based on an event or to
a trigger that is based on time. The workflow calls a transport, a script, or an object interface in order
to communicate with an external application.

For more information, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide.

Figure 2. Siebel Workflow Architecture with Siebel EAI

Transport Mechanisms
Many companies standardize on a transport solution, such as MQSeries from IBM, or MSMQ from
Microsoft. These transports allow the transportation of messages between systems. Oracle conforms
to this standard by allowing you to plug a Siebel application into these environments through the
Siebel EAI set of adapters, which include the MQSeries adapter, the MSMQ adapter, and the HTTP
adapter.

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A transport adapter that is developed by Oracle or by a partner that is certified by Oracle, allows
diverse applications to communicate with a Siebel application across various operating systems,
networks, and databases. Figure 3 on page 40 illustrates the various transports that are available in
order to communicate to and from a Siebel application when a new order is processed. One or more
of these transports can be used in an integration, depending upon requirements from existing
applications and other factors. These transports can also be configured as a Siebel Server Receiver
to receive a message. For example, the MQSeries Server Receiver.

For more information, see Transports and Interfaces: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration.

Figure 3. Order Entry Cycle that uses Transport Adapters

High Volume Data Exchange


In order to avoid a network slowdown or interference with another application, your organization
might require a way to schedule a high volume integration at a specific time, typically at night. This
type of integration often involves updating hundreds of millions of customer records. This high
volume of activity requires a batch mechanism that is capable of processing large amounts of data
in a timely fashion. Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM) allows you to schedule a high
volume data exchange between a Siebel application and another application when such an exchange
is required, and at the required frequency, such as twice a day, nightly, weekly, and so forth.

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About the Enterprise Integration Manager


Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM) can replicate data between a Siebel application and
another system at the database layer. EIM provides high performance to import or export large
volumes of data. With EIM, you can import and export data from the Siebel Database to other
corporate databases. Figure 4 illustrates EIM data processing for batch. EIM includes database
profiling that improves performance by supporting index specialization in Relational Database
Management Systems (RDBMS).

For more information, see Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager Administration Guide.

Figure 4. Siebel Enterprise Integration Manage Usage with Siebel EAI

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5 Scenarios for Using Siebel EAI

This chapter describes several examples of how Siebel EAI is used to achieve data integration. You
might use Siebel EAI for data integration differently, depending on your business model. This chapter
includes the following topics:

■ Scenarios for Common Integrations on page 43

■ Scenarios for Data that is Accessed, Exported or Replicated on page 44

■ Scenarios for Data that Crosses a Boundary on page 46

■ Scenarios for Data that is Transformed on page 47

Although Siebel EAI allows you to accomplish integration within the scope of these scenarios, it is
not limited to only the scenarios described in this topic. For more information, see “Overview of
Integration with Siebel EAI” on page 27.

Scenarios for Common Integrations


The common integration scenarios described in this topic apply to many of the integration
requirements you might encounter.

Outbound Message to a File


In this scenario, you define a Siebel workflow process that creates a unique file when a support
representative closes a service request. The file is then sent to a central directory on a network
server, where at midnight it is bundled automatically into an Adobe PDF file along with other closed
service requests for that day.

Round Trip Message from a File to Siebel Applications


In this scenario, a service request that is entered from within your Web site must also be entered as
a service request in Siebel Service. Also, you must pull, from Siebel Service, a service request
number that is automatically generated, add it to the service request, generate a file that is attached
to a confirmation email message, then send the email to the individual who requested service.

Round Trip Message from an External Application


In this scenario, when your back office Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system recognizes a
reorder point on a popular inventory item, it sends a message to your Siebel application to notify
salespeople that a popular item is about to be reordered. If a salesperson must order from the
remaining supply at the current price, then the salesperson can respond to the message.

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Round Trip Message to an External Application with a Different Code


Page
In this scenario, a salesperson must send an order from a Siebel application to your back office ERP
system which is using Japanese 932, while the code page used by the Siebel application is UTF-8.
The salesperson must receive a confirmation that includes an order number which is generated by
the ERP system.

Inbound Message from an External Application


In this scenario, when product information in your SAP R/3 system is updated, the SAP R/3 system
must send an updated IDOC to your Siebel system, then the product information must be updated
in the Product business object in Siebel.

Outbound Message to an External Application


In this scenario, account information must be updated in your SAP R/3 IDOC from Siebel Business
Applications.

Scenarios for Data that is Accessed, Exported or


Replicated
This topic describes scenarios where a business process requires access to specific data in order to
accomplish a process goal.

Export Customer Data to an External System


In this scenario, a change to contact information in the Siebel Database must be sent to an external
mainframe system through IBM WebSphere MQ. Work you can perform in this situation can include:

1 Define and configure the message that must be exchanged. In the Siebel Database, the Contact
business object contains several business components, and each business component includes
several fields. It is not desirable to send all of this information to the external system. You must
choose only a subset of this information.

2 Use Siebel Tools to define the integration object for the contact message you must exchange.
Siebel Tools provides an Integration Object Builder that assists you to define an integration
object.

3 Define how the message is handled. The contact message must be sent to the external system
by using EAI MQSeries Server Transport. You can use the Siebel Workflow Process Manager to
model the message flow for this integration, and to send the message. The flow for an integration
message is a sequence of business services that are connected.

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Scenarios for Using Siebel EAI ■

Table 1 describes the requirements to export customer data from a Siebel application to an external
system.

Table 1. Integration Requirements to Export Customer Data to an External System

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To access the Siebel Database Use a business service to query the EAI Siebel Adapter
integration object.

To convert an internal Siebel Use Siebel conversion technology EAI XML Converter
message format into XML to convert the message to XML.

To place the converted XML Use technology that is compatible EAI MQSeries Server
document in the destination queue with IBM MQSeries. Transport

Access a Company Catalog through Replication


In this scenario, salespeople must be provided access to a product catalog while they are on the road.
Therefore, you import the catalog information into a Siebel application so that Siebel Remote can
handle the mobile replication. Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM) imports this information.

Table 2 describes the requirements to provide access to a company catalog through replication.

Table 2. Integration Requirements to Access a Company Catalog through Replication

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To import the product catalog Use high volume batch Siebel Enterprise Integration
for the company replication. Manager (EIM)

Access Customer History Information Without Replication


In this scenario, a company is in the financial industry. Because a financial service institution is
typically cautious when handling customer data, the company must provide access to data while
replicating as few times as possible, if at all. However, the customer service agent must access the
transaction history for your customer in order to provide the best service. This information is
typically stored in Customer Information Files (CIF) on a mainframe computer.

The Siebel Virtual Business Component (VBC) can handle this business requirement. A VBC abstracts
external data and presents it to a Siebel application as part of the Siebel data model. Siebel business
logic and user interface components process a VBC in the same way that they process a standard
business component.

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Table 3 describes the requirements to integrate customer transaction history information into a
Siebel application.

Table 3. Integration Requirements to Access Customer Data Without Replication

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To provide access to the Use access to non Siebel data Siebel Virtual Business
Customer Information Files without replication. Component (VBC)
(CIF) that are stored on a
mainframe computer, and
display this information in the
customer portal

Access to Java Data


In this scenario, a customer service Web application is written with JavaServer Pages (JSP). To pass
this data into a Siebel application so that the account record is updated, you call Siebel Java Data
Beans in the Siebel Object Interface. This way, a customer service representative can use the
information from the Web application JSP while serving the customer.

Table 4 describes the requirements to access Java data.

Table 4. Integration Requirements to Access Java Data

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To update Siebel account data Use a programmatic Siebel J2EE Resource Adapter
from an application that uses interaction. and Application Service
JSP

Scenarios for Data that Crosses a Boundary


A business process might be required to cross functional, departmental, or enterprise boundaries.
Because different organizations might use different applications, you require a way to make sure an
application can hand off the execution of a business process to another application.

Access to Business to Business Data


Business-to-business (B2B) integration allows partner companies to work together in order to satisfy
a customer demand. Because B2B is fundamentally about carrying out a transaction over the
Internet, the technology must work over the infrastructure that is used with the Internet. To meet
this requirement, Siebel EAI provides the EAI HTTP adapter and the Siebel Workflow Process
Manager.

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Table 5 describes the requirements to implement a B2B transaction.

Table 5. Integration Requirements To Implement a B2B Transaction

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To create a B2B integration in Use XML messaging over HTTP. Siebel solutions include:
order to send an order directly
■ Siebel Workflow Process
to a partner over the Internet
Manager

■ EAI HTTP Transport


adapter

Access to Legacy Data


Interfacing with a custom legacy application presents challenges that are similar to those described
in “Access to Business to Business Data” on page 46. On the Internet, HTTP is a standard protocol that
is used to exchange data. In a mainframe environment, IBM MQSeries is a common application
messaging transport. Therefore, you can replace the HTTP protocol in this solution with MQSeries
and still finish the transaction.

Table 6 describes the requirements to access legacy data that exists on a mainframe.

Table 6. Integration Requirements to Access Legacy Data

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel Solution

To create an order with a Use business process Siebel solutions include:


mainframe system management that can cross
■ Siebel Workflow Process
applications.
Manager

■ EAI MQSeries Transport

Scenarios for Data that is Transformed


When performing data transformation within the Siebel environment, you use two types of
integration objects:

■ An Internal integration object mirrors the data structure of a Siebel business object and contains
a subset of business components and fields.

■ An external integration object mirrors the data structure of an external system.

The EAI Siebel Adapter performs the same function whether the data transformation is performed
inside or outside the Siebel environment. The XML Converter and the transports also perform the
same function, whether they are used within the Siebel environment or outside the Siebel
environment.

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The only difference is that, if used outside the Siebel environment, then both of these business
services perform an operation on an external integration object instance, as opposed to performing
an operation on an internal integration object instance when used within the Siebel environment.

You use business services to define data mapping and data transformation rules. Siebel EAI provides
many mappings and transformation rules in the prebuilt external adapters. You define internal and
external integration objects in Siebel Tools.

NOTE: Business services provide a flexible scripting environment to map data from the Siebel data
structure to an external data structure. Within a business service, a Siebel application provides a set
of methods that allow you to perform an operation on an instance for an integration object.

Pass Data to an External Application


In this scenario, an order is created in a Siebel Business Application, and is then passed to an
external application. The external application returns the order status and an order number. Work
you can perform in this situation can include:

1 Identify the Siebel business object to update. For that business object, identify the components
and fields to update.

2 Identify the object in the external system with which you must integrate.

3 Determine the mapping between the Siebel business object and the external object.

4 In Siebel Tools, use the Integration Object Wizard to create a new internal integration object.
Choose only the components and fields that must be updated.

5 In Siebel Tools, create a new external integration object.

6 In either Siebel Tools or in the Siebel client, use business services to define the data mapping
and data transformation.

7 In Siebel Tools, define an integration workflow process and add exception handling to it.

8 Test the workflow process using the process simulator.

9 Add a mechanism to call the workflow process from Oracle’s Siebel applications.
Table 7 details the requirements for data transformation integration.

Table 7. Integration Requirements to Pass Data to An External System

Business Requirement Technological Requirement Siebel EAI Solution

To create a new internal Use the integration object tool Siebel Integration Object
Integration Object or wizard. Wizard

To create a new external Use the integration object tool Siebel Integration Object
Integration Object or wizard. Wizard

To create a new business flow Use workflow process Siebel Workflow Process
technology. Designer

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Index

A data replication
adapters company catalog replication integration
See also Siebel EAI adapters requirement scenario 45
Application Services Interfaces (ASIs) data exchange requirement, about 31
about 15 data sharing
inbound (diagram) 16 business-to-business scenario 46
outbound (diagram) 17 data exchange requirement, about 31
architecture integration planning, about 28
layer diagram 36 integration strategy, about 24
Siebel Workflow architecture 38 legacy data integration, scenario 47
data transformation
data mapping integration, about 25
B integration objects, scenario 47
batch integration integration, planning 28
high volume transaction processing 40 order integration, scenario 48
importing and exporting data 41 declarative model, about 36
mode, about integration planning 28 design decisions
processing usage model, about and application integration planning 28
scenarios 31 Document Types Definitions (DTDs),
business processes metadata XML definition 9
coordination using workflows, about and double conversion, about corrupting
diagram 38 data 20
business services
See Siebel EAI adapters 9
E
EAI
C See Siebel EAI 7
catalog, data replication scenario 45 EAI Siebel Adapter business service,
client side integration, about 24 about 9
COM protocol, about 19 EAI UI Data Adapter business service,
connectors about 9
Siebel Connector for SAP R/3 10 exporting data
third-party, about 10 contact information scenario 44
conversion, double conversion and export integration requirements (table) 45
corrupting data 20 external business components (EBCs),
cross-application process integration, about 11
about 24
Customer Information Files (CIFs), about
information stored in 45 H
high volume transactions, about the EIM
Manager batch interface 41
D HTTP transport
data exchange transport, about 10
accessing mechanisms, about 31
business-to-business scenario 46
legacy data integration, scenario 47 I
presentation layer 31 IBM MQSeries adapter
data mapping See MQSeries
See data transformation inbound Unicode scenario, about 20

Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack 49


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Index ■ J

integration diagram 21
data presentation level 31
design decisions 28 M
requirements and Siebel EAI (table) 37 master data partitioning, about 24
scenarios 43 mobile replication, scenario 45
integration objects MQSeries
defining, scenario 45 integration scenario 44
integration scenarios transport adapters 10
business-to-business integration 46
customer history information 45
data transformation 47 O
exporting contact information 44 Object Interface scenario 46
inbound message 44 outbound Unicode scenario, about 20
J2EE Server Pages 46
legacy data integration 47 P
mainframe using MQSeries transport 44 peer-to-peer encapsulation, about and
mobile data replication 45 diagram 23
order integration 48 presentation layer integration, about 24
outbound message 44 procedural model, about 36
outbound message to file 43 protocols, role of transport adapters 10
round trip message 43, 44 publish-and-subscribe technology 23
integration servers, integration strategy 23
integration strategies R
application administration, about 25
real-time
cross-application process integration,
mode, about integration planning 28
about 24
usage model, about and scenarios 30
data mapping, about 25
replication of data, about and data exchange
data sharing, about 24
requirement 31
integration servers, about and diagram 23
legacy encapsulation 21
master data partitioning, about 24 S
peer-to-peer 23 SAP R/3, Siebel connector for 10
upgradeable integration, about 25 screen scraping, integration scenario 31
integration, planning Siebel Application Services Interface (ASIs).
access mechanism options (diagram) 33 See Application Services Interface
access mechanisms, about and (ASIs)
requirements 31 Siebel applications
batch processing usage model, about and accessing mechanism options (diagram) 33
scenarios 31 accessing mechanisms, about and
real-time usage model, about and requirements 31
scenarios 30 Siebel EAI
usage models, types of 29 about 7
architecture diagram 36
external business components 11
J
inbound and outbound Unicode scenarios 20
Java and J2EE
Java and J2EE components, accessing 11
accessing from Siebel applications 11
message-based integration, about and
object interfaces, list of 13
diagram 14
Server Pages, scenario 46
Siebel applications, accessing from Java and
Siebel applications, accessing from 12
J2EE component 12
Java Bean protocol, about 19
Siebel integration object, about and mapped
using Siebel Repository 14
L Transcode business service, outbound and
legacy encapsulation, about and inbound 20

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Index ■ T

Unicode conversion, about and diagram 19 Transcode business service, outbound and
virtual business components 11 inbound 20
workflow control, about using for integration Unicode conversion, about and diagram 19
between applications 15 upgradeable integration, about 25
XML and Siebel EAI, about and support of 9 usage models
Siebel EAI adapters about and types of 29
EAI Siebel Adapter business service 9 batch processing usage model, about and
EAI UI Data Adapter business service 9 scenarios 31
transport adapters 10 real-time usage model, about and
Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager (EIM) scenarios 30
batch interface, about acting as 41
software bus strategy, about adopting 23 V
virtual business components (VBCs),
T about 11
third-party connectors, about 10
transactions, high volume 40 W
Transcode business service, outbound and Web client, client side integration, about 24
inbound communication 20 Web Service, about and communication
transport adapters protocols based on 17
about and diagram illustrating available workflows
transports 39 business process coordination and workflow
business services within Siebel EAI 10 architecture 38
MQSeries 10
X
U XML data exchange, role in 9
Unicode support
inbound and outbound Unicode scenarios 20

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Index ■ X

52 Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration Siebel Innovation Pack


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