Software Case Study:

Company 1SYNC Industry Application Set Sun Technology and Services Sun Java System Application Server NetBeans IDE Sun Java Enterprise Edition (Java EE) Solaris 8 Operating System

Key Challenges Needed a standard, in-house methodology for implementing Web services development Required a Web services administrative interface that could be used both in-house and at subscriber sites

Executive Summary

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Business Results

• 1SYNC seamlessly linked its own systems with those of its subscribers and trading partners via a NetBeans-developed Web services interface
• Subscribers, along with their partners and in-house personnel, now share a single interface
• Developers with different skill sets quickly became productive due to NetBeans’ short learning curve
• Solution implementation was fast and cost-effective

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Solution

Web services interface to User Management Application (UMA)

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Additional Software

Microsoft Windows XP

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The Business Problem

1SYNC’s technology is commonly regarded as the industry’s leading solution due to its ability to transmit data across diverse application environments and computing platforms, in an automated machine-to-machine interaction, to standard and non-standard data recipients known as data pools. This capability allows retailers and manufacturers to utilize a single, efficient, and secure mechanism to send data to the maximum number of trading partners while adding substantial value to their supply chains.

One important segment of 1SYNC’s data pool solution is its User Management Application (UMA). This administrative tool is used to set up and maintain user accounts, both internally and by 1SYNC’s subscribers and partners. Previously, all internal and external UMA transactions took place via a Web browser interface. Recently, subscribers and partners have requested that 1SYNC develop a single, programmatic interface to the UMA which would enable all administrative actions, taken at subscriber and partner sites, to automatically and simultaneously occur on the 1SYNC system. This interaction would ensure that 1SYNC and its subscribers and partners are working with the same, up-to-date user data.

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The Sun Solution: NetBeans 4.1 and the Java Development Kit

As 1SYNC evaluated the options, it became clear that a Web services-based solution would allow the tightest integration. The group’s focus then shifted to determining the best development environment for Web services. After evaluating several solutions, 1SYNC chose NetBeans IDE 4.1 and JDK 1.5.

According to Joe Slone, Chief Architect, “NetBeans and the JDK offered the best overall integration. These products are tightly coupled with Sun Java System Application Server 8.1, creating an all-inclusive, packaged deal. By installing both products, we knew it would be easier to make changes during the development process, and test and deploy the application. We switched from the BEA WebLogic Server to Sun Java System Application Server because it offered the same features and was more cost-effective.”

Other significant advantages of NetBeans were the cohesive framework that the IDE provided and its out-of-the-box functionality. Slone notes, “We didn’t have to cobble something together, write extra Ant scripts, or download Eclipse extensions. We were productive right away, and that was very beneficial.”

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The Application

The UMA is a delegated user management system utilized by 1SYNC personnel, subscribers, and partners to perform administrative functions, such as creating and maintaining user accounts.

1SYNC used NetBeans to develop a programmatic, machine-to-machine, Web services-based interface to the UMA, enabling subscribers and partners to make changes to user records using their in-house systems. These changes are automatically reflected on 1SYNC’s systems located behind the corporate firewall.

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