2. Flex - Alfresco
• Goal : provide a Flex-based client to access
Alfresco content repository
• Why:
• Improve user experience by delivering an easily
cutomizable and highly-interactive interface
• Seemless integration in the user desktop
• Cross-platform
• How :
• First approach uses custom Java services
• Second one uses Alfresco WebScripts (REST)
3. Standard Alfresco Architecture
Web Browser
Alfresco Server
Web client application
Alfresco Repository
Storage
File
DB System
4. 1
Flex / Alfresco Architecture
Flex Client
AMF / HTTP
Alfresco Server
LiveCycle Data Services
Service
Service
Alfresco Repository
Foundation API
Storage
File
DB System
5. 1
Flex client
Flex Client
• Implemented using the
Cairngorm micro-architecture
• Uses serializable ActionScript objects (DTOs) that
hold document meta-data
• Access Java service through a RemoteObject (async
RPC)
• Borrows several components from the Flex
community (multiple file upload, searchbox, …)
6. 1
Serialization
• LiveCycle Data Services is Adobe server-side
component that allows communication between
Flex client and Java application
• Java serializable pojos are mapped to ActionScript
objects (using annotations in ActionScript)
• Serialization mechanism uses the AMF over HTTP
protocol (binary)
• Flex RemoteObject access Java services (pojos)
using configured destinations in LC DS
• In the future : replace the LiveCycle DS
component with Adobe BlazeDS open-source
alternative
7. 1
Java services
• Java services
• Are just plain java objects
• Use the Alfresco Foundation API to authenticate and
manipulate the repository (store, create, search
documents)
• Can access services and beans defined in Spring
• A Java Adapter has been created to :
demarcate transaction on operations annotated with Spring
Transaction annotation
re-authenticate user on each subsequent service request
(using the initial ticket returned by the authentication
process)
8. 2
Flex / Alfresco Architecture
Flex Client
HTTP
Alfresco Server
Alfresco Repository
Web
script
Create and publish Web Script Platform
Foundation API
Storage
File
DB System
9. 2
Flex / Alfresco
• Flex client
• Uses HTTPService instead of RemoteObject
• Web Scripts
• Are written in JavaScript
• Can be registered at runtime
• Can return HTML, ATOM, XML, RSS, JSON,
CSV, … (using Freemarker templates)
• LiveCycle Data Services and custom Java
services are no longer needed
10. Comparison
• First version
• - More complex deployment (LC Data Services, custom Java services)
• - Less productive :
must maintain DTOs in Java/AS and Java services
each service change requires re-deployment / server restart
• + More efficient
• Requires knowledge of Flex, Java and Alfresco Foundation API
• Second version
• + Easily deployable (no server-side component)
• + Quickly implemented using JavaScript
• - hard to debug JavaScript (logging required)
• - Restricted to the functions exposed by the JavaScript engine unless …
• + Can be implemented in Java to have access to the Foundation API
• Requires knowledge of Flex, JavaScript (basic), Alfresco JavaScript
API, Freemarker template
11. Conclusions
• Several options to create an Alfresco client:
• Protocols : FTP, WebDAV, CIFS
• APIs:
Web Services
Web Scripts
Custom solution that uses the Alfresco Foundation API directly
• Next Step : create an AIR application to leverage
integration with user’s desktop
• Drag-n-Drop documents (inbound/outbound)
• Access file system
• Embedded SQL DB to provide ‘offline’ functions ?
• Even further : a Silverlight / JavaFX client ?
