Chapter 9. Developing extensions for Fuse Online integrations


Fuse Online is a Red Hat Fuse feature that provides a web interface for integrating applications. Without writing code, a business expert can use Fuse Online to connect to applications and optionally operate on data between connections to different applications. If Fuse Online does not provide a feature that an integrator needs, then a developer can create an extension that defines the needed behavior.

You can use Fuse Tooling to develop extensions that provide features for use in Fuse Online. An extension defines:

  • One or more custom steps that operate on data between connections in an integration

    or

  • One custom connector

In Fuse Online, a connector represents a specific application to obtain data from or send data to. Each connector is a template for creating a connection to that specific application. For example, the Salesforce connector is the template for creating a connection to Salesforce. If Fuse Online does not provide a connector that the Fuse Online user needs, you can develop an extension that defines a custom connector.

In Fuse Online, a data operation that happens between connections in an integration is referred to as a step. Fuse Online provides steps for operations such as filtering and mapping data. To operate on data between connections in ways that are not provided by Fuse Online built-in steps, you can develop a Fuse Online extension that defines one or more custom steps.

Note

You might prefer to develop an extension in the IDE of your choice. Whether you use Fuse Tooling or another IDE is entirely a matter of personal preference. Information about developing an extension in any IDE is in Integrating Applications with Fuse Online.

9.1. Overview of tasks

Here is an overview of the tasks for developing a Fuse Online extension:

  1. Create a Fuse Online extension project and select Custom Connector or Custom Step as the extension type.
  2. Depending on the extension type, write the code for the extension:

    • For a Custom Connector: Define the base Camel component, the connector icon, global connector properties, and the connector actions.
    • For a Custom Step: Add routes, define actions, and specify any dependencies.
  3. Build a .jar file.
  4. Provide the .jar file to the Fuse Online user.

The Fuse Online user uploads the .jar file to Fuse Online, which makes the custom connector or custom step(s) available for use. For information about Fuse Online and how to create integrations, see Integrating Applications with Fuse Online.

9.2. Prerequisites

Before you begin, you need the following information and knowledge:

  • A description of the required functionality for the Fuse Online custom connector or step (from the Fuse Online user).
  • The Fuse Online version number for the extension.
  • For a custom connector, an icon image file in PNG or SVG format. Fuse Online uses this icon when it displays the flow of an integration. If you do not provide an icon, then Fuse Online generates one when the .jar that contains the extension is uploaded.
  • You should be familiar with:

    • Fuse Online
    • Spring Boot XML or Java
    • Apache Camel routes (if you want to create a route-based step extension)
    • JSON
    • Maven

9.3. Creating a custom connector

In Fuse Online, a custom connector consists of one or more connection configuration parameters, one or more connection actions, and optional configuration parameters for each action.

Here is an overview of the tasks for developing a custom connector:

  1. Create a Fuse Online extension project and select Custom Connector as the extension type.
  2. Write the code for the extension. Define the base Camel component, the connector icon, global connector properties, and the connector actions.

9.3.1. Writing code for the custom connector

After you create the Fuse Online extension project, you write the code that defines the custom connector elements based on the description of the required functionality provided to you by the Fuse Online user. The Table 9.1, “Custom connector elements” table shows how the elements of the custom connector that you create in Fuse Tooling correspond to elements in Fuse Online.

Table 9.1. Custom connector elements
Fuse Tooling elementFuse Online elementDescription

Global (top-level) property

Connection configuration parameter

When a Fuse Online user creates a connection from this connector, the user specifies a value for this property as part of the configuration of the connection.

Action

Connection action

In Fuse Online, for a connection created from this connector, a Fuse Online user selects one of these actions.

Property defined in an action

An action configuration parameter

When a Fuse Online user configures the action that the connection performs, the Fuse Online user specifies a value for this property as part of the configuration of the action.

To write the code that implements a custom connector for Fuse Online:

  1. Open the syndesis-extension-definition.json file in the Editor view and write the code that defines the global properties, the actions that the custom connector can perform, and each action’s properties.

    Each global property corresponds to a connection configuration parameter in Fuse Online. Each action property corresponds to a Fuse Online connection action configuration parameter. In Fuse Online, when the user selects a custom connector, Fuse Online prompts for values for each connection configuration parameter. A custom connector can be for an application that uses the OAuth protocol. In this case, be sure to specify a global property for the OAuth client ID and another global property for the OAuth client secret. The Fuse Online user will need to specify values for these parameters for a connection created from this connector to work.

    Each connector action declares a base Camel component scheme.

    The example provided by the New Fuse Online Extension Project wizard uses the telegram Camel component scheme:

    {
      "schemaVersion" : "v1",
      "name" : "Example Fuse Online Extension",
      "extensionId" : "fuse.online.extension.example",
      "version" : "1.0.0",
      "actions" : [ {
        "id" : "io.syndesis:telegram-chat-from-action",
        "name" : "Chat Messages",
        "description" : "Receive all messages sent to the chat bot",
        "descriptor" : {
          "componentScheme" : "telegram",
          "inputDataShape" : {
            "kind" : "none"
          },
          "outputDataShape" : {
            "kind" : "java",
            "type" : "org.apache.camel.component.telegram.model.IncomingMessage"
          },
          "configuredProperties" : {
            "type" : "bots"
          }
        },
        "actionType" : "connector",
        "pattern" : "From"
      }, {
        "id" : "io.syndesis:telegram-chat-to-action",
        "name" : "Send a chat Messages",
        "description" : "Send messages to the chat (through the bot).",
        "descriptor" : {
          "componentScheme" : "telegram",
          "inputDataShape" : {
            "kind" : "java",
            "type" : "java.lang.String"
          },
          "outputDataShape" : {
            "kind" : "none"
          },
          "propertyDefinitionSteps" : [ {
            "description" : "Chat id",
            "name" : "chatId",
            "properties" : {
              "chatId" : {
                "kind" : "parameter",
                "displayName" : "Chat Id",
                "type" : "string",
                "javaType" : "String",
                "description" : "The telegram's Chat Id, if not set will use CamelTelegramChatId from the incoming exchange."
              }
            }
          } ],
          "configuredProperties" : {
            "type" : "bots"
          }
        },
        "actionType" : "connector",
        "pattern" : "To"
      } ],
      "properties" : {
        "authorizationToken" : {
          "kind" : "property",
          "displayName" : "Authorization Token",
          "group" : "security",
          "label" : "security",
          "required" : true,
          "type" : "string",
          "javaType" : "java.lang.String",
          "secret" : true,
          "description" : "Telegram Bot Authorization Token"
        }
      }
    }
  2. If the custom connector requires additional dependencies, add them to the project’s pom.xml file. The default scope for dependencies is runtime. If you add a dependency that Red Hat ships, define its scope as provided, for example:

    <dependencies>
        <dependency>
              <groupId>org.apache.camel</groupId>
              <artifactId>camel-telegram</artifactId>
              <scope>provided</scope>
        </dependency>
          </dependencies>

When you finish writing the code for the custom connector, build the .jar file as described in Section 9.5, “Building the Fuse Online extension JAR file”.

9.4. Creating custom steps

After you create the Fuse Online extension project, you write the code that defines the custom steps based on the description of the required functionality provided to you by the Fuse Online user. Within a single extension, you can define more than one custom step and you can define each custom step with Camel routes or with Java beans.

9.4.1. Writing code for the custom step

After you create the Fuse Online extension project, you write the code that defines the custom step(s)based on the description of the required functionality provided to you by the Fuse Online user.

Table 9.2, “Custom step elements” shows how the elements of the custom step that you create in Fuse Tooling correspond to elements in Fuse Online.

Table 9.2. Custom step elements
Fuse Tooling elementFuse Online elementDescription

Action

Custom Step

In Fuse Online, after the user imports the step extension, the custom step(s) appear(s) on the Choose a step page.

Property defined in an action

A custom step configuration parameter

In Fuse Online, when the user selects a custom step, Fuse Online prompts for values for configuration parameters.

To write the code that implements a custom step for Fuse Online:

  1. For a Camel route-based step, in the extension.xml file, create routes that address the purpose of the extension. The entrypoint of each route must match the entrypoint that you define in the syndesis-extension-definition.json file, as described in Step 2.

    For a Java bean-based step, edit the java file.

  2. In the syndesis-extension-definition.json file, write the code that defines the actions and their properties. You need a new action for each entrypoint.

    Each action that you create corresponds to a custom step in Fuse Online. You can use different types of code for each action. That is, you can use a Camel route for one action and a Java bean for another action.

    Each property corresponds to a Fuse Online step configuration parameter. In Fuse Online, when the user selects a custom step, Fuse Online prompts for values for configuration parameters. For example, a custom log step might have a level parameter that indicates how much information to send to the log.

    Here is the template for the .json file that contains the extension metadata, including properties that will be filled in by the user in Fuse Online after uploading the extension and adding its custom step to an integration:

    {
      "actions": [
        {
          "actionType": "extension",
          "id": "${actionId}",
          "name": "Action Name",
          "description": "Action Description",
          "tags": [
               "xml"
          ],
          "descriptor": {
            "kind": "ENDPOINT|BEAN|STEP",
            "entrypoint": "direct:${actionId}",
            "inputDataShape": {
              "kind": "any"
            },
            "outputDataShape": {
              "kind": "any"
            },
            "propertyDefinitionSteps": []
          }
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "feature",
        "experimental"
      ]
    }
    Note

    The tags are ignored in this release. They are reserved for future use.

  3. To edit the extension dependencies, open the `pom.xml `file in the editor. If you add a dependency, you must define its scope.

When you finish writing the code for the custom step(s), build the .jar file as described in Section 9.5, “Building the Fuse Online extension JAR file”.

9.5. Building the Fuse Online extension JAR file

To build the .jar file for the extension:

  1. In the Project Explorer view, right-click the project.
  2. From the context menu, select Run As Maven clean verify.
  3. In the Console view, you can monitor the progress of the build.
  4. When the build is complete, refresh the target folder in the Project Explorer view (select the project and then press F5).
  5. In the Project Explorer view, open the target folder to see the generated .jar file:

    The name of the .jar file follows Maven defaults: ${artifactId}-${version}.jar

    For example: custom:step-camel-1.0.0.jar

    This .jar file defines the extension, its required dependencies, and its metadata: Extension Id, Name, Version, Tags, and Description. For example:

    {
        "schemaVersion" : "v1",
        "name" : "Example Fuse Online Extension",
        "description" : "Logs a message body with a prefix",
        "extensionId" : "fuse.online.extension.example",
        "version" : "1.0.0",
        "actions" : [ {
            "id" : "Log-body",
            "name" : "Log Body",
            "description" : "A simple xml Body Log with a prefix",
            "descriptor" : {
                "kind" : "ENDPOINT",
                "entrypoint" : "direct:log-xml",
                "resource" : "classpath:META-INF/syndesis/extensions/log-body-action.xml",
                "inputDataShape" : {
                    "kind" : "any"
                },
                "outputDataShape" : {
                    "kind" : "any"
                },
                "propertyDefinitionSteps" : [ {
                    "description" : "Define your Log message",
                    "name" : "Log Body",
                    "properties" : {
                        "prefix" : {
                            "componentProperty" : false,
                            "deprecated" : false,
                            "description" : "The Log body prefix message",
                            "displayName" : "Log Prefix",
                            "javaType" : "String",
                            "kind" : "parameter",
                            "required" : false,
                            "secret" : false,
                            "type" : "string"
                        }
                    }
                } ]
            },
            "tags" : [ "xml" ],
            "actionType" : "step"
        } ],
        "dependencies" : [ {
            "type" : "MAVEN",
            "id" : "io.syndesis.extension:extension-api:jar:1.3.0.fuse-000014"
        } ],
        "extensionType" : "Steps"
    }

9.6. Providing the JAR file to the Fuse Online user

Provide the following to the Fuse Online user:

  • The .jar file
  • A document that describes the extension. For a step extension, include information about data shapes that each action in the step extension requires as input or provides as output (for data mapping).

In Fuse Online, the user uploads the .jar file as described in Integrating Applications with Fuse Online.

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