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Via B2B Read activity

Introduction

A Via B2B Read activity, using its Via B2B connection, retrieves object data from Via B2B and is intended to be used as a source to provide data in an operation.

Note

When using the Via B2B connector, you must first use the Read activity's Initial Load object to retrieve object data from a Via B2B partner. Once you have retrieved the partner object data, you then use the Initial load activity to load that data into the Via B2B instance. After the data has been loaded into the Via B2B instance, you can use the Read, Create, and Update activities to interact with the loaded data.

Create a Via B2B Read activity

An instance of a Via B2B Read activity is created from a Via B2B connection using its Read activity type.

To create an instance of an activity, drag the activity type to the design canvas or copy the activity type and paste it on the design canvas. For details, see Creating an activity instance in Component reuse.

An existing Via B2B Read activity can be edited from these locations:

Configure a Via B2B Read activity

Follow these steps to configure a Via B2B Read activity:

Step 1: Enter a name and select an object

In this step, provide a name for the activity and select an object. Each user interface element of this step is described below.

Via B2B Read activity configuration step 1

  • Name: Enter a name to identify the activity. The name must be unique for each Via B2B Read activity and must not contain forward slashes / or colons :.

  • Select an Object: This section displays objects available in the Via B2B endpoint.

    • Selected Object: After an object is selected, it is listed here.

    • Search: Enter any column's value into the search box to filter the list of objects. The search is not case-sensitive. If objects are already displayed within the table, the table results are filtered in real time with each keystroke. To reload objects from the endpoint when searching, enter search criteria and then refresh, as described below.

    • Refresh: Click the refresh icon or the word Refresh to reload objects from the Via B2B endpoint. This may be useful if objects have been added to Via B2B. This action refreshes all metadata used to build the table of objects displayed in the configuration.

    • Selecting an Object: Within the table, click anywhere on a row to select an object. Only one object can be selected. The information available for each object is fetched from the Via B2B endpoint:

      • Name: The name of the object.

      • Description: The description of the object.

    Tip

    If the table does not populate with available objects, the Via B2B connection may not be successful. Ensure you are connected by reopening the connection and retesting the credentials.

  • Continue on Error: Select to continue the activity execution if an error is encountered for a dataset in a batch request. If any errors are encountered, they are written to the operation log.

  • Save & Exit: If enabled, click to save the configuration for this step and close the activity configuration.

  • Next: Click to temporarily store the configuration for this step and continue to the next step. The configuration will not be saved until you click the Finished button on the last step.

  • Discard Changes: After making changes, click to close the configuration without saving changes made to any step. A message asks you to confirm that you want to discard changes.

Step 2: Select a sub-object

In this step, select a sub-object. Each user interface element of this step is described below.

Via B2B Read activity configuration step 2

  • Select a Sub-object: This section displays sub-objects available in the Via B2B endpoint.

    • Selected Object: The object selected in the previous step is listed here.

    • Selected Sub-object: After a sub-object is selected, it is listed here.

    • Search: Enter any column's value into the search box to filter the list of sub-objects. The search is not case-sensitive. If sub-objects are already displayed within the table, the table results are filtered in real time with each keystroke. To reload sub-objects from the endpoint when searching, enter search criteria and then refresh, as described below.

    • Refresh: Click the refresh icon or the word Refresh to reload sub-objects from the Via B2B endpoint. This may be useful if sub-objects have been added to Via B2B. This action refreshes all metadata used to build the table of sub-objects displayed in the configuration.

    • Selecting a sub-object: Within the table, click anywhere on a row to select a sub-object. Only one sub-object can be selected. The information available for each sub-object is fetched from the Via B2B endpoint:

      • Name: The name of the sub-object.

      • Description: The description of the sub-object.

    Tip

    If the table does not populate with available sub-objects, the Via B2B connection may not be successful. Ensure you are connected by reopening the connection and retesting the credentials.

  • Back: Click to temporarily store the configuration for this step and return to the previous step.

  • Next: Click to temporarily store the configuration for this step and continue to the next step. The configuration will not be saved until you click the Finished button on the last step.

  • Discard Changes: After making changes, click to close the configuration without saving changes made to any step. A message asks you to confirm that you want to discard changes.

Step 3: Review the data schemas

Any request or response schemas generated from the endpoint are displayed. Each user interface element of this step is described below.

Via B2B Read activity configuration step 3

  • Data Schemas: These data schemas are inherited by adjacent transformations and are displayed again during transformation mapping.

    The Via B2B connector uses the Via B2B REST API v5.5. Refer to the API documentation for information on the schema nodes and fields.

  • Refresh: Click the refresh icon or the word Refresh to regenerate schemas from the Via B2B endpoint. This action also regenerates a schema in other locations throughout the project where the same schema is referenced, such as in an adjacent transformation.

  • Back: Click to temporarily store the configuration for this step and return to the previous step.

  • Finished: Click to save the configuration for all steps and close the activity configuration.

  • Discard Changes: After making changes, click to close the configuration without saving changes made to any step. A message asks you to confirm that you want to discard changes.

Next steps

After configuring a Via B2B Read activity, complete the configuration of the operation by adding and configuring other activities, transformations, or scripts as operation steps. You can also configure the operation settings, which include the ability to chain operations together that are in the same or different workflows.

Menu actions for an activity are accessible from the project pane and the design canvas. For details, see Activity actions menu in Connector basics.

Via B2B Read activities can be used as a source with these operation patterns:

To use the activity with scripting functions, write the data to a temporary location and then use that temporary location in the scripting function.

When ready, deploy and run the operation and validate behavior by checking the operation logs.