[mapguide-dev] Unmanaged Data APIs RFC

Wed Nov 8 23:03:52 EST 2006

Hi Zak,

I don't want to lock down the server so that it is restricted to those
files in the Unmanaged Data Mappings. In other words, this means that a
feature source can still reference a file that is not in one of the
subdirectories specified by the mappings. The reason we don't have to
restrict to those subdirectories is because we can use the operating
system's or network's built-in security to limit access to files
(hopefully they've allowed access to the files in the Unmanaged Data,
otherwise they won't be very useful :) ).

Will WebStudio use the new APIs instead of allowing the enumeration of
arbitrary directories?

Tom

-----Original Message-----
From: Zak James [mailto:zjames at dmsolutions.ca] 
Sent: Friday, November 03, 2006 9:15 PM
To: dev at mapguide.osgeo.org
Subject: Re: [mapguide-dev] Unmanaged Data APIs RFC

This is a minor compatibility issue, but the current version of
webstudio allows the user to specify an unmanaged feature source with an
arbitrary server path and then enumerates files in that path.  
Obviously, there are some security issues with this, but is that
functionality going to disappear with the changes proposed in the RFC?

If so, I think that needs to be stated in the Proposed Changes section.

zak
--
Zak James
Applications and Software Development
DM Solutions Group Inc.
http://www.dmsolutions.ca

On 3 Nov 2006, at 20:57, Jason Birch wrote:

> Looks good.
>
> I would personally prefer to see a single delimiter in the returned 
> list, as it's slightly easier to deal with in code.
>
> I'm probably overly sensitive to this, but I'm wondering if the 
> resource list will be cached on the server?  I know that the 6.5 
> MapGuide author caches the responses internally.  I have to hit 
> "update" to get a new list if something (data store, feature source, 
> feature source schema) changes in the current session.  Can we count 
> on the clients doing this to prevent unnecessary network traffic 
> re-enumerating the resources?
>
> Jason
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Tony Fang [mailto:tony.fang at autodesk.com]
> Sent: Fri 2006-11-03 4:41 PM
> To: dev at mapguide.osgeo.org
> Subject: RE: [mapguide-dev] Unmanaged Data APIs RFC
>
>
>
> I've updated the RFC with the drive mappings suggestion. Any feedback 
> on the returned list of drive mappings (using square brackets on the 
> drive mapping name) would be appreciated.
>
>
>
>
>
> The server's unmanaged data directories will be specified using the  
> serverconfig.ini. A new section defining directory mappings will be  
> used to specify the unmanaged data directories.
>
> For windows, it may look like this:
>
> [Unmanaged Data Mappings]
> SomeSdfFiles = c:\mydata\sdf
> Some Shp Files = d:\otherdata\shp
> BigArseImages = \\some_other_machine\data\images
> Some ???? DwfFiles = c:\mydata\????Dwf
> ??sdf = c:\mydata\bigsdf
>
> For linux, it may look like this:
>
> [Unmanaged Data Mappings]
> SomeSdfFiles = /usr/mydata/sdf
> Some Shp Files = /usr/otherdata/shp
> BigArseImages = /mnt/some_other_machine/data/images
> Some ???? DwfFiles = /usr/mydata/????Dwf
> ??sdf = /usr/mydata/bigsdf
>
> Unicode characters are supported in the mapping names. Spaces in  
> the mappings are also supported. Square brackets [ and ] are not  
> allowed. They are reserved characters for the serverconfig.ini  
> section titles.
>
> We will add API methods to return the unmanaged data mappings, set  
> the mappings, and also verify that the mappings are valid and  
> accessible.
>
> We will add an API to enumerate the unmanaged data files available  
> on the server machine. The files will be prefaced with their  
> mapping names. You may enumerate all files from all the available  
> drive mappings, or you may select a single drive mapping.
>
> A returned list from all available drive mappings may look like this:
>
> [SomeSdfFiles]world.sdf
> [Some Shp Files]ecuador.shp
> [Some ???? DwfFiles]large.dwf
> [Some ???? DwfFiles]subdir/Big.dwf
> [??sdf]reallybig.sdf
>
>
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Tony
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Robert Bray [mailto:rbray at robertbray.net]
> Sent: Friday, November 03, 2006 9:05 AM
> To: dev at mapguide.osgeo.org
> Subject: Re: [mapguide-dev] Unmanaged Data APIs RFC
>
>
>
> Jason,
>
> Good questions. In addition I think it would make sense / be highly  
> desirable for all RFCs that add or modify APIs to include more  
> detail with respect to those changes. It would be nice to see the  
> actual API function signatures for example.
>
> Bob
>
>
> Jason Birch wrote:
>
> That would be cool.  That way we can have a theme, and a nested  
> hierarchy within that theme if we need the complexity.  Are we  
> restricted to single-word mappings, or will spaces be supported?   
> ASCII characters only or full internationalisation?
>
> What about schema changes?  Will there be a way of updating the  
> repository's knowledge of unmanaged data schemae?  Or are these  
> maybe cached on a session basis like the RDBMS schemae?
>
> There would also need to be a method that allows the author UIs to  
> validate resources that reference unmanaged data sources, to make  
> sure that any dependancies (properties, maptips, themes, etc) are  
> still valid, and give a graphical indication when the world slips.
>
> Jason
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Robert Bray [mailto:rbray at robertbray.net]
> Sent: Thu 2006-11-02 10:46 PM
> To: dev at mapguide.osgeo.org
> Subject: Re: [mapguide-dev] Unmanaged Data APIs RFC
>
>
> I too am concerned this will make data management hard for people  
> with lots of data / multiple projects. It might be better to  
> dedicate a section in serverconfig.ini to define path mappings as  
> follows:
>
> [Path Mappings]
> SomeSdfFiles = <some path>
> SomeShpFiles = <some other path>
> BigArseImages = <path to SAN disk>
> ...
>
> In Studio / Web Studio the user would be presented the list of path  
> mappings. Once they select a path mapping they can browse all files  
> and folders below that path.
>
> My 2 cents...
>
> Bob
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