WFS POST requests: "No template provided" error

Thu Nov 8 11:37:09 EST 2007

frank,
i simply ignore whinners like sean who just have 1 song to sing
(actually 2, the other being how python is somehow not an interpreted
language). back to mapserver...
cheers, jzs

On Nov 8, 2007 10:53 AM, Sean Gillies <sgillies at frii.com> wrote:
> Sorry, I got lost in the XML and HTTP weeds and forget you were using
> foreign services. Like Daniel said, MapServer has a problem caused by
> the way it overloads its single service endpoint. You might want to test
> against a server that gets it right: GeoServer, or MapServer proxied
> through another script.
>
> Sean
>
> Frank Steggink wrote:
> > Sean (and others),
> >
> > As I said, the servers are not mine. They are public servers on the
> > internet. I'm just making a client, and care about interoperability, so
> > that's why I posted. (Even with a protocol which is flawed, but this is
> > what I'm paid for at this moment.)
> >
> > I could try to set up MapServer myself, but since I've no MapServer
> > experience, it will take quite some time. That's why I was asking
> > someone else to look at it.
> >
> > About this message, is there any difference in setting MapServer up to
> > handle GET and POST requests? If the "WFS handler for POST" isn't set up
> > correctly, why isn't this reflected in the Capabilities document?
> >
> > Frank
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Sean Gillies [mailto:sgillies at frii.com]=20
> > Sent: Thursday, November 08, 2007 10:05
> > To: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> > Cc: Frank Steggink
> > Subject: Re: WFS POST requests: "No template provided" error
> >
> > POST is for creating new resource states! Use GET!
> >
> > Oh, wait, wrong list :)
> >
> > That "No template provided" error usually means what it says. Is your
> > mapfile configed properly? Are you able to render maps from it using the
> > shp2img utility?
> >
> > Sean
> >
> > Frank Steggink wrote:
> >> Hello List,
> >> =20
> >> While developing a WFS client, I've encountered a problem with =3D=20
> >> MapServer. I don't have a local setup of MapServer running, but use a=20
> >> =3D few public available services at the web. Those are:
> >> *    =3D
> >> =
> > http://map.ns.ec.gc.ca/MapServer/mapserv.exe?map=3D3D/mapserver/services
> >> /en=3D
> >> vdat/config.map (MapServer 4.8.3)
> >> *    http://www.bsc-eoc.org/cgi-bin/bsc_ows.asp (MapServer 4.8.1)
> >> =20
> >> Our WFS client supports both GET and POST requests. It checks the =3D=20
> >> Capabilities document which HTTP method to use. The document of the =
> > =3D=20
> >> first service can be found here: =3D=20
> >> =
> > http://map.ns.ec.gc.ca/MapServer/mapserv.exe?map=3D3D/mapserver/services
> >> /en=3D=20
> >> =
> > vdat/config.map&SERVICE=3D3DWFS&VERSION=3D3D1.0.0&REQUEST=3D3DGetCapabili=
> > tie
> >> s&.=3D  GetCapabilities is always done with GET, but other requests =
> > can=20
> >> vary. =3D For testing purposes I made POST the default HTTP method for =
> >
> >> the =3D requests. When I try to do a DescribeFeatureType or a =
> > GetFeature
> >
> >> to =3D these services with POST, I'm getting the following message:
> >> =20
> >> <HTML>
> >> <HEAD><TITLE>MapServer Message</TITLE></HEAD>
> >> <!-- MapServer version 4.8.3 OUTPUT=3D3DGIF OUTPUT=3D3DPNG =
> > OUTPUT=3D3DJPEG =3D
> >
> >> OUTPUT=3D3DWBMP OUTPUT=3D3DPDF OUTPUT=3D3DSWF OUTPUT=3D3DSVG =
> > SUPPORTS=3D3DPROJ =3D
> >
> >> SUPPORTS=3D3DFREETYPE SUPPORTS=3D3DWMS_SERVER SUPPORTS=3D3DWMS_CLIENT =
> > =3D=20
> >> SUPPORTS=3D3DWFS_SERVER SUPPORTS=3D3DWFS_CLIENT =
> > SUPPORTS=3D3DWCS_SERVER =3D=20
> >> SUPPORTS=3D3DTHREADS SUPPORTS=3D3DGEOS INPUT=3D3DJPEG =
> > INPUT=3D3DPOSTGIS =3D=20
> >> INPUT=3D3DOGR INPUT=3D3DGDAL INPUT=3D3DSHAPEFILE DEBUG=3D3DMSDEBUG --> =
> > <BODY=20
> >> BGCOLOR=3D3D"#FFFFFF">
> >> mapserv(): Web application error. No template provided. <br>=20
> >> </BODY></HTML>
> >> =20
> >> The Capabilites document lists the online resource URL's for =3D=20
> >> DescribeFeatureType and GetFeature, so POST should be allowed for=20
> >> these =3D WFS requests. I'm sure that the WFS request is correct, =
> > since=20
> >> it works =3D with other WFS servers, like Geoserver, and Oracle =
> > Spatial=20
> >> Web Services, =3D and I can not find anything that might be wrong on =
> > my=20
> >> side. Here is the =3D raw request (headers + post data):
> >> =20
> >> POST /envdat/map.aspx HTTP/1.1
> >> Content-Type: text/xml
> >> Host: map.ns.ec.gc.ca
> >> Content-Length: 579
> >> Expect: 100-continue
> >> Proxy-Connection: Close
> >> =20
> >> <?xml version=3D3D"1.0" encoding=3D3D"iso-8859-1"?> =
> > <DescribeFeatureType=20
> >> version=3D3D"1.0.0" service=3D3D"WFS" =3D=20
> >> xsi:schemaLocation=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/wfs =3D=20
> >> http://schemas.opengis.net/wfs/1.0.0/WFS-basic.xsd" =3D=20
> >> xmlns=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/wfs" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:b=3D3D"http://www.bentley.com/schemas/x-Bentley.XMLTemplate.0.1" =
> > =3D
> >
> >> xmlns:xsi=3D3D"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:ows=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/ows" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:xlink=3D3D"http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:ogc=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/ogc" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:xsd=3D3D"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema">
> >>   <TypeName>wfs:envirodat</TypeName>
> >> </DescribeFeatureType>
> >> =20
> >> While searching the mailing list, I found replies of people suggesting
> >
> >> =3D that WFS might not be enabled (MapServer not compiled with WFS=20
> >> support), =3D but since WFS requests with GET work fine, this is=20
> >> obviously not the =3D case. I also found another suggestion here: =3D=20
> >> =
> > http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?S2=3D3DMAPSERVER-USERS&q=3D3Dwfs+post+tem=
> > p
> >> lat=3D e&s=3D3D&f=3D3D&a=3D3D&b=3D3D. It is suggested to add the =
> > parameters =3D=20
> >> "service=3D3DWFS" and "version=3D3D1.0.0" to the URL for POST, but =
> > this =3D=20
> >> doesn't work either. Maybe I would need to test with a more recent =3D =
> >
> >> build, but I couldn't find one at the web. But this would mean that I=20
> >> =3D have to change the online resource URL, but the correct URL cannot =
> >
> >> be =3D predicted. The correct URL to post to should be mentioned in =
> > the=20
> >> =3D Capabilities document. The second service (www.bsc-eoc.org) =
> > returned
> >
> >> the =3D same reply with the parameters, but the first service (at =3D
> >> map.ns.ec.gc.ca) returned this:
> >> =20
> >> <ServiceExceptionReport
> >> xmlns=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/ogc" =3D=20
> >> xmlns:xsi=3D3D"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" =3D=20
> >> xsi:schemaLocation=3D3D"http://www.opengis.net/ogc =3D=20
> >> http://schemas.opengis.net/wms/1.1.1/OGC-exception.xsd">
> >>   <ServiceException>
> >> msWFSDispatch(): WFS server error. Incomplete WFS request: REQUEST =3D =
> >
> >> parameter missing
> >>   </ServiceException>
> >> </ServiceExceptionReport>
> >> =20
> >> If I would add the Request parameter, then it would be WFS / GET=20
> >> again, =3D and that's not what I want. (Well, I normally do, but this =
> > is
> >
> >> for =3D testing purposes.) I was getting similar responses with=20
> >> GetFeature, but since I changed my =3D code, the WFS client doesn't =
> > come
> >
> >> that far (because DescribeFeatureType =3D doesn't work) anymore.=3D20
> >> =20
> >> Since there are no problems with GET requests, our client can =3D=20
> >> successfully query data. But since POST is also available, I would =3D =
> >
> >> expect it to work as well. I hope that someone can look into this. If=20
> >> =3D POST really causes problems, it would be better to remove the=20
> >> associated =3D online resource URL's from the Capabilities document.
> >> =20
> >> Regards,
> >> =20
> >> Frank Steggink
> >> =3D20
> >> Bentley Systems, Inc.
> >> Software Developer Geospatial
> >> =3D20
> >> 3645, boul. Ste-Anne
> >> Qu=3DE9bec, Qc. G1E 3L1
> >> Canada
> >> =3D20
> >> Tel: +1 418 666 7691 ext. 289
> >> E-mail: frank.steggink at bentley.com
> >> WWW: http://www.bentley.com
> >> =3D20
> >> =20