SOAP Server Object Extension (SOE) - how to deserialize custom types?

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01-04-2011 10:23 AM
ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II
So far I've had success writing a handful of SOE methods that take parameters that are simple types (string and string array) and return my own custom, multi-level types (e.g. Customer, with an array of Address objects, etc.).

Now, what I would like to do is write an SOE method that accepts my own complex type(s) as its parameters, e.g. something like CustomerSearch, that accepts a custom Query object that defines the criteria to filter results by.

Everything seems to be fine up until the point where I attempt to deserialize the incoming request parameter as an instance of the Query class. 


For example, inside the HandleSoapMessage method of my SOE class implementation, I try the following:

public void HandleSoapMessage(IMessage request, IMessage response)
{
    int parameterIndex = Utility.FindFieldIndex("inputQuery", request.Parameters, true);

    parameterIndex = Utility.FindFieldIndex("inputQuery", request.Parameters, true);
    Query query = (Query)request.Parameters.GetObject(parameterIndex, "http://www.mynamespace.com", "Query");

    .
    .
    .
}


parameterIndex correctly points to the first index in the set of request parameters where the "inputQuery" definition resides, but the following exception is thrown during the call to GetObject:

"Exception from HRESULT: 0x80043068"

A little searching reveals that the 0x80043068 code corresponds to the more usable message, "XML_SERIALIZE_E_CANT_MAP_XMLTYPE_TO_CLASS"

So, there was a problem mapping between the "Query" type defined in my WSDL and my concrete "Query" class.  I decided to start small by defining only a single string attribute off the Query object, but I still receive the same error.


I replaced my usage of "Query" throughout with an ESRI type, "PointN", and I was able to deserialize the incoming data as IPoint using the same GetObject method.  I also inspected the actual SOAP requests, comparing between the request that used "Query" and the request where I experimented with "PointN", and did not notice any obvious problem.  See request comparisons below (note that the sole string property on "Query" is called "Test":

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?><soap:Envelope xmlns:soap="http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/soap/envelope/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:tns="http://www.mynamespace.com" xmlns:esri="http://www.esri.com/schemas/ArcGIS/10.0"><soap:Body><tns:CustomerSearch><ns1:inputQuery xmlns:ns1=""><ns1:Test>Test Text</ns1:Test></ns1:inputQuery></tns:CustomerSearch></soap:Body></soap:Envelope>


<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?><soap:Envelope xmlns:soap="http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/soap/envelope/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:tns="http://www.mynamespace.com" xmlns:esri="http://www.esri.com/schemas/ArcGIS/10.0"><soap:Body><tns:CustomerSearch><ns1:inputPoint xmlns:ns1=""><ns1:X>0</ns1:X><ns1:Y>0</ns1:Y></ns1:inputPoint></tns:CustomerSearch></soap:Body></soap:Envelope>



This post is getting long, so I will finish by saying that the "Query" definition in my SOE WSDL correctly matches the COM-visible "Query" class that implements the IXMLSerialize interface, with both the Deserialize and Serialize methods accounting for the dummy "Test" string attribute. 

I've also made doubly sure that my XmlSupport mapping file in the ArcGIS Server "XmlClassRegistry" folder (and sub-folder) correctly maps the "Query" XML type with the CSLID of the Query class.



I hope there is an SOE guru out there that can see where I am going wrong, or let me at least know if custom types as SOAP SOE input parameters is even supported.

Any help would be hugely appreciated!
15 Replies
ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II
**UPDATE**

After much experimenting, the problem seems to stem from the call to GetObject being limited to whatever XML / COM-visible type mappings are defined in the ESRI-specific XmlSupport.dat file located in the "bin" folder of the ArcGIS Server install folder. 

In other words, my custom XML / COM-visible type mapping file in the XmlClassRegistry folder never seems to be used.

I was able to verify this by copying my type-mapping snippet into XmlSupport.dat, after which the call to GetObject on the SOAP request worked successfully for my custom "Query" type.

Per the ESRI SOAP SOE walkthrough I created the appropriate folders and dropped the specially named mapping file in them. The full path of the custom XML support file is:  C:\Program Files (x86)\ArcGIS\Server10.0\XmlClassRegistry\MyCompany\XmlSupportMyProject.dat

So the next question is, why isn't ArcGIS Server looking to my custom type mapping file during calls to GetObject?
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Kevin_FernandoEscalera_Robles
New Contributor III
So, no answer about it??, I have the same problem, I can't use a custom type for a parameter, did any one find a solution for this?


**UPDATE**

After much experimenting, the problem seems to stem from the call to GetObject being limited to whatever XML / COM-visible type mappings are defined in the ESRI-specific XmlSupport.dat file located in the "bin" folder of the ArcGIS Server install folder. 

In other words, my custom XML / COM-visible type mapping file in the XmlClassRegistry folder never seems to be used.

I was able to verify this by copying my type-mapping snippet into XmlSupport.dat, after which the call to GetObject on the SOAP request worked successfully for my custom "Query" type.

Per the ESRI SOAP SOE walkthrough I created the appropriate folders and dropped the specially named mapping file in them. The full path of the custom XML support file is:  C:\Program Files (x86)\ArcGIS\Server10.0\XmlClassRegistry\MyCompany\XmlSupportMyProject.dat

So the next question is, why isn't ArcGIS Server looking to my custom type mapping file during calls to GetObject?
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ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II
Hi Kevin,

It's been a while, but I believe the problem turned out to be that my custom XML-type file was not in the correct folder.  It should be in:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\ArcGIS\Server 10.0\XmlClassRegistery\SomeCompanyName

I somehow missed the "Common Files" folder and was putting the file in the wrong location. 

Also, be sure to recycle the ArcSOM/ArcSOC windows services after copying your XML-types file or making changes to it.
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MiroslavVladár
New Contributor
I have same problem, but with ArcGis Server 10.1, and i cant find XmlClassRegistry folder. Is somethink changed in Server 10.1 ? Thanks
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ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II
I have same problem, but with ArcGis Server 10.1, and i cant find XmlClassRegistry folder. Is somethink changed in Server 10.1 ? Thanks


The XmlClassRegistry folder is not created automatically when ArcGIS Server is installed.  You will need to manually create any missing folders in the full path:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\ArcGIS\Server10.1\XmlClassRegistry\YourOrganizationName\

Also, be aware that there is a known bug with custom type deserialization in 10.1.  See NIM083300.
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TomTyndall
New Contributor III
Erin, the originator of this thread, writes that a SOAP SOE was written that successfully sends an array of strings as input. I have a working SOAP SOE that takes a custom type but have had no luck with sending arrays (either with my custom type or even with simple types). Does any one know of samples out there that show the correct syntax for this?
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ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II
Erin, the originator of this thread, writes that a SOAP SOE was written that successfully sends an array of strings as input. I have a working SOAP SOE that takes a custom type but have had no luck with sending arrays (either with my custom type or even with simple types). Does any one know of samples out there that show the correct syntax for this?


Tom,

While I do not know of any online samples, I can at least provide you a few code snippets to illustrate how to use arrays as SOE method inputs.

The first snippet is from the hand-rolled WSDL for the SOE.  It demonstrates how to define a SOAP method with a string array input parameter.

<xs:element name="GetStuffByStringArray">
  <xs:complexType>
    <xs:sequence>
      <xs:element name="aStringArray" type="ArrayOfString" />
    </xs:sequence>
  </xs:complexType>
</xs:element>
<xs:element name="GetStuffByStringArrayResponse">
  <xs:complexType>
    <xs:sequence>
      <xs:element name="resultString" type="xs:string" />
    </xs:sequence>
  </xs:complexType>
</xs:element>


Note that ArrayOfString is an XML type defined in the Esri namespace.  On the ArcObjects side, this XML type can be translated as an IStringArray object as demonstrated in the code block below:

private void GetStuffByStringArray(IMessage request, IMessage response)
{
    // Begin by parsing the string array from the request parameter.
    IStringArray stringCollection;

    int fieldIndex = Utility.FindFieldIndex("aStringArray", request.Parameters, true);
    stringCollection = request.Parameters.GetObject(fieldIndex, Utility.EsriNamespace, "ArrayOfString") as IStringArray;

    // Do something with the string values...
}


Creating an SOE method that takes an array of custom type objects involves a bit more work.  I'm happy to provide more detail but here are the essential concepts:

1) Create a new class (e.g. MyTypeCollection) that is derived from SerializableList<T> where T is your custom type that you want to pass a collection of.  This collection class will be the type that the SOAP parameter can be deserialized into.

2) Define a corresponding XML type for MyTypeCollection.  It will look something like the following:

<xs:complexType name="MyTypeCollection">
  <xs:sequence>
    <xs:element minOccurs="0"
          maxOccurs="unbounded"
          name="MyType"
          type="tns:MyType"/>
  </xs:sequence>
</xs:complexType>


3) Then, in your SOE code itself, deserialize the input parameter using code similar to the following:

MyTypeCollection collection = new MyTypeCollection();
int fieldIndex = Utility.FindFieldIndex("myTypeCollectionInput", request.Parameters, true);
collection = request.Parameters.GetObject(fieldIndex, Utility.CustomTypesNamespace, "MyTypeCollection ") as MyTypeCollection;


Note that your custom types/classes will need to implement the Deserialize and Serialize methods of the IXMLSerialize interface, and each custom type will need an entry in your XML type mapping file.  Those topics are covered in detail in Esri's SOE samples.

Hope this helps!
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TomTyndall
New Contributor III
Erin,

Thank you for your response and your carefully written questions and responses on this thread - they've helped me digest the many layers of abstraction that go along with SOAP SOE's (difficult, even with having experience writing REST SOE's).

I now have an SOE working that has methods for passing in string, string[] and a custom type and outputting string, string[] and arrays of custom types but still have been unsuccessful writing a method that takes an array of custom types as input. The critical parts of my code are listed below:

wsdl
<xs:element name="TestArrayArguments">
  <xs:complexType>
    <xs:sequence>
      <xs:element name="aCustomTypeCollection" type="tns:MyCustomTypeCollection" />
    </xs:sequence>
  </xs:complexType>
</xs:element>
  
<xs:complexType name="MyCustomTypeCollection">
  <xs:sequence>
    <xs:element minOccurs="0" maxOccurs="unbounded" name="MyCustomType" type="tns:MyCustomType"/>
  </xs:sequence>
</xs:complexType>

<xs:complexType name="MyCustomType">
  <xs:sequence>
    <xs:element name="ID" type="xs:string"/>
  </xs:sequence>
</xs:complexType>

<xs:element name="TestArrayArgumentsResponse">
  <xs:complexType>
    <xs:sequence>
      <xs:element name="Result" type="xs:string" />
    </xs:sequence>
  </xs:complexType>
</xs:element>

<message name="TestArrayArgumentsIn">
  <part name="parameters" element="e:TestArrayArguments" />
</message>
<message name="TestArrayArgumentsOut">
  <part name="parameters" element="e:TestArrayArgumentsResponse" />
</message>
  
<operation name="TestArrayArguments">
    <input message="e:TestArrayArgumentsIn" />
      <output message="e:TestArrayArgumentsOut" />
  </operation>


server side SOE code:
private void TestArrayArguments(IMessage reqMsg, IMessage respMsg)
{
    IXMLSerializeData reqParams = reqMsg.Parameters;
    string retString = "";

    int idx = reqParams.Find("aCustomTypeCollection");
    if (idx == -1)
         throw new ArgumentNullException("PROBLEM MAPPING FIELD TO INDEX");


     retString += "field index is " + idx;
     MyCustomTypeCollection myTypeColl = (MyCustomTypeCollection)reqParams.GetObject(idx, c_ns_soe, "MyCustomTypeCollection");


    respMsg.Name = "TestArrayArgumentsResponse";
    respMsg.NamespaceURI = c_ns_soe;
    respMsg.Parameters.AddString("Result", retString);
}


My custom types:
using System;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;
using ESRI.ArcGIS.esriSystem;
using ESRI.ArcGIS.SOESupport;


namespace SoapSOE1
{
    [ComVisible(true)]
    [Guid("FCA9A8B6-4B78-45CB-B240-AEA7A6E2F489")]
    [ClassInterface(ClassInterfaceType.None)]
    public class MyCustomType : IXMLSerialize
    {
        public string ID { get; set; }


        public void Serialize(IXMLSerializeData data)
        {
            data.TypeName = this.GetType().Name;
            data.TypeNamespaceURI = SoapSOE1.c_ns_soe;


            data.AddString("ID", ID);
        }


        public void Deserialize(IXMLSerializeData data)
        {
            int idx = FindMandatoryParam("ID", data);
            this.ID = data.GetString(idx);
        }


        private int FindMandatoryParam(string fieldName, IXMLSerializeData data)
        {
            int idx = data.Find(fieldName);
            if (idx == -1)
                throw new MissingMandatoryFieldException(fieldName);
            return idx;
        }


        internal class MissingMandatoryFieldException : Exception
        {
            internal MissingMandatoryFieldException(string fieldName) : base("Missing mandatory field: " + fieldName) { }
        }
    }




    [ComVisible(true)]
    [Guid("D2BC82CA-F8C5-46AD-BFD6-0B80760A351E")]
    [ClassInterface(ClassInterfaceType.None)]
    public class MyCustomTypeCollection : SerializableList<MyCustomType>
    {
        public MyCustomTypeCollection(string namespaceURI) : base(namespaceURI) { }
    }
}


I've carefully constructed my XmlSupportAdot.dat file (everything works if I just send an instance of my custom type and not an array so I know this file is getting seen).

I've registered my dll on the server as described in NIM083300.

I'm getting the same "Exception from HRESULT: 0x80043068" you describe when executing the GetObject call. If I comment out that line I get no error and can see that the field is correctly mapped to index zero. At this point I'm not trying to access the contents of the input array, I'm just trying to instantiate MyCustomTypeCollection using the GetObject call.

Attached is a snapshot of the HTTP calls taking place when I try to invoke the SOE method from a client.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]19719[/ATTACH]

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions you may have. Have you been successful in doing this before?

Thank you for your time,
Tom
AZ Dept of Transportation
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ErinBrimhall
Occasional Contributor II

I've carefully constructed my XmlSupportAdot.dat file (everything works if I just send an instance of my custom type and not an array so I know this file is getting seen).


Is there an entry in your XmlSupportAdot.dat file for the MyCustomTypeCollection class?  Sounds like there most likely is but I wanted to confirm.

Beyond that, all the code examples you shared look correct to me.  There are a few minor differences between your prototype and the code I've developed:

 


  • I only have a parameterless constructor for my Collection class (and pass a static namespace value to the base constructor).



  •   The Collection object that is passed to my SOE methods is actually an attribute of a different custom class; I don't pass the Collection object by itself.



With that said, I don't believe either of these differences would cause the classic deserialization error you're seeing.

I'll take another look at your post and let you know if I can come up with any other ideas.
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