How to configure a String value in Websphere 7 JNDI?

Question

In fact I found such message before: Configuring and looking up a simple String via JNDI in WebSphere

I want to do the "clean" way (http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/websphere/library/techarticles/0611_totapally/0611_totapally.html). Maybe I am simply too green on WebSphere, my mind is totally messed up by the article because it is showing a more complicated example.

Can someone give me a brief steps on how to configure WebSphere so that I can bind a String value in JNDI? Thanks so much

Answer 1

Well, assuming that what you want to store is a "configuration" element, I'd actually take the time and implement it using Resource Environment Providers as it's a more flexible, and obviously more portable, approach.

In order to bind a String using JNDI, use "String Namespace Bindings": http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/wasinfo/v7r0/topic/com.ibm.websphere.nd.doc/info/ae/ae/unam_rstring_namespace.html

Edited (to add details about ResEnv):

The factory class is a class that you write, not IBM. Here's an example for one:

public class MyFactory implements javax.naming.ObjectFactory {
    @Override
    public Object getObjectInstance(Object object, Name name, Context context, Hashtable env) throws NamingException {
        MyConfig cfg = new MyConfig();

        for (Enumeration e = ((Reference) object).getAll(); e.hasMoreElements();) {
            RefAddr addr = (RefAddr) e.nextElement();
            String key = addr.getType();
            Object value = addr.getContent();
            cfg.put(key, value);
        }
    }
}

(We're assuming that MyConfig is a simple class with get(String) and put(String, String) methods)

Next, create a new Resource Environment Provider in WebSphere. For a Referenceable, put the fully-qualified class name of MyFactory as the "factory class" and the fully-qualified class name of MyConfig as the "class".

Next, add a Resource Environment entry. Give it a JNDI name, say myresources/test. Select the Referenceable from the dropdown box.

Click "Custom Properties", and add key-value pairs there.

Save the WebSphere configuration, restart your server and try again. Issue a JNDI lookup to myresources/test, and you'll get a MyConfig instance with all the custom properties you placed there.

Let us know how it went. Good luck!