Creating a function without Eclipse

You can use Eclipse IDE to easily create the plug-ins. Alternatively, you can build a function by using the Sun Java™ 6 SDK.

Before you begin

The example in this topic considers the default location of IBM® Rational® Integration Tester.

About this task

To create a function without Eclipse:

Procedure

  1. Create a folder to develop the custom function. For example: C:\customFunction.
  2. Create folders for the source and the build output. For example: C:\customFunction\src and C:\customFunction\build.
  3. Copy plugin.xml and MANIFEST.MF (in "META-INF") from C:\Program Files\IBM\Rational Integration Tester\examples\FunctionsSamplePlugin into the build directory. Both the files must be copied to the same target directory (C:\custom\build).
  4. Create the required directory structure under src to contain your custom function code. If you have an existing code, copy the root package and all sub packages under the src folder. For example: C:\custom\src\com\samples\functions\FormatDate.java.
  5. From the src folder, compile the custom function into the build directory.

    C:\customFunction\src javac -d ../build -classpath .;"C:/Program Files/IBM/IBMIMShared/plugins/*" com/samples/functions/FormatDate.java

  6. Edit MANIFEST.MF in your build directory and change the following values:
    Value Change to
    Bundle-Name Enter a descriptive name for the plug-in (for example, Format Date Function).
    Bundle-SymbolicName Enter a unique ID that describes your plug-in. This ID must be different from any other plug-in, as two plug-ins with the same ID cannot be loaded at one time. Leave the "singleton:=true" part untouched.
    Bundle-Vendor Enter your company’s name or some other provider description.
  7. Open plugin.xml available in the build directory using any text editor and update the values as described in Configuring the extension point element.
  8. If you have a dependency on an external library (JAR), follow the steps in the next topic, Adding external libraries.
  9. From the build directory, create a JAR containing your custom function classes, MANIFEST.MF, and plug-in.xml.

    c:\customFunction\build jar cvfm custom-function-plug-in_1.0.0.jar META-INF\MANIFEST.MF com plugin.xml

    Note: You can choose any name for your JAR, but you must follow a convention that prevents conflicting names.
  10. Copy the new JAR file into the "Functions" folder of your IBM Rational Integration Tester project.

    When finished, follow the instructions to load the function into IBM Rational Integration Tester (see Configuring the function in Rational Integration Tester).

    Note: An example of how the plug-in looks can be found under C:\Program Files\IBM\Rational Integration Tester\FunctionsSamplePlugin.
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