Overview of CHIPS Transport

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Sterling B2B Integrator enables you to send CHIPS messages to CHIPS, using either the SWIFTNet network (optionally using IBM® Websphere MQ) or The Clearing House (TCH) Frame Relay Network (a proprietary network that uses IBM Websphere MQ). Acknowledgements are sent to CHIPS using the SWIFTNet Server adapter. Using the SWIFTNet or MQ transport available in Sterling B2B Integrator, you can also receive all response messages from CHIPS, including heartbeat messages, and it enables you to send supervisory STATUS messages to CHIPS to test the connection.

The CHIPS adapter works with the SWIFTNet Server adapter, SWIFTNet HTTP Server adapter, the SWIFTNet Server (only if you are receiving CHIPS messages using the SWIFTNet transport mode), and the WebSphere® MQ Suite Async Receiver adapter (only if you are receiving CHIPS messages using the MQ transport mode) to communicate with CHIPS. When the CHIPS adapter is used with the SWIFTNet network, it receives acknowledgement messages from CHIPS in the SWIFTNet Response within sixty seconds, and any incoming messages (for example, heartbeat message, resolver notification, and so forth) are received by SWIFTNet Server adapter. The return acknowledgement of the incoming messages is performed by the Receive Handler and Acknowledgement Handler within the CHIPS adapter (the business process is bootstrapped using the SWIFTNet Routing Rule).

You must configure the CHIPS adapter prior to sending any messages to CHIPS. The message payload is passed through a business process that you must also create (or configure the predefined business process).

Additionally, the CHIPS Utility service is used by the CHIPS adapter to execute:

  • Start of Day functions (reset the CHIPS status to 1, CHIPS message number to 1, and the MQ_counter to 0)
  • End of Day functions (move the outbound messages into the history table, move the inbound messages into the history table, update Mailbox_id in the MBX_MAILBOX table with the Mailbox_id of the <participant_num>_history mailbox)
  • CHIPS adapter lookups (to handle incoming messages and return acknowledgements according to the transport mode—if you are using MQ transport, it will be based on the queue information—and get the CHIPS adapter name related to the appropriate set) redirect the inbound message to the CHIPS Adapter configured to MQ or SWIFTNet in the following manner:

    For MQ, the lookups are: Channel Name, Queue Manager and Queue Name. These three values appear in Process Data when the WebsphereMQ Async Receiver adapter receives an incoming message and bootstraps the CHIPSUtility_ReceiveHandler. The CHIPS Utility service matches these three values against the Channel Name, Reply-To Queue Manager, and Reply-To Queue in the CHIPS adapter instances. If a CHIPS adapter instance that matches is found, it sends the CHIPS messages using the transport mode and values that are configured on that matching CHIPS adapter instance.

    For SWIFTNet, the lookups are: Requestor DN, Responder DN, Service Name, and Request Type. Based on these four values, the CHIPS Utility service invokes the CHIPSUtility_ReceiveHandler in the SWIFTNet Routing Rule to return an acknowledgement.

The CHIPS Utility service is used to prepare for daily CHIPS usage, perform end of day housekeeping functions to properly store the data in the database, and look up the CHIPS adapter name when a message is received from the WebsphereMQ Async Receiver adapter (to allow Sterling B2B Integrator to send back an acknowledgement message using the correct CHIPS adapter and transport mode). If you are using SWIFTNet as the transport method, it will return the acknowledgement by setting it in the Primary Document. A predefined business process (CHIPSUtilitySOD) is provided to execute the CHIPS Utility service start-of-day actions. You can schedule this predefined business process to be started every morning. Also, a predefined business process (CHIPSUtilityEOD) is provided to execute the CHIPS Utility service end-of-day actions. You can schedule this predefined business process to be started every evening.

In accordance with CHIPS regulations, Sterling B2B Integrator control message flow as follows:

  • Message numbering is restarted each day, beginning with “1.”
  • Monitors message acknowledgement from CHIPS.
  • If you are using SWIFTNet as the transport mode, SWIFTNet will timeout a message if it is not acknowledged within one minute.
  • TCH Frame Relay network that connects directly to CHIPS does not time-out or send an error message if a message is not acknowledged in the mandated one minute timeframe. Therefore, if Sterling B2B Integrator has not received the acknowledgement within one minute, the message is resent to CHIPS.
  • If the message is payment, the PSN (possible duplicate flag) tag (which is 271) is set.
  • If there is not an activity connection, a Supervisory STATUS message may be sent. If this message is not acknowledged, Sterling B2B Integrator stops transmitting and contacts TCH.

Additional Tasks Necessary to Use the CHIPS Adapter

In addition to configuring the CHIPS adapter, you must also perform the following tasks:

  • Create a mailbox routing rule to invoke the CHIPSExtractMailboxMessage business process.
  • Enable the predefined MailboxEvaluateAllAutomaticRulesSubMin schedule (installed with Sterling B2B Integrator).