Create PIDX Contracts

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About this task

Contracts enable you to tie PIDX trading partners together to create an effective trading relationship. To enable Sterling B2B Integrator to comply with PIP specifications when running business processes, and to enable PIDX-specific services to build and parse message, promote security, and send and receive outbound PIDX messages to the appropriate URLs (for example, PIDX Message Builder and PIDX Message Parser services), you must create a contract that distinguishes each PIP interaction involved in a business process. You can create the contracts in any order.

Your system administrator creates and maintains the contracts that are needed to set up the trading relationships with your trading partners. There are three types of contracts that the system needs when configuring for PIDX; the PIP contracts, which define the PIP settings used by PIDX business processes, and the Messaging contracts, which define the profiles to be used when building and parsing PIDX messages. You must also create a RosettaNet contract for a PIP Code for Notification of Failure (PIP 0A1) because PIDX uses PIP0A1 as defined by RosettaNet as a standard means of Notification of Failure. PIDX incorporates RosettaNet messages and PIPs.

The Contract Wizard enables you to specify information about your enterprise and your partners' enterprises, to ensure that the system can accurately process PIDX signal and 0A1 Notification of Failure messages.

You must create a PIDX contract for the PIP0A1 Notification of Failure for any other PIPs, and for the messages you will be sending to and receiving from your trading partners.

To create a contract:

Procedure

  1. From the Administration menu, select Trading Partner > Contracts.
  2. Under Create, next to New Contract, click Go!
  3. On the Information page, complete the following fields and click Next:
    Field
    Description
    Name
    Descriptive name for the contract. Required.

    You may use part of a company name, an indicator that references whether this trading partner is the initiator or responder, or the type of PIP being used. For example:

    • If this contract is for your organization and considered the initiator sending data, type FromCompanyToTradingPartner_PIP11.
    • If this contract is for your PIDX trading partner and considered responding to data sent, type ToTradingPartnerFromCompany_PIP11.
    Start Date
    Start date and time of the contract. Valid value is any valid date in the format yyyy-mm-dd. Must be less than or equal to End Date. Default value is the current date. Required.
    End Date
    Expiration date and time of the contract. Valid value is any valid date in the format yyyy-mm-dd. Must be greater than or equal to Start Date. Default value is the current date. Required.
    Status
    State of the composition/negotiation process that creates the contract. Default value is SIGNED. Required.

    Valid values are:

    • PROPOSED – Contract being negotiated by the parties. The first stage of negotiation.
    • AGREED – Contract agreed upon by the parties. The next stage of negotiation.
    • SIGNED – Contract signed by the parties. The final stage of negotiation. The contract is usable.
  4. On the Contract Definition page, complete the following fields and click Next:
    Field
    Description
    Production Profile
    Unique ID of the profile for the PIDX trading partner producing (or sending) the data. This name must match the Name field used when creating the identity record. Required.
    Consumption Profile
    Unique ID of the profile for the PIDX trading partner consuming (or receiving) the data. This name must match the Name field used when creating the identity record. Required.
    Business Process
    Not used to implement PIDX. Not Applicable should be selected.
  5. On the Extensions page, select PIDX and click Next.
  6. You must specify PIDX extensions if you are creating two PIP contracts. For example, if the company is initiating and responding to PIP11, you must create a contract to initiate P11 and one to respond to P11.

    On the PIDX Extensions page, complete the following fields and click Next:

    Field
    Description
    PIP Code
    PIP settings used by the PIDX business processes. Select the appropriate code from the list. Required.
    PIP Version
    Version of PIP to trade. Valid values are listed, based on the PIP code selected. Required.
    PIDX Version
    PIDX version number to trade with your PIDX trading partner. Required.

    Valid value is 1.3.

    PIP Role
    PIP role for company that uses Sterling B2B Integrator and is trading this PIP. Valid values are Buyer and Seller. Required.
    Global Usage Code
    Whether to use this contract in test or production mode. Required.
  7. On the PIDX Message Building Configuration page, complete the following fields and click Next:
    Note: Message building options are only available if you select PIDX Version 1.3 on the PIDX Extensions page.
    Field
    Description
    Content Transfer Encoding
    Encoding method for the message. Required.

    Valid values are:

    • None
    • Base64 (default)
    • Quoted - Printable
    Encode binary message parts only
    Select to encode binary message parts only. If not selected, all message parts are encoded. Optional.
    Include MIME version header
    Select to include the MIME version in the HTTP header. If not selected, no MIME version information is included. Optional.
  8. On the PIP Definition page, complete the following fields and click Next:

    Caution: You should select a Sender Business Process and Responder Business Process only on this page and accept all other default values, which are based on PIP standards. No additional changes need to be made to these fields unless you require customization.

    Field
    Description
    Sender Business Process
    PIP private initiating process for the sender business process. Select the appropriate business process from the list. Required.
    Responder Business Process
    PIP private responding process for the responder business process. Select the appropriate business process from the list. Required.
    Response Mode
    Mode in which to respond to a PIP. Required.

    Valid values are:

    • Synch – Synchronously
    • Asynch – Asynchronously
    Non-Repudiation Required?
    Receiving trading partner cannot deny having received a message. To disable this feature, clear the check box. Optional.
    Time to Acknowledge
    Amount of time, in minutes, within which you must receive an acknowledgement. Valid value is four numeric characters. Optional.
    Time to Acknowledge Acceptance
    Amount of time, in minutes, within which you must accept an acknowledgement. Optional.
    Time to Perform
    Time in which the PIP private responding process should respond to the business process. Optional.
    Retry Count
    Sterling B2B Integrator continues to retry contacting the trading partner for the specified number of times. Optional.
    Is Authorization Required?
    Instructs Sterling B2B Integrator to verify the presence of appropriate contracts for this transaction, to ensure that your trading partner is authorized to send the message to you. This feature is automatically enabled and cannot be disabled.
    Non-Repudiation of Origin and Content
    Originating trading partner can not deny having originated and sent a message. To disable this feature, clear the check box. Optional.
  9. On the PIP Steps page, review the steps you have selected to run using the PIP and click Next.
  10. Click Finish to add the contract. Repeat steps 1 - 10 to create a contract for the trading partner who is either initiating and responding to a PIP, if necessary.