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Status Future consideration
Workspace DataPower Gateway
Created by Guest
Created on Nov 14, 2022

Netprefix support for front side handler

This feature is needed in our group in order to support TCP socket connection to front side handler.

This is the functionality we need to be supported in front side handler:


Current process:

Request flow: IST → Open TCP socket → TCP/IP Driver (AS/400) → MQ message → ABM Broker → SG

Response flow: SG → ABM Broker → MQ message → TCP/IP Driver (AS/400) → TCP socket → IST


New process:

Request flow: IST → Open TCP socket → TCP/IP Driver (DP) → Processing Rule → MQ message → SG

Response flow: SG → MQ message → TCP/IP Driver (DP) → Processing Rule → TCP child socket → IST


1. Consumer open a TCP socket connection to DataPower. This connection will stay opened for all transactions.
2. The client will and send transaction data with 4 characters data (payload) header which indicates the message length. for ex: "0008abcdefgh". The length is in decimal format. (not TCP/IP packet header)

The data parsing and validation logic should not close the socket connection.

3. Based on the message length (8 in the example), Front Side Handler should read the length (8 characters in example) after the header and trigger the processing rule by passing the payload data of the specified length. The processing rule will have developer code to parse the data, send an MQ message (in our case) and done. Wait for response code and process any errors

The max length of message data is <= 4096 bytes

4. Another reading process will monitor specified MQ port, read the MQ message, format it as a stream of bytes and respond to the same channel as the request.

5. There could be multiple processing threads like 3 & 4 running concurrently. The responses for these parallel processes do not need to be provided in the same order as requests.

6. Current max volumes of transactions: ~ 100 tps. Assume 2.25 peak minute vs. average minute ratio (225 tps).

7. As an additional future support for TLS 1.2/1.3 is required. This can be thought as second delivery if not possible to be delivered within the timeline for the project.

Idea priority High
  • Admin
    Ulas Cubuk
    Reply
    |
    Feb 10, 2023

    Thank you for taking the time to submit this idea for enhancement and also for spending time to give details about the project and architectural background. Whilst we agree that it would be great to have TCP support for front side handler, we also have some concerns with the necessary complexity. We would need to consider carefully these kind of related questions before beginning such a major functionality. We'd have to decide whether to design it the way it is suggested here or a different way, and since every user of TCP would have to figure out how to handle/seperate the packets.

    At the moment, it doesn't fit with our delivery plans. Meanwhile, status of the idea is updated to Future Consideration. Given this, it would be good to have feedback/votes from other readers on the detailed scope of the use case presented here. We will continue to monitor.

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Jan 12, 2023

    most customers need a unique gateway inside DMZ zone as DataPower for all kind of inbound/outbound protocols to enforce central security and governance. This is a different position from AppConnect which is more working inside enterprise zone for integration. Also the customers want to leverage DataPower to accelerate their legacy applications to expose API and do XML/Web Service conversion.

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Jan 12, 2023

    This has been a road block for DataPower penetrate the major banks for couple years to use DataPower as a gateway for ESB, mainframe or part of SOA framework such as CIMB(the Group's commercial bank in Malaysia) and Maybank(Malaysia's largest financial services group and the leading banking group in South East Asia), ICBC(Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is among the largest commercial banks in China) and BOC(large commercial bank in China and the fourth largest bank in the world) etc. Also there are many other customers because they have many home made applications are using raw TCP.

    There are 3 major scenarios:

    ISO8583 socket stream

    legacy socket applications modernization ( socket <-> Web Service)

    socket applications to mainframe ( socket <-> copybook @mq)

  • Guest
    Reply
    |
    Jan 12, 2023

    IST/Switch is a high-performance credit and debit processing switch for all transaction processing needs for both acquirers and issuers. ABM Broker is a customer application that connect IST, SG and other service. SG is ScotiaGlobe, a customer core-banking application.