SharePoint Server 2010 uses BCS as the foundation for SharePoint 2010 Search crawl functionality and social computing by augmenting User Profile Service functionality.. SharePoint Design
Trang 1FIguRE 24-15
SERvIcE APPLIcAtIONS thAt uSE bcS
BCS solutions are a powerful mechanism for utilizing external data, but BCS capability extends beyond the discussion in this chapter SharePoint Server 2010 uses BCS as the foundation for SharePoint 2010 Search crawl functionality and social computing by augmenting User Profile Service functionality SharePoint Search is discussed in Chapter 14, and the User Profile Service is discussed in Chapter 17,
so the information below is specific to how BCS affects these two services and their capability
Search Service
SharePoint 2010 Search uses the BCS connector framework discussed earlier to crawl content This is a change and improvement over the protocol handlers that were used in previous versions of SharePoint Protocol handlers are very difficult to create and generally need to be written in C++, which negatively impacted handlers that were available for the wide variety of external systems that are in use today Connectors also support richer crawl options than protocol handlers in previous versions of SharePoint For example, they support the full-crawl mode that was implemented in previous versions and they sup-port timestamp-based incremental crawls However, they now also supsup-port change-log crawls, which can remove items that have been deleted since the last crawl
Trang 2742 ❘ chAPtER 24 BUsiNess coNNectivity services iN sharePoiNt 2010
Connectors can also now crawl attachments and content in e-mail messages When crawling a BCS entity, additional related entities can be crawled by virtue of the entity relationships Item-level security descriptors can now be retrieved for external data Connectors also perform better than previous ver-sions of protocol handlers, as they implement concepts like inline caching and batching SharePoint Designer 2010 and Visual Studio 2010 can be used to create external content types and entities, and these entities can be crawled
user Profile Service
BCS augments the out-of-the-box User Profile Service properties as well as adding custom properties
to the User Profile Service This enables user data and attributes that reside in external systems to be used inside SharePoint Server 2010 for tasks like audience targeting
Profile import connections can be set up for external systems to import properties into the SharePoint Server 2010 user profile database You should be aware of the following considerations when using BCS to supplement the User Profile Service:
BCS cannot be used as the primary connection for a User Profile import It can only work in
➤
➤
conjunction with other primary profile import connections
BCS profile connections cannot be used to write back to the external system SharePoint Server
➤
➤
2010 introduced the capability to write back to User Profile property source connections, but this functionality is not yet available for BCS connections
A common property is required between the primary user profile import connection and the
➤
➤
BCS import connection The property is used to identify and associate the properties with the appropriate user profile when performing a user profile import from BCS
dESIgN cONSIdERAtIONS FOR bcS SOLutIONS
As part of implementing BCS solutions, you need to be aware of several design considerations that will affect the efficiency and effectiveness of these solutions:
Assign appropriate permission to users who are managing the BCS service application
➤
➤
Define and govern the number of people who can create external content types
➤
➤
Define and implement appropriate throttling limits for external lists These limits are likely
dif-➤
➤
ferent from throttling limits defined for normal lists on the Central Administration website Create limit filters on external content types to retrieve a limited amount of data from
➤
➤
external stores
Use SSS as the preferred mechanism to authenticate against external systems
➤
➤
Implement write-back capability via external content types only when absolutely necessary
➤
➤
and with caution
Use Feature and deployment packages for installing external content types
➤
➤
Trang 3External lists based on an external content type do not have all the functionality of standard
➤
➤
SharePoint lists The following limitations may affect your design:
Workflows cannot be configured directly on external lists
➤
➤
Item-level permissions cannot be configured from the list properties page
➤
➤
Versioning and item history are not available
➤
➤
Ratings, RSS feeds, and Datasheet view are not available
➤
➤
uPgRAdINg thE buSINESS dAtA cAtALOg tO bcS
There are several differences between the functionality of the Business Data Catalog in SharePoint Server 2007 and the BCS in SharePoint Server 2010 Table 24-4 summarizes what you need to con-sider both as you upgrade and after the upgrade is complete Refer to Chapter 5 for details on the different approaches to upgrading SharePoint Server 2007 to SharePoint Server 2010 These should only be considered guidelines; these recommendations will likely be revised as the product is used more extensively
tAbLE 24-4: Factors to Consider When Upgrading BDC Applications to BCS Solutions
Upgrading external system
metadata in the application
definition file
Use the database upgrade approach, as it automatically upgrades the metadata to the new schema used in BCS This also migrates all permissions in the definition files
Once the database attach upgrade approach has been completed, SharePoint Server 2007 application definition files cannot be imported It is possible to manually re-create the definitions using SPD, but a better approach is to use an in-place upgrade Use your original SharePoint Server 2007 data and perform an in-place upgrade to SharePoint Server 2010 Then export the models from the upgrade and import them into the SharePoint Server 2010 farm that was originally created using the database attach method Single Sign-on Service The SSO service in SharePoint Server 2007 Business Data
Catalog has been replaced by the Secure Store Service This may require creating target applications, so the SSS will need to be tested to ensure it is working properly
Profile Pages Profile pages in SharePoint 2007 need to be re-created in
SharePoint 2010 if the database attach upgrade process was used
Application Security If the upgraded application is going to use claims-based identity,
you need to ensure that the permissions defined in the metadata model will work as expected after an import
Trang 4744 ❘ chAPtER 24 BUsiNess coNNectivity services iN sharePoiNt 2010
SummARY
Business Connectivity Services (BCS) are a set of capabilities that SharePoint Server 2010 and Office
2010 clients use to provide access to external data This chapter was designed as a general introduc-tion to BCS and its capabilities, not a comprehensive guide to its use, so administrators are encour-aged to delve deeper into the topic Creating and implementing BCS solutions requires a number of different tools, so you will need to be aware of their use and the potential impact they may have on the overall SharePoint environment One such tool is SharePoint Designer 2010 In the example, SPD was used to create an external content type You also saw that BCS is utilized in combination with two other service applications Even though we are very early in the experience cycle for SharePoint
2010 usage, the chapter gave several recommendations to consider when planning to use BCS
Trang 5Building Workfl ows in
sharePoint 2010
WhAt’S IN thIS chAPtER?
Why workfl ow is important
➤
➤
Core workfl ow topics
➤
➤
Confi guration options for workfl ow
➤
➤
Using workfl ow tools such as SharePoint Designer and
➤
➤
Visual Studio 2010
It’s no secret that user collaboration using SharePoint 2010 improves overall effi ciency and productivity within organizations To successfully accomplish this, clearly defi ned and reliable business processes must be in place to govern how collaboration within an organization will occur These processes can be managed several ways, but the most effective way is to leverage the workfl ow capabilities of SharePoint 2010
Workfl ow is an automated business process Rather than have users manually track and
man-age a process, you can create a workfl ow that predefi nes the necessary steps and actions needed to complete the task at hand By automating this process, human error is eliminated, responses can be tracked, actions are consistent, and user responsibility is kept at a minimum Workfl ows provide an easy way to improve the overall effectiveness of your solution while minimizing the costs of managing business processes
In this chapter you will learn about workfl ow in SharePoint 2010 and the vital role it plays in
an effective enterprise solution You will also learn how to create workfl ows and use them in real-life scenarios
25