The external configuration properties of the Builder are used to determine and establish a connection with an external resource on a Windows platform.
The Component Type property of an external class broadly defines the component type of the external resource that implements its functionality. You must specify the component type because AB Suite generates different external class wrappers for different component types.
To set the configuration properties, right-click an external class, and select Properties.
For an imported data source, set the Data Source Location property of the external class to either Defined Locally or Location. An error message is displayed if you enter an invalid value other than Defined Locally or an existing Location name.
Note: You can select an existing Location to specify predefined connection information or set the properties within the class configuration with the Defined Locally option. Refer to the Data Source properties in System Modeler Locations for more information on setting the properties for the Defined Locally option.
| Property | Function |
|---|---|
| Component Type | Specifies the type of external component to be interfaced with an external class. For example, .NET, Class, COM, DLL, EXE, Java, Shell. By default, this property is set to EXE. This property is specific to classes that have IsExternal set to True. |
| Identifier | Specifies the ID of the external component: Prog ID for COM objects. Name for .dll files, .exe files, and shell programs. Qualified name for .NET objects. By default, this property is set to the name of the external class. |
| .NET Assembly | Specifies the full path of the assembly containing the .NET component type. This can be the compiled DLL for the .NET component. This property is available only if the Component Type is set to .NET. |
| Default Interface | Specifies the name of the dispatch interface that contains the methods to be invoked. You must define an external class for every interface if you use methods from different interfaces of the component. Note: Interfaces can only be used if they are in the same namespace as the class. This property can contain alphanumeric and '_' characters. By default, this property is empty. This property is enabled if the Component Type is set to either .NET or COM. |
| Type-Library | Is optional. If specified, AB Suite uses the type library to retrieve the GUIDs of the COM-Visible classes and methods of the external component. Otherwise, AB Suite generates its own type library through the tlbexp and regasm calls. The type library is used if the interface of the component is defined in another library. You can select Make assembly COM-Visible in the Assembly Information window to create a COM-Visible assembly for an external component. This property is enabled if the Component Type is set to COM or .NET. |
Primitive XML Type | Specifies the external XML type to which the primitive maps. This property is available only if the Component Type is set to Class. |
Note: When you build an application in a Debug Mode, you must ensure that the following rules are met to avoid errors during build:
The .NET Assembly must be COM Visible, which can be set globally in the Assembly Information properties window.
The interface of the assembly must be defined as Public.
However, these settings are not required when you build an application for Windows runtime, and it builds the application with a warning message.