Returning an array of objects through a web service

[Dominic Debrincat]

Hi
I created a web service which is working correctly, but I can't figure out how to pass objects through it. Here are my object classes:

public class Person {
private int personID;
private String fname;
private String lname;
private int age;
public Person()
{
}
public int getPersonID()
{
return personID;
}
public void setPersonID(int personID)
{
this.personID = personID;
}
public String getFname()
{
return fname;
}
public void setFname(String fname)
{
this.fname = fname;
}
public String getLname()
{
return lname;
}
public void setLname(String lname)
{
this.lname = lname;
}
public int getAge()
{
return age;
}
public void setAge(int age)
{
this.age = age;
}
}
public class Client extends Person{
private String email;
public Client()
{
}
public Client(int ClientID, String fname, String lname, int age, String email)
{
this.setPersonID(ClientID);
this.setFname(fname);
this.setLname(lname);
this.setAge(age);
this.setEmail(email);
}
public void setEmail(String email)
{
this.email = email;
}
public String getEmail()
{
return email;
}
}

And here is my web service method to query the database :

public static void connectDatabase()
{
try{
Class.forName("sun.jdbc.odbc.JdbcOdbcDriver");
String sourceURL = new String ("jdbc:odbc:Assignment");
dbConnection = DriverManager.getConnection(sourceURL,"admin","");
}catch(ClassNotFoundException cnfe)
{
System.out.println(cnfe);
}catch(SQLException sqle)
{
System.out.println(sqle);
}
}
@WebMethod(operationName = "Query")
public Object accessDatabase()
{
String test = "";
int num = 0;
Client client[] = new Client [5];
try {
connectDatabase();
Statement myStmt = dbConnection.createStatement();
ResultSet results = myStmt.executeQuery("SELECT * FROM Client");
while (results.next())
{
int clientID = results.getInt("ID");
String fname = results.getString("Name");
String lname = results.getString("Surname");
int age = results.getInt("Age");
String email = results.getString("Email");
Client c = new Client(clientID, fname, lname, age, email);
client[num] = c;
num = num +1;
}
results.close();
}catch(SQLException sqle)
{
System.out.println(sqle);
}
return client[5];
}

When I try to run the method it returns null.
If anyone has any ideas they would be greatly appreciated. Of even a better way then passing them as objects, I am open to ideas.

Thanks.

[William Brogden]

If the "objects" you want to return are just holders for some strings, why not define your service as returning sets of strings?

Actually the most important questions have to do with the potential clients of this web service. What do you expect clients to be looking for? What software will they be running?

Is this a SOAP or RESTful style service?

Bill

[Dominic Debrincat]

This is a SOAP style service

The objects are just holders of some string, would it be easier to return sets of Strings, I had to set them to objects as it is part of the requirements of my assignment but returning at least a string will be a start.

As for the clients, I would need the client to be able to view the records in the database and scroll through them, then eventually update the database. I have to create two clients using two different software, java (netbeans) and .net (VS 10)


EDIT

I tried to return the Strings I finally got a value apart from null, thanks for that suggestion. Although i'm only receiving the last record in the database, I guess thats why we have to save them in an array of objects to return all the records.

[James Boswell]

Dominic

I have to ask why you are returning an instance of java.lang.Object to your clients? What do you expect them to do with it, except for a nasty hardcoded cast.

How is your WSDL defined?

[Dominic Debrincat]

I set it to java.lang.Object as I thought since I was returning an object I had to set it to that.

As for the WSDL i have not altered it, I'm testing the web service over local host.

[James Boswell]

Can you show us your WSDL listing?

Usually a SOAP web service will have its own defined types for a client to consume but these will not normally be java.language.Object.

[Ivan Krizsan]

Hi!
I would recommend creating a Java bean class that contains fields for all the data that is to be returned. Use this return type when declaring the return type of the methods to be exposed in the web service.
This because:
1. Your code will be easier to understand.
2. Such a Java bean will correspond to a XML type, resulting in an element (with contents) in the response XML. If there, in the future, is a need for introducing a new version of the return data, this will be significantly easier with the mentioned construct.
Best wishes!