- Range of solutions available to suit your needs
- Support for Inter-Personal Messaging and Electronic Commerce
- Aids rapid development and reduced cost of implementation
- Message Utilities for local and remote message operations
- Open, portable interfaces available
- X/Open Common Messaging Calls
- X/Open Message Transfer API
- MAPI Desktop Enabler
- Microsoft Simple MAPI
- Sophisticated Route400 Message API
- Available on a very wide range of platforms
The Route400 Application Developer and
Integration Products assist purchasers of Route400 messaging systems
with the development of message enabled applications and products.
The software products described in this data sheet meet a broad
range of development needs for functionality, integration and
speed of development.
The requirements for messaging support
can range from applications performing simple submission and reception
of basic messages containing program results, files or Electronic
Commerce transactions, up to those needing full control of all
user interface functions at a level of message integration suitable
for application-specific message clients. The NET-TEL products
provide a range of approaches based on command line message utilities
and application programming interfaces (APIs).
Messages submitted and read using any
of the message integration products described in this data sheet
are transferred via the Route400 Message Server
(Message Transfer Agent or Message Store) to the requested recipients.
These may be local users or applications
or may be reached through other X.400 messaging services, via
gateways to proprietary mail systems (such as
cc:Mail,
GroupWise,
Lotus Notes,
Microsoft Mail
or Microsoft Exchange), or the
Internet.
Depending on the product used, there
is specific support for Windows
(MAPI Desktop Enabler or Simple MAPI), cross platform
support for Windows and UNIX (X/Open CMC), full range UNIX platform
support (X/Open MT API) and support for the entire range of Route400
platforms (the Route400 Message Utility set and Message API).
The Range of Route400 Application Developer and Integration Products
In order to meet the disparate requirements
of developers of message enabled applications, NET-TEL provides
a comprehensive range of powerful approaches.
Message (command line) utilities require
no C-language programming skills, nor knowledge of the underlying
messaging technology, and can be used to build integrated applications
using simple command scripts, forms packages, Visual Basic etc.
The Route400 Message Utilities approach is indicated in situations
where a rapid development cycle is required and/or where there
is limited availability of programming skills. They are ideally
suited for straightforward applications.
Application Programming Interfaces (APIs)
require C-language developer skills but avoid the need for knowledge
of the Abstract Syntax Notation number One (ASN.1) with its associated
Basic Encoding Rules (BER) used in X.400 messaging. Route400 APIs
also avoid the developer needing to know about the underlying
Route400 file infrastructure and X.400 communication protocols
over which the application data is to be transmitted. Route400
APIs are normally used when the application is more sophisticated,
potentially to the level of a full messaging user interface.
Use of the X/Open Common Messaging Calls
API provides relatively simple messaging facilities while the
full X/Open Message Transfer API is very sophisticated but does
require greater skill. Route400 X/Open products enable the development
of portable, vendor independent messaging applications and allow
existing X/Open-based applications to be ported to the Route400
environment. These APIs are available on a wide range of platforms.
The MAPI Desktop Enabler delivers
the full benefits of NET-TEL's messaging servers to a
wide range of Windows desktop applications, including office, workflow and group scheduling
applications.
The Route400 Simple MAPI DLL enables
existing Windows Desktop applications from Microsoft and other
vendors to be compose and send mail through Route400 message servers.
Finally, The Route400 Message API is
aimed at those developers creating mail clients/user agents, access
units, gateways, and other message-enabled applications, with
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) support, if required, that are
designed from the outset to be integrated with a Route400 Message
Server (Message Transfer Agent or Message Store). This approach
optimally exploits the functionality, performance and flexibility
of the Route400 products.
The Route400 message integration products
support both file-sharing via a LAN filing system for operation
with local Route400 Message Servers and full P7 protocol remote
access to X.400 Message Stores from any supplier. Inter-Personal
Messaging (X.420/P2) and Electronic Commerce (X.435/Pedi) protocols
are supported.
In summary, NET-TEL offers seven classes
of support product for developers of message enabled applications:
- Route400 Message Utility (Command Line) set
- Route400 X/Open Common Messaging Calls (CMC) API
- Route400 X/Open Message Transfer API (with Object Management API)
- Route400 Message API
- MAPI Desktop Enabler
- Microsoft Simple MAPI
- Route400 Address Book API
This range of support product allows
application developers to choose the most appropriate method and
achieve the required balance of objectives according to such issues
as:
- Rapid development and low cost implementation
- Application sophistication and degree of integration required
- Support for messaging, groupware and Electronic Commerce (EC)
- Integration with Microsoft MAPI-based applications
- Programming skills availability
- Vendor independence, use of standards and portability
- Close integration with Route400
and development of sophisticated user/application interfaces
Having selected the most appropriate
approach, developers are then able to concentrate on their applications,
secure in the knowledge that all the details of data transport,
address book management, message encoding and decoding are being
handled by a proven and mature product.
Route400 Message Utilities
The Route400 Message Utility set provides
the most straightforward method of creating a message enabled
application. Simple command line interfaces are provided to submit
and read mail, avoiding the complexities of direct integration
of application programs through a C-language Application Program
Interface (API). Data is transferred directly between the application
and the messaging system through files. The utilities can operate
within the full range of message infrastructures supported by
Route400, including local file sharing between message client
and server and remote Message Store access. They provide both
Inter-Personal Messaging and Electronic Commerce protocols. Additional
functions are available to generate and manipulate Route400 Address
Books.
- Simple to use yet powerful enough to support all commonly used operations
- Allows very rapid application development cycles
- Available across the full range of Route400 platforms allowing maximum portability of
applications
- Particularly powerful when used within a batch script under DOS, UNIX and Windows NT to
submit or receive messages containing data generated from other applications
- For Windows GUI applications, variants of the utilities are available to be accessed through
the "winexec" function (for example from Visual Basic applications)
- Variants allow message content suitable for standard messaging applications (X.420
Inter-Personal Messaging Service with P2 protocol) or for use within Electronic Commerce
systems (X.435 with Pedi protocol)
- Originator details and other configuration information, for example to prohibit the
generation of X.400 messages containing 1988/1992 level material (for interoperation with legacy
X.400 (1984) systems), are taken from the standard Route400 message client configuration file
- The "PostItem" utility is used to post a multi-part message addressed to specified
recipient(s) to an OutTray
- Recipients may be specified by means
of an address book Short Name, an X.400 address in keyword format,
an Internet address, Fax address or a "Mailing List"
comprising a number of predefined recipients. A recipient may
also refer to a Distribution List
- The content of the message may contain
one, or more, attachments (or documents) comprising text or binary
information. The binary attachments may contain executable code,
documents from proprietary applications such as word processors
or spread-sheets or application specific material
- Attachments may be encoded within
X.400 as Undefined (Bilaterally defined/BP14), External, File
Transfer or Route400-specific (DataFile)
- An optional message subject, and
delivery and receipt notification levels may be specified
- The "ReadItem" utility
is used to check for available mail and to read the first new
item (or a specific numbered item) from an InTray. If no new message
is present, a specific return code is given. This may be checked
in a batch script, for example in order to wait before a further
read attempt
- Information about the contents of
the envelope may be extracted in either a pre-formatted or machine
readable format
- Multiple attachments are read into
separate files with names corresponding to their sequence order
and with file extensions according to the type of information
present
- The "PostItem" and "ReadItem"
utilities can operate locally with a Route400 Message Server (MTA
or MS), using shared file access to the relevant MailBox or Message
Store, via the LAN filing system. Alternatively, remote versions
are available for most platforms operating via a communications
link to a Message Store with P7 protocol
- For remote access the "Transfer"
utility is used to transmit messages from a local OutTray to a
remote Message Store (having first been submitted using the remote
"Message Store PostItem" utility) and to a local InTray
from a remote Message Store (to be read using "ReadItem")
- The "Transfer" utility
performs its Message Store access using the P7 message protocol
over a range of communications media such as dial-up with APS
(X.445 protocol), X.25 or TCP/IP over a LAN. Alternatively, if
manual control of message submission is desired, a standard Route400
Remote User Agent can be used to transfer the contents of the
OutTray containing both user and application generated messages
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Version
- Provides variants of the message
utilities suitable for use in Electronic Commerce applications
where compliance with X.435 (1988) Pedi is required
- Supports EDIFACT, ANSI X12 and UNTDI
interchange formats
- EDI-specific post and read utilities
are available for local access to a Route400 Message Server (MTA
or MS), using shared file access to the relevant MailBox or Message
Store, via the LAN filing system. Alternatively, remote versions
are available for most platforms operating via a communications
link to a Message Store with P7 protocol (using the "Transfer"
utility)
- The "EDI-specific Post"
utility takes two files, one containing the electronic data interchange
(e.g. EDIFACT) for the message and a second the X.435 parameters
for the message. The X.435 parameters are held in a simple keyword
and value format
- The "EDI-specific Read"
utility reads an X.400 message and creates two files, one containing
the electronic data interchange and a second the X.435 parameters
from the message
- The files used by the EDI Post and
Read utilities can easily be generated or read by an application
program written, for example, in Visual Basic
- The "EDI-specific Read"
utility can also generate X.435 notifications with message acceptance
or repudiation when required. It is possible to process a message
first without generating a notification and then to generate any
required notification at a later stage (for example when other
information sources need to be consulted prior to notification)
X/Open Common Messaging Calls
The X/Open Common Messaging Calls (CMC)
API provides vendor independent access to X.400 messaging across
a range of platforms at a level comparable to Microsoft Simple
MAPI. In particular, it permits cross-platform independence between
UNIX and Windows 3.1 (and later) applications.
The X/Open CMC specification defines
a basic set of calls to submit and read messages, and to access
address information. The corresponding API comprises a set of
C-language libraries that map CMC data types to elements of X.400
messages. Since the CMC specification is "technology neutral"
realistic mappings for X.400 have been devised so that a complete
mapping always occurs.
- Supports X/Open Common Messaging
Calls version 1
- Available across the full range
of supported Route400 UNIX platforms and Windows 3.1
- API implementation supplied as a
UNIX archive file or shared library, depending on the hardware
platform selected
- Supports local access to a Route400
Message Server (MTA or MS) using shared file access to the relevant
MailBox or Message Store via the LAN filing system
- Multiple-session support allows
separate applications to be supported simultaneously
- Text attachment support encodes
General Text body parts where necessary to avoid information loss
- Binary attachments are encoded as
File Transfer or External
- Automatic generation of Receipt
Notifications
- All 10 CMC-specified calls supported:
- Sending Messages (2 calls): Send, Send documents
- Receiving Messages (3 calls): Act-on, List, Read
- Looking up names (1 call): Look up
- Administration (4 calls): Logon, Logoff, Free, Query Configuration
- Optionally invokable user interface
has capabilities for dialogue prompts, adding/deleting addresses,
editing address details, requesting missing message parts to be
sent, etc
- Support of the Common Extension
Set as defined in the CMC API specification for key common-function
and common-data extensions
- Supports NET-TEL extensions with
enhanced functionality for MailBox compaction and data extensions
for Delivery Reports and Notifications
X/Open Message Transfer API
The X/Open Message Transfer (XMT) API
provides sophisticated, vendor independent, object oriented, access
to X.400 messaging in a UNIX or OS/2 environment. The API implements
all the functions and classes necessary to create a mail gateway
between a Route400 Message Server (MTA) and another messaging
system or application. These functions include the Object Manager
(XOM) interface and classes and the Message Transfer (XMT) functional
interface as defined by the X/Open specifications. The complexity
involved in the production of applications that handle object
types defined by ASN.1 and its Basic Encoding Rules is greatly
reduced by the provision of function calls that can access data
objects representing X.400 messages.
The API is available in the form of
a C-language library which may be accessed directly from the client
program. A set of header files is also provided. Available across
the full range of supported Route400 UNIX platforms.
Object Manager (XOM)
- Conforms to the X/Open CAE Specification
OSI Abstract Data Manipulation API (XOM), Issue 2, standardised
as ISO/IEC 14360 (language independent), 14364 (C-language)
- Allows a client to deal with objects
instead of the ASN.1 encoding used for X.400 messages, probes
and reports
- Converts data structures into conformant
protocols for transmission over a network, and performs the reverse
process of converting received protocols into easily interpretable
data structures
- Provides function calls to create,
examine, alter and delete objects created from e-mail messages,
directory entries, distribution lists, receipts and notifications,
and EDI messages by the Message Transfer API
- Specifically supports: Create, Copy,
Put, Write, Copy-Value, Remove, Get, Read, Instance, Encode, Decode
and Delete functions
- Supports private objects, service-generated
public objects and client-generated public objects
Message Transfer (MT) interface
- Conforms to the X/Open CAE Specification
API to Electronic Mail (X.400), Issue 2 (Message Transfer Interface),
standardised as ISO/IEC 14361 (language independent), 14365 (C-language)
- Provides client access to inbound
and outbound message queues associated with a Route400 Message
Server (MTA)
- Includes the X/Open Messaging Handling
(MH) and Interpersonal Messaging (IM) packages, giving full access
to the data in X.400 compliant message structures
- Provides an optional EDI package
providing a definition of those objects used to implement the
Electronic Data Interchange recommendation X.435 (enabling inclusion
and extraction of EDI information in the content of a message
using the optional EDI-specific object classes)
- Manages both input and output queues
- Supports the Open, Close, Transfer-Out,
Start-Transfer-In, Finish-Transfer-In, Size and Wait functions
- Supports NET-TEL extensions with
enhanced functionality to:
- Select character set
- Select national IA5 variant
- Get list of general text character registrations
- Determine features of translations
- Determine length of string (2 functions)
- Translate string into character set (2 functions)
- Log all error strings to file
- Display all details of a private object
- Toggle runtime options on or off
MAPI Desktop Enabler
The NET-TEL MAPI Desktop Enabler delivers the full benefits of NET-TEL's messaging
servers to a wide range of Microsoft Windows desktop applications, including
office, workflow and group scheduling applications. The MAPI Desktop Enabler
comprises a full set of Store, Address and Transport Providers for the 32-bit
Windows platforms. Windows developers are able to build applications utilising the full range of
Microsoft's development facilities for MAPI.
Based upon the use of standard protocols, the Desktop Enabler provides
access to messaging services offered by:
- NET-TEL Universal Information Servers
- NET-TEL Route400 Message Servers
- Other X.400-compliant message servers
Microsoft Simple MAPI support
Microsoft's Simple MAPI offers mail
enabling for many Windows applications. It is provided as a dynamically
linked library (DLL) delivered with the Route400 Windows User
Agent and Remote User Agent products. Twelve MAPI functions are
supported and these allow the Windows application to call the
Route400 User Agent from the Send Mail or Add Routing Slip (or
similar) commands in the File pull-down menu.
The Route400 Command Line Interface
utility for Windows provides a means of accessing the Route400
Windows User Agent from the command prompt, providing the developer
with a quick way of opening windows and sending mail, etc. The
utility takes arguments specifying which windows will be open
on entry to the Route400 program, the recipient(s) for the message,
a subject and one or more files to be sent as the content parts.
The Route400 Windows User Agent can
also be controlled via the Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) execute
commands. The command string is identical to that used with the
command line interface.
Fax integration is available via macros
that invoke the Route400 Facsimile Printer Driver to generate
fax content which can then be transmitted to the Windows user
agent for posting via MAPI or DDE.
Route400 Message API
The Route400 Message API provides support
for interpersonal messaging applications designed to be used with
a Route400 Message Transfer Agent (MTA) located on the same local
area network (LAN) or a remote Message Store (MS) using P7 protocol.
Each API comprises a set of C-language libraries that are optimised
for the X.400 environment. They conform fully to the X.400 (1988/1992)
standards and associated GOSIP functional profile; however, X.400
(1984)-compatible applications can be produced without extra effort
as the API generates messages that conform to the limitations
of the earlier standard if deliberately chosen.
Applications call the API's C-language
library directly and can extract messages from a Route400 MTA
MailBox or, with the optional extension for remote P7 support,
from a Message Store, and decode these. Similarly, messages are
encoded and posted into the same MailBox or to a Message Store.
Each application has its own, separate MailBox and may behave
either as an end-user, or as a gateway or interface to some other
system. Access to X.400 primitives is provided by a set of C-structures
and function calls that deal with message elements such as individual
recipients, address book entries and body parts.
The Route400 Message API is provided
with two optional variants to support Electronic Data Interchange
(X.435, Pedi protocol) for Electronic Commerce applications and
to provide remote access to a Message Store (using the P7 protocol).
- Complies with X.411 and X.420
- Maximal control and flexibility
- Message API model based on classes, groups and items
- Messages organised into groups of individually numbered message items
- Contains built-in ASN.1 support to manage the encoding and decoding of P1 and P2 message
contents
- Each group of items allocated to one of four message classes according to associated items'
behavioural characteristics:
- Received messages - with both local access and P7 support
- Submitted messages - also with local access and P7 support
- Local folders in flat tray files
- Draft messages held in memory for editing
- Flexible configuration file containing
user's or application's address, directory pathnames, selected
option-values and defaults optimised for typical usage
- InTray scanning to give summary displays
- Reading an item, updating an item's status and posting an item
- Answering and forwarding an item
- Built-in support for the generation
of multi-language application versions for error messages and
other human-readable text
- Separate module for accessing and
manipulating address books containing X.400, fax, Internet, Telex
and postal addresses
EDI Extension
- Complies with X.435 (1988, Pedi)
- Contains built in ASN.1 engine to
manage the encoding and decoding of the P1 header and Pedi message
- Enables the creation, transmission
and manipulation of EDI messages
- Provides primitives for the generation
of EDI notifications
- Delivered with a utility program
in source form enabling structured text dumps of EDI messages
to be generated
- Works indirectly with the Message
Store when messages are separately transferred to the InTray MailBox
using the P7 message protocol
P7 Extension
- Full support of the P7 Message Store protocol
- Support for, and interaction with,
database files kept on a Route400 Message Store
- Support for a number of P7 protocol
profiles enabling operation with a range of third party Message Stores
- Built-in links to a separate communications stack
- Support for dial-up (X.445 (APS) and NET-TEL async), X.25 and TCP/IP communications
Route400 Address Book API
The Route400 Address Book API provides
support for developers writing applications that only process
address books. The API comprises a C-language library containing
functions that:
- Create, open and close Route400 address books
- Control character set translation for address information
- Read address book Short Name information
- Read, write and delete complete address book records
- Read and set address book version and update flags
In some cases, the Route400 Address Book API may provide a simpler approach than using the full
Route400 Message API.
Product Availability
Route400 Message Utilities with EDI/X.435 and Address Book extensions
- Local command line utilities with message store transfer option:
- DOS
- all Route400 supported UNIX platforms
- Windows application "winexec" functions with message store transfer option:
- Windows 3.1 (and above) and Windows 95
- Local command line utilities:
- OS/2 Warp
- Windows NT
X/Open Common Messaging Calls
- Windows 3.1 and above
- all Route400 supported UNIX platforms including Bull DPX/2 and Pyramid OSx 1.1
X/Open Message Transfer API
- All Route400 supported UNIX platforms
- OS/2 Warp
MAPI Desktop Enabler
- Windows 95 and above
- Windows NT 4.0 and above
Microsoft MAPI
- Route400 Windows User Agent and Remote User Agent
Route400 Message API with EDI extension
- Local and remote/P7:
- DOS
- Windows 3.1 or later (16-bit)
- Apple Macintosh System 7 or later
- all Route400 supported UNIX platforms
- Local:
- Windows 95 and NT (32-bit)
- OS/2 Warp
Route400 Address Book API
- DOS
- all Route400 supported UNIX platforms
Other variants and options may be available on request
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