Web Services
It is possible to configure web services to make queries to them during dialogs.
Go to Content > Web Services to access the configuration page.
Note: only users with Administrator or Super User rights can access it.
This page allows you to:
Create REST web service: click Add and select REST web service.
Create a SOAP web service: click Add and select SOAP web service from WSDL. Then enter the WSDL address in the dedicated field and click Discover.
The configuration / modification of a web service is divided into several parts:
Configuration;
Webservice authentication;
Webservice headers;
Parameters
Result variables;
Action buttons.
Configuration of a web service
Note: once the service is created, it is not possible to change the type of the web service (REST or SOAP). However, all other fields are editable.
The Name field allows you to configure the name of the web service, which will be used to call it in the knowledge base.
The URL field allows you to configure the URL of the web service. It must always be a constant.
The Cache field allows you to configure the duration of the web service cache. The value 0 deletes the cache mechanism.
The Timeout field allows you to configure the duration of the web service timeout. The value 0 leaves a standard timeout of an HTTP request.
The HTTP Method field allows you to configure the type of request: GET / POST / PUT / DELETE. This is especially useful for REST calls.
The Response Type field allows you to configure the type of answer: XML / text / JSON.
Configuring a certificate for a web service
Configuring a certificate for a webservice is required if you want to ensure the security of online communications between the user/client and the server.
To associate a certificate with a web service, you must first encrypt the certificate key. To do this, go to Preferences > Bot > General. At the bottom of the page you'll find the section "Set a password to encrypt webservice certificates".
The password you choose is final. It cannot be changed or cancelled.
The certificate format must be in PFX (a file format used to encrypt the server certificate, any intermediate certificates and the private key). Once the certificate has been downloaded and the certificate password entered, click on "Save".
The Asynchronous box allows you to set your web service as asynchronous. If you enable asynchronous mode, your web service process becomes:
User sentence (triggering an asynchronous web service);
Global sentences answer (Content > Global sentences): Go to Web Services then configure the sentence Response to the user when a call to an asynchronous web service has been completed;
Active wait mode (polling) bot side;
Web Service Process;
Answer given in push;
Stopping the active waiting mode (polling) of the bot.
Web service authentication
Here you can choose the type of authentication for your web service.
Once selected, you can fill in the fields User name for authentication and Password for authentication. However, these fields may remain empty. They should only be configured if it is really necessary.
Web service headers
This section allows you to add HTTP headers in the call to a service.
This is often used for authentication.
Parameters
The Name field allows you to configure the parameter name.
The Value field allows you to configure the value of the parameter. If this value is to be retrieved in a dialog, indicate **${capture.**Xxx} with Xxx which is the name of the variable in the dialog.
The Test Value field allows you to configure a value for the parameter only used when testing the web service on the configuration page (see action buttons). This value is not saved when you leave the page.
For example: In a knowledge, if the question asked by the user is "What's the weather like in Paris?", it is possible to capture the city in indicating in the knowledge "What's the weather like in ${capture.city}?".More complete examples are listed at the bottom of this page.
The parameters are encoded according to the HTTP method: in the URL in GET and in the body of the request in POST / PUT / DELETE.
Result variables
It is possible to configure variables that can be displayed in a dialog with the user. This part will depend on the Response type field.
With an XML answer: it is possible to retrieve values from the result by applying XPath or XSLT functions.
Important: XPath or XSLT functions should only return text and never XML to be displayed in dialogs.
With a response of the JSON type: it is possible to recover values from the result by executing javascript.
Important: it is necessary to create at least one javascript function named "dyduParseJSON" which returns a character string or an array of character strings, and whose parameter is the JSON returned by the query (see the REST example at the bottom of the page).
Note that you can also return a general message if the JSON result is invalid. The JSON function should be:
Action buttons
Several actions are available at the bottom of the page.
The Save Configuration button allows you to save the created or changed parameters.
The Test button tests the web service with the data in the Test Value field. The result of the request will be displayed below. Please save the configuration before testing.
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