This session introduces the Spring Web Scripts and the Spring Surf framework describing how they are used to underpin the Alfresco Share user interface. As well as covering the basic concepts, this session will cover the history and future roadmap for the frameworks.

1. Spring Surf & Web Scripts!
Dave Draper – UI Engineer - @_DaveDraper!

2. History lesson...
2007
• Alfresco 2.0 introduces first REST API (early WebScripts concepts)!
• Alfresco 2.1 introduces WebScripts!
• REST framework, JSR-311 (Jax-RS) URI Index!
• Scriptable controllers (or backed by Spring Java Beans)!
• FreeMarker template output (or Java output stream)!
2008
• Alfresco Web Framework demo-ware (model objects, JSP, FTL)!
• Alfresco Page Render (WebScripts as components on a page)!
• Combined, productised and renamed to Surf!
• Alfresco Share 3.0, 3.1 – Alfresco collaboration and DM – modern
XHTML and Ajax based interface!

3. History lesson (cont)...
Early 2009
• Alfresco Share 3.2!
• First contact between Alfresco and Spring Source!
Late 2009
• Alfresco Surf and WebScripts integrated with Spring MVC!
• Alfresco Surf and WebScripts contributed as Spring Extension –
Spring WebScripts and Spring Surf!
• Alfresco Share 3.3 – refactored onto Spring WebScripts and Spring
Surf!!
2010
• 3 Milestones and RC1 release!
• Alfresco Share 3.4 – using SpringSurf RC1!

4. History lesson (cont)...
2011
• Alfresco Team!
• New extensibility capabilities added!
• Version 1.0.0 releases!
• Alfresco Share 4.0!

5. What Are WebScripts?
• Services bound to a URIs which respond to
HTTP methods such as GET, POST, PUT and
DELETE!
• Support multiple formats (HTML, JSON & XML)!
• A framework for creating a REST API!
• Made up of descriptor, controller, properties,
configuration and presentation files!

6. WebScripts!
• Descriptor (XML)
• Controller (JavaScript/Java Spring Bean)
• Response Formats (FreeMarker)
• I18N properties (Text)
• Configuration (XML)

7. Response Formats!
• Available formats
• HTML!
• Text!
• XML!
• ATOM!
• RSS!
• JSON!
• Set default in Descriptor (if more than one available)
• Request by:
• Extension (e.g. /script1.html, /script1.json, etc)!
• Format request parameter (e.g. /script1?format=xml)!

8. Why Use Web Scripts?
• Rapid development (no server restarts)
• Separation of concerns (MVC)
• Localization
• Extensibility
• FreeMarker and JavaScript

9. But What Is Spring Surf ?
• An extension to Spring MVC
• A set of controllers, resolvers and views
• A way of breaking an HTML page into re-
usable composite parts
• An interface to the Alfresco Repository
• The framework that underpins Alfresco
Share

10. Example Spring Surf Objects
• Pages
• Template Instances
• Regions
• Chrome
• Components
• Sub-Components

11. Sub-­‐
Component
Component
Region
Region-­‐Chrome
Components
Chrome
Template-­‐Instance
Page

12. Mistakes were made…
• Chrome
• Scopes
• No Component nesting
• 1-1 Region/Component binding
• Spring Roo
• Tools
• Difficult to match output to source

13. …but there is lots of good stuff !
• Themes
• Model Object stores (file system, classpath, remote,
etc)
• Presets / object creation
• URI templates
• Remote connections
• Authentication
• Extensibility
• Endlessly configurable

14. What can you do with it?
• Rapid web-tier view composition – Spring MVC
View Resolver!
• FreeMarker, JSP, Groovy, PHP pages!
• WebScript, FTL, JSP, Groovy, PHP components!
• Simple JavaScript, Groovy controllers!
• Remote API – REST request/response
processing!
• WebScripts – standalone REST API tier!
• Portlets!

15. What you SHOULD do with it?!
• Customize Alfresco Share!
• Use WebScripts and FreeMarker!
• Use JavaScript controllers!
• Use Endpoints to contact an Alfresco Repository
in standalone applications!

16. SOME USEFUL INFORMATION!

17. WebScript and Surf Object lookup!

18. Authentication (WebScripts & Surf Pages)!
• Use <authentication> element
• Available types:
• “none”!
• “guest”!
• “user”!
• “admin”!
• Authenticates against Alfresco Repository
• Can use “runas” property with WebScripts only

19. URI Templates (WebScripts)!
• Use tokens in URL
• e.g. “/x/{token1}/y/{token2}/z”!
• Can define multiple URLs in single descriptor
• Use “url.templateArgs” to access
• ${url.templateArgs.token1}!

20. URI Templates (Surf Pages)!
• Define “uri-template” in <alfresco-config> (e.g. “share-config-
custom.xml)
• Include {pageid} token for Page mapping!
• Or ensure Page exists (e.g. Created through Preset)!
• Use page.url.templateArgs to access tokens
• e.g. ${page.url.templateArgs.token1}!

21. Surf Configuration!
• Configuration object
• Site home page!
• Site theme!
• Surf.xml
• Object type implementations (e.g. AdvancedComponent)!
• User factories!
• Site configuration!
• Chrome!
• Page type (e.g. Login)!
• Module Deployment!
• Spring Application Context
• Services (configuration loading, user factories, persistence, remote access, etc)!
• Controllers (login controllers, etc)!
• Interceptors!

22. Custom Home Page!
• From:
http://blogs.alfresco.com/wp/ddraper/2011/11/01/advanced-
share-customization-part-1/
• Optionally override <site-configuration> in “surf.xml”
• Default is “slingshot.site.configuration”!
• Set <root-page> property in Configuration object

23. Custom Login Page!
• From:
http://blogs.alfresco.com/wp/ddraper/2011/11/03/advanced-
share-customization-part-2/
• Create Page and Template-Instance objects for custom
login page
• Define new default “login” Page-Type object

24. Regions and Components
• Regions define location into which Components can
be bound
• Binding done through region-id, source-id and
scope
o Forced 1-1 bindings
o Flawed concept for Component switching
• Sub-Components introduced as a workaround
• Components SHOULD use ComponentType or
Processor but are “optimized” to use WebScript
URL

25. Remote API
• Connectors & Authenticators!
• XML configure access to “endpoints” – obtained
by id!
• Access HTTP methods through JavaScript
controller or Ajax via proxy controller!
• Endpoints hide the URL stem from scripts –
authentication encapsulated by connectors and
authenticators!
• Connect to multiple REST sources; alfresco,
wiki, search!

26. Remote API – Example!
var conn = remote.connect("alfresco");
var json = conn.get("/api/products/" + args.filter);
if (json.status == 200)
{
// Create JavaScript objects from the response
var obj = eval('(' + json + ')');
if (obj)
{
// Perform processing on the js objects
// set results into the model for the template
model.results = somearray;
}
}

27. Model Object Stores
• Persisters – read model object definitions from
classpath, WEB-INF, JARs!
• Alfresco legacy locations and Spring “friendly”
locations!
o Migration of Alfresco Surf 3.2 apps!
o New locations require less files, folders!
• Read and write to remote location and local file
system!
• Example - Alfresco Share stores pages and
components for dynamic dashboards in the
repository!

28. Component .head.ftl template!
• Allow WebScripts to add JavaScript and CSS dependencies into
HTML <head>
• Use ${head} in Template Instance to output dependencies into
<head>
• Use <@script> to automatically switch between .js and –min.js
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="${page.url.context}/
products/products.css" />
<script src="${page.url.context}/products/products.js"></script>

29. Useful Runtime Tools
• /service/index
o Browse WebScripts
o WebScript refresh
o SurfBug toggle

30. Roadmap!
• Forking from Spring back into Alfresco
• Continued development (more extensibility
features, performance improvements)
• Continued use in Alfresco projects
• More blogging, forums and documentation

31. How do I use it?!
• You CAN SVN checkout, maven build:
https://src.springframework.org/svn/se-surf/trunk!
• You SHOULD use Alfresco Community JARs
when available!

32. Learn More!
• Blog posts:
• http://blogs.alfresco.com/wp/ewinlof/!
• http://blogs.alfresco.com/wp/kevinr/!
• http://blogs.alfresco.com/wp/ddraper/!
• http://mindthegab.com/!
• Alfresco Forum: “Surf Development”

33. Questions?!