A "remote" database is any data source that is not the default Derby database. A remote database may be network connected and/or installed on the local server. The Entity Engine supports simultaneous connections to an unlimited number of remote databases in addition to, or as a replacement for, the default instance of Derby.
Each remote database connection requires a datasource element entry in the entityengine.xml file. Adding and removing database connections may be performed at any time; however, entityengine.xml file changes are only effective upon OFBiz restart.
Collect all the necessary information required to connect to the remote database. In particular, you will need, at a minimum, the following information:
- Database name.
- Username and password for OFBiz to pass when negotiating connections to the remote database. In some cases, passwords are not required. Check your remote database setup for more information.
- Database schema name, if appropriate. See the
entityengine.xmlfile for examples. - Connection location information, including the IP address and port number to connect on (for IP-based network connections).
Once the initial information (as stated earlier) is collected, a remote database can be connected to by following these steps:
- Edit the
entityengine.xmlfile. Add one or moredatasourceelements, one for each target database. Add one or moredelegatorelements with entity group configuration information telling the Entity Engine which entities are to be found on which target databases. - Add or modify any field type definitions in the appropriate field type definition file for the target remote database.
- Add all necessary entity definitions to one or more entity definition file(s). Each table on the remote database requires an entity definition before it may be accessed through the Entity Engine.
- If necessary, add any entity group definitions to an entity group definition file.
- Make sure that any new entity group definition file is defined in the
ofbiz-component.xmlfile. - To make any Entity Engine configuration changes effective, restart OFBiz.
Entity engine database connections and entity models are built whenever OFBiz is restarted as part of its initialization process. To manage database connections, connection pooling across all defined databases, data transfer, and data source transaction specifics, OFBiz consults the entityengine.xml file and automatically builds the internal control settings each time it is restarted.