External Application Interface

WebSite Director (WSD) is designed to run exclusively on a web server. Most of the user activity takes place through a web browser that is connected to WSD through the web server using the HTTP protocol. In some circumstances there is a need to interface directly between WSD and another application. To support such an interface, WSD includes an external interface (API) capability that allows much of the functionality of WSD to be controlled by an external application.

A small impression of the API commands

  • ADD, COPY, MOVE, RENAME, DELETE, etc.... (for documents and templates)
  • APPROVE, DISAPPROVE, etc... (for requests)
  • CREATEDIR, MOVEDIR, COPYDIR, etc... (for directories)
  • LISTSTAGES, DIRSTAGE, etc... (for workflow stages)
  • ADDUSER, UPDATEUSER, etc... (for users)
  • GETPROP, PUTPROPS, LISTPROPS, etc.... (for document/directory properties)
  • and much more...

Request access to our Proprietary Document Repository for the complete API integration guide.

Custom Entry Points
The WebSite Director graphical user interface supports several "entry points" that can be accessed directly from the browser to access different parts of WSD. These entry points are:

  • the Application Desktop provided by the "wsd" module,
  • the Submit New Request screen provided by the "wsdsubmit" module,
  • the System Admin screen provided by the "wsdconfig" module, and
  • the System Reports screen provided by the "wsdreports" module.

These entry points and many others can be accessed from customized HMTL links and other external systems. Custom entry points simulate the click of a form button in a regular WSD application screen.

Custom entry points are defined by providing the same set of form fields that would be specified in a normal WSD application screen. Optional custom form fields can be used to provide additional control over navigation within WSD following the first screen accessed through the custom entry point. The form fields can be specified in the URL used to access WSD in an HTTP GET request, or as regular HTML form fields in an HTTP POST form.

The try-it demo system is a live example of custom entry points in action.

External Event Filter
WebSite Director can be integrated with third-party external systems in several ways. In addition to being called by external applications using the External Interface Specification , WSD can be configured to call external applications at specified times using the External Event Filter. Custom filter applications can be called by WSD as follows:

  • At specific times during the submission, approval, and publishing of update requests within WSD.
  • To customize the list of requests displayed for each workflow stage.
  • During user administration processing to manage an external authentication database.

Using return codes, the custom filter application can tell WSD to cancel the event that triggered the filter call and display a custom error message to the user.

API Integration Guide

Contact us for access to the API Integration Guide and other resources.