Adobe® Flex® 4 Language Reference
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mx.rpc.http 
AbstractOperation 
Packagemx.rpc.http
Classpublic class AbstractOperation
InheritanceAbstractOperation Inheritance AbstractOperation Inheritance AbstractInvoker Inheritance EventDispatcher Inheritance Object
Subclasses Operation

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

An Operation used specifically by HTTPService or HTTPMultiService. An Operation is an individual operation on a service usually corresponding to a single operation on the server side. An Operation can be called either by invoking the function of the same name on the service or by accessing the Operation as a property on the service and calling the send(param1, param2) method. HTTP services also support a sendBody method which allows you to directly specify the body of the HTTP response. If you use the send(param1, param2) method, the body is typically formed by combining the argumentNames property of the operation with the parameters sent. An Object is created which uses the argumentNames[i] as the key and the corresponding parameter as the value.

The exact way in which the HTTP operation arguments is put into the HTTP body is determined by the serializationFilter used.



Public Properties
 PropertyDefined By
  argumentNames : Array
An ordered list of the names of the arguments to pass to a method invocation.
AbstractOperation
 Inheritedarguments : Object
The arguments to pass to the Operation when it is invoked.
AbstractOperation
  concurrency : String
Value that indicates how to handle multiple calls to the same service.
AbstractOperation
 Inheritedconstructor : Object
A reference to the class object or constructor function for a given object instance.
Object
  contentType : String
Type of content for service requests.
AbstractOperation
  headers : Object
Custom HTTP headers to be sent to the third party endpoint.
AbstractOperation
 InheritedlastResult : Object
[read-only] The result of the last invocation.
AbstractInvoker
 InheritedmakeObjectsBindable : Boolean
When this value is true, anonymous objects returned are forced to bindable objects.
AbstractInvoker
  method : String
HTTP method for sending the request.
AbstractOperation
 Inheritedname : String
The name of this Operation.
AbstractOperation
 InheritedoperationManager : Function
This property is set usually by framework code which wants to modify the behavior of a service invocation without modifying the way in which the service is called externally.
AbstractInvoker
 Inheritedproperties : Object
This is a hook primarily for framework developers to register additional user specified properties for your operation.
AbstractOperation
 Inheritedprototype : Object
[static] A reference to the prototype object of a class or function object.
Object
  request : Object
Object of name-value pairs used as parameters to the URL.
AbstractOperation
 InheritedresultElementType : Class
Like resultType, used to define the ActionScript class used by a given operation though this property only applies to operations which return a multi-valued result (e.g.
AbstractInvoker
  resultFormat : String
Value that indicates how you want to deserialize the result returned by the HTTP call.
AbstractOperation
 InheritedresultType : Class
Specifies an optional return type for the operation.
AbstractInvoker
  rootURL : String
The URL that the HTTPService object should use when computing relative URLs.
AbstractOperation
  serializationFilter : SerializationFilter
A SerializationFilter can control how the arguments are formatted to form the content of the HTTP request.
AbstractOperation
 Inheritedservice : AbstractService
[read-only] Provides convenient access to the service on which the Operation is being invoked.
AbstractOperation
  showBusyCursor : Boolean
If true, a busy cursor is displayed while a service is executing.
AbstractOperation
  url : String
Location of the service.
AbstractOperation
  useProxy : Boolean
Specifies whether to use the Flex proxy service.
AbstractOperation
  xmlDecode : Function
ActionScript function used to decode a service result from XML.
AbstractOperation
  xmlEncode : Function
ActionScript function used to encode a service request as XML.
AbstractOperation
Public Methods
 MethodDefined By
  
AbstractOperation(service:AbstractService = null, name:String = null)
Creates a new Operation.
AbstractOperation
 Inherited
addEventListener(type:String, listener:Function, useCapture:Boolean = false, priority:int = 0, useWeakReference:Boolean = false):void
Registers an event listener object with an EventDispatcher object so that the listener receives notification of an event.
EventDispatcher
 Inherited
Cancels the last service invocation or an invokation with the specified ID.
AbstractInvoker
 Inherited
clearResult(fireBindingEvent:Boolean = true):void
Sets the result property of the invoker to null.
AbstractInvoker
 Inherited
Dispatches an event into the event flow.
EventDispatcher
 Inherited
Checks whether the EventDispatcher object has any listeners registered for a specific type of event.
EventDispatcher
 Inherited
Indicates whether an object has a specified property defined.
Object
 Inherited
Indicates whether an instance of the Object class is in the prototype chain of the object specified as the parameter.
Object
 Inherited
Indicates whether the specified property exists and is enumerable.
Object
 Inherited
removeEventListener(type:String, listener:Function, useCapture:Boolean = false):void
Removes a listener from the EventDispatcher object.
EventDispatcher
 Inherited
Executes the method.
AbstractOperation
  
AbstractOperation
 Inherited
Sets the availability of a dynamic property for loop operations.
Object
 Inherited
This hook is exposed to update the lastResult property.
AbstractInvoker
 Inherited
Returns the string representation of this object, formatted according to locale-specific conventions.
Object
 Inherited
Returns the string representation of the specified object.
Object
 Inherited
Returns the primitive value of the specified object.
Object
 Inherited
Checks whether an event listener is registered with this EventDispatcher object or any of its ancestors for the specified event type.
EventDispatcher
Protected Methods
 MethodDefined By
  
Returns the HTTP request headers.
AbstractOperation
  
Returns the serialization filter.
AbstractOperation
Events
 Event Summary Defined By
 Inherited[broadcast event] Dispatched when the Flash Player or AIR application gains operating system focus and becomes active.EventDispatcher
 Inherited[broadcast event] Dispatched when the Flash Player or AIR application operating loses system focus and is becoming inactive.EventDispatcher
 InheritedDispatched when an Operation call fails.AbstractOperation
 InheritedDispatched when an Operation invocation successfully returns.AbstractOperation
Property Detail

argumentNames

property
public var argumentNames:Array

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

An ordered list of the names of the arguments to pass to a method invocation. Since the arguments object is a hashmap with no guaranteed ordering, this array helps put everything together correctly. It will be set automatically by the MXML compiler, if necessary, when the Operation is used in tag form.

concurrency

property 
concurrency:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Value that indicates how to handle multiple calls to the same service. The default value is multiple. The following values are permitted:

  • multiple Existing requests are not cancelled, and the developer is responsible for ensuring the consistency of returned data by carefully managing the event stream. This is the default value.
  • single Only a single request at a time is allowed on the operation; multiple requests generate a fault.
  • last Making a request cancels any existing request.



Implementation
    public function get concurrency():String
    public function set concurrency(value:String):void

contentType

property 
contentType:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Type of content for service requests. The default is application/x-www-form-urlencoded which sends requests like a normal HTTP POST with name-value pairs. application/xml send requests as XML.



Implementation
    public function get contentType():String
    public function set contentType(value:String):void

headers

property 
public var headers:Object

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Custom HTTP headers to be sent to the third party endpoint. If multiple headers need to be sent with the same name the value should be specified as an Array.

method

property 
method:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

HTTP method for sending the request. Permitted values are GET, POST, HEAD, OPTIONS, PUT, TRACE and DELETE. Lowercase letters are converted to uppercase letters. The default value is GET.



Implementation
    public function get method():String
    public function set method(value:String):void

request

property 
public var request:Object

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Object of name-value pairs used as parameters to the URL. If the contentType property is set to application/xml, it should be an XML document.

resultFormat

property 
resultFormat:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Value that indicates how you want to deserialize the result returned by the HTTP call. The value for this is based on the following:

  • Whether you are returning XML or name/value pairs.
  • How you want to access the results; you can access results as an object, text, or XML.

The default value is object. The following values are permitted:

  • object The value returned is XML and is parsed as a tree of ActionScript objects. This is the default.
  • array The value returned is XML and is parsed as a tree of ActionScript objects however if the top level object is not an Array, a new Array is created and the result set as the first item. If makeObjectsBindable is true then the Array will be wrapped in an ArrayCollection.
  • xml The value returned is XML and is returned as literal XML in an ActionScript XMLnode object.
  • flashvars The value returned is text containing name=value pairs separated by ampersands, which is parsed into an ActionScript object.
  • text The value returned is text, and is left raw.
  • e4x The value returned is XML and is returned as literal XML in an ActionScript XML object, which can be accessed using ECMAScript for XML (E4X) expressions.



Implementation
    public function get resultFormat():String
    public function set resultFormat(value:String):void

rootURL

property 
rootURL:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

The URL that the HTTPService object should use when computing relative URLs. This property is only used when going through the proxy. When the useProxy property is set to false, the relative URL is computed automatically based on the location of the SWF running this application. If not set explicitly rootURL is automatically set to the URL of mx.messaging.config.LoaderConfig.url.



Implementation
    public function get rootURL():String
    public function set rootURL(value:String):void

serializationFilter

property 
public var serializationFilter:SerializationFilter

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

A SerializationFilter can control how the arguments are formatted to form the content of the HTTP request. It also controls how the results are converted into ActionScript objects. It can be set either explicitly using this property or indirectly using the resultFormat property.

showBusyCursor

property 
showBusyCursor:Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

If true, a busy cursor is displayed while a service is executing. The default value is false.



Implementation
    public function get showBusyCursor():Boolean
    public function set showBusyCursor(value:Boolean):void

url

property 
url:String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Location of the service. If you specify the url and a non-default destination, your destination in the services-config.xml file must allow the specified URL.



Implementation
    public function get url():String
    public function set url(value:String):void

useProxy

property 
useProxy:Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Specifies whether to use the Flex proxy service. The default value is false. If you do not specify true to proxy requests though the Flex server, you must ensure that the player can reach the target URL. You also cannot use destinations defined in the services-config.xml file if the useProxy property is set to false.

The default value is false.



Implementation
    public function get useProxy():Boolean
    public function set useProxy(value:Boolean):void

xmlDecode

property 
public var xmlDecode:Function

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

ActionScript function used to decode a service result from XML. When the resultFormat is an object and the xmlDecode property is set, Flex uses the XML that the HTTPService returns to create an Object. If it is not defined the default XMLDecoder is used to do the work.

The function referenced by the xmlDecode property must take a flash.xml.XMLNode object as a parameter and should return an Object. It can return any type of object, but it must return something. Returning null or undefined causes a fault.

The following example shows an <mx:HTTPService> tag that specifies an xmlDecode function:
   <mx:HTTPService id="hs" xmlDecode="xmlDecoder" url="myURL" resultFormat="object" contentType="application/xml">
        <mx:request><source/>
            <obj>{RequestObject}</obj>
        </mx:request>
   </mx:HTTPService>
The following example shows an xmlDecoder function:
function xmlDecoder (myXML)
{
 // Simplified decoding logic.
 var myObj = {};
 myObj.name = myXML.firstChild.nodeValue;
 myObj.honorific = myXML.firstChild.attributes.honorific;
 return myObj;
}

xmlEncode

property 
public var xmlEncode:Function

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

ActionScript function used to encode a service request as XML. When the contentType of a request is application/xml and the request object passed in is an Object, Flex attempts to use the function specified in the xmlEncode property to turn it into a flash.xml.XMLNode object If the xmlEncode property is not set, Flex uses the default XMLEncoder to turn the object graph into a flash.xml.XMLNode object.

The xmlEncode property takes an Object and should return a flash.xml.XMLNode object. In this case, the XMLNode object can be a flash.xml.XML object, which is a subclass of XMLNode, or the first child of the flash.xml.XML object, which is what you get from an <mx:XML> tag. Returning the wrong type of object causes a fault. The following example shows an <mx:HTTPService> tag that specifies an xmlEncode function:

  <mx:HTTPService id="hs" xmlEncode="xmlEncoder" url="myURL" resultFormat="object" contentType="application/xml">
        <mx:request><source/>
            <obj>{RequestObject}</obj>
        </mx:request>
   </mx:HTTPService>
    
The following example shows an xmlEncoder function:
function xmlEncoder (myObj)
{
  return new XML("");
}

Constructor Detail

AbstractOperation

()Constructor
public function AbstractOperation(service:AbstractService = null, name:String = null)

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Creates a new Operation.

Parameters
service:AbstractService (default = null) — The object defining the type of service, such as HTTPMultiService, WebService, or RemoteObject.
 
name:String (default = null) — The name of the service.
Method Detail

getHeaders

()method
protected function getHeaders():Object

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Product Version: Flex 3
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 9, AIR 1.1

Returns the HTTP request headers. Subclasses can override this method to control the retrieval of the HTTP request headers.

Returns
Object — The HTTP request headers.

getSerializationFilter

()method 
protected function getSerializationFilter():SerializationFilter

Returns the serialization filter. Subclasses can override this method to control the retrieval of the HTTP request headers.

Returns
SerializationFilter — The serialization filter.

sendBody

()method 
public function sendBody(parameters:Object):mx.rpc:AsyncToken

Parameters

parameters:Object

Returns
mx.rpc:AsyncToken