Since the introduction of our Java API, we have tried to keep the architecture and framework support structure on par with the .NET API. In light of this, we have made a number of changes to our Java API.
Java 1.8
As of April 2015, Oracle has ceased releasing public updates to Java 1.7. This means that if there are any security vulnerabilities in Java 1.7, they won’t be patched. As such, we have decided to update our build process for the Java Unity API to target Java 1.8.
When upgrading to OnBase 16, Java 1.8 will need to be installed on any client on which the Java Unity API is being deployed. Not only will this be necessary to support the Unity API, it will also be the latest version supported by Oracle which will guarantee free updates, including security updates.
Renaming Hyland.Services.jar
Prior to the Unity API being written in Java, the Hyland Web Services API was the preferred method for Java developers to integrate with OnBase. At this time, the C# assembly to use was called Hyland.Services.dll with its Java analogy Hyland.Services.jar. Since then, the Hyland.Services.dll was renamed to Hyland.Types.dll and was used all throughout the .NET codebase to communicate with the Application Server. In the meantime, the Hyland.Services.jar file was left without a corresponding rename. This has since changed. Since the Unity API has been more widely adopted and the Web Services API has been deprecated, there was a large amount of confusion both internally and externally about what the Hyland.Services.jar file was used for. Because of this, the decision was made to update the name of Hyland.Services.jar to Hyland.Types.jar.
In Summary
When upgrading to OnBase 16, some additional care should be taken when redeploying any Java-based applications. Any client using the Java Unity API should be upgraded to Java 1.8. Also, any project should be updates to include Hyland.Types.jar in the classpath instead of Hyland.Services.jar.
If you found this article informative or interesting, please share it. If you have any questions or want to further discuss the Java Unity API, please leave a comment. Next week, we'll be exploring the new UPop actions which were added to the Unity API.
