Connector Builder
The Connector Builder is where you create, edit, test and publish connectors in Owlie. Open Admin > Integrations > Connectors. The page has two tabs: Owlie lists Owlie's connectors, which you can install, view and fork, and Custom lists the connectors your organization built. Every step of building a connector shows where it happens here; this page is a map of the builder itself.
The Connectors page
| Tab | A connector's actions |
|---|---|
| Owlie | Install; from the row menu, View source (read-only) and Fork |
| Custom | Edit; from the row menu, Install, Duplicate and Delete |
New connector (on the Custom tab) opens the New Connector dialog. Start from Blank asks for the Kind (HTTP, SCIM, LDAP, SQL or Flat file), a Name and a Key; A connector export creates the connector from a pack file. The kind and the key cannot change later.
The editor
The editor opens on the connector's draft. It saves as you type; the status in the top bar reads Saved, or says when a save failed or the draft was changed elsewhere.
The tabs depend on the kind:
| Kind | Tabs |
|---|---|
| HTTP | Basics, Config variables, Auth, Entities, Grant kinds, Notify (only for a notification connector), Files |
| LDAP | Basics, Connection, Users, Groups, Sync, Install values, Handlers, Derived manifest, Raw JSON, Files |
| SCIM | Basics, Connection, Users, Groups, Protocol, Errors, Install values, Handlers, Derived manifest, Raw JSON, Files |
| SQL | Basics, Connection, Entities, Statements, Grant kinds, Install values, Handlers, Derived manifest, Raw JSON, Files |
| Flat file | Basics, Feeds, Install values, Derived manifest, Raw JSON, Files |
For HTTP connectors the tabs edit the manifest through forms, and Files holds the handlers and
lib/ modules, with types generated from your manifest. For the other kinds the tabs edit the
definition; Derived manifest shows, read-only, the manifest Owlie derives from it, Raw JSON
shows the definition itself, and Handlers lists the engine's operations and lets you replace one
with your own code.
The top bar
| Control | Does |
|---|---|
| Version menu | Switches between the draft and published versions. A published version opens read-only, with Edit in new draft, Install (opens Install Integration for it) and Copy and customize (fork it). |
| Export and import menu | Export the draft, or Export version <N> while you view that version; Import a connector export… on the draft only. |
| Import from OpenAPI (icon button) | Starts HTTP entities from a vendor's OpenAPI document. Shown on the draft. |
| Reference rail (⌘3) | Documentation, the conformance checklist and runtime information beside the editor. |
| Dock (⌘B on macOS, Ctrl+B) | The Test, Fixtures and Problems tabs. |
| Delete (trash icon) | Opens Delete Connector. Refused while the connector is installed or other connectors are forks of it (Maintain your connector). |
| Publish | Publishes the draft as the next version (Publish, install and upgrade). Disabled, with the reason, while the draft has problems. |
The dock
- Test runs one handler of the draft against the real system with the configuration under Run config, and keeps Saved inputs per handler. For an HTTP connector it lists the hosts a run may contact before you press Run (Test your connector).
- Fixtures shows, read-only, any
fixtures/files the connector carries, such as those in a pack you imported. Saved test inputs live infixtures/inputs.jsonand are managed from Test (Saved inputs has its format). - Problems lists what would stop the draft from publishing.
Owlie in the builder
On the draft of an HTTP connector, the Owlie chat can build or fix the connector for you: it researches the vendor's documentation, proposes a brief for you to accept, edits the draft, and offers tests that you run. Build a connector with Owlie describes it.
Forks
A fork shows Forked from <base> v<N> above the editor, with its status (for example Up to
date with base) and a menu: Updates to <base>…, Update base to v<N>… and Detach from
base…. Maintain your connector explains each.
View source
View source opens an Owlie connector's files in the same editor, marked View only. Nothing can be changed there; Fork creates your own editable connector stacked on it.