IBM Software Technical White Paper WebSphere IBM Worklight V5.0.6 Technology overview IBM Worklight—Overview Contents IBM® Worklight® software helps enable organizational leaders to extend their business to mobile devices. This software provides an open, 1 IBM Worklight—Overview comprehensive and advanced mobile application platform for smart- phones and tablets, helping organizations of all sizes to efficiently 2 IBM Worklight—Components develop, connect, run and manage mobile and omni-channel applications. 3 Development tools Leveraging standards-based technologies and tools, the IBM team has created Worklight software that provides a single integrated platform. 8 Runtime server environment This platform includes a comprehensive development environment, 9 The IBM Worklight Console mobile-optimized runtime middleware, a private enterprise application store and an integrated management and analytics console—all supported 9 IBM Worklight Device by a variety of security mechanisms. Runtime components 10 Security and authentication Develop. The IBM Worklight Studio and the IBM Worklight software mechanisms development kit (SDK) simplify the development of mobile and omni- channel applications (apps) throughout multiple mobile platforms, includ- ing iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Windows 8, Windows Phone and Java ME. The IBM Worklight optimization framework fosters code reuse while delivering rich user experiences that match the styling requirements of each target environment. With such code reuse, IBM Worklight reduces costs of development, reduces time-to-market and provides strong support for your ongoing management efforts. Connect. The IBM Worklight Server architecture and adapter technol- ogy simplifies the integration of mobile apps with back-end enterprise systems and cloud-based services. The IBM Worklight Server is designed IBM Software Technical White Paper WebSphere to fit quickly into your organization’s IT infrastructure and is Console. In addition, administrators can access usage informa- designed to leverage your existing resources. The standalone tion about the installed app base and its users, using built-in back-end integration layer can be customized and shared and customized reports. Usage data can be exported and fed among multiple applications. Furthermore, IBM Worklight into analytics platforms such as the IBM Cognos® platform Adapters support two types of data-delivery mechanisms: device and the IBM Coremetrics® platform. requests and push notifications. IBM Worklight—Components Run. The IBM Worklight Studio prepares application files for The IBM Worklight architecture consists of five main upload to public app stores and to private distribution reposito- components: ries. Active mobile apps communicate with virtually any enter- prise back-end systems and cloud-based services through the ●● The IBM Worklight Studio—the platform’s Eclipse-based IBM Worklight server. This server optimizes data for mobile integrated development environment (IDE). delivery and consumption, and is supported by a variety of ●● The IBM Worklight Server—a gateway between apps, security features that help to protect sensitive user data in back-end systems and cloud services; this gateway handles transit on device. virtually all mobile specifics including application manage- ment and updates, push notifications, user authentication Manage. Once the software is deployed, administrators can and device authentication, and synchronization of security manage registration and authentication for users and devices; and data. monitor and control the access of different apps to back-end ●● The IBM Worklight Application Center—a cross-platform, systems; directly update and disable apps based upon predefined enterprise app store that helps organizational leaders to rules or custom rules; host and manage a production-ready, govern the distribution of apps throughout the enterprise. cross-platform mobile application store; audit and manage ●● The IBM Worklight Console—a web-based administration mobile data synchronization to enterprise back-end systems; interface. and control virtually all push services and event sources from ●● The IBM Worklight Device Runtime Components—mobile one centralized web interface called the IBM Worklight device implementations of the server’s functions. IBM Worklight Components SDKs Worklightlight Studio iOS Workliglight ApplicationApplication Device Runtime Android Center HTML5, Hybrid, Cross-Platform Compatibility Layer and Native Coding Blackberry Development Te am Provisioning Server Integration Optimization Windows Enterprise App Provisioning Phone Framework Framework and Governance Windows 8 Encrypted and Integrated Device Build Engine Build Engine App Feedback Management Syncable Storage SDKs Java ME Third Party Library Mobile Web Runtime Skinning Application Code Integration Public App Stores Application Code Desktop Web Reporting for Statistics and Diagnostics Worklightlight Server User authentication and Client-Side mobile trust App Resources Worklightlight ConsoleConsole Mashups and service Direct Update composition Reporting and App Version Mobile Analytics Management Web Apps cloud servicescloud cloud services cloud JSON Translation Push / SMS Management Adapter Library for Unified Push Stats Aggregation Enterprise back-end systems and Enterprisesystems back-end Enterprise back-end systems and Enterprisesystems back-end backend connectivity Notifications 2 IBM Software Technical White Paper WebSphere Development tools Application developers can directly access the application The IBM Worklight Studio programming interfaces (APIs) that modern devices offer, and The IBM Worklight Studio is an Eclipse-based IDE that makes can more-easily integrate publically available or customized it possible for developers to perform virtually all the coding and third-party libraries, frameworks and tools. The result: integration tasks that they require to develop rich employee- advanced mobile applications that are built according to the facing and customer-facing applications. The IBM Worklight unique and specific needs of your organization. Studio augments the familiar tools of Eclipse with a wide variety of enterprise-grade features that are delivered by the Because developers are not dependent on an intermediary IBM Worklight Plug-ins, enabling IBM Worklight Studio to build-time or runtime layer, such as a cross-compiler or inter- streamline application development and to facilitate enterprise preter, native APIs are accessible upon release of new mobile connectivity. operating system (OS) versions or third-party libraries when IBM Worklight is used. Furthermore, the app’s web code is The following are some of the main features that are supported executed directly by the mobile browser, so developers have by the IBM Worklight Studio: direct access to the HTML Document Object Model (DOM) and are free to use any JavaScript API or third-party JavaScript Cross-platform support toolkits and frameworks. The IBM Worklight Studio enables the development of rich web, hybrid and native mobile applications on iOS, Android, Hybrid coding BlackBerry, Windows 8 and Windows Phone tablets and Facing the constantly evolving fragmented ecosystem of mobile smartphones. devices and operating systems, application development has become a costly, yet unavoidable, endeavor. This challenge Using its optimization framework, IBM Worklight differenti- has created a market for cross-platform mobile development ates itself from other technologies in the market that deliver a solutions that is rapidly growing. lowest-common-denominator solution. With IBM Worklight, developers can share the majority of the application code However, to achieve cross-platform capabilities, many solutions across multiple environments, without compromising platform- in the market rely on limiting proprietary tools, form-based specific user experience or application functionality. Developers IDEs, what you see is what you get (WYSIWYG) tools, or can share the common app code among multiple environments, simply prepackaged apps. Without the capability to fully while isolating environment-specific code in designated folders customize the code, these solutions result in an unavoidable that can overwrite or augment the commonly shared code. As a tradeoff between user experience and multiplatform coverage. result, application logic remains consistent among the different Using IBM Worklight, developers can choose between using environments, while the user interface (UI) behaves natively pure native code (Objective-C, Java, or C#), standard web tech- and adheres to user expectations and the unique functionality nologies (HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript) or a combination of and design guidelines of the device. both within the same app. Developers can strike the desired balance between development efficiency, app functionality and user experience. 3 IBM Software Technical White Paper WebSphere The IBM Worklight Studio supports three main hybrid able to use the same mobile platform to develop, connect, run scenarios: and manage a variety of mobile application types based on the specific needs of the project at hand. 1. HTML can be used to call native code using the Cordova plug-in (previously known as PhoneGap). The native code can be either “UI-less,” for example, reading the compass, or can actually display a user interface (UI). This UI component will be overlaid on top of the browser, so that the user sees a native component blended with the HTML UI. 2. Developers can decrease the