# Chapter 4 Interoperable Naming Service

omniORB 3 supports the Interoperable Naming Service (INS), which will be part of CORBA 2.4. The following is a summary of the new facilities described in the INS edited chapters document [OMG99b]. These facilities are not available when using omniORBpy with omniORB 2.8.

## 4.1 Object URIs

As well as accepting IOR-format strings, `ORB::string_to_object()` now also supports two new Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) [BLFIM98] formats, which can be used to specify objects in a convenient human-readable form. The existing IOR-format strings are now also considered URIs.

### 4.1.1 corbaloc

`corbaloc` URIs allow you to specify object references which can be contacted by IIOP, or found through `ORB::resolve_initial_references()`. To specify an IIOP object reference, you use a URI of the form:

> `corbaloc:iiop:`<host>`:`<port>`/`<object key>

for example:

> `corbaloc:iiop:myhost.example.com:1234/MyObjectKey`

which specifies an object with key `MyObjectKey' within a process running on myhost.example.com listening on port 1234. Object keys containing non-ASCII characters can use the standard URI % escapes:

> `corbaloc:iiop:myhost.example.com:1234/My``%``efObjectKey`

denotes an object key with the value 239 (hex ef) in the third octet.
The protocol name ``iiop`' can be abbreviated to the empty string, so the original URI can be written:

> `corbaloc::myhost.example.com:1234/MyObjectKey`

The IANA has assigned port number 28091 for use by `corbaloc`, so if the server is listening on that port, you can leave the port number out. The following two URIs refer to the same object:

> `corbaloc::myhost.example.com:2809/MyObjectKey`
> `corbaloc::myhost.example.com/MyObjectKey`

You can specify an object which is available at more than one location by separating the locations with commas:

> `corbaloc::myhost.example.com,:localhost:1234/MyObjectKey`

Note that you must restate the protocol for each address, hence the ``:`' before ``localhost`'. It could equally have been written ``iiop:localhost`'.
You can also specify an IIOP version number, although omniORB only supports IIOP 1.0 at present:

> `corbaloc::1.2@myhost.example.com/MyObjectKey`

Alternatively, to use `resolve_initial_references()`, you use a URI of the form:

> `corbaloc:rir:/NameService`

### 4.1.2 corbaname

`corbaname` URIs cause `string_to_object()` to look-up a name in a CORBA Naming service. They are an extension of the `corbaloc` syntax:

> `corbaname:`<corbaloc location>`/`<object key>`#`<stringified name>

for example:

> `corbaname::myhost/NameService#project/example/echo.obj`
> `corbaname:rir:/NameService#project/example/echo.obj`

Note that the object found with the `corbaloc`-style portion must be of type `CosNaming::NamingContext`, or something derived from it. If the object key (or `rir` name) is ``NameService`', it can be left out:

> `corbaname::myhost#project/example/echo.obj`
> `corbaname:rir:#project/example/echo.obj`

The stringified name portion can also be left out, in which case the URI denotes the `CosNaming::NamingContext` which would have been used for a look-up:

> `corbaname::myhost.example.com`
> `corbaname:rir:`

The first of these examples is the easiest way of specifying the location of a naming service.

## 4.2 Configuring resolve_initial_references

The INS adds two new command line arguments which provide a portable way of configuring `ORB::resolve_initial_references()`:

### 4.2.1 ORBInitRef

`-ORBInitRef` takes an argument of the form <ObjectId>`=`<ObjectURI>. So, for example, with command line arguments of:

> `-ORBInitRef NameService=corbaname::myhost.example.com`

`resolve_initial_references("NameService")` will return a reference to the object with key `NameService' available on myhost.example.com, port 2809. Since IOR-format strings are considered URIs, you can also say things like:

> `-ORBInitRef NameService=IOR:00ff...`

### 4.2.2 ORBDefaultInitRef

`-ORBDefaultInitRef` provides a prefix string which is used to resolve otherwise unknown names. When `resolve_initial_references()` is unable to resolve a name which has been specifically configured (with `-ORBInitRef`), it constructs a string consisting of the default prefix, a ``/`' character, and the name requested. The string is then fed to `string_to_object()`. So, for example, with a command line of:

> `-ORBDefaultInitRef corbaloc::myhost.example.com`

a call to `resolve_initial_references("MyService")` will return the object reference denoted by ``corbaloc::myhost.example.com/MyService`'.
Similarly, a `corbaname` prefix can be used to cause look-ups in the naming service. Note, however, that since a ``/`' character is always added to the prefix, it is impossible to specify a look-up in the root context of the naming service---you have to use a sub-context, like:

> `-ORBDefaultInitRef corbaname::myhost.example.com#services`

### 4.2.3 omniORB configuration file

As an extension to the standard facilities of the INS, omniORB supports configuration file entries named `ORBInitRef` and `ORBDefaultInitRef`. The syntax is identical to the command line arguments. `omniORB.cfg` might contain:

>     ORBInitRef NameService=corbaname::myhost.example.com
>     ORBDefaultInitRef corbaname:rir:#services

### 4.2.4 Resolution order

With all these options for specifying object references to be returned by `resolve_initial_references()`, it is important to understand the order in which the options are tried. The resolution order, as required by the CORBA specification, is:

1. Check for special names such as ``RootPOA`'2.
2. Resolve with an `-ORBInitRef` argument.
3. Resolve with the `-ORBDefaultInitRef` prefix, if present.
4. Resolve with an `ORBInitRef` (or old-style `NAMESERVICE`) entry in the configuration file.
5. Resolve with the `ORBDefaultInitRef` entry in the configuration file, if present.
6. Resolve with the deprecated `ORBInitialHost` boot agent.

This order mostly has the expected consequences---in particular that command line arguments override entries in the configuration file. However, you must be careful with the default prefixes. Suppose you have configured a ``NameService`' entry in the configuration file, and you specify a default prefix on the command line with:

> `-ORBDefaultInitRef corbaname:rir:#services`

expecting unknown services to be looked up in the configured naming service. Now, step 3 above means that `resolve_initial_references("MyService")` should be processed with the steps:

1. Construct the URI ``corbaname:rir:#services/MyService`' and give it to `string_to_object()`.
2. Resolve the first part of the `corbaname` URI by calling
   `resolve_initial_references("NameService")`.
3. Construct the URI ``corbaname:rir:#services/NameService`' and give it to `string_to_object()`.
4. Resolve the first part of the `corbaname` URI by calling
   `resolve_initial_references("NameService")`.
5. ... and so on for ever...

omniORB detects loops like this and throws either `CORBA.ORB.InvalidName` if the loop started with a call to `resolve_initial_references()`, or `CORBA.BAD_PARAM` if it started with a call to `string_to_object()`. To avoid the problem you must either specify the `NameService` reference on the command line, or put the `DefaultInitRef` in the configuration file.

## 4.3 omniNames

### 4.3.1 NamingContextExt

omniNames now supports the `CosNaming::NamingContextExt` interface:

    module CosNaming {
      interface NamingContextExt : NamingContext {
        typedef string StringName;
        typedef string Address;
        typedef string URLString;

        StringName  to_string(in Name n)        raises(InvalidName);
        Name        to_name  (in StringName sn) raises(InvalidName);

        exception InvalidAddress {};

        URLString   to_url(in Address addr, in StringName sn)
          raises(InvalidAddress, InvalidName);

        Object      resolve_str(in StringName n)
          raises(NotFound, CannotProceed, InvalidName, AlreadyBound);
      };
    };

`to_string()` and `to_name()` convert from `CosNaming::Name` sequences to flattened strings and vice-versa. Note that calling these operations involves remote calls to the naming service, so they are not particularly efficient. The `omniORB.URI` module contains equivalent `nameToString()` and `stringToName()` functions, which do not involve remote calls.
A `CosNaming::Name` is stringified by separating name components with ``/`' characters. The `kind` and `id` fields of each component are separated by ``.`' characters. If the `kind` field is empty, the representation has no trailing ``.`'; if the `id` is empty, the representation starts with a ``.`' character; if both `id` and `kind` are empty, the representation is just a ``.`'. The backslash ``\`' is used to escape the meaning of ``/`', ``.`' and ``\`' itself.
`to_url()` takes a `corbaloc` style address and key string (but without the `corbaloc:` part), and a stringified name, and returns a `corbaname` URI (incorrectly called a URL) string, having properly escaped any invalid characters. The specification does not make it clear whether or not the address string should also be escaped by the operation; omniORB does not escape it. For this reason, it is best to avoid calling `to_url()` if the address part contains escapable characters. The local function `omniORB.URI.addrAndNameToURI()` is equivalent.
`resolve_str()` is equivalent to calling `to_name()` followed by the inherited `resolve()` operation. There are no string-based equivalents of the various bind operations.

### 4.3.2 Use with corbaname

To make it easy to use omniNames with `corbaname` URIs, it now starts with the default port of 2809, and an object key of ``NameService`' for the root naming context. This is only possible when it is started `fresh', rather than with a log file from an older omniNames version.
If you have a previous omniNames log, configured to run on a different port, and with a different object key for its root context, all is not lost. If the root context's object key is not ``NameService`', omniNames creates a forwarding agent with that key. Effectively, this means that there are two object keys which refer to the root context---``NameService`' and whatever the original key was.
For the port number, there are two options. The first is to run omniNames with a command line argument like:

> `omniNames -logdir /the/log/dir -ORBpoa_iiop_port 2809`

This causes it to listen on both port 2809 and whatever port it listened on before. The disadvantage with this is that the IORs to all naming contexts now contain two IIOP profiles, one for each port, which, amongst other things, increases the size of the omniNames log.
The second option is to use omniMapper, as described below.

## 4.4 omniMapper

omniMapper is a simple daemon which listens on port 2809 (or any other port), and redirects IIOP requests for configured object keys to associated persistent IORs. It can be used to make a naming service (even an old non-INS aware version of omniNames or other ORB's naming service) appear on port 2809 with the object key ``NameService`'. The same goes for any other service you may wish to specify, such as an interface repository. omniMapper is started with a command line of:

> `omniMapper [-port` <port>`] [-config` <config file>`] [-v]`

The `-port` option allows you to choose a port other than 2809 to listen on3. The `-config` option specifies a location for the configuration file. The default name is `/etc/omniMapper.cfg`, or `C:\omniMapper.cfg` on Windows. omniMapper does not normally print anything; the `-v` option makes it verbose so it prints configuration information and a record of the redirections it makes, to standard output.
The configuration file is very simple. Each line contains a string to be used as an object key, some white space, and an IOR (or any valid URI) that it will redirect that object key to. Comments should be prefixed with a ``#`' character. For example:

>     # Example omniMapper.cfg
>     NameService         IOR:000f...
>     InterfaceRepository IOR:0100...

omniMapper can either be run on a single machine, in much the same way as omniNames, or it can be run on every machine, with a common configuration file. That way, each machine's omniORB configuration file could contain the line:

>     ORBDefaultInitRef corbaloc::localhost

## 4.5 Creating objects with simple object keys

In normal use, omniORB creates object keys containing various information including POA names and various non-ASCII characters. Since object keys are supposed to be opaque, this is not usually a problem. The INS breaks this opacity and requires servers to create objects with human-friendly keys.
If you wish to make your objects available with human-friendly URIs, there are two options. The first is to use omniMapper as described above, in conjunction with a `PERSISTENT` POA. The second is to create objects with the required keys yourself. You do this with a special POA with the name ``omniINSPOA`', acquired from `resolve_initial_references()`. This POA has the `USER_ID` and `PERSISTENT` policies, and the special property that the object keys it creates contain only the object ids given to the POA, and no other data. It is a normal POA in all other respects, so you can activate/deactivate it, create children, and so on, in the usual way.

1
  Not 2089 as printed in [OMG99b]!
2
  In fact, a strict reading of the specification says that it should be possible to override ``RootPOA`' etc. with `-ORBInitRef`, but since POAs are locality constrained that is ridiculous.
3
  You can also play the `-ORBpoa_iiop_port` trick to make it listen on more than one port.