Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) with Webflow Data Entities in Java

You can use Hibernate to map object-oriented domain models to a traditional relational database. The tutorial below shows how to use the CData JDBC Driver for Webflow to generate an ORM of your Webflow repository with Hibernate.

Though Eclipse is the IDE of choice for this article, the CData JDBC Driver for Webflow works in any product that supports the Java Runtime Environment. In the Knowledge Base you will find tutorials to connect to Webflow data from IntelliJ IDEA and NetBeans.

Install Hibernate

Follow the steps below to install the Hibernate plug-in in Eclipse.

1. In Eclipse, navigate to Help -> Install New Software.
2. Enter "http://download.jboss.org/jbosstools/neon/stable/updates/" in the Work With box.
3. Enter "Hibernate" into the filter box.
4. Select Hibernate Tools.

Start A New Project

Follow the steps below to add the driver JARs in a new project.

1. Create a new project. Select Java Project as your project type and click Next. Enter a project name and click Finish.
2. Right-click the project and click Properties. Click Java Build Path and then open the Libraries tab.
3. Click Add External JARs to add the cdata.jdbc.api.jar library, located in the lib subfolder of the installation directory.

Add a Hibernate Configuration File

Follow the steps below to configure connection properties to Webflow data.

1. Right-click on the new project and select New -> Hibernate -> Hibernate Configuration File (cfg.xml).
2. Select src as the parent folder and click Next.

3. Input the following values:

   • Hibernate version:: 5.2
   • Database dialect: Derby
   • Driver class: cdata.jdbc.api.APIDriver

   • Connection URL: A JDBC URL, starting with jdbc:api: and followed by a semicolon-separated list of connection properties.

     Authentication

     Webflow uses OAuth 2.0 authentication to ensure secure access to sites, CMS collections, e-commerce data, and other resources. This authentication method allows you to securely connect to your Webflow workspace and manage resources with proper authorization.

     OAuth 2.0 Setup and Configuration

     Step 1: Create a Webflow OAuth Application

     To set up OAuth authentication:

     1. Visit the Webflow Developer Portal
     2. Navigate to "Apps & Integrations" in your Webflow account
     3. Click "Register an App" to create a new OAuth application
     4. Configure the application name, description, and redirect URI (CallbackURL)
     5. Copy the Client ID and Client Secret for use in your connection

     Required Connection Properties

     • AuthScheme: Set this to OAuth (required)
     • OAuthClientId: Client ID from your Webflow OAuth application (required)
     • OAuthClientSecret: Client secret from your Webflow OAuth application (required)
     • CallbackURL: Redirect URI specified in your OAuth application (required)
     • InitiateOAuth: Set to GETANDREFRESH for automatic token management (recommended)

     Required OAuth Scopes

     The Webflow API Profile requires the following OAuth scopes:

     • sites:read - Read access to site information and configuration
     • pages:read - Read access to site pages
     • cms:read - Read access to CMS collections and items
     • forms:read - Read access to forms and form submissions
     • assets:read - Read access to media assets and folders
     • ecommerce:read - Read access to products, orders, and inventory
     • authorized_user:read - Read access to the authorized user

     Built-in Connection String Designer

     For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Webflow JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.api.jar
     

     Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

     

     A typical JDBC URL is below:

     jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\Webflow.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackUrl=your_callback_url;

Connect Hibernate to Webflow Data

Follow the steps below to select the configuration you created in the previous step.

1. Switch to the Hibernate Configurations perspective: Window -> Open Perspective -> Hibernate.
2. Right-click on the Hibernate Configurations panel and click Add Configuration.
3. Set the Hibernate version to 5.2.
4. Click the Browse button and select the project.
5. For the Configuration file field, click Setup -> Use Existing and select the location of the hibernate.cfg.xml file (inside src folder in this demo).
6. In the Classpath tab, if there is nothing under User Entries, click Add External JARS and add the driver jar once more. Click OK once the configuration is done.
7. Expand the Database node of the newly created Hibernate configurations file.

Reverse Engineer Webflow Data

Follow the steps below to generate the reveng.xml configuration file. You will specify the tables you want to access as objects.

1. Switch back to the Package Explorer.
2. Right-click your project, select New -> Hibernate -> Hibernate Reverse Engineering File (reveng.xml). Click Next.
3. Select src as the parent folder and click Next.
4. In the Console configuration drop-down menu, select the Hibernate configuration file you created above and click Refresh.
5. Expand the node and choose the tables you want to reverse engineer. Click Finish when you are done.

Configure Hibernate to Run

Follow the steps below to generate plain old Java objects (POJO) for the Webflow tables.

1. From the menu bar, click Run -> Hibernate Code Generation -> Hibernate Code Generation Configurations.
2. In the Console configuration drop-down menu, select the Hibernate configuration file you created in the previous section. Click Browse by Output directory and select src.
3. Enable the Reverse Engineer from JDBC Connection checkbox. Click the Setup button, click Use Existing, and select the location of the hibernate.reveng.xml file (inside src folder in this demo).
4. In the Exporters tab, check Domain code (.java) and Hibernate XML Mappings (hbm.xml).
5. Click Run.

One or more POJOs are created based on the reverse-engineering setting in the previous step.

Insert Mapping Tags

For each mapping you have generated, you will need to create a mapping tag in hibernate.cfg.xml to point Hibernate to your mapping resource. Open hibernate.cfg.xml and insert the mapping tags as so:

  
    
      cdata.api.APIDriver
    
    
      jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\Webflow.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackUrl=your_callback_url;
    
    
      org.hibernate.dialect.SQLServerDialect
    
    
     
    

Execute SQL

Using the entity you created from the last step, you can now search Webflow data:

import java.util.*;
import org.hibernate.Session;
import org.hibernate.cfg.Configuration;
import org.hibernate.query.Query;

public class App {
  public static void main(final String[] args) {
    Session session =  new
    Configuration().configure().buildSessionFactory().openSession();
    String SELECT = "FROM Sites S WHERE Id = :Id";
    Query q = session.createQuery(SELECT, Sites.class);
    q.setParameter("Id","your_site_id");
    List<Sites> resultList = (List<Sites>) q.list();

    for(Sites s: resultList){
      System.out.println(s.get());
      System.out.println(s.get());
    }
  }
}