Integrate Real-Time Access to SFTP in SAPUI5 MVC Apps

In this article we show how to use the CData Connect Server and with the ADO.NET Provider for SFTP (or any of 200+ other ADO.NET Providers) to write SAPUI5 apps that leverage the capabilities of the SFTP API, without writing to a back-end database. The Connect Server is a lightweight Web application that runs on your server and produces OData feeds of SFTP data. OData is the standard for real-time data access over the Web and has built-in support in SAPUI5 and OpenUI5.

Configuring Connect Server

To work with live SFTP data in our SAPUI5 app, we need to connect to SFTP from Connect Server, provide user access to the new virtual database, and create OData endpoints for the SFTP data.

Add a Connect Server User

Create a User to connect to SFTP from SAPUI5 through Connect Server.

1. Click Users -> Add
2. Configure a User
3. Click Save Changes and make note of the Authtoken for the new user

Connect to SFTP from Connect Server

CData Connect Server uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources and generate APIs.

1. Open Connect Server and click Connections
2. Select "SFTP" from Available Data Sources
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to SFTP.

   SFTP can be used to transfer files to and from SFTP servers using the SFTP Protocol. To connect, specify the RemoteHost;. service uses the User and Password and public key authentication (SSHClientCert). Choose an SSHAuthMode and specify connection values based on your selection.

   Set the following connection properties to control the relational view of the file system:

   • RemotePath: Set this to the current working directory.
   • TableDepth: Set this to control the depth of subfolders to report as views.
   • FileRetrievalDepth: Set this to retrieve files recursively and list them in the Root table.
   Stored Procedures are available to download files, upload files, and send protocol commands. See gdatamodel for more on using SQL to interact with the server.

4. Click Save Changes
5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions (SELECT is all that is required for Reveal).

Add SFTP OData Endpoints in Connect Server

After connecting to SFTP, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

1. Click OData -> Tables -> Add Tables
2. Select the SFTP database
3. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Next
4. (Optional) Edit the resource to select specific fields and more
5. Save the settings

(Optional) Configure Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS)

When accessing and connecting to multiple domains from an application such as Ajax, there is a possibility of violating the limitations of cross-site scripting. In that case, configure the CORS settings in OData -> Settings.

• Enable cross-origin resource sharing (CORS): ON
• Allow all domains without '*': ON
• Access-Control-Allow-Methods: GET, PUT, POST, OPTIONS
• Access-Control-Allow-Headers: Authorization

Save the changes to the settings.

Create the View

In this article the user views and interacts with SFTP data through an SAPUI5 table control. Table columns will be automatically detected from the metadata retrieved from the Connect Server's API endpoint. We define the following table in a separate View.view.xml file:

<mvc:View
  controllerName="sap.ui.table.sample.OData2.Controller"
  xmlns="sap.ui.table"
  xmlns:mvc="sap.ui.core.mvc"
  xmlns:u="sap.ui.unified"
  xmlns:c="sap.ui.core"
  xmlns:m="sap.m">
  <m:Page
    showHeader="false"
    enableScrolling="true"
    class="sapUiContentPadding">
    <m:content>
      <Table
        id="table"
        selectionMode="MultiToggle"
        visibleRowCount="10"
        enableSelectAll="false"
        rows="{/MyDirectory}"
        threshold="15"
        enableBusyIndicator="true"
        columns="{
          path: 'meta>/dataServices/schema/[${namespace}===\'CData\']/entityType/[${name}===\'MyDirectory\']/property',
          factory: '.columnFactory'
        }">
        <toolbar>
          <m:Toolbar>
            <m:Title text="SFTP MyDirectory"></m:Title>
          </m:Toolbar>
        </toolbar>
        <noData>
          <m:BusyIndicator class="sapUiMediumMargin"/>
        </noData>
      </Table>
    </m:content>
  </m:Page>
</mvc:View>

Create the Model and Controller

In SAPUI5, you do not need to write any OData queries; an ODataModel instance handles the application's data access commands. The Connect Server then translates the queries into SFTP API calls.

The controller processes user input and represents information to the user through a view. Define the controller in a new file, Controller.controller.js. Instantiate the model in the onInit function -- you will need to replace the placeholder values for the serviceUrl to the Connect Server as well as the Authorization header.

For the Authorization header, you will keep the "Basic" as shown and then use a Base64 encoder (such as this one) to generate a token to fill in the second part. You will use the login information for Connect Server in the following format to generate your encoded token -> User:Authtoken

sap.ui.define([
  "sap/ui/core/mvc/Controller",
  "sap/ui/model/odata/v2/ODataModel",
  "sap/ui/model/json/JSONModel",
  "sap/ui/table/Column",
  "sap/m/Text",
], function(Controller, ODataModel, JSONModel, Column, Text ) {
  "use strict";
  

  return Controller.extend("sap.ui.table.sample.OData2.Controller", {
    
    onInit : function () {
      
      var oView = this.getView();
      var oDataModel = new ODataModel({
        serviceUrl: "http://localhost:8080/odata.rsc/",  
        headers: {
            "Authorization":"Basic your-token-here>"
        }
    });
      
      oDataModel.setUseBatch(false);
      oDataModel.getMetaModel().loaded().then(function(){
        oView.setModel(oDataModel.getMetaModel(), "meta");
      });
      oView.setModel(oDataModel);
      
      var oTable = oView.byId("table");
      var oBinding = oTable.getBinding("rows");
      var oBusyIndicator = oTable.getNoData();
      oBinding.attachDataRequested(function(){
      oTable.setNoData(oBusyIndicator);
      });
      oBinding.attachDataReceived(function(){
        oTable.setNoData(null); //use default again ("no data" in case no data is available)
      });
    },
    
    onExit : function () {
    },
    
    columnFactory : function(sId, oContext) {
      var oModel = this.getView().getModel();
      var sName = oContext.getProperty("name");
      var sType = oContext.getProperty("type");
      var iLen = oContext.getProperty("maxLength");
      iLen = iLen ? parseInt(iLen, 10) : 10;
      
      return new Column(sId, {
        sortProperty: sName, 
        filterProperty: sName,
        width: (iLen > 9 ? (iLen > 50 ? 15 : 10) : 5) + "rem",
        label: new sap.m.Label({text: "{/#MyDirectory/" + sName + "/@name}"}),
        hAlign: sType && sType.indexOf("Decimal") >= 0 ? "End" : "Begin",
        template: new Text({text: {path: sName}})
      });
    }
    
  });

});

Describe Application Logic

Create a component that contains the resources of your application. Define the following in Component.js:

sap.ui.define([
  'sap/ui/core/UIComponent'
], function(UIComponent) {
  "use strict";

  return UIComponent.extend("sap.ui.table.sample.OData2.Component", {
    metadata : {
      rootView : "sap.ui.table.sample.OData2.View",
      dependencies : {
        libs : [
          "sap.ui.table",
          "sap.ui.unified",
          "sap.m"
        ]
      },

      config : {
        sample : {
          stretch : true,
          files : [
            "View.view.xml",
            "Controller.controller.js"
          ]
        }
      }
    }
  });

});

Bootstrap OpenUI5 and Launch

To complete the MVC application, simply add the bootstrap and initialization code. Add these directly to index.html:

<!DOCTYPE HTML>

<html>
<head>
  <meta http-equiv="x-ua-compatible" content="ie=edge">
  <meta charset="utf-8"> 
  <title>SFTP MyDirectory</title>
  
  <script id="sap-ui-bootstrap"
    src="https://openui5.hana.ondemand.com/resources/sap-ui-core.js"
    data-sap-ui-libs="sap.m"
    data-sap-ui-theme="sap_bluecrystal"
    data-sap-ui-xx-bindingSyntax="complex"
    data-sap-ui-preload="async"
    data-sap-ui-compatVersion="edge" 
    data-sap-ui-resourceroots='{"sap.ui.table.sample.OData2": "./", "sap.ui.demo.mock": "mockdata"}'>
  </script>
  
  <!-- application launch configuration -->
  <script>
  
      sap.ui.getCore().attachInit(function() {
        new sap.m.App ({
          pages: [
                new sap.m.Page({
                    title: "SFTP MyDirectory", 
                    enableScrolling : false,
                  content: [ new sap.ui.core.ComponentContainer({
                  height : "100%", name : "sap.ui.table.sample.OData2"
                })]
            })
          ]
      }).placeAt("content");
    });

  </script>
</head> 
  <!-- UI Content -->
<body class="sapUiBody" id="content" role="application">
</body> 
</html>

Setting Up A Web Server

To test the project, we can set up a web server. SAPUI5 has its own mock server, and the documentation for setting it up can be found here: https://sapui5.hana.ondemand.com/sdk/#/topic/50897decc9504b2a875fb41d89fd254a

Alternatively, we can use a NodeJS server, like so:

    var fs = require('fs'), http = require('http');

    http.createServer(function (req, res) {
      fs.readFile(__dirname + req.url, function (err,data) {
        if (err) {
          res.writeHead(404);
          res.end(JSON.stringify(err));
          return;
        }
        res.writeHead(200);
        res.end(data);
      });
    }).listen(3000); //we're using port 3000, but you may use a different one
    

The resulting SAPUI5 table control reflects any changes to a table in the remote SFTP data. You can now browse and search current SFTP data.

Free Trial & More Information

If you are interested in connecting to your SFTP data (or data from any of our other supported data sources), sign up for a free trial of CData Connect Server today! For more information on Connect Server and to see what other data sources we support, refer to our CData Connect page.