Testing your message flow by using the Flow Exerciser

To check that a message flow or integration service is processing messages as expected, you can send messages to the flow by using the Flow Exerciser or an external client. You can then use the Flow Exerciser to show the path that each message took, and view the structure and content of the logical message tree at any point in a message flow.

To check that a message flow or integration service is processing messages as expected, complete the following steps:

1. In the IBM Integration Toolkit, perform one of the following steps:
   • If the message flow is a stand-alone message flow or a message flow that is part of an application, open the flow with the flow editor.
   • If the message flow is part of an integration service, open the integration service description with the service editor.
   • If the message flow is part of a REST API, use the message flow editor to open the main message flow of the REST API, which is located under Resources.
2. In the editor, click the Start Flow Exerciser icon () in the Flow Exerciser toolbar.
   If you have access to more than one integration server from the IBM Integration Toolkit, you are prompted to select the integration server where you want to deploy the resource.

   Note: If the message flow receives messages on an MQInput node that is configured to use a local queue manager, you can use the Flow Exerciser to send messages to that MQInput node only if you deploy the flow to a local integration node.
   The resource is deployed to the integration server, and the message flow is set to recording mode. The message flow in the message flow editor is now in read-only mode.
3. Send messages to the message flow by using one of the following options:
   • Use an external tool or client to form and send one or more input messages to the flow. After the input messages are processed by the flow, you must click the View path icon () in the Flow Exerciser toolbar to highlight message paths on the flow.
   • If you are using an integration service, or if your message flow contains MQInput, HTTPInput, or SOAPInput nodes, click the Send message icon () in the Flow Exerciser toolbar. You can then use the Send Message dialog to create an input message (or select an existing input message or recorded message) and send it to the flow. The Send message function is not available for flows in a REST API.
     For more information, see the following topics:

     • Creating input messages
     • Using recorded messages

     After the messages are processed by the flow, the message paths are automatically highlighted on the flow. In an integration service, click the operation name in the Integration Service Description page to see the message paths highlighted on the subflow.

   

   The diagram shows a flow where the message paths are highlighted. At least one message passed through each highlighted connection.

   Note:

   • The highlighted connections do not distinguish between the paths that are taken by different messages. If you send more than one message to the flow, you must inspect each highlighted connection to see which messages passed through that connection.
   • If you send a single message to the flow and the message passes through a connection multiple times, each time the message passes through a connection, the logical message tree is captured as a separate message instance.
   • By default a maximum of 200 message instances are displayed in the message flow, but you can change this value in the preferences (Windows > Preferences > Integration Development > Flow Exerciser).
   • If the number of message instances that are captured exceeds the number that is configured in the preferences, you are prompted to choose whether to view the configured number of recorded messages, or whether to view all the recorded messages:
     • If you opt to view the configured maximum number of recorded messages, you might not see whole sequences of messages.
     • If you opt to view all the messages, there might be a performance impact.
4. Click a highlighted connection to view the data that passed through the connection.
   A Recorded Message dialog is displayed that shows the logical message tree for each occasion that a message passed through the connection, as shown in the following image.

   

   If the message is too large for the Recorded Message dialog, only part of the message is displayed. To view the complete contents of the message, you can right-click within the message in the Recorded Message dialog, select Copy unformatted message from the menu, and paste the message into a text editor.

   If more than one message was sent to the message flow, or if a single message passed through a connection multiple times, you can see the state of the logical message tree for each message instance by selecting or clicking through the message numbers in the dialog header.

5. Optional: If you want to save a recorded message for future use, complete the following steps:
   1. Click the highlighted connection between an input node and the next node in the message flow ().
      For an integration service, click the highlighted connection between the binding and the service operation on the Integration Service Description page.
   2. Click the Save icon () in the Recorded Message dialog header.
      The Save Input Message dialog opens.
   3. Enter a name to identify the recorded message and click OK.
      The recorded message is saved and added to the list of recorded messages that are available from the Send Message dialog. For information about recorded messages, see Messages that you can use.
6. To return the message flow that is in the message flow editor to edit mode, click the Return flow to edit mode icon ().
   The resource is still deployed on the integration server, but the recorded messages are cleared from the message flow and you are able to edit the message flow or integration service again.