September 2005 - Stephen W. Thomas BizTalk MVP

New Biztalk Server Newsletter Launched- The BizTalker

I have started a new e-mail newsletter called The BizTalker. I hope to deliver periodic issues focusing on real life stories from integration consultants in the field. Nothing that fancy or long, just to the point: this is the problem we had and this is how we fixed it. I am working with other Biztalk bloggers and consultants in order to deliver content to newsletter subscribers before it is available...

Published Wed, Sep 21 2005 11:45 AM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: newsletter

Design Contest Entry - Dynamic Transforms in Biztalk Server 2006

I should start by saying I was much happier with last year’s entry . Last year, I used an Orchestration to limit other running Orchestrations. It could be configures on the fly using the Rules Engine. I should note that in Biztalk 2006 you will now have the ability to limit running Orchestrations since you now have per-host configuration. Since last year I didn’t place in the top 5, I decided...

Published Mon, Sep 19 2005 2:07 PM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: maps, untyped messages, biztalk 2006

Take A Look At The BizTalk Server Solution Designer

There is a 52 minute video on BizTalk Solution Designer. If you do not have a full 52 minutes to devote to this, you can get a good feel for the tool in the first 15 or 20 minutes. BizTalk Solution Designer is a visual tool for Biztalk Development. It abstracts the whole process of building port, locations, pipelines, routing, and more into a visual tool. This new tool is targeted toward the business...

Published Fri, Sep 16 2005 3:35 PM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: biztalk 2008, vnext

Sequential Workflow Using Windows Workflow Video and Sample

I have put together a video and sample walking through a simple Sequential Workflow using Beta 1 of WinWF (available for download from Microsoft). This video will take you step by step through creating your first sequential workflow in less than 15 minutes! This workflow is hosted by .net using a Windows Form. It takes in an input value and returns a string of how long it took to process the order...

Published Wed, Sep 14 2005 12:27 PM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: windows workflow, video

Windows Workflow (WinWF) Released

Today Microsoft released the long awaited Windows Workflow Foundation at PDC. You can get all the details from the Windows Vista Development Center for Workflow . Microsoft’s awesome new Windows Workflow Community Site is located at http://www.windowsworkflow.net . WinWF will provide a framework for building and hosting workflows inside Windows. It will be part of the WinXF namespace along with...

Published Wed, Sep 14 2005 11:14 AM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: windows workflow

Convoys, GetTempFileName, and InterceptorException in Biztalk Server

It’s late on a Friday. I am still at the client site. I just canceled my flight home. It is my anniversary weekend (yep it is on 9/11, sure sucks). We are hours from going live... But, what does Exceptions.Types.InterceptorException GetTempFileName Failed mean? I ran into this problem while testing some recently updated Orchestrations that use Convoys to process messages received from multiple...

Published Fri, Sep 9 2005 7:12 PM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: biztalk, biztalk errors, convoy

Biztalk 2004 Development Helper Tool - A Must Have

A lot can be said about development with Biztalk Server. For someone new to Biztalk it takes a little practice to learn some of the non-intuitive tasks related to assembly redeployment and basic Biztalk Development. One common error message is: “ Some items in the removed assembly are still being used by items not defined in the same assembly, thus removal of the assembly failed. Make sure that...

Published Wed, Sep 7 2005 7:29 AM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: biztalk 2004, deployment

Questions and Answers from the Biztalk 2006 TAP Program

Doug Girard with Microsoft recently posted some great Frequently Asked Questions gathered from the Biztalk Server 2006 Beta newsgroup and TAP program. It has a lot of good stuff and it worth a look at .

Published Tue, Sep 6 2005 6:28 PM by Stephen W. Thomas

Filed under: biztalk 2006

Windows Workflow Webcasts

The world as we know it is about to change – for the better. To get ready for this exciting new offering Microsoft has announced a week of Workflow Webcasts to run the week of September 26 th . Webcasts include: Introduction to Workflow in Windows Applications (Sept 15 th ) Simple Human Workflow Using Email Hosting and Communications Options in Workflow Scenarios Workflow + Messaging + Services...

Published Tue, Sep 6 2005 8:29 AM by Stephen W. Thomas