How to setup XI (specifically for receiving mail+attachment)

Question

Hi,
I am new to XI. After having had a training for 5 days I have my first assignment and immediately I face a lot of problems (as expected....:-))
Situation is as follows. I have to connect 2 non-sap system via XI. External system 1 is a mailserver that sends a mailmessage + attachment to XI. XI has to read the message, convert it to a customer-specific XML and send it to external system 2. I already made the following entries:
SLD:
- 2 products (mailserver + external system);
- 1 softwarecomponentversion (or should I have 2? 1 for mailserver and 1 for external system?)
- 2 technical systems
- 1 business system
IR:
- 1 integration scenario with 3 swimming lanes (first with activity SendMailMessage on mailserver, second with IntegrationProcess on external system with 2 activities (ReceiveAbstractMailMessage/SendAbstractXmlCustomerMessage), third with activity ReceiveXmlMessage on external system)
- 1 datatype for target-structure
- 1 messagetype for target-structure
- 1 external definition (mail XML)
- 4 message interfaces: MIIA for incoming mailmessage, 2 MIAA for abstract interface, MIOA for outgoing XMLmessage to customer)
ID:
- 1 business system
- 2 communication channels
- 1 interface determination
- 1 receiver determination
- 1 sender agreement
Now...my questions...:
- first of all...does the above makes some sence :-)?
- do i have to create 1 or 2 software component versions? My idea is 1, but i am in doubt if I have to create a specific SCV for both products)
- how do I configure the communication-channels?
- General problem: I am facing problems configuring the ID and SLD so every help is welcome.
Lot of questions, I really hope somebody can help me out here....
Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Hi, JW:
Do not worry, everyone in this forum has their own starting stage.
Regarding your questions:
- in the sender SMTP SCV, I also have to create a MT for the mailpackage?
  A: No, if you use mail package, you do not need create message type manually, the mail package already has message type level object defined.
- do I create MIOA in sending SWCV, MIIA/MIOA in mapping SWCV and MIIA/MIOA in receiving SWCV? Or is it only needed to create MIIA/MIOA in receiving SWCV?
A: Yes, for Message Interfaces, you need to create One MIOA in sending SWCV and One MIIA in receiving  SWCV
- only 1 MI with 1 MM on the mapping SWCV, right?
A: Depends.
     One Interface Mapping for sure need to be created.
     MM: depends, if you use XSLT Mapping, you might not need create MM anymore.
     In your interface mapping (IM), when you choose mapping program, you choose XSL type, then, select your     
     imported XSLT package (make sure your *.xsl file is saved, zipped and imported into IR)
     If you use Java Mapping, make sure, you exported your project into Jar file from your IDE, eg, NWDS, and 
     imported into IR, In your interface mapping, you choose Jave type and select your imported Java package.
- I think I cannot use the graphical mappingtool to map the mail-xml to the customer-xml. I will need an XSLT or java. So the message itself is not simple. Does this mean I need a third swimminglane for the busuinessprocess afterall in between the 2 that you mentioned? Or can I still manage this by using just 2 swimminglanes?
A: Yes, I think you need XSLT or Java mapping. But do not confuse it with the Integration Scenario.
    If you do not create Integration Scenario in IR, your interface will be still working.
    The purpose to create Integration scenario is to graphically representing your interface design, your message   
    flow, and also can be used in ID to import, or use wizard to create Configuration Scenario. If you do not
    create Integration Scenario, you can still be able to manually create configuration scenario in ID.
    If you still need to create Integration Scenario in IR, two swimming lanes are enough to representing your sending application component and receiving application component. There is no need to have third one except you have BPM involved in your process.
If you have some detailed questions, you might need to search this forum, or marketplace to search OSS notes
You are going to have a lot of details to explore, enjoy your practice !
Liang