Returning cloned objects from EJB Local Interfaces

Question

We'd like to let our WAS 5/J2EE container manage our transactions/unit of work. However, we don't want to have our objects serialized, so we intend to use LocalInterfaces. Additionally, we want to return value objects that support Toplink indirection such that we are not returning the actual cache object but instead a clone.Our question is, how do we return a cloned object that supports indirection from Toplink that we can later do a deepMergeClone on in an explicit update method?

Answer 1

Additional Information on the first post:
The pattern we've been testing is as follows:
1. We set up LocalInterfaces on our EJB's
2. The EJB Getters are using acquireNonSynchronizedUnitOfWork() to get a NON-JTS transaction to perform a readQuery. This results in a Cloned Bis object being generated. We then release the UOW and return the object.
3. The Returned Biz object Getters are using Indirection (probably using the released non-synchronized UOW).
4. The pattern for UPDATE is that we allow the Web Container code (servlet) to change the Cloned Biz Object, they then submit the CLONED and changed object to an EJB update() method where we use getClientSession().getActiveUnitOfWork() to link to the JTS transaction and perform a uow.deepMergeClone(bizObjectClone);
We are trying to use the pattern for the following reasons:
1. Isolation of the Cache to upper layers
2. Transaction Boundry is the EJB Container
3. We understand that there is a performance overhead with CLoned Biz Objects but this more mirrors the ValueObject Pattern then anything else we've tried.
BIG Question:
1. Is this a supported TopLink Pattern?
2. If its not supported, can it be?
3. Do you have any other suggested patterns?