IBM SG24-6320-00 manual WebSphere Commerce Server subsystems, Member subsystem

Draft Document for Review July 28, 2004 7:33 pm 6320ch_sum_of_changes.fm

2.3 WebSphere Commerce Server subsystems

The WebSphere Commerce subsystems provide the database information model of a store. The information model differs from the data model in that in the data model each entity represents a table while in the information model any of the objects depicted may be mapped to the same database table, or a single object may map to several database tables.

The subsystems provide a great deal of functionality for the WebSphere Commerce Server. The subsystems are used to integrate other components and external nodes as well as make it vastly easier for the store developer to customize, deploy, and manage a store.

2.3.1 Member subsystem

The Member subsystem is a component of the WebSphere Commerce Server that provides a framework for managing the following participants of the system:

Organizational entity (for example, IBM)

Organizational unit (for example, IBM Software Group)

Member group - group of users

Members - users, member groups, organizational entity

The member data is stored within either a WebSphere Commerce instance database or an LDAP directory server database. By default, WebSphere Commerce uses the instance database as its registry.

The major functions of the Member subsystems are to provide member registration and profile management. Other closely related services of the Member subsystem include authentication, access control, and session management.

User registration methods

To facilitate various requirements for e-commerce Web sites, WebSphere Commerce provides several methods for user registration, as seen in Figure 2-2.

Chapter 2. WebSphere Commerce V5.6 Overview 15