Webulator/400 Session Management
Overview
With earlier versions of Webulator/400, it was quite difficult to have multiple
active sessions open inside a single browser window. In addition, the only
effective method of returning to a Webulator/400 screen once you left a session
as a result clicking on a link was to use the browser's back button. If the
user would try to gain access to an existing session via a bookmark or link,
it would result in a new Webulator/400 session being started. Webulator/400
Version 2.0 has a built in Session Manager that will help eliminate the
complexity of managing active Webulator/400 sessions.
Accessing an existing session
When accessing a Webulator/400 URL, the system searches for an active session.
If an active session is found, the current screen for that session is sent
to the user.
For Example, your AS/400 application may have embedded HTML links to various
static pages on your site. You can easily code a return to Webulator link
in the static html file by referring back to a valid Webulator/400 URL. From
a user's perspective, they would be able to click on embedded HTML links to see
a static HTML page and then have a convenient link back to the current Webulator/400
session in which they left.
Accessing a new session
Occasionally, users may have a need to access a second Webulator/400 session
without ending the first session. With earlier versions of Webulator/400,
the user would simply access a new valid Webulator/400 URL. This will no
longer work with Version 2.0 since the Session Manager now assumes that you
want to access the original session. To get around this assumption by the
Session Manager, a new query string value has been added to the system. If
a query string value of ?SESSION=NEW is appended to a Webulator/400 URL, a
new session will always be started.
Managing multiple sessions
If a user has multiple sessions active and they access a valid Webulator/400
URL (without the query string value of ?SESSION=NEW), the Session
Manager will build a list of active sessions that the user can choose from. Once
an active session is choosen, the current screen for that session is shown to the
user.