HTTP and WebDAV Extension
1) What is an HTTP?
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is a way of connecting to the Internet. An HTTP client such as Microsoft Internet Explorer is a Web browser that uses HTTP to access information on the IIS server. Microsoft Outlook Web Access enables Exchange 2000 to integrate with an IIS server and connect to the Internet. This allows users to access e-mail and public folders in Web Storage System using a standard Web browser.
2) What're the HTTP functions?
The three main HTTP functions used by Web Storage System are GET, PUT and POST:
| • | GET Retrieves a document |
| • | PUT Puts an item in a folder |
| • | POST Submits an item to a folder |
3) What is the WebDAV?
The World Wide Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) protocol provides access to an extensible set of associated properties. WebDAV also defines protocol commands used to search, move, copy, delete, lock and unlock resources, and make new collections of resources (folders).
4) What're the commands used in WebDAV?
The commands PropFind and PropPatch are used for property (or attribute) manipulation. These features make WebDAV an ideal protocol for creating interoperable, collaborative applications.
4) What're the features of WebDAV?
Major features of the protocol include:
| • | Locking (concurrency control) Long-duration exclusive and shared write locks prevent the possibility of two or more collaborators writing to the same resource without first merging changes. The duration of WebDAV locks is independent of any individual network connection. This serves two purposes: it provides robust Internet-scale collaboration, because network connections might be disconnected arbitrarily, and improves scalability, because each open connection consumes server resources. |
| • | Properties XML properties provide storage for metadata, such as a list of authors or Web resources. These properties can be set, deleted, and retrieved using the WebDAV protocol. |
| • | Namespace manipulation Because resources might need to be copied or moved as a Web site evolves, WebDAV supports copy and move operations. Collections, similar to file system directories, can be created and listed. |
5) What're the main functions of WebDAV?
The main WebDAV functions used with Web Storage System are:
| • | MKCOL Makes a collection that is in essence the same as a Web Storage System folder. MKCOL allows you to make folders and set their properties. |
| • | LOCK Locks documents to prevent writes. |
| • | UNLOCK Allows writes and creates updates. |
| • | PROPFIND Searches for properties individually or for a whole set of folders. |
| • | SEARCH Provides filter, subquery and sort capabilities to a search. |
| • | PROPPATCH Sets arbitrary properties on an item. |
| • | SUBSCRIBE Adds a user to a list. |
| • | UNSUBSCRIBE Removes a user from a list. |
| • | POLL Checks to see if the notification is fired. |