class SoftLayer::APIParameterFilter

An APIParameterFilter is an intermediary object that understands how to accept the other API parameter filters and carry their values to #method_missing in Service. Instances of this class are created internally by the Service in its handling of a method call and you should not have to create instances of this class directly.

Instead, to use an API filter, you add a filter method to the call chain when you call a method through a Service

For example, given a Service instance called account_service you could take advantage of the API filter that identifies a particular object known to that service using the #object_with_id method :

account_service.object_with_id(91234).getSomeAttribute

The invocation of #object_with_id will cause an instance of this class to be created with the service as its target.

Attributes

parameters[R]

The collected parameters represented by this filter. These parameters are passed along to the target when #method_missing is forwarding a message.

target[R]

The target of this API Parameter Filter. Should the filter receive an unknown method call, #method_missing will forward the call on to the target. This is supposed to be an instance of the SoftLayer::Service class.

Public Class Methods

new(target, starting_parameters = nil) click to toggle source

Construct a filter with the given target (and starting parameters if given)

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 41
def initialize(target, starting_parameters = nil)
  @target = target
  @parameters = starting_parameters || {}
end

Public Instance Methods

method_missing(method_name, *args, &block) click to toggle source

This allows the filters to be used at the end of a long chain of calls that ends at a service. It forwards the message and the parameters to the target of this method (presumably a Service instance)

Calls superclass method

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 190
def method_missing(method_name, *args, &block)
  puts "SoftLayer::APIParameterFilter#method_missing called #{method_name}, #{args.inspect}" if $DEBUG

  if(!block && method_name.to_s.match(/[[:alnum:]]+/))
    @target.call_softlayer_api_with_params(method_name, self, args)
  else
    super
  end
end

object_filter(filter) click to toggle source

Adds an #object_filter to the result. An Object Filter allows you to specify criteria which are used to filter the results returned by the server.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 114
def object_filter(filter)
  raise ArgumentError, "object_filter expects an instance of SoftLayer::ObjectFilter" if filter.nil? || !filter.kind_of?(SoftLayer::ObjectFilter)

  # we create a new object in case the user wants to store off the
  # filter chain and reuse it later
  APIParameterFilter.new(self.target, @parameters.merge({:object_filter => filter}));
end

object_mask(*args) click to toggle source

Use this as part of a method call chain to add an object mask to the request. The arguments to object mask should be well formed Extended Object Mask strings:

ticket_service.object_mask(
  "mask[createDate, modifyDate]",
  "mask(SoftLayer_Some_Type).aProperty").getObject

The #object_mask becomes part of the request sent to the server The object mask strings are parsed into ObjectMaskProperty trees and those trees are stored with the parameters. The trees are converted to strings immediately before the mask is used in a call

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 80
def object_mask(*args)
  raise ArgumentError, "object_mask expects object mask strings" if args.empty? || (1 == args.count && !args[0])
  raise ArgumentError, "object_mask expects strings" if args.find{ |arg| !arg.kind_of?(String) }

  mask_parser = ObjectMaskParser.new()
  object_masks = args.collect { |mask_string| mask_parser.parse(mask_string)}.flatten
  object_mask = (@parameters[:object_mask] || []) + object_masks

  # we create a new object in case the user wants to store off the
  # filter chain and reuse it later
  APIParameterFilter.new(self.target, @parameters.merge({ :object_mask => object_mask }));
end

object_with_id(value) click to toggle source

Adds an API filter that narrows the scope of a call to an object with a particular ID. For example, if you want to get the ticket with an ID of 12345 from the ticket service you might use

ticket_service.object_with_id(12345).getObject

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 60
def object_with_id(value)
  # we create a new object in case the user wants to store off the
  # filter chain and reuse it later
  APIParameterFilter.new(self.target, @parameters.merge({ :server_object_id => value }))
end

result_limit(offset, limit) click to toggle source

Adds a result limit which helps you page through a long list of entities

The offset is the index of the first item you wish to have returned The limit describes how many items you wish the call to return.

For example, if you wanted to get five open tickets from the account starting with the tenth item in the open tickets list you might call

account_service.result_limit(10, 5).getOpenTickets

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 104
def result_limit(offset, limit)
  # we create a new object in case the user wants to store off the
  # filter chain and reuse it later
  APIParameterFilter.new(self.target, @parameters.merge({ :result_offset => offset, :result_limit => limit }))
end

server_object_filter() click to toggle source

A utility method that returns the object filter (if any) stored with this filter.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 182
def server_object_filter
  self.parameters[:object_filter].to_h if self.parameters.has_key?(:object_filter)
end

server_object_id() click to toggle source

A utility method that returns the server object ID (if any) stored in this parameter set.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 125
def server_object_id
  self.parameters[:server_object_id]
end

server_object_mask() click to toggle source

A utility method that returns the object mask (if any) stored in this parameter set.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 132
def server_object_mask
  if parameters[:object_mask] && !parameters[:object_mask].empty?

    # Reduce the masks found in this object to a minimal set
    #
    # If you pass the API a mask that asks for the same property twice (within
    # the same type scope), the API treats it as an error (and throws an exception)
    #
    # We get around that by parsing the various masks that have been given to us
    # merging their properties where possible, thereby removing the duplicates
    # from the mask that actually gets passed to the server. As a side benefit,
    # the mask we send to the server will be streamlined; without too many extraneous
    # characters
    reduced_masks = parameters[:object_mask].inject([]) do |merged_masks, object_mask|
      mergeable_mask = merged_masks.find { |mask| mask.can_merge_with? object_mask }
      if mergeable_mask
        mergeable_mask.merge object_mask
      else
        merged_masks.push object_mask
      end

      merged_masks
    end

    if reduced_masks.count == 1
      reduced_masks[0].to_s
    else
      "[#{reduced_masks.collect{|mask| mask.to_s}.join(',')}]"
    end
  else
    nil
  end
end

server_result_limit() click to toggle source

A utility method that returns the starting index of the result limit (if any) stored in this parameter set.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 169
def server_result_limit
  self.parameters[:result_limit]
end

server_result_offset() click to toggle source

A utility method that returns the starting index of the result limit offset (if any) stored in this parameter set.

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 176
def server_result_offset
  self.parameters[:result_offset]
end

service_name() click to toggle source

API Parameter filters will call through to a particular service but that service is defined by their target

# File lib/softlayer/APIParameterFilter.rb, line 49
def service_name
  return @target.service_name
end