AS3 Connector

AS3 connectors support sending and receiving files using the Applicability Statement 3 (AS3) protocol.

Key Capabilities

Secure file transfer combining FTP protocol with AS2-style security
Digital encryption and signature support for enhanced security
MDN receipt generation and processing for reliable delivery confirmation
Support for both upload and download operations with filtering
TLS/SSL support with client authentication capabilities

Overview

Each AS3 connector is configured to exchange files with a single AS3 trading partner. AS3 connectors use the FTP protocol to transfer files, and add security and verification through digital encryption and signatures. Configuring an AS3 trading relationship requires exchanging AS3-specific profile details, such as AS3 identifiers and digital certificates, and the connection details for the target FTP server.

Connector Configuration

This section contains all of the configurable connector properties.

Settings Tab

Trading Partner Info

Settings for identifying and connecting to a specific AS3 trading partner.

Setting	Description
Connector Id	The static, unique identifier for the connector.
Connector Type	Displays the connector name and a description of what it does.
Connector Description	An optional field to provide a free-form description of the connector and its role in the flow.
AS3 Identifier	The AS3 identifier specific to the target trading partner.

Local Profile

Settings that identify the local AS3 profile.

Setting	Description
Local AS3 Identifier	Your AS3 identifier.
Private Certificate	The certificate used to decrypt incoming messages and sign outgoing messages.
Certificate Password	The password required to access the local private certificate.

Connection Info

Settings related to connection parameters for the target FTP server.

Setting	Description
Host	The hostname or IP address of the FTP server.
Port	The port on which to connect to the FTP server.
User	The username credential for logging in to the FTP server.
Password	The password credential for logging in to the FTP server.
TLS Type	How to negotiate TLS/SSL when connecting to the server. Choose Explicit to establish a plain text connection where TLS/SSL is then started with an explicit command. Choose Implicit to immediately negotiate TLS/SSL without establishing a plain text connection.
Send Message Security	Whether to sign and/or encrypt outgoing AS3 messages. CData strongly recommends you use signatures and encryption.
Receive Message Security	Whether to require that signatures and encryption are present for incoming AS3 messages. An error is thrown if a received message does not have a required security parameter.
Compression	Whether to compress the payload of outgoing messages.
Connection Timeout	The length of time (in seconds) the connector waits for a connection response before throwing a timeout error.

MDN Receipts

Settings related to requesting MDNs when sending AS3 messages.

Setting	Description
Request MDN Receipt	Whether an MDN receipt should be returned in response to outgoing AS3 messages. CData strongly recommends that you request MDN receipts.
MDN Path	The folder path on the server where the partner uploads MDN receipts.
Security	Whether the MDN receipt should include a signature block verifying the message integrity and identity of the recipient. Again, CData strongly recommends you use this option.

Upload

Settings related to how outgoing AS3 messages are uploaded.

Setting	Description
Remote Path	The folder path on the remote FTP server where outgoing messages should be uploaded.

Download

Settings related to how incoming AS3 messages are downloaded.

Setting	Description
Remote Path	The folder path on the remote FTP server from which incoming messages should be downloaded.
File Mask	A glob pattern that determines which files within the Remote Path should be downloaded (for example, *.txt).
Delete files	Whether files should be deleted from the FTP server after they are successfully downloaded.

Trading Partner Certificates

Settings related to the public certificates provided by the trading partner.

Setting	Description
Encryption Certificate	The public key certificate used for AS3 encryption when sending messages. This certificate must be paired with the trading partner’s private certificate, and the trading partner should provide a public key certificate when sharing AS3 configuration details.
Verification Certificate	The public certificate used to verify AS3 signatures when receiving messages. This field is often unnecessary; most AS3 parties use the same private certificate for both signing and decrypting. If this field is not specified, the application uses the Encryption Certificate to verify signatures.
TLS Server Certificate	The public certificate used to verify the identity of an SSL/TLS server. This is only necessary if the FTP server requires FTPS (FTP over TLS/SSL). If the trading partner does not provide a TLS server certificate, you can leave this setting blank to allow the underlying OS/JVM to perform certificate validation, or it can be set to `Any Certificate` to unconditionally trust the target server’s identity.

Advanced Tab

Local Profile

Settings related to client authentication when two-way SSL authentication is required.

Setting	Description
Use Profile	Whether to use the Private Certificate configured on the Profiles page as the TLS certificate for client authentication.
Private Certificate	The private certificate presented during TLS client authentication. Only applicable if you are not using the same private certificate from the Profiles page.
Certificate Password	The password required to access the TLS client certificate.

Server Commands

Advanced Settings

Settings not included in the previous categories.

Setting	Description
Active Mode	Whether to enable Active or Passive mode on the remote FTP server. Passive mode is less likely to result in firewall interference with the connection.
Clear Command Channel	Check this to send FTP commands using a cleartext channel instead of an encrypted channel.
Clear Data Channel	Check this to have the application use a clear data channel when communicating with the FTP server.
Encryption Algorithm	The algorithm to use when encrypting outgoing AS3 messages.
EPSV	Check this to use extended passive mode. This might be necessary if you need to use a protocol other than IPv4.
Excluded Extensions	A comma-delimited list of file extensions that should not be processed by the connector.
FSwitch	Used in conjunction with Simple Dir List. Check this to restrict the directory listing to files only.
Local File Scheme	A scheme for assigning filenames to messages that are output by the connector. You can use macros in your filenames dynamically to include information such as identifiers and timestamps. For more information, see Macros.
Prot for Implicit TLS	Tells the server that the data channel is protected for implicit TLS connections. Select the TLS type on the Settings tab.
Remote Host Address for Passive	Only applicable when Active Mode is not set. Leave blank to have the application parse the remote host to send replies from the previous server response. When this is checked, the application uses the value of the RemoteHost setting instead.
Signature Algorithm	The algorithm to use when signing outgoing messages. The same algorithm is requested for the corresponding MDN receipts.
Simple Dir List	Check this when you need a simple directory listing command for servers that send back long responses that cannot be parsed. After you set this, if the connector is still unable to parse the directory listing, add the FSwitch setting to restrict the directory listing to files only.
TLS Enabled Protocols	The list of TLS/SSL protocols supported when establishing outgoing connections. Best practice is to only use TLS protocols. SSL v2 and SSL v3 are considered vulnerable and should only be used if your partner does not support higher versions. Keep in mind that TLS v1.3 is not universally adopted, and might be refused if the destination server does not support it.
Processing Delay	The amount of time (in seconds) by which the processing of files placed in the Transactions tab is delayed. This is a legacy setting. Best practice is to use a File connector to manage local file systems instead of this setting.

Proxy Settings

Message

Logging

Miscellaneous

Automation Tab

Automation Settings

Settings related to the automatic processing of files by the connector.

Setting	Description
Upload	Whether files arriving at the connector should automatically be uploaded.
Retry Interval	The number of minutes before a failed upload is retried.
Max Attempts	The maximum number of times the connector processes the input file. Success is measured based on a successful server acknowledgement, and validation of the receipt (when requested synchronously). If you set this to 0, the connect retries the file indefinitely.
Resend Interval	The number of minutes before unacknowledged messages are resent. A resend is triggered when the server receives the file, but an asynchronous MDN receipt is not provided within the expected timeframe.
Max Attempts (async)	The maximum number of times the connector processes the input file when asynchronous receipts are requested. Success is based on the return of an asynchronous receipt within the Resend Interval after a successful server acknowledgement. If a successful server acknowledgement is not returned, Max Attempts is applied instead. If this is set to 0, the connector resends the file indefinitely.
Receive	Whether the connector should automatically poll the remote download path(s) for files to download.
Interval	The interval between automatic download attempts.
Minutes Past the Hour	The minutes offset for an hourly schedule. Only applicable when the interval setting above is set to Hourly. For example, if this value is set to 5, the automation service downloads at 1:05, 2:05, 3:05, etc.
Time	The time of day that the attempt should occur. Only applicable when the interval setting above is set to Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
Day	The day on which the attempt should occur. Only applicable when the interval setting above is set to Weekly or Monthly.
Minutes	The number of minutes to wait before attempting the download. Only applicable when the interval setting above is set to Minute.
Cron Expression	A five-position string representing a cron expression that determines when the attempt should occur. Only applicable when the interval setting above is set to Advanced.

Performance

Alerts Tab

SLAs Tab

Establishing a Connection

To connect to the remote FTP server, specify the Host, Port, User, Password, and TLS Type required by the server. Use the Test Connection button to verify that the connection parameters are correct. Once connected, set the upload and download Remote Path so that files are placed in and read from the appropriate location to communicate with the trading partner.

Automatic Cache Cleanup

The same cache cleanup process works with MDN receipts.

Getting Started

Flows

EDI Trading Partner Management Console

Connectors

Mapping

APIs and Automation

How-To Guides

Scripting

Software License and Third-Party Copyrights

Key Capabilities

Overview

Connector Configuration

Settings Tab

Trading Partner Info

Local Profile

Connection Info

MDN Receipts

Upload

Download

Trading Partner Certificates

Advanced Tab

Local Profile

Server Commands

Advanced Settings

Proxy Settings

Message

Logging

Miscellaneous

Automation Tab

Automation Settings

Performance

Alerts Tab

SLAs Tab

Establishing a Connection

Automatic Cache Cleanup

Macros

Examples

​Key Capabilities

​Overview

​Connector Configuration

​Settings Tab

​Trading Partner Info

​Local Profile

​Connection Info

​MDN Receipts

​Upload

​Download

​Trading Partner Certificates

​Advanced Tab

​Local Profile

​Server Commands

​Advanced Settings

​Proxy Settings

​Message

​Logging

​Miscellaneous

​Automation Tab

​Automation Settings

​Performance

​Alerts Tab

​SLAs Tab

​Establishing a Connection

​Automatic Cache Cleanup

​Macros

​Examples

Key Capabilities

Overview

Connector Configuration

Settings Tab

Trading Partner Info

Local Profile

Connection Info

MDN Receipts

Upload

Download

Trading Partner Certificates

Advanced Tab

Local Profile

Server Commands

Advanced Settings

Proxy Settings

Message

Logging

Miscellaneous

Automation Tab

Automation Settings

Performance

Alerts Tab

SLAs Tab

Establishing a Connection

Automatic Cache Cleanup

Macros

Examples