The iLab Debugging Service Broker : a module for facilitating development of online laboratories

Abstract

The iLab Shared Architecture specifies a systematic and consistent way to architect new online laboratories. Despite its usefulness, however, building and debugging new labs under this architecture is an arduous process. The primary reason behind this is the use of Web services for communication. No standard tools exist for debugging Web services, so this naturally adds to the system's complexity. The Debugging Service Broker, a new implementation of the iLab Service Broker, has been designed to address this problem. Using this broker, developers can intercept and view every SOAP message that passes through this module. They can then pinpoint errors in these messages or even make instant modifications to test their changes. We also envision using this expanded broker to provide mock lab clients and servers that can be used to conduct tests of individual modules in isolation.