After the last section on Making URLs Friendly, you have a good understanding of
Liferay’s Friendly URL pattern, from declaring your intentions in
liferay-portlet.xml to writing some quick routes in the
guestbook-friendly-url-routes.xml file. Despite this excellent work, the URLs
are still not entirely friendly. Look at the URL you now get when you click on a
Guestbook entry:
http://localhost:8080/web/guest/home/-/guestbook/10473/view_entry
It’s quite a bit more concise and human-readable than before you started, but
the Primary Key of the Guestbook, its guestbookId, is included in the
URL. This doesn’t mean anything to the user. It would be more clear to see the
name of the Guestbook, or the name of the Entry in the URLs. That’s what
you’ll be doing in this section on Friendly URLs.
Since you’ll be making changes to several files, here’s an overview of the work:
- Add
<finder>tags todocroot/WEB-INF/service.xml, which Service Builder uses to generate methods that findGuestbookandEntryentities by their names. You’ll expose these methods in the service implementation to retrieve entities from the database without using the primary key. - Update the Service layer by creating custom methods that get entities from the database using the new finders you created.
- Add an action method to the controller class,
GuestbookPortlet.java. This lets you set aGuestbookobject as a render attribute, rather than just theString-based parameter for aguestbookIdor aguestbookName. - Modify the Guestbook app’s view layers, so that
guestbookIdis no longer necessary as a URL parameter. This involves changing URL parameters and some scriptlets in multiple JSPs. - Modify the routes in
guestbook-friendly-url-routes.xmlto make friendlier URLs for the Guestbook Portlet.
You’ll start by creating the finders.
Finding Entities
First, modify the Guestbook app’s docroot/WEB-INF/service.xml file, adding
the following XML below the current <finder> in the Guestbook entity:
<finder name="G_N" return-type="Collection">
<finder-column name="groupId"></finder-column>
<finder-column name="name"></finder-column>
</finder>
Next, in the Entry entity, add the following finder tag:
<finder name="G_G_N" return-type="Collection">
<finder-column name="groupId"></finder-column>
<finder-column name="guestbookId"></finder-column>
<finder-column name="name"></finder-column>
</finder>
Run Service Builder to generate the new finders.
Why are you creating a finder on the groupId, name and guestbookId
database fields for the Entry? It makes sense if you think about the
portlet’s design. When finding an Entry in the database, using the Primary Key
guarantees you’ll find the entity you are looking for. However, the name field
in your portlet is the name of the person creating the entry. Multiple people
with the same name can easily create entries, right? What if Penelope creates
an entry, and then a day later, another Penelope also creates an entry? If you
rely solely on name to find the entries, which one should you retrieve from
the database in the case that two records have matching fields? You can easily
see the problem. You haven’t solved it completely by creating this finder.
There could still be multiple Penelopes creating entries in the same guestbook
in the same site. You’ll deal with this in the view_entry.jsp file by using
this finder to retrieve a list of entries in a particular site, in a particular
guestbook, by a particular name, and displaying them all.
Modifying the Service Layer
Next, you need to create methods that use the Guestbook Portlet’s new ability to
retrieve Guestbook and Entry entities from the database by the fields you
specified.
Open GuestbookLocalServiceImpl and insert the following method at the top of the
class:
public Guestbook getGuestbookByG_N(long groupId, String name,
OrderByComparator orderByComparator) throws SystemException,
NoSuchGuestbookException {
return guestbookPersistence.findByG_N_First(groupId, name, orderByComparator);
}
Now open EntryLocalServiceImpl and insert the following method at the top of
the class:
public List<Entry> getEntriesByG_G_N(long groupId, long guestbookId,
String name) throws SystemException {
return entryPersistence.findByG_G_N(groupId, guestbookId, name);
}
Organize the imports for both files:
import com.liferay.docs.guestbook.NoSuch[Entry/Guestbook]Exception;
import com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparator;
Run Service Builder.
Note the use of the Guestbook finder method appended by _first, and the
need for the OrderByComparator as an argument. This is simply to protect
against cases where two Guestbooks are created with the same name. This code
ensures that only the first one is retrieved.
The Portlet’s Controller class needs to add a Guestbook object to the
attribute for the modifications to work.
Updating the Guestbook Portlet’s Controller Class
Since you won’t be passing the guestbookId into most URLs any longer, there
are some changes that need to be made to the existing methods in the
controller. Replace the current addEntry method with this one:
public void addEntry(ActionRequest request, ActionResponse response)
throws PortalException, SystemException {
ServiceContext serviceContext = ServiceContextFactory.getInstance(
Entry.class.getName(), request);
String userName = ParamUtil.getString(request, "name");
String email = ParamUtil.getString(request, "email");
String message = ParamUtil.getString(request, "message");
String guestbookName = ParamUtil.getString(request, "guestbookName");
long entryId = ParamUtil.getLong(request, "entryId");
OrderByComparatorFactory orderByComparatorFactory = OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil.getOrderByComparatorFactory();
OrderByComparator orderByComparator = orderByComparatorFactory.create("guestbook", "name", true);
Guestbook guestbook = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbookByG_N(
serviceContext.getScopeGroupId(), guestbookName,
orderByComparator);
if (entryId > 0) {
try {
EntryLocalServiceUtil.updateEntry(serviceContext.getUserId(),
guestbook.getGuestbookId(), entryId, userName, email, message,
serviceContext);
SessionMessages.add(request, "entryAdded");
response.setRenderParameter("guestbookName",
guestbookName);
} catch (Exception e) {
SessionErrors.add(request, e.getClass().getName());
PortalUtil.copyRequestParameters(request, response);
response.setRenderParameter("mvcPath",
"/html/guestbook/edit_entry.jsp");
}
}
else {
try {
EntryLocalServiceUtil.addEntry(serviceContext.getUserId(),
guestbook.getGuestbookId(), userName, email, message, serviceContext);
SessionMessages.add(request, "entryAdded");
response.setRenderParameter("guestbookName",
guestbookName);
} catch (Exception e) {
SessionErrors.add(request, e.getClass().getName());
PortalUtil.copyRequestParameters(request, response);
response.setRenderParameter("mvcPath",
"/html/guestbook/edit_entry.jsp");
}
}
}
Organize Imports.
import com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparator;
import com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparatorFactory;
import com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil;
There are several lines to take note of:
String guestbookName = ParamUtil.getString(request, "guestbookName");
The above variable declaration gets the guestbookName, rather than the
guestbookId, from the request.
You need to get the Guestbook by its groupId and name, so these lines
are added before the if statement:
OrderByComparatorFactory orderByComparatorFactory = OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil.getOrderByComparatorFactory();
OrderByComparator orderByComparator = orderByComparatorFactory.create("guestbook", "name", true);
Guestbook guestbook = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbookByG_N(
serviceContext.getScopeGroupId(), guestbookName,
orderByComparator);
First, you’re creating the necessary OrderByComparator Since the guestbookId
is no longer in the request, you now use the guestbookName. Any fields from
the object (like guestbookId) must now be retrieved from the object to use in
the update and add methods that require them.
The setRenderParameter calls in both the try blocks now set
guestbookName, rather than guestbookId.
Leave the deleteEntry method alone. Limit your work to the URLs that
most users use, including viewing guestbooks, viewing full entries, adding
guestbooks, and adding guestbook entries.
Find the addGuestbook method next. In the creation of the name
variable, change the second parameter in the ParamUtil call to
guestbookName:
String name = ParamUtil.getString(request, "guestbookName");
Replace the current render method with this one:
@Override
public void render(RenderRequest renderRequest,
RenderResponse renderResponse) throws PortletException, IOException {
try {
Guestbook guestbook = null;
ServiceContext serviceContext = ServiceContextFactory.getInstance(
Guestbook.class.getName(), renderRequest);
String guestbookName = "";
long groupId = serviceContext.getScopeGroupId();
// First, get all the guestbooks to populate the tabs
List<Guestbook> guestbooks = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil
.getGuestbooks(groupId);
if (guestbooks.size() == 0) {
guestbook = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.addGuestbook(
serviceContext.getUserId(), "Main", serviceContext);
// If we had to create the default guestbook, put it in the
// request
renderRequest.setAttribute(WebKeys.GUESTBOOK, guestbook);
}
// Now we check to see if the user selected a guestbook
guestbook = (Guestbook) renderRequest
.getAttribute(WebKeys.GUESTBOOK);
if (guestbook == null) {
// The user still could have selected a guestbook
guestbookName = ParamUtil.getString(renderRequest,
"guestbookName");
if (guestbookName.equalsIgnoreCase("")) {
guestbook = guestbooks.get(0);
} else {
OrderByComparatorFactory orderByComparatorFactory = OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil
.getOrderByComparatorFactory();
OrderByComparator orderByComparator = orderByComparatorFactory
.create("guestbook", "name", true);
guestbook = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbookByG_N(
serviceContext.getScopeGroupId(), guestbookName,
orderByComparator);
}
}
renderRequest.setAttribute(WebKeys.GUESTBOOK, guestbook);
} catch (Exception e) {
throw new PortletException(e);
}
super.render(renderRequest, renderResponse);
}
At the top of the first try block, a Guestbook object is intialized, but set
as null:
Guestbook guestbook = null;
The guestbookId variable declaration is replaced with guestbookName, retrieved from the request:
String guestbookName = ParamUtil.getString(renderRequest, "guestbookName");
The logic used in the if and else blocks is also modified. This
logic decides which Guestbook needs to be set as an attribute of the
renderRequest.
Since guestbook is already declared as a Guestbook object, you removed the
type declaration Guestbook from the declaration in the first if statement.
If this is the first time the portlet is added to a page (i.e., the
list of guestbooks is empty), a new Guestbook named Main will be created.
Here are the other scenarios the render method handles:
- If the render request contains a
Guestbookattribute (e.g., if the user clicked a tab) - If the request contains no
Guestbookobject orguestbookName, just get the firstGuestbookin the list. - If the request contains a
guestbookNameparameter, use it to get theGuestbookby its name. This is the case when the user clicks theviewEntryURLor theaddEntryURL, defined in theview.jspfile.
One other thing of note is a Liferay best practice. You’ve replaced all
instances of the request attribute key with the constant (WebKeys.GUESTBOOK)
that was defined in an earlier Learning Path. This makes it less error-prone to
put the current Guestbook object in the request as an attribute and take it
out again.
One thing is left to do. You are now working with Guestbooks by their names
instead of by their IDs. What about the case where a Guestbook administrator
creates two guestbooks with the same name? You certainly don’t want two tabs
with the same name in your nice, clean interface!
Fortunately, there’s an easy way to fix that. When adding a new guestbook, you can check to see if there’s an existing guestbook with the same name, and then prevent the user from adding it.
Open GuestbookLocalServiceImpl.java. In the addGuestbook method, just after
getting the groupId, add this simple test:
List <Guestbook> test = guestbookPersistence.findByG_N(groupId, name);
if (test.size() > 0) {
throw new PortalException("existing-guestbook");
}
Save the file and run Service Builder. This code throws a PortalException if
the guestbook the user is trying to add already exists. Next, open
Language.properties. Add the following message to the bottom of the file:
existing-guestbook=There is an existing Guestbook with that name.
Finally, you want this error message to display when the user accidentally tries
to enter a guestbook with the same name as another guestbook. Open the
edit_guestbook.jsp and add this tag just beneath the <portlet:actionURL>:
<liferay-ui:error key="existing-guestbook" message="existing-guestbook" />
Your custom error message is now displayed to users who try to enter duplicate guestbooks.
The Controller is updated. Now you should update the View layer of the Guestbook app, changing URL parameters and any scriptlets that rely on Primary Keys from the request.
Updating the View Layer
Many of the portlet URLs and scriptlets defined in the JSPs you’ve written
currently include the guestbookId or entryId as a parameter. You need to
change these instead to provide and use a guestbookName (the name column for
Guestbooks) or name (for Entry entities). Additionally, use your new
service layer getter methods in the place of the current ones, if they need
the Primary Key of any entities.
Open docroot/html/guestbook/view.jsp. Replace the entire contents of the file with the following code:
<%@include file="/html/init.jsp"%>
<%
Guestbook guestbook = (Guestbook) renderRequest
.getAttribute("guestbook");
%>
<liferay-portlet:renderURL varImpl="searchURL">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath" value="/html/guestbook/view_search.jsp" />
</liferay-portlet:renderURL>
<aui:form action="<%= searchURL %>" method="get" name="fm">
<liferay-portlet:renderURLParams varImpl="searchURL" />
<div class="search-form">
<span class="aui-search-bar">
<aui:input inlineField="<%= true %>" label="" name="keywords" size="30" title="search-entries" type="text" />
<aui:button type="submit" value="search" />
</span>
</div>
</aui:form>
<aui:nav cssClass="nav-tabs">
<%
List<Guestbook> guestbooks = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil
.getGuestbooks(scopeGroupId);
for (int i = 0; i < guestbooks.size(); i++) {
Guestbook curGuestbook = (Guestbook) guestbooks.get(i);
String cssClass = StringPool.BLANK;
if (curGuestbook.getGuestbookId() == guestbook.getGuestbookId()) {
cssClass = "active";
}
if (GuestbookPermission.contains(
permissionChecker, curGuestbook.getGuestbookId(), "VIEW")) {
%>
<portlet:renderURL var="viewPageURL">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath" value="/html/guestbook/view.jsp" />
<portlet:param name="guestbookName"
value="<%=curGuestbook.getName()%>" />
</portlet:renderURL>
<aui:nav-item cssClass="<%=cssClass%>" href="<%=viewPageURL%>"
label="<%=HtmlUtil.escape(curGuestbook.getName())%>" />
<%
}
}
%>
</aui:nav>
<aui:button-row cssClass="guestbook-buttons">
<c:if test='<%= GuestbookModelPermission.contains(permissionChecker, scopeGroupId, "ADD_GUESTBOOK") %>'>
<portlet:renderURL var="addGuestbookURL">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath"
value="/html/guestbook/edit_guestbook.jsp" />
</portlet:renderURL>
<aui:button onClick="<%=addGuestbookURL.toString()%>"
value="Add Guestbook" />
</c:if>
<c:if test='<%= GuestbookPermission.contains(permissionChecker, guestbook.getGuestbookId(), "ADD_ENTRY") %>'>
<portlet:renderURL var="addEntryURL">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath" value="/html/guestbook/edit_entry.jsp" />
<portlet:param name="guestbookName" value="<%=guestbook.getName()%>" />
</portlet:renderURL>
<aui:button onClick="<%=addEntryURL.toString()%>" value="Add Entry"></aui:button>
</c:if>
</aui:button-row>
<liferay-ui:search-container>
<liferay-ui:search-container-results
results="<%=EntryLocalServiceUtil.getEntries(scopeGroupId,
guestbook.getGuestbookId(), searchContainer.getStart(),
searchContainer.getEnd())%>"
total="<%=EntryLocalServiceUtil.getEntriesCount(scopeGroupId,
guestbook.getGuestbookId())%>" />
<liferay-ui:search-container-row
className="com.liferay.docs.guestbook.model.Entry" modelVar="entry">
<portlet:renderURL var="viewEntry">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath" value="/html/guestbook/view_entry.jsp" />
<portlet:param name="name" value="<%=entry.getName() %>" />
<portlet:param name="guestbookName" value="<%=guestbook.getName() %>" />
</portlet:renderURL>
<liferay-ui:search-container-column-text property="message" href="<%= viewEntry %>"/>
<liferay-ui:search-container-column-text property="name" />
<liferay-ui:search-container-column-jsp
path="/html/guestbook/guestbook_actions.jsp"
align="right" />
</liferay-ui:search-container-row>
<liferay-ui:search-iterator />
</liferay-ui:search-container>
There have been some important changes to the view.jsp. At the top of the
file, immediately after the <%@include... statement, a scriptlet getting the
guestbookId from the renderRequest is replaced by a scriptlet getting the
Guestbook object, and a liferay-ui:error tag added.
In the next scriptlet, the if statement is modified to get the guestbookId
from the Guestbook retrieved from the render request:
if (curGuestbook.getGuestbookId() == guestbook.getGuestbookId()) {
cssClass = "active";
}
There are two more places in this file that used the guestbookId
parameter; they’re replaced with the guestbook.getGuestbookId()
call:
- There’s one in the permission check for the
addEntryURL. - There are two in the
<liferay-ui:search-container-results...tag.
The viewPageURL inside the <aui:nav... has now been modified. Instead of
using the guestbookId, it now uses the guestbookName.
In the addEntryURL, the guestbookId parameter is now a guestbookName
parameter, using the name of the Guestbook attribute retrieved from the
request:
<portlet:param name="guestbookName" value="<%=guestbook.getName()%>" />
In the viewEntryURL, the entryId is replaced with
a name parameter, and a guestbookName parameter is added:
<portlet:param name="name" value="<%=entry.getName() %>" />
<portlet:param name="guestbookName" value="<%=guestbook.getName() %>" />
Why do you need the Entry and Guestbook names in the URL? It makes sense to
show the name of the guestbook and the name of the entry in the Friendly URL
for viewing entries. Additionally, the guestbookName is needed by the
render method so the correct Guestbook is set as a request attribute.
That’s it for the view.jsp file.
Open docroot/html/init.jsp. This is where you organize the imports
necessary for JSP files, according to Liferay’s convention. Add the following
imports to the file:
<%@ page import="com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparator" %>
<%@ page import="com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparatorFactory" %>
<%@ page import="com.liferay.portal.kernel.util.OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil" %>
The getter methods created earlier in the -LocalServiceImpl classes are
used in the view_entry.jsp; an OrderByComparator is a necessary parameter
in those methods.
The JSP files for viewing entries, editing entries, and editing guestbooks need some modifications to fully support the Friendly URL changes.
Open edit_entry.jsp. There’s a renderURL and an actionURL at the top
of the file. Move them to follow the first scriptlet.
Change the scriptlet at the top of the file by adding the following line above
the definition of the entryId variable:
Guestbook guestbook = (Guestbook) renderRequest.getAttribute("guestbook");
In the same file, change the viewURL and the addEntryURL by adding the
following parameter to each one:
<portlet:param name="guestbookName" value="<%= guestbook.getName() %>"/>
The only other modification you need here is in the <aui:input... tag for the
hidden guestbookId field. Instead of getting the guestbookId from the
request, get it from the Guestbook taken from the request. Replace the tag
with this snippet:
<aui:input name='guestbookId' type='hidden' value='<%= String.valueOf(guestbook.getGuestbookId()) %>'/>
Now open view_entry.jsp. Replace its contents with this code:
<%@include file = "/html/init.jsp" %>
<portlet:renderURL var="viewURL">
<portlet:param name="mvcPath" value="/html/guestbook/view.jsp"></portlet:param>
</portlet:renderURL>
<liferay-ui:header backURL="<%= viewURL %>" title="entry" />
<%
String name = ParamUtil.getString(renderRequest, "name");
String guestbookName=ParamUtil.getString(renderRequest, "guestbookName");
OrderByComparatorFactory orderByComparatorFactory = OrderByComparatorFactoryUtil.getOrderByComparatorFactory();
OrderByComparator orderByComparator = orderByComparatorFactory.create("Entry", "name", true);
Guestbook guestbook = GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbookByG_N(scopeGroupId, guestbookName, orderByComparator);
List<Entry> entries = EntryLocalServiceUtil.getEntriesByG_G_N(scopeGroupId, guestbook.getGuestbookId(), name);
for (Entry entry : entries) {
entry = entry.toEscapedModel();
AssetEntry assetEntry = AssetEntryLocalServiceUtil.getEntry(
Entry.class.getName(), entry.getEntryId());
String currentURL = PortalUtil.getCurrentURL(request);
PortalUtil.addPortletBreadcrumbEntry(request,
entry.getMessage(), currentURL);
PortalUtil.setPageSubtitle(entry.getMessage(), request);
PortalUtil.setPageDescription(entry.getMessage(), request);
List<AssetTag> assetTags = AssetTagLocalServiceUtil.getTags(
Entry.class.getName(), entry.getEntryId());
PortalUtil.setPageKeywords(
ListUtil.toString(assetTags, "name"), request);
%>
<dl>
<dt>Guestbook</dt>
<dd><%= GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbook(entry.getGuestbookId()).getName() %></dd>
<dt>Name</dt>
<dd><%= entry.getName() %></dd>
<dt>Message</dt>
<dd><%= entry.getMessage() %></dd>
</dl>
<c:if test="<%= themeDisplay.isSignedIn() %>">
<liferay-ui:panel-container extended="<%= false %>"
id="entryCollaborationPanelContainer" persistState="<%= true %>">
<liferay-ui:panel collapsible="<%= true %>" extended="<%= true %>"
id="entryCollaborationPanel" persistState="<%= true %>"
title='<%= LanguageUtil.get(pageContext, "collaboration") %>'>
<liferay-ui:ratings className="<%= Entry.class.getName() %>"
classPK="<%= entry.getEntryId() %>" type="stars" />
<br />
<portlet:actionURL name="invokeTaglibDiscussion" var="discussionURL" />
<liferay-ui:discussion className="<%= Entry.class.getName() %>"
classPK="<%= entry.getEntryId() %>"
formAction="<%= discussionURL %>" formName="fm2"
ratingsEnabled="<%= true %>" redirect="<%= currentURL %>"
subject="<%= entry.getMessage() %>"
userId="<%= entry.getUserId() %>" />
</liferay-ui:panel>
</liferay-ui:panel-container>
</c:if>
<liferay-ui:asset-links
assetEntryId="<%= (assetEntry != null) ? assetEntry.getEntryId() : 0 %>"
className="<%= Entry.class.getName() %>"
classPK="<%= entry.getEntryId() %>" />
<%
}
%>
Your aim is to display the Entry the user selects, using its name and the
guestbookId of the Guestbook it’s in. Here’s how the new view_entry.jsp
does this:
-
Using the request parameters
nameandguestbookName, you get a list of entries from the database:List<Entry> entries = EntryLocalServiceUtil.getEntriesByG_G_N(scopeGroupId, guestbook.getGuestbookId(), name); -
The entries are looped through, and each one is displayed in the portlet:
for (Entry entry : entries) { ... } <dl> <dt>Guestbook</dt> <dd><%= GuestbookLocalServiceUtil.getGuestbook(entry.getGuestbookId()).getName() %></dd> <dt>Name</dt> <dd><%= entry.getName() %></dd> <dt>Message</dt> <dd><%= entry.getMessage() %></dd> </dl> To get the correct `guestbookId`, you need to get the `Guestbook` by its name. The `guestbookName` is used to get the `Guestbook` (and its `guestbookId`). Then you can get the `Entry` by both its own `name` and the `guestbookId` of its associated `Guestbook`. ... <% } %>
Finally, open edit_guestbook.jsp. For clarity, you’ve been referring to the name
field of the Guestbook as guestbookName, so it is not confused with the name
field of the Entry. Find the <aui:input name="name" line and change name
to guestbookName:
<aui:input name="guestbookName" />
The JSPs have changed quite a bit. In review:
- Mention of
guestbookIdandentryIdare removed as necessary and replaced withguestbookNameandnameparameters, where applicable. - Method calls that get database entities by their Primary Key are replaced with methods that use different database fields.
- The
view_entry.jspnow displays all the entries in a site’s Guestbook that share the samenamefield value.
Modifying the URL Routes
Now that you’ve made the necessary changes to your portlet’s code, you’re ready to modify the URL routes you defined in the previous section of this learning path.
Open guestbook-friendly-url-routes.xml, and replace its contents:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!DOCTYPE routes PUBLIC "-//Liferay//DTD Friendly URL Routes 6.2.0//EN"
"http://www.liferay.com/dtd/liferay-friendly-url-routes_6_2_0.dtd">
<routes>
<route>
<pattern>/add_guestbook</pattern>
<implicit-parameter name="p_p_lifecycle">0</implicit-parameter>
<implicit-parameter name="mvcPath">/html/guestbook/edit_guestbook.jsp</implicit-parameter>
</route>
<route>
<pattern>/{guestbookName}/add_entry</pattern>
<implicit-parameter name="mvcPath">/html/guestbook/edit_entry.jsp</implicit-parameter>
</route>
<route>
<pattern>/{guestbookName}/{name}/view_entry</pattern>
<implicit-parameter name="p_p_lifecycle">0</implicit-parameter>
<implicit-parameter name="mvcPath">/html/guestbook/view_entry.jsp</implicit-parameter>
</route>
<route>
<pattern>/{guestbookName}/view</pattern>
<implicit-parameter name="p_p_lifecycle">0</implicit-parameter>
<implicit-parameter name="mvcPath">/html/guestbook/view.jsp</implicit-parameter>
</route>
</routes>
The first route, for add_guestbook, remains the same.
In the second route, for add_entry, the <pattern> tag replaces
{guestbookId} with {guestbookName}.
The view_entry route’s <pattern> includes both the guestbookName and
name (of the Entry) now.
The view route now includes the guestbookName.
Now it’s time to make sure everything is working as expected.
Testing the URL Routes
Log in to the portal with the Guestbook Portlet deployed. If you haven’t
already added the portlet to a page, do so now. Because of the render method’s
logic, a new Guestbook called Main is created automatically when you add the
portlet to the page. Click Add Guestbook, and look at the lovely URL!
http://localhost:8080/web/guest/home/-/guestbook/add_guestbook
Okay, so that’s nothing new; you had that in place in the previous step. Fill
out the form and submit it. Now click on the Guestbook you just created. This
triggers the switchTabs URL and action, and you should see a URL that looks
like this (if the Name field was your-guestbook-name):
http://localhost:8080/web/guest/home/-/guestbook/your-guestbook-name/view?p_auth=Gh7eWbod
That looks better, doesn’t it?
Now click Add Entry, and look at the URL:
http://localhost:8080/web/guest/home/-/guestbook/your-guestbook-name/add_entry
Instead of the guestbookId, the guestbookName (your-guestbook-name in the
example URL) is shown in the URL. Fill out the form and click Save. After the
portlet renders, click on the new entry in the search container. Here’s what the
URL looks like now, if you filled in the Name field with your-name:
http://localhost:8080/web/guest/home/-/guestbook/your-guestbook-name/your-name/view_entry
You’re a Friendly URL expert now. Not only can you create Friendly URLs from the existing URL parameters, but you know how to remove the Primary Key from the URL to create even friendlier URLs.