DE4A common specifications and components it2
This section provides an overview of the common components and specifications required for the evidence exchanges. The image bellow depictes the target, general infrastructure of the DE4A network. It requires at least two participants establishing cross-border communication. Each participant must have their own software components needed to communicate with the other
The following table describes the common components in the above diagram, leaving out those components that are developed or deployed directly by each DE4A participant, namely the Data Evaluator, the Data Owner and the eIDAS Nodes.
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| DE4A Connector | Technical proxy that allows the final participants to send requests for evidence or responses to other final participants over an eDelivery communication environment |
| SML | The Service Metadata Locator (SML) is a unique instance in the DE4A network. It is operated by the EC and provided to the DE4A project at no cost. Every SMP that wants to join the DE4A network needs to register once at the SML using the specific DNS zone. The SML creates DNS entries and is required to find foreign SMPs within the DE4A network. |
| SMP | The component that will store the routing and certificate information to inform other components when requested.
|
| AS4 Gateway | AS4 protocol implementation for the message exchange |
| Central IAL | Central component that allows to retrieve the information of the IAL functionality and the content of the MOR component |
| SSI Authority Agent | Enterprise-level solution that enables issuing and submitting diplomas in the form of verifiable credentials/presentations to Issuers/Verifiers. |
| SSI User Agent | Mobile digital wallet solution that enables users to manage their digital diplomas and interact with the Issuer's/Verifier's portals. |
| Kafka Tracker | Centralized application to monitor the communication between components, useful to trace the full process flow. |
Getting started guide
When starting with iteration 2 developments, every partner should follow the getting started guide.
Checklist for Connectathons
A quick guide of points to consider and review prior to the Connectathon sessions has been developed to make the Connectathon sessions more productive. It is available here.
Common specifications
Third-party specifications and components
It comprises a list of elements and a description of the third-party libraries and components that have made it possible to build the DE4A components more quickly and allow them to be extended, thus increasing the stability and robustness of the system.
Common behaviour and interactions between components
The interactions between DE4A components follow different patterns. Each pattern behaviour is represented by a communication diagram along with an explanation of each communication step.
Summary of software interfaces
REST APIs interfaces refer to most of the components involved in the exchange of messages.
DE4A Logs and error messages
Definition and reference of error coding and logs handling. It includes standardised log and error messages within the DE4A project to provide a good understanding of the different components regarding their points of failure and the different states in which each system is placed.
Common Components
DE4A Commons Library
Description of the common library and their reusable components.
DE4A Connector
The main component of the DE4A communication infrastructure for processing request and response messages from DP/DCs. The DE4A connector handles the message exchange process and obtains information from different nodes like IDK or SMP for this purpose. It implements the AS4 Gateway functionality, so it can undertake either Requestor or Transferor roles.
Installation and configuration guide of the DE4A Connector it2
Step by step guide to successful configure an instance of the DE4A Connector. Find in this section all aspects related to the different configuration scenarios and keypoints of the system.
Directory
The DE4A Directory offers the collection Business Cards of all Participants from all SMPs in the network and provide different query interfaces and a management interface.
Central IAL
DE4A SSI Authority Agent
The enterprise-level component of the SSI infrastructure for issuing and validating diplomas in the form of Verifiable Credentials.
Installation and configuration guide of the DE4A SSI Authority Agent it2
Step-by-step guide for a successful configuration of an Authority Agent instance. Find in this section all aspects related to the different configuration scenarios and REST API endpoint information.
DE4A SSI Edge Agent
Testing infrastructure
DE4A Playground
It comprises a set of components and utilities provided for pilots and partners for testing purposes. In addition it can be used to replace some components that might not yet be available or that they need to be tested in a "real" environment.
Sample datasets
This page contains the information for the test cases available in the playground environment.
DE4A Member State Infrastructures
The following two diagrams outline the general infrastructure expected from the Member States and participants involved in the DE4A pilots. Each Connector is in turn connected and exchanges data with the corresponding Connector (Data Requestor or Data Transferor) of the Playground or other participants.
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Each participant may have a different infrastructure depending on their requirements. There are two main set-ups expected in DE4A:
- One participant deploys and maintains a single DE4A Connector instance that is used by the other participants of the same country (Country set-up A).
- Each participant deploys and maintains their own DE4A Connector instance (country set-up B).
In any case, both set-up types use a single SMP application for all participants of the same country (even though there is no technical or business constraint to enforce this logic).
Useful information on pilots and participants
Status of the DE4A Member State infrastructures for the second iteration of the pilots.