Terminology related to ABL WebApp support
- Last Updated: September 5, 2025
- 1 minute read
- OpenEdge
- Version 12.8
- Documentation
The following terms describe various components that apply to ABL WebApp support in Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge:
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| ABL routine | An ABL routine can be internal procedures, user-defined functions, or class methods. |
| PAS for OpenEdge | A Java container provided with OpenEdge that allows
you to deploy ABL Services. When installing Progress Developer Studio
for OpenEdge, PAS for OpenEdge is also installed and configured. The PAS
for OpenEdge container will be located in your OpenEdge installation
directory at $DLC/WRK/oepas1. |
| Progress ABL WebApp |
A Progress ABL WebApp is a server-side application deployed within
the Progress Application Server for OpenEdge (PAS for OE). It
encapsulates business logic written in Advanced Business Language
(ABL) and exposes it as web-accessible services. For example, REST
or WebSpeed. Each WebApp is uniquely named within a PAS for OE
instance and includes configuration files, static resources, and
service definitions. It may also include a Data Service Catalog
( For more information, see:
|
| Data Service Catalog file |
A Data Service Catalog file is generated from a Business Entity class file in Progress Developer Studio for OpenEdge. It provides the definition of the resources in an ABL WebApp service. The Data Service Catalog includes an entry for each built-in (CRUD and Submit) method and each invocation (or Invoke) method for a resource. It also includes the schema for the resource. The Progress ABL WebApp uses the schema information for its built-in CRUD and Submit methods. For each method, the catalog provides parameter mapping information. This information (metadata) from the catalog is used to construct the HTTP request for the operation calls made to the REST adapter. For more information, see:
|
| Business Entity |
A Business Entity defines a resource that contains schema and operations (business logic) to work on the schema. It contains pre-defined ABL WebApp interface annotations for the schema and operations. The ABL WebApp interface annotated Business Entity class is exposed as an ABL WebApp resource. An OpenEdge ABL WebApp uses the REST Adapter as an interface to the PAS for OpenEdge server to run the Business Entity’s operations. A Business Entity follows a prescriptive programming model that works well with the Progress ABL WebApp. It can be exposed directly to a Progress ABL WebApp or as a separate service interface. For information on creating Business Entity class
files, see:
|
| ABL resource | A Business Entity or other singleton class or procedure that has an ABL WebApp interface defining a data model (a single temp-table or ProDataSet) and ABL WebApp operations. A Business Entity as defined by the OpenEdge Reference Architecture is an example of a resource. It is expected to define a data using logical schema along with business logic to access and update the data. It is always an abstraction from the physical database. This can also be considered the back end of a remote data object. For more information, see Define ABL WebApp resources. |
| ABL Service | ABL Service is the service interface for a resource.
Resources within a ABL Services are accessed using a client side API.
OpenEdge provides the Progress ABL WebApp, which provides this API for
JavaScript clients. Each resource is defined in a catalog file which
identifies the schema and operations supported for the resource. The ABL
Services defined for your project appear under the Defined Services node and the .json files appear under the PASOEContent/static node in your project
directory in the Project Explorer
view. For more information, see Create an ABL Service. |
| ABL Web Application (WAR) | An ABL Web Application is one or more ABL Services packaged for deployment to the PAS for OpenEdge container in a war format. For more information, see the Publish ABL services and Export an ABL Web Application. |