REST and Qodly Support of Singletons
With 4D 20 R5, we released singletons. And with 4D 20 R6, we now allow you to directly call the exposed functions of your shared singletons through REST calls. Similarly, you can use the exposed functions of your shared singletons in events when designing your Qodly Pages. Let me delve deeper into these new capabilities.
Managing HTTP Requests with HTTP Agents
In 4D 19 R6, we introduced HTTP classes to modernize syntax and enhance functionalities for our HTTP client commands. Building on this foundation, 4D 20 R6 brings a powerful new feature: HTTP agents. These agents empower developers to customize and optimize their connections to HTTP servers by managing connection persistence and reuse for HTTP requests.
Deprecation of the Legacy Network Layer
To handle the communication between 4D Client and 4D Server, 4D proposes 3 different network layers:
- Legacy,
- ServerNet,
- and QUIC.
The Legacy network layer was introduced 30 years ago in 4D v3. It was originally developed for AppleTalk, enhanced for ISDN, and then added IPX and finally TCP/IP.
It was created for a very different Client/Server usage than 4D works today: it is single-threaded, optimized for slow networks with no encryption, and available for many different network protocols. As such, it is not optimized at all for modern network communications and supports a very limited number of features.
That’s why, with 4D 20 R5, we have decided to make the Legacy network layer obsolete and plan to remove it soon. We encourage you to move to ServerNet now if you are still using it. Let me explain what benefits you will get from the switch.
QUIC Now Matches ServerNet Capabilities
The QUIC network layer now supports as many features as the ServerNet network layer. With 4D 20 R5, we added support for IPv6, broadcast, and Single Sign-on on Windows.
Of course, we will continue to improve it in the coming versions to make it the best network layer 4D has ever had.
But for now, let me speak a bit more about the last functionalities we added.
Shared Classes
Do you want a simplified way to use shared objects, following the classic object syntax and automatically calling use/end use when needed?
Fasten your seatbelts; here come the shared classes!
Singletons in 4D
4D 20 R5 delivers a powerful feature for developers: Singletons!
The singleton design pattern creates a single instance of a class accessible throughout your application.
This pattern offers many benefits, including:
- host for interprocess values,
- utility classes,
- a base for the factory design pattern,
- and many more.
Keep reading for more information about this new concept!
QUIC network layer: Automatic update and sleep mode
Our development of the QUIC network layer continues, and with 4D 20 R4, we now have the sleep mode and the automatic update. Let’s take a closer look at these enhancements and see how they compare to the way they work with other network layers.
Non-blocking Printing
With 4D v20 R4, we significantly improved the management of print jobs inside 4D. 4D can now run multiple print jobs in parallel, significantly increasing your applications’ reactivity while facilitating the management of concurrent print jobs.
Let me tell you more about it!
Auto-Generated SSL/TLS Certificates for Client-Server Communications
To simplify the security of client-server communications, from 4D v20 R4 onwards, 4D Server generates its own SSL/TLS certificates instead of relying on the default certificates provided by 4D.
This update brings a significant advantage for both testing and production environments. You’ll experience heightened security measures without the necessity of providing your own certificates. Let me explain to you what will change.
SSL/TLS: Support for ECDSA certificates
4D uses SSL/TLS to secure client-server communication and HTTP requests. 4D is supporting RSA cryptography since more than a decade and with 4D v20R4 we are now adding ECDSA cryptography to our tool belt. It’s a good moment for me to speak a bit about security.
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