Get started with a Visual Studio project

 

Important

Microsoft Azure BizTalk Services (MABS) is being retired, and replaced with Azure Logic Apps. If you currently use MABS, then Move from BizTalk Services to Logic Appsprovides some guidance on moving your integration solutions to Logic Apps.

If you're brand new to Logic Apps, then we suggest getting started here:

The Bridge Configuration design area is a visual designer where you create an end-to-end message flow, originating from a message source, processed by a bridge, and then sent to a destination. It is a canvas that you can drag components onto from the Toolbox, and then use them to configure the flow.

When you install BizTalk Services, the installation adds the BizTalk Services category under the Templates area in the Visual Studio New Project dialog. The BizTalk Services category contains the following templates:

Project Template

Description

BizTalk Service

Use this template to create a new BizTalk Service project for creating BizTalk Services applications consisting of message sources, bridges, and message destinations. This project type is also used to create artifacts like schemas and transforms that are used by the BizTalk Services application.

BizTalk Service Artifacts

Use this template to create a project that contains only the artifacts, namely Transforms and Schemas. You can use this project to create a Transform or a schema that you want to upload to the BizTalk Services Portal for creating your agreements.

In this topic:

Create a BizTalk Services Project

Add Components to a BizTalk Services Project

Add Schemas and Transforms to your Project

Create a BizTalk Services Project

To create rich messaging endpoints, you need to start by creating a BizTalk Service project:

  1. Open Visual Studio as an administrator. On the File menu, select New, and then select Project.

  2. In New Project, in the Installed Templates area, select BizTalk Services.

  3. From the right-hand pane, select the BizTalk Service or BizTalk Service Artifacts template.

  4. Enter the project name, location, and the name of the solution this project is a part of. If you want this solution to have a separate folder in Windows Explorer, select Create directory for solution.

  5. Select OK.

Warning

When you create a BizTalk Service project, it adds a MessageFlowitinerary.bcs file to the project. You should never delete the .bcs file from a BizTalk Service project because you can’t add a standalone .bcs file to an existing project. If you delete the .bcs file, create a new BizTalk Service project, and copy over the artifacts (schemas and Transforms) from the old project to the new one.

To add a BizTalk Service project to an existing solution

  1. Open Visual Studio as an administrator. Open an existing solution in Visual Studio, right-click the solution name, select Add, and then select New Project.

  2. In Add New Project, in the Installed Templates area, select BizTalk Services.

  3. From the right-hand pane, select the BizTalk Service or BizTalk Service Artifacts template.

  4. Enter the name and location of the project.

  5. Select OK.

Add Components to a BizTalk Services Project

BizTalk Service project designer provides several components that you can place on the design area as visual representations of the message sources, message processing bridges, or message destinations. These components can help you to efficiently design and implement a message flow.

To add a component to the BizTalk Service project, drag the component from the toolbox to the design area. To remove a component, right-click the component, and select Delete.

The following table lists the available components, along with a brief description of the function of each shape:

Name

Purpose

More Information

Connector

Connects two components in a BizTalk Service project and routes the messages from one component to another.

Routing Messages from Bridges to Destinations in the BizTalk Service Project

BRIDGES

XML One-Way Bridge

A one-way XML bridge that processes a request message from a client that does not expect a response.

Create an XML One-Way Bridge

XML Request-Reply Bridge

A two-way, request-reply XML bridge that processes a request message from a client that expects a response.

Create an XML Request-Reply Bridge

Pass-Through Bridge

A pass-through bridge that passes the input message to the destination entity, as-is.

Create a Pass-Through Bridge

DESTINATIONS

Azure Blob Destination

Routes a message to an Azure Blob.

Configure an Azure Blob Destination

FTP Destination

Routes a message to a folder on an FTP Server.

Configure an FTP Destination

One-Way External Service Endpoint

Routes a message to a one-way external service that takes a request but does not return anything in response.

Include a One-Way External Service Endpoint

One-Way Relay Endpoint

Routes a message to a one-way relay endpoint (on Service Bus) that takes a request but does not return anything in response.

Include a One-Way Relay Endpoint

Service Bus Queue Destination

Routes a message to a Service Bus queue.

Include a Service Bus Queue Destination

SFTP Destination

Routes a message to a folder on an SFTP Server.

Configure an SFTP Destination

Service Bus Topic Destination

Routes a message to a Service Bus topic.

Include a Service Bus Topic Destination

Two-Way External Service Endpoint

Routes a message to a two-way external service that takes a request and gives back a response.

Include a Two-Way External Service Endpoint

Two-Way Relay Endpoint

Routes a message to a two-way relay endpoint (on Service Bus) that takes a request and gives back a response.

Include a Two-Way Relay Endpoint

SOURCES

FTP Source

Receives a message from a folder on an FTP Server.

Add a Message Source to the Bridge

Service Bus Queue Source

Receives a message from a Service Bus Queue.

Add a Message Source to the Bridge

SFTP Source

Receives a message from a folder on an SFTP Server.

Add a Message Source to the Bridge

Service Bus Subscription Source

Receives messages from a Service Bus Topic subscription.

Add a Message Source to the Bridge

Add Schemas and Transforms to your Project

A schema is the definition of the structure for a document or message. It contains property information as it pertains to the records and fields within the structure. If appropriate, a schema can contain multiple subschemas. In a BizTalk Service project, you can add either an XML schema or a flat-file schema.

A Transform is an XML file that defines the correspondence between the records and fields in one schema and the records and fields in another schema. You create Transforms based on industry standards, non-industry standards (such as internal standards or legacy issues), or existing files. You create Transforms when you want to map data that you receive or send from one format to another. You can use the Transform project item to create maps that you include in a BizTalk Service project. All Transforms that you save have a .trfm file extension. For more information about Transforms, see Create a Transform or Map.

To add a new schema or transform to a BizTalk Service project

  1. In a BizTalk Service project, right-click the project name, select Add, and then select New Item.

  2. In the Add New Item dialog box, select Schema, Flat File Schema, or Map.

    Note

    You can also create a flat-file schema from scratch or create a flat-file schema using a flat-file instance message. Select Generate Flat File Schema to open the Flat File Schema Wizard. To use the wizard, see How to Use the Flat File Schema Wizard.

  3. Enter a name and then select OK.

See Also

Create the project in Visual Studio