ThingWorx Remote Access Extension (RAE)
The ThingWorx Remote Access Extension (RAE) adds Remote Access functionality to the ThingWorx Platform for agent devices that can handle remote sessions. This extension provides entities, the Remote Access Subsystem, and the raClientLinker widget, which you can use in custom mashups for your end users, for example service technicians. More specifically, this extension provides the following features:
• Remote Access Provider — Similar in concept to ThingWorx Persistence Provider, a Remote Access Provider can determine the correct remote server (if any) to interact with for remote sessions as well as list sessions for its specific agent type.
• Remote Access Subsystem — This component provides common management features that can be performed across all session types, such as listing all active sessions of each type together in a unified format. This component aggregates session information from all Remote Access Providers.
• RemoteAccessible Thing Shape — When a Thing implements this Thing Shape, users can perform remote access operations on that Thing. The RemoteAccessible Thing Shape leverages the provider to get the appropriate Remote Access Server to perform operations, such as start and end sessions, and to get the status of the current sessions on the Remote Access Server.
• Remote Access Server Entities — The Remote Access Server entities manage the session operations on a Remote Access Server such as starting and ending sessions. The Remote Access Server Thing interacts with the Remote Access Server it represents through the appropriate Connector to initiate and end sessions. It stores session state locally in ThingWorx.
• Remote Viewer Support — This support includes client viewer download and launch details to the ThingWorx Remote Access Client for a remote session. The Remote Viewer functionality includes managing the location and metadata for remote client viewers persisted on an external server and matching the appropriate remote viewer for the configured remote server for a remote session.
• raClientLinker widget — For developers who are creating mashups for end users, this extension includes the RAClientLinker widget. Intended for use with a RemoteAccessProvider Thing, this widget is added to ThingWorx Mashup Builder when the extension is imported into a ThingWorx Platform. For more information, refer to Using the RAClientLinker Widget .
Remote Access with Axeda GAS or ThingWorx GAS v.7.0.x
The following diagram illustrates the high-level architecture of remote access in a ThingWorx environment where remote devices running Axeda eMessage agents communicate with the ThingWorx Platform through the eMessaage Connector. Users connect to devices for remote sessions through an Axeda Global Access Server v.6.9.2 or v.6.9.3 or a ThingWorx Global Access Server, v.7.0.x:
Remote Access with GAS v.7.0.x: High Level Architecture
Remote Access with ThingWorx GAS v.7.1.0
The following diagram illustrates the new high-level architecture of remote access in ThingWorx environment with ThingWorx GAS, v.7.1.0. Note that with GAS v.7.1.0, remote access can go directly to ThingWorx Platform, without going through the eMessage Connector:
Remote Access with GAS v.7.1.0: High Level Architecture
In this architecture connections for remote sessions can be made in the following ways:
• Directly through the ThingWorx Platform. Applies to ThingWorx Edge agents such as the ThingWorx Edge MicroServer (EMS) and agents written using a ThingWorx Edge SDK.
• Directly through ThingWorx GAS. Applies to Axeda eMessaage Agents, referred to in the GAS v.7.1.0 installer as ThingWorx Platform Type.
• Through the eMessage Connector and Axeda GAS v.6.9.2/6.9.3 or ThingWorx GAS v.7.x. Applies to Axeda eMessage Agents, referred to in the GAS v.7.1.0 installer as Axeda Platform Type.
 | When installing the ThingWorx GAS v.7.1.0, you must specify the GAS Server Category, either Standalone (on premises) or Hosted (PTC Cloud Services). In addition, you choose the Platform Type in which GAS will manage remote sessions, either ThingWorx or Axeda. For more information, refer to the section, ThingWorx Global Access Server, v.7.1.x, in the topic, GAS (Global Access Server) Enablement. |