RaptorXML Archives

Tag Archive for: RaptorXML

How to Run Altova Server Software in Docker

December 17, 2024/in Development, Servers /by Erin Cavanaugh

Docker has revolutionized how developers build, ship, and run applications by offering a lightweight, portable solution for containerizing software. Containers package applications with all their dependencies, ensuring they run consistently across different environments, whether on a developer’s machine, a test server, or in the cloud. Compared to traditional virtual machines, Docker containers are faster to start, consume fewer resources, and make scaling applications easier. This efficiency has made Docker a go-to tool for software development and deployment.

Running Altova Server Software in Docker brings these benefits to enterprise-level data processing and automation tasks. By containerizing tools like FlowForce Server, MapForce Server, or RaptorXML Server, developers get a highly portable, scalable, and efficient solution for managing complex workflows as well as automating data transformations, validation, and report generation.

To make getting started even easier, Altova offers an open-source project for automating the set-up process in a Docker environment.

Servers in a Docker container in the cloud

Certified Tools for xBRL-JSON & xBRL-CSV

June 22, 2022/in Software, Tools, XBRL /by Erin Cavanaugh

XBRL International has finalized the sunrise period for its important new OIM (Object Information Model), which includes the xBRL-JSON and xBRL-CSV standards. In turn, it has completed the software certification process. Any product awarded the XBRL Certified Software designation has been thoroughly tested by XBRL International for conformance with the current XBRL specifications.

OIM represents a years-long effort of the XBRL community to modernize the financial reporting standard, providing a model for easily transforming XBRL data between XML and other popular formats like CSV and JSON. This way, organizations can take advantage of the functionality of XBRL and at the same time have XBRL documents written in the format(s) most convenient for them.

Altova XMLSpy and RaptorXML Server were some of the very first tools on the market to support xBRL-JSON and xBRL-CSV and are now officially named XBRL Certified Software for the OIM standards (in addition to being certified for a variety of other core XBRL technologies).

Learn more:

What is OIM?
Altova tools for xBRL-JSON and xBRL-CSV
What are the benefits of choosing XBRL Certified Software?

Colleagues collaborating on computers in an office

Tags: OIM, RaptorXML, XBRL, xBRL-CSV, xBRL-JSON, XMLSpy

Working with Avro Big Data in Your Favorite XML Editor

May 25, 2022/in Development, Software, Tools /by Erin Cavanaugh

Big Data trends have developers working with XML alongside other data protocols such as JSON and Apache Avro, and XMLSpy supports both of these with dedicated editing views and functionality.

Let’s see how specialized Avro support in XMLSpy makes visualizing and searching Avro files, as well as editing Avro schemas, uniquely easy. We’ll also look at some of the advantages of utilizing RaptorXML Server for high-performance Avro processing.

shutterstock_88166515

Tags: Avro, Big Data, JSON, RaptorXML, XML, XML Editor, XMLSpy

Learn About OIM for XBRL

November 17, 2021/in Software, XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

XBRL – the eXtensible Business Reporting Language – is a global framework for exchanging business information. The standard, maintained by XBRL International, is based on XML and designed to offer a standards-based approach to communicating and exchanging financial information between business systems.

The current version of the standard was finalized in 2003 and since then has received widespread uptake and eventual mandates from numerous countries and regulatory agencies, including the United States SEC. Adoption of the standard is due to advantages that include enabling automation and cost savings, better quality of reported data, improved analysis, and better quality of information used for decision making.

Despite its benefits, the complexity of XBRL presents a sharp learning curve for accountants and other stakeholders not familiar with XML, leading to errors and increased consultancy costs. In addition, coinciding with the adoption of big data technologies, XBRL has been used to represent ever growing datasets, which can be resource intensive.

XBRL International has worked over the years to modernize and simplify the standard in response to those challenges, and the Open Information Model (OIM) is an exciting and innovative solution.

Job Distribution on FlowForce Server

November 28, 2018/in Data Integration, Servers, XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

FlowForce Server is Altova’s high-performance engine for automating workflows of XML processing, data integration, report generation, and more. It integrates with other Altova server software products to automate their functions, such as executing complex data integration processes, including ETL projects, designed in MapForce; running StyleVision report generation jobs; or validating XML, XBRL, or JSON files with RaptorXML Server.

Starting with Version 2019, FlowForce Server offers new options for distributed execution and load balancing to improve availability and performance. Let’s take a look at how configuring multiple FlowForce Servers to run as a cluster can help improve data throughput and provide redundancy.

Job distribution for high availability on FlowForce Server

The Only JSON Dev Tool You’ll Need

May 29, 2018/in Development, JSON, Tools /by Erin Cavanaugh

While XMLSpy might not be the first tool developers think of when they’ve got a JSON development task, XMLSpy includes comprehensive support for working with JSON, JSON Schema, and related technologies.

Over the past few product releases, we’ve added intelligent functionality for editing and converting JSON and JSON5 data to the product. We’ve completed the circle with one-click conversion between XML Schemas and JSON Schemas, as well as sample instance generation and JSON Schema documentation generation. And, most recently, we’ve added support for processing JSON with XSLT, XPath, and XQuery.

Let’s walk through some common examples demonstrating this functionality – and see how these time-saving tools make XMLSpy the only JSON development tool you’ll need.

Developer using JSON tool

Tags: JSON, JSON Schema, MapForce, RaptorXML, XMLSpy

The Importance of Choosing Certified XBRL Tools

May 1, 2018/in Applications, Tools, XBRL /by Erin Cavanaugh

Aside from complying with filing regulations, there are numerous benefits associated with adoption of the eXtensible Business Reporting Language. Standardizing information allows data validation as well as simplified comparison of reported data within an organization – from quarter to quarter or year to year, for instance – as well as comparing performance among multiple companies.

Of course, the benefits promised by XBRL can only be realized through strict standards conformance in the tools organizations use for validating, reporting, and analyzing their XBRL data. Problems have arisen due to lack of consistent interoperability between software tools as well as less stringent validation checks that result in filing errors and diminished data quality.

Altova has always striven to deliver the closest possible conformance with supported XBRL standards and is honored to have received certification from multiple XBRL standards bodies, ensuring conformance and interoperability. Let’s take a look at the specifics and why this is so important for customers.

Financial pros using XBRL

Tags: RaptorXML, XBRL, XBRL tools, XMLSpy

Big Data, Database, and XBRL Tools Get a Huge Boost

October 4, 2016/2 Comments/in Development, Software, XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

It’s time for the latest release of Altova’s MissionKit and server software products, and this one delivers a huge boost in functionality for working with big data, databases, XBRL, and much more.

With support for Apache Avro in multiple products, additional databases and drivers across the product line, and two new XBRL specifications in developer and server products, plus a new way to build and process PDF forms, Version 2017 connects all the data dots.

What will be your favorite new feature? Let’s take a look.

Big Data Support

How to Get Server Processing Speeds Inside your IDE

July 6, 2016/in Development, XQuery, XSL /by Erin Cavanaugh

Nothing interrupts the flow of development like waiting for a collection of files to transform – yet this step is unavoidable when writing, testing, and debugging XSLT and XQuery code.

In addition to offering the XSL Speed Optimizer, we’ve worked hard over the years to make sure the processor in XMLSpy is as fast as possible. As quick as it is today, it’s still limited to a single core execution on the CPU in your development machine – well, not any more.

Servers

Tags: RaptorXML, XMLSpy, XQuery, XSLT

XBRL Example Files on GitHub

August 18, 2015/in Development, XBRL /by Erin Cavanaugh

Did you know that Altova has a sample source code repository on GitHub? We are building this out based on customer requests, and at the moment we’ve posted a collection of XBRL example files, code snippets, and Python scripts for working with XBRL data, including instructions for accessing and processing the vast amount of data from filing companies available on the SEC web site, as well as some essential tools for performing validation on EDGAR filing data.

Here are some details on what you can find there.

Foolproof, Fast, and Flexible XML Validation Options

June 24, 2015/in Tools, XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

The most recent few releases of XMLSpy included some pretty powerful speed increases for validations jobs, achieved by strengthening synergy between Altova products. Now, developers using XMLSpy can take advantage of RaptorXML Servers installed on their network for the processing of large or complex XML, XBRL, and project-based validation jobs – directly inside the XML editor.

raptorxml

The XML validator in XMLSpy is powered by the Altova RaptorXML validation engine, which already provides the closest possible standards conformance coupled with fast validation speeds. However, the validation rates achieved are still limited to single-core execution on the CPU available in the developer’s machine. RaptorXML Server, on the other hand, benefits from the substantial increase in processing power afforded by multi-CPU, multi-core servers for increased throughput and more efficient memory utilization.

What does this mean for you? Let’s take a look at some of the advantages of connecting XMLSpy to RaptorXML Server.
Read more…

Tags: EDGAR, RaptorXML, XBRL, XML validation, XMLSpy

XML Validation Speeds Reach New Levels

June 10, 2015/in Software, XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

Let’s take a look at a few of the features recently added to the Altova MissionKit desktop developer tools and complete line of server software products, including screaming-fast XML validation speeds using RaptorXML Server inside XMLSpy, frequently requested functionality for EDGAR filing validation, support for SQLite databases and the TRADACOMS EDI format, and much more. You can always learn about the latest and greatest new features on the Altova What’s New page.

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Read more…

Tags: database tool, MapForce, new features, RaptorXML, TRADACOMS, XBRL, XBRL Formula, XML, XML Editor, XML validation, XMLSpy

New Support for XPath/XQuery 3.1, WS-Security, and More Debut in R3

February 25, 2015/in JSON, Software, XBRL, XPath, XQuery /by Erin Cavanaugh

Release 3 of the Version 2015 Altova MissionKit desktop developer tools and Altova server software products is now available with updated standards support, customer requested features, and innovative new functionality that will save you time on everything from XPath and XQuery development, to advanced data mapping, to XBRL report rendering and beyond. You can skip right to the good stuff and upgrade now, or click Read More below for all the details.

Automating Data Integration Workflows – Download the E-Book

August 19, 2014/in Applications, Data Integration /by David McGahey

We’ve published an e-book titled Automating Data Integration Workflows with Altova FlowForce Server that is now available for free download from the Altova Web site.

Here is a brief description: FlowForce Server is a highly-customizable platform to automate data transformations defined by MapForce data mappings, report and document generation, and other tasks on dedicated servers, virtual machines, or workstations scaled for the scope of the project. FlowForce Server empowers data architects, analysts, and other IT professionals to efficiently complete enterprise-level data integration tasks.

Automating Data Integration Workflows with Altova FlowForce Server provides an overview of the Altova FlowForce Server platform through a series of real-world data integration tasks and examples.

Automating Data Integration Workflows with Altova FlowForce Server

The new e-book collects updated information from the Altova Blog, the Altova Web site, and some all-new material, organized in one location to help new FlowForce Server users get started and to suggest new applications and efficiencies for experienced users.

Installing Altova Server Software in the Cloud

July 8, 2014/in Software /by David McGahey

Cloud-first is becoming the new normal. At recent events we have frequently been asked about using Altova Server tools in the cloud. The answer is definitely, go for it. The installation is easy. In fact, we use Altova Server Software products ourselves for an internal reporting application, installed on local virtualized servers and on an AWS cloud instance. The charts below were generated by StyleVision Server running in the cloud to quickly communicate information about changes in dynamic data.

StyleVision Server is based on the built-in report and document generation engine developed for StyleVision and renders .SPS stylesheets originally designed in StyleVision, including features like a rich variety of charts to visually represent data.

In this post we will walk through the installation of FlowForce Server, MapForce Server, StyleVision Server, and RaptorXML Server for a complete data integration solution in the cloud.

New XBRL Tools for Compliance and Beyond

April 8, 2014/in JSON, XBRL /by Erin Cavanaugh

It can be hard to keep up with all the exciting developments in the XBRL space. Standards are constantly evolving to make compliance easier and deepen the benefits provided by XBRL for internal analysis and reporting. As a leader in XBRL development and validation, Altova is committed to supporting the latest standards, coupling strict conformance with high-performance, easy to use tools. With the latest product launch, Version 2014 Release 2, we’ve added some important enhancements, including significant increases in validation speeds, XBRL Table Linkbase support, and extended XBRL Formula tools. Below is a portion of an XBRL Table generated in XMLSpy, using XBRL Table Linkbase to render revenue calculations in new and productive ways:

Let’s take a look at the benefits of these new features for your XBRL implementation.

XML Validation: The Need for Speed

January 22, 2014/in XSL /by Erin Cavanaugh

When it comes to XML validation, more is better. By more, of course, I mean more speed, and more data. The faster you can get a list of validation errors – along with the information to help fix them – the better. Over the past few releases, we’ve made this an important priority in XMLSpy, first in Version 2013 with the introduction of Smart Fix XML validation, which actually provides a fix for a validation error that you can apply automatically.

In the latest release, we’ve improved on Smart Fix even further by enabling it in the graphical XML Schema editor, in addition to Text View and Grid View.

Simply review the list of fixes automatically generated by XMLSpy, choose the one required, and click Fix.

You’ll also experience faster-than-ever XML validation speeds in XMLSpy 2014 thanks to integration of the super-fast RaptorXML engine, which also adds validation support for XML Schema 1.1, XSLT 3.0, and XQuery 3.0 (and earlier versions) with the strictest conformance to the corresponding standards.

Last but not least is the ability to display multiple validation errors at once, which has been requested by many customers.

You can now choose any number of errors to be reported during validation. As always, detailed information is returned for each validation error, allowing you to immediately visualize multiple issues and correct them in any order. The multiple tabs of the validation window let you store the list of errors as you re-validate, which can also be useful when fixing multiple issues.

If you haven’t upgraded to the latest version of XMLSpy, now’s the time. New customers can try all these features for free for 30-days.

By the way, if you’re running an older version of XMLSpy and want to see what’s been added since you last upgraded, the New Features Index is a great page see it all at a glance.

Tags: RaptorXML, Smart Fix, v2014, XML Schema 1.1, XMLSpy

Altova Software Version 2014 is Available

October 29, 2013/in Software /by Erin Cavanaugh

It’s time for Altova’s annual major release, and this year, we’ve added support for the latest version of major W3C standards: XML Schema 1.1 and XPath, XSLT, and XQuery 3.0. Validation and processing of these standards in Altova MissionKit products is Powered by RaptorXML, bringing the benefits of Altova’s third-generation XML and XBRL engine to your favorite developer tools.

Integration for relational databases has been extended, as well, with compatibility provided for new database versions and database vendors. Support now includes:

SQL Server® 2012
PostgreSQL 9.0.10, 9.1.6, 9.2.1
IBM DB2® 9.5, 9.7, 10.1
Informix® 11.70
MySQL® 5.5.28
Sybase® ASE 15, 15.7
Access™ 2010, 2013

We’ve also added numerous features based on customer requests, such as reporting multiple validation errors at once in XMLSpy, support for XML wildcards in MapForce data mapping projects, and new options for rendering section breaks in StyleVision. An overview of the new features follows, but for all the details, head over to the Altova What’s New page.
New in XMLSpy® 2014

XML Schema 1.1 support
Powered by RaptorXML for lightning-fast validation and processing
Smart Fix validation with auto-correction now extended to Schema View
XPath 3.0 support
XSLT 3.0 (subset) support
XQuery 3.0 (subset) support
Support for XBRL Formula and XBRL Concept Types
Ability to display multiple validation errors at once
Support for new databases
Integration with Eclipse 4.3
Ability to generate sample XML instances with all schema choices

New in MapForce® 2014

Support for XML wildcards (xs:any and xs:anyAttribute)
Support for comments and processing instructions in output XML
Integration of RaptorXML
New function to calculate age based on a birthdate
Support for new databases
Integration with Eclipse 4.3

New in StyleVision® 2014

Support for new databases
Integration with Eclipse 4.3
New option for rendering section breaks – ability to avoid a blank first page

New in Authentic® 2014

Support for new databases
Integration with Eclipse 4.3

New in UModel® 2014

Support for project-related SPL templates
Support for new databases
Integration with Eclipse 4.3

Get complete details and upgrade to Version 2014 now! If you have active Support and Maintenance, this is a free software update.

Version 2014 of Altova Server Software is also available for download, with new features including support for caching results in FlowForce Server.

Tags: RaptorXML, v2014, XML Schema 1.1, XPath 3.0, XQuery 3.0, XSLT 3.0

Filesystem Commands and More Wizardry with FlowForce Server Built-in Functions

August 13, 2013/in Data Integration /by David McGahey

In our earlier posts on FlowForce Server, we described jobs that execute MapForce Server for data transformations, StyleVision Server for report and document rendering, and RaptorXML Server for XML processing. In each scenario we also used built-in system functions to copy move, or delete files, as is often required in real-world workflows.

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In this post we’ll take a look at more of the built-in functions automatically installed in the FlowForce Server system container. You can use these commands as execution steps to automate the file housekeeping so often required in enterprise production.
Read more…

Tags: FlowForce Server, MapForce Server, RaptorXML, StyleVision Server

Constant Quest for Efficiency

July 30, 2013/in Data Integration /by David McGahey

In last week’s blog post titled FlowForce Server Supports RaptorXML, we created a FlowForce Server job that defined a RaptorXML execution step to validate XML files, and we called that job as a step at the end of our job that processes camera GPS data, as a final check on the output. That was a quick way to demonstrate integration of FlowForce Server and RaptorXML Server, but for real-world production we would want to perform the same task more efficiently.

RaptorXML as an execution step in a FlowForce Server job

If we insert the RaptorXML validation function at the top of the job, right in front of the On error definition as shown above, we can apply the same error handling steps for failures of either the data mapping or the validation step. In other words, an error in any one of a series of steps before the On error definition forces the job to take the error path.
Read more…

Tags: FlowForce Server, RaptorXML, XML validation

FlowForce Server Supports RaptorXML

July 23, 2013/in XSL /by David McGahey

Altova FlowForce Server supports RaptorXML Server and RaptorXML+XBRL Server.

Log details of a RaptorXML job step

Altova RaptorXML is the third-generation, hyper-fast XML and XBRL processor from the makers of XMLSpy. RaptorXML is built from the ground up to be optimized for the latest standards and parallel computing environments. Now FlowForce Server jobs can include steps to validate XML, transform XML with XSLT, execute XPath and XQuery, and even perform complex XBRL operations for financial reporting including validating XBRL taxonomies, and validating XBRL instances against XBRL taxonomies with support for XBRL Dimensions and XBRL Formula, which define new, compatible functionality to extend XBRL 2.1.

For example, we can return to the FlowForce Server job described in Taming Bad Input Data with FlowForce Server and add a RaptorXML operation to validate the XML files created from raw GPS data captured by a digital camera.
Read more…

Tags: FlowForce Server, RaptorXML, XMLSpy

XBRL Validation and Processing Tools

July 9, 2013/in XBRL /by Erin Cavanaugh

When we were designing RaptorXML Server, we knew from the get-go that the engine should support XML and XBRL standards. The former standard is ubiquitous and the latter will be, as well, given increasing mandates from governments worldwide as well as adoption by enterprises for analyzing financial data in a standards-based, cost-effective manner. However, we knew that at this time a sub-set of customers would be interested in the XBRL capabilities of the engine, so we created two versions: RaptorXML Server and RaptorXML+XBRL Server.

Let’s take a look at some of the powerful XBRL-oriented features in RaptorXML+XBRL Server.
Read more…

Tags: RaptorXML, XBRL, XBRL Dimensions, XBRL Formula

RaptorXML is here!

June 12, 2013/2 Comments/in XBRL, XML /by Erin Cavanaugh

We are thrilled to announce general availability of RaptorXML®, Altova’s third-generation XML and XBRL processing engine, for download and purchase.
Named for the dinosaur famous for its incredible speed and agility, RaptorXML provides blazing-fast validation and processing of XML, XSLT, XQuery, and XBRL data. Because it’s optimized for parallel computing on multi-core, multi-CPU machines, RaptorXML can scale quickly based on the amount of data you need to process.

Interface Options

In addition to numerous hyper-performance features and strict standards conformance, RaptorXML offers flexible implementation options for developers. These include command line operations, Java and COM APIs, a Python interface, and a built-in HTTP server. The built-in HTTP server allows RaptorXML to be integrated into SOA infrastructures and accept validation jobs, XSLT transformation jobs, etc., submitted via HTTP by other services or client applications.

Workflow Integration

RaptorXML may also be run as a component of Altova FlowForce Server, which provides a user-friendly Web interface for managing workflows based on customizable time or event triggers. This way you can automate validation or XSLT processing jobs based on a variety of triggers, or even pipeline RaptorXML jobs into multi-step processes utilizing MapForce Server and StyleVision Server that start with data aggregation, validation, and conversion and end with multi-channel report generation. The possibilities are many.

Product Options

There are two versions of RaptorXML available:

– RaptorXML Server supports validation and processing of: XML 1.0 & 1.1, XInclude 1.0, Xlink 1.0, XML Schema 1.0 & 1.1, XPath 1.0, 2.0 & 3.0, XSLT 1.0, 2.0 & 3.0 (subset), XQuery 1.0 & 3.0, and more.

– RaptorXML+XBRL Server supports all the features of RaptorXML Server, with the addition of processing and validating the XBRL family of standards: XBRL 2.1, XBRL Dimensions, XBRL Formula 1.0, XBRL Functions, and XBRL Definition Links.

A note to current customers of AltovaXML Reporting Edition: As Altova’s third generation XML processing engine, RaptorXML Server replaces AltovaXML, which is being discontinued. To help existing AltovaXML Reporting Edition customers transition to the new engine and get the full value from their Support and Maintenance Package (SMP), Altova is offering all AltovaXML Reporting Edition customers with current SMP an additional license for RaptorXML Server for the remaining duration of their SMP at no cost. In fact, the value of this new RaptorXML license is significantly higher than the list price of AltovaXML. The RaptorXML Server license is for four cores and can be used in addition to the AltovaXML Reporting Edition license you currently have. To upgrade visit this page.

Free Trial

RaptorXML Server and RaptorXML+XBRL Server are available for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS, and you can download a free trial for your preferred OS.

Tags: RaptorXML, XBRL, XML

Announcing RaptorXML, the Hyper-fast XML and XBRL Server

April 16, 2013/in XBRL, XML, XQuery /by Erin Cavanaugh

We are very excited to be at the XBRL 26 Conference in Dublin, Ireland today to announce a brand new server product in the Altova family of XML and XBRL tools! Altova RaptorXML is a hyper-fast XML and XBRL validation and processing server. It’s Altova’s third-generation XML and XBRL engine, built completely from scratch to help organizations efficiently validate, process, transform, and query the vast and ever-increasing amounts XML and XBRL data being generated as a result of XBRL compliance regulations and myriad other big data trends. RaptorXML is written to be highly scalable for today’s multi-CPU and multi- core computers and servers. This, along with high performance code optimizations and an extremely low memory footprint, has helped make RaptorXML a lightning-fast XML and XBRL server that can meet the demands of today’s data processing applications. Simply put: we architected RaptorXML to combine the performance benefits afforded by modern parallel computing environments with strict compliance to the latest versions of all relevant XML and XBRL standards. RaptorXML includes support for the very latest versions of all relevant standards and has been submitted to rigorous regression and conformance testing. The server will be available in two versions, both of which are available for Windows, Linux, and MacOS platforms. RaptorXML Server supports validation and processing of:

XML 1.0 & 1.1
XInclude 1.0
Xlink 1.0
XML Schema 1.0 & 1.1
XPath 1.0, 2.0 & 3.0
XSLT 1.0, 2.0 & 3.0 (subset)
XQuery 1.0 & 3.0
And more

RaptorXML+XBRL Server supports all the features of RaptorXML Server, with the addition of processing and validating the XBRL family of standards:

XBRL 2.1
XBRL Dimensions
XBRL Formula 1.0
XBRL Functions
XBRL Definition Links

Developers creating solutions using Altova MissionKit XML development and XBRL development tools will be able to power their server applications with RaptorXML for hyper-performance, increased throughput, and efficient memory utilization, giving them the opportunity to validate and process large amounts of XML or XBRL data cost-effectively. Check out the complete list of supported XML and XBRL standards and more details on this groundbreaking new server product. RaptorXML will be available to download and purchase in May.

Tags: RaptorXML, XBRL, XML, XML Schema, XQuery, XSD, XSLT