Call Web Service in C: Microsoft Visual C++

by: LordOfPortsPosted on 2009-06-12 at 14:17:06ID: 24616250

This might not be useful to you as I don't have any code to post however check out the open-source gSOAP toolkit for C and C++ applications at http://gsoap2.sourceforge.net/

There is a step by step how to guide (click on "Getting Started") that among other things shows how to generate pure C code you can use in a client.

The download file is gzipped, if you need a utility to extract it check out http://www.gzip.org/ (there is also a link to Power Archiver for Windows there).

There is a free SOAP web service for weather available at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/xml/ with a URL for its WSDL.

I hope this post is at least somewhat useful to you.

by: evilrixPosted on 2009-06-12 at 17:36:04ID: 24617180

Since this has been posted in the C++ zone...

You could look at the SOAP Toolkit, although MS now claim this is deprecated.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa286526.aspx

You could also look at ATL Server
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/cc301865.aspx

I've not personally use either of these so I'm not able to advise how useful they'll be.

by: tgatifPosted on 2009-06-16 at 13:31:45ID: 24642237

@LordOfPorts

I have completed first two steps described in the gSoap and I am using the weather web service.

Now my question is how to find out the function that will call the weather web service and then how to compile it.

by: LordOfPortsPosted on 2009-06-16 at 17:53:36ID: 24644001

I am unfortunately not too familiar with it however under "Getting Started" there is a step about using the wsdl2h utility to obtain a header file that will display the available methods so you would probably run the command as in the code snippet below (there is also a -c option for pure C code).

Then as the next step you compile it using the soapcpp2 compiler which will generate few "stub" files. The files are then included in your client application, they show both a C as well as a C++ sample client and how to include the generated files followed by calling the web service. Just to mention again I am unfortunately not an expert with this toolkit so the steps above are to the best of my knowledge. If the weather service is creating any issue try to follow the steps they describe with the stock quote service just to familiarize yourself with it.

wsdl2h -o NameOfYourHeaderFileForTheService.h http://www.weather.gov/forecasts/xml/DWMLgen/wsdl/ndfdXML.wsdl

1:

Select all Open in new window

by: tgatifPosted on 2009-06-16 at 18:02:55ID: 24644050

@LordofPorts

I have completed the steps that you have described in your post. Now How to run the program? or What is the next step?

by: LordOfPortsPosted on 2009-06-18 at 16:21:04ID: 24662685

This is becoming more complicated than anticipated, I will try to work on it this weekend but in the meantime look into a simpler weather web service http://www.xmethods.net/ve2/ViewListing.po;jsessionid=Ck32_cL95UnN-y0WU1avVwsu?key=425811 its WSDL is at http://ws.cdyne.com/WeatherWS/Weather.asmx?wsdl , the original one I suggested is too complicated.

You might also want to explore evilrix's suggestion in case gSOAP toolkit does not work out.

by: LordOfPortsPosted on 2009-06-19 at 14:31:28ID: 24670241

I have created a brief demo and it is not too easy to be honest, you will probably have to reference the documentation at http://www.cs.fsu.edu/~engelen/soapdoc2.html as you work through the project however here are the steps I have taken including the source code:

1. Run wsdl2h to generate the header file:

wsdl2h.exe -o weather.h http://ws.cdyne.com/WeatherWS/Weather.asmx?wsdl

2. Compile the generated header file weather.h with soapcpp2 (use -C option for client side files only, the -I path might be different on your end):

soapcpp2.exe -i -C -I"C:\gsoap\gsoap\import" weather.h

3. Create your C++ application project and include the generated .h and .cpp files (move them to your project directory if necessary), also include the stdsoap2.cpp file found in the gsoap directory.

4. Compile the project with the source code below and see if you get the same output.

I hope this is useful to you.

#include "soapWeatherSoapProxy.h"
#include "WeatherSoap.nsmap"
 
int main()
{
	WeatherSoapProxy ws;
 
	_ns1__GetCityForecastByZIP a;
	_ns1__GetCityForecastByZIPResponse b;
 
	// ZIP code of city for the weather forecast
	std::string sZIP = "90210";
 
	a.ZIP = &sZIP;
 
	if(ws.GetCityForecastByZIP(&a, &b) == SOAP_OK)
	{
		std::cout << "City:\t" << *b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->City << std::endl;
		
		std::cout << "Forecast Result:\t" << std::endl;
		
		ns1__ArrayOfForecast * aForecast = b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->ForecastResult;
 
		std::vector<ns1__Forecast *> g = aForecast->Forecast;
 
		for(int i = 0; i < g.size(); i++) {
			std::cout << "Description:\t" << *g[i]->Desciption << std::endl;
		}
		
		std::cout << "Response Text:\t" << *b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->ResponseText << std::endl;
		std::cout << "State:\t" << *b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->State << std::endl;
		std::cout << "Weather Station City:\t" << *b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->WeatherStationCity << std::endl;
		std::cout << "Success:\t" << b.GetCityForecastByZIPResult->Success << std::endl;
	}
	else {
		ws.soap_stream_fault(std::cerr);
	}
 
	system("pause");
 
	return 0;
}

1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:
7:
8:
9:
10:
11:
12:
13:
14:
15:
16:
17:
18:
19:
20:
21:
22:
23:
24:
25:
26:
27:
28:
29:
30:
31:
32:
33:
34:
35:
36:
37:
38:
39:
40:
41:
42:

Select all Open in new window

includes.png
- 27 KB
Generated files to include.

Question

Call Web Service in C

Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get

Instant Access to this Solution

Microsoft Visual C++

C Programming Language

Microsoft Visual C++.Net

C++ Programming Language

Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.

See what Experts Exchange can do for you.

Got a question?

We've got the answer.

Need individual assistance?

Our experts are ready to help.

Want to learn from the best?

Read articles from industry experts.

Working on a long term project?

Store your work and research.

What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?

Trusted by the world's most respected brands.

Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.

Related Solutions

Free Tech Articles

Cloud Class Webinars

Join the Community

Give a Little. Get a Lot.

Answers

3 Ways to Join

The Experts

The Experts

Testimonials

Testimonials

Testimonials

Business Clients

Business Clients

In the Press

In the Press

In the Press