OSF DCE Application Development Guide--Core Components

Chapter 18. Attribute Configuration Language
The Attribute Configuration Language is used for writing an Attribute Configuration File
(ACF). Use the attributes in the ACF to modify the interaction between the application
code and stubs without affecting the client/server network interaction.
18.1 Syntax Notation Conventions
The syntax of the Attribute Configuration Language is similar to the syntax of IDL. For
syntax information, see the syntax notation conventions for the IDL.
The use of [](brackets) can be either a required part of the syntax or can denote that a
string is optional to the syntax. To differentiate this, brackets that are required are shown
as [ ] (plain square brackets). Brackets that contain optional strings are shown as []
(italicized square brackets).
A | (vertical bar) denotes a logical OR.
18.2 Attribute Configuration File
The ACF changes the way the IDL compiler interprets the interface definition, written in
IDL. The IDL file defines a means of interaction between a client and a server. For new
server implementations to be compatible across the network with existing servers, the
interaction between the client and server must not be modified. If the interaction
between an application and a specific stub needs to change, you must provide an ACF
when you build this stub.
The ACF affects only the interaction between the generated stub code and the local
application code; it has no effect on the interaction between local and remote stubs.
Therefore, client and server writers are likely to have different attribute configuration
files that they can modify as desired.
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