Version 2.0 of the Eclipse Web Tools Platform (WTP) was just released last week. If you don’t have Eclipse already installed (or like me were a few releases behind), the best way to get caught up and get all of the libraries required by the WTP is to download one of the all-in-one releases. As of today, the download link for the Win32 version is here and the one for Linux is here.

It contains a variety of tools for web application development including XML schema development, WSDL creation and validation and generation of web services clients.

I also found a Eclipse WTP WSDL Editor tutorial that steps you through the process of creating a WSDL from scratch.

The screenshot below shows the “design” view of a new WSDL describing athe InternationalTime Web Service which contains a single getInternationalTime operation. The input message for this operation was defined in an “inline” schema and is show in the editor as well.

My favorite tool for building WSDL’s from scratch has been XML Spy Enterprise, but at USD $3,000 per license that’s a bit steep for many of my clients. The free tools included in the Europa release of Eclipse and the updated WTP may be just the ticket.

Mark

How-To: Create simple WSDL from scratch using Eclipse WSDL Editor

1. Download the latest release of the Web Tools Platform (WTP) from the Eclipse website. If you are not familiar with Eclipse or have not updated your installation in a few months, you will probably find it easier to download one of the all-in-one packages from the WTP 2.0 downloads page.
2. Extract the ZIP file to the folder of your choice (I always use c:\eclipse) and then create a shortcut to launch the c:\eclipse\eclipse.exe executable (or the equivalent on Linux).
3. Create a folder to hold your Eclipse projects. I prefer to use c:\workspaces rather than the default location in my “My Documents” folder.
4. Launch Eclipse and chose the folder you will use for your Eclipse workspaces. Close the “Welcome” page.
5. Create a new, empty “General” project using the File - New - Projects - Genera - Project menu option. Give your project a name such as WSDL_Editor_Examples.
6. Click on your project in the navigation menu and right-click to get the context menu. Select New - Other - Web Services - WSDL. This differs slightly from the directions in the Introduction To The WSDL Editor tutorial as it was based on WTP 1.5.1.
7. Follow the rest of the instructions in the WSDL editor tutorial to create a sample InternationalTime web service.
8. Right-click on the WSDL file in the navigation menu and click Validate to confirm that your WSDL is well-formed and valid.