Timer-based event triggers

Answer 1

The way I see it is this.

You have a Windows Service, which is playing the role of a scheduler and in it there are some classes which simply call the webservices and put the data in your databases.

So, you can use these classes directly from the WebUI as well and import the data based on the WebUI trigger.

I don't like the idea of storing a user generated action as a flag (trigger) in the database where some service will poll it (at an interval which is not under the user's control) to execute that action.

You could even convert the whole code into an exe which you can then schedule using the Windows Scheduler. And call the same exe whenever the user triggers the action from the Web UI.

Answer 2

@Vaibhav

Unfortunately, the physical architecture of the solution will not allow any direct communication between the components, other than Web UI to Database, and database to service (which can then call out to the web services). I do, however, agree that re-use of the communication classes would be the ideal here - I just can't do it within the confines of our business*

*Isn't it always the way that a technically "better" solution is stymied by external factors?

Answer 3

Why not use a SQL Job instead of the Windows Service? You can encapsulate all of you db "trigger" code in Stored Procedures. Then your UI and SQL Job can call the same Stored Procedures and create the triggers the same way whether it's manually or at a time interval.