Descriptor API

The Descriptor API can be used to define, or amend EclipseLink descriptors through Java code. The Descriptor API classes are mainly in the org.eclipse.persistence.descriptors package. These include the following classes:

• ClassDescriptor (abstract generic Descriptor API)

• RelationalDescriptor (relational project-specific API)

• DescriptorEventManager (event API)

• DescriptorQueryManager (query API)

• InheritancePolicy

• InterfacePolicy

• ReturningPolicy

• Locking policies (various optimistic locking policies)

The Descriptor API also includes these non-relational descriptors:

• org.eclipse.persistence.oxm.XMLDescriptor

• org.eclipse.persistence.eis.EISDescriptor

For object-relational data type and XML projects, descriptor classes are in the org.eclipse.persistence.mappings.structures and org.eclipse.persistence.oxm packages, respectively.

The following illustrates the hierarchy of descriptor types that derive from the class org.eclipse.persistence.descriptors.ClassDescriptor.

class org.eclipse.persistence.descriptors.ClassDescriptor
    class org.eclipse.persistence.descriptors.RelationalDescriptor
        class org.eclipse.persistence.mappings.structures.ObjectRelationalDataTypeDescriptor
    class org.eclipse.persistence.oxm.XMLDescriptor