---
name: "Frontier::Client"
section: "3pm"
platform: "linux"
package: "libfrontier-rpc-perl"
version: "0.07b4-7.1"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/Frontier::Client"
---

# Frontier::Client(3pm)

issue Frontier XML RPC requests to a server

## NAME

Frontier::Client - issue Frontier XML RPC requests to a server

## SYNOPSIS

```
 use Frontier::Client;
 $server = Frontier::Client->new( I<OPTIONS> );
 $result = $server->call($method, @args);
 $boolean = $server->boolean($value);
 $date_time = $server->date_time($value);
 $base64 = $server->base64($value);
 $value = $boolean->value;
 $value = $date_time->value;
 $value = $base64->value;
```

## DESCRIPTION

*Frontier::Client* is an XML-RPC client over HTTP. *Frontier::Client* instances are used to make calls to XML-RPC servers and as shortcuts for creating XML-RPC special data types.

## METHODS

- new( *OPTIONS* )

  Returns a new instance of *Frontier::Client* and associates it with an XML-RPC server at a URL.  *OPTIONS* may be a list of key, value pairs or a hash containing the following parameters:

  - url

    The URL of the server.  This parameter is required.  For example:

    ```
     $server = Frontier::Client->new( 'url' => 'http://betty.userland.com/RPC2' );
    ```

  - proxy

    A URL of a proxy to forward XML-RPC calls through.

  - encoding

    The XML encoding to be specified in the XML declaration of outgoing RPC requests.  Incoming results may have a different encoding specified; XML::Parser will convert incoming data to UTF-8.  The default outgoing encoding is none, which uses XML 1.0's default of UTF-8.  For example:

    ```
     $server = Frontier::Client->new( 'url' => 'http://betty.userland.com/RPC2',
                                      'encoding' => 'ISO-8859-1' );
    ```

  - use\_objects

    If set to a non-zero value will convert incoming \<i4\>, \<float\>, and \<string\> values to objects instead of scalars.  See **int()**, **float()**, and **string()** below for more details.

  - debug

    If set to a non-zero value will print the encoded XML request and the XML response received.

- call($method, @args)

  Forward a procedure call to the server, either returning the value returned by the procedure or failing with exception.  \``$method`' is the name of the server method, and \``@args`' is a list of arguments to pass.  Arguments may be Perl hashes, arrays, scalar values, or the XML-RPC special data types below.

- boolean( $value )

  - date\_time( $value )

  - base64( $base64 )

  The methods \``"boolean()"`', \``"date_time()"`', and \``"base64()"`' create and return XML-RPC-specific datatypes that can be passed to \``"call()"`'.  Results from servers may also contain these datatypes. The corresponding package names (for use with \``"ref()"`', for example) are \``"Frontier::RPC2::Boolean"`', \``"Frontier::RPC2::DateTime::ISO8601"`', and \``"Frontier::RPC2::Base64"`'.

  The value of boolean, date/time, and base64 data can be set or returned using the \``"value()"`' method.  For example:

  ```
    # To set a value:
    $a_boolean->value(1);
    # To retrieve a value
    $base64 = $base64_xml_rpc_data->value();
  ```

  Note: \``"base64()"`' does *not* encode or decode base64 data for you, you must use MIME::Base64 or similar module for that.

- int( 42 );

  - float( 3.14159 );

  - string( "Foo" );

  By default, you may pass ordinary Perl values (scalars) to be encoded. RPC2 automatically converts them to XML-RPC types if they look like an integer, float, or as a string.  This assumption causes problems when you want to pass a string that looks like "0096", RPC2 will convert that to an \<i4\> because it looks like an integer.  With these methods, you could now create a string object like this:

  ```
    $part_num = $server->string("0096");
  ```

  and be confident that it will be passed as an XML-RPC string.  You can change and retrieve values from objects using **value()** as described above.

## SEE ALSO

[**perl**(1)](/perl/1.md), **Frontier::RPC2**(3)

\<http://www.scripting.com/frontier5/xml/code/rpc.html\>

## AUTHOR

Ken MacLeod \<ken@bitsko.slc.ut.us\>