Set up the Adobe Experience Manager connector

Learn to set up an Adobe Experience Manager connection in Adobe FrameMaker.

Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) is a Web content management system that allows you to store digital assets in its DAM (Digital Asset Management) repository. The AEM connector allows you to manage your FrameMaker documents using the DAM.

Note: You can choose to store your documents in any AEM folder. If you use the AEM DAM, you will be able to take advantage of the DAM features such as searching for digital assets.

Before you begin

Install Java Runtime on the system and set JAVA_HOME environment variable.

Note: AEM connector supports the cipher suites provided by Java for TLS handshake in HTTPS connection.

Connection Manager dialog

Figure 1. Connection Manager dialog in FrameMaker
Connection Manager dialoginFrameMaker
Name

A friendly name for your FrameMaker – Adobe Experience Manager connection.

Server

The AEM server location in the following syntax:

http://<server-name>:<port-number>/crx/server

Use Single Sign-On (SSO)

If your organization uses SSO for AEM server authentication, then select this option. When you select this option, the password field will be removed from the interface.

User Name and Password

Specify the User Name and Password to connect to the AEM server. Select the Save Password option to save the password.

Workspace

Adobe Experience Manager workspace.

Default workspace: crx.default.

You are recommended to create a folder within the DAM workspace. However, you can create a folder at any location in the repository.

Local Folder

Local folder location to save files from AEM.

The default location is C:\Users\<usernname>\Documents. You can change the default location by clicking the Browse button.

FrameMaker always creates the local download folder in lower case, irrespective of the connection title provided in the Connection Manager dialog.

Client authentication on AEM server

FrameMaker has the feature to validate the client authentication configured in the AEM server for your organization. Support for client authentication during TLS handshake is added to the AEM connector. Due to this, when you try to connect to a server with client authentication enabled, FrameMaker prompts you to select a certificate. Once you choose a certificate, TLS handshake proceeds with this certificate. After the client certificate is validated on the server, the login process begins and establishes the connection to the AEM repository.


You can override the client certificate to be used by adding a setting in the CQPreference.xmlfile and providing the alias name of the certificate. For example, you can add the following setting where "Adobe" represents the alias name of your client certificate:

<ClientCertificateAliasOverride value="Adobe"/>
FrameMaker then picks the certificate mentioned in the setting for login and does not prompt for certificate selection.
Note:

For the changes to take effect, you need to restart FrameMaker.

Setting up the Adobe Experience Manager connector

Note: The Adobe Experience Manager settings in the Preferences dialog provide some more options to specify proxy server to connect with an AEM server. See CMS > Adobe Experience Manager for more details.
  1. Choose File > CMS > Connection Manager.

    The Connection Manager dialog is displayed.

  2. In the Choose Connection drop-down, select Adobe Experience Manager.

  3. Enter a friendly name and server location.

  4. If your organization uses SSO-based authentication, then select the Use Single Sign-On (SSO) option.

    Else, enter the User Name and Password for regular authentication.

  5. Specify the Adobe Experience Manager Workspace or use the default (crx.default) workspace.

  6. Select a Local Folder path.

  7. Click Connect to set up the FrameMaker – Adobe Experience Manager connector.

    Note: If you are using SSO-based authentication, then a popup window might appear and take you through your organization’s SSO-based authentication process. You must close the window after completing the login process.

    On successful login, the Repository Manager window is displayed.

Note: In the Connection Manager dialog, click Clear if you want to clear the entries. It clears out all entered values and resets the Workspace and Local Folder fields to their default values.
Note: In the Connection Manager dialog, click Remove to remove the connection from Connect to a Favorite list.

Enable UUID-based files support

XML Documentation for Adobe Experience Manager, Adobe's DITA CCMS, supports Universally Unique Identifier (UUID) based file referencing system. Using AEM, you can download files that use UUID-based file referencing system through the AEM Connector. Once the files are available on your system, you can publish these files in FrameMaker to generate the required output.

Note:
  • If you use XML Documentation for Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service (January 2022 release and later), you can author and publish your UUID-based files in FrameMaker.
  • If you use XML Documentation for Adobe Experience Manager, you can publish your UUID-based files in FrameMaker.
To use the feature, do the following:
  1. Choose Edit > Preferences > CMS > Adobe Experience Manager.
  2. Select Use UUID Based Referencing. This option is not checked by default.
    Figure 2. UUID-based referencing option in the Preferences dialog

  3. Download files that use UUID-based file referencing from AEM.
  4. Publish the files using the publish functionality.

Additional notes on SSO-based authentication

You must consider the following points while using SSO-based authentication with AEM Connector: