What are best practices for JSON transformation in IRIS interoperability? This is for a non-healthcare use case, so any tools we happen to have around FHIR might not be available. The motivating use case is trimming down a verbose and needlessly complex REST API response to feed to an LLM - trying to reduce token usage and maybe get better results from less noisy data.

Specifically, I'm imagining matching based on JSONPath expressions and simplifying structures based on the inferred type of elements rather than a full schema.

FastJsonSchema: High-Performance JSON Validation in IRIS

Validating JSON data against JSON Schema is a common requirement for modern applications. FastJsonSchema brings this capability natively to InterSystems IRIS, combining speed, simplicity, and full schema compliance.

Unlike traditional validation approaches, FastJsonSchema generates native ObjectScript code from your JSON Schemas and compiles it directly to iris object code, enabling idiomatic performance without relying on external libraries or runtimes.

Hello,

Are there any utilities/api in HealthConnect 2016.2.1 that will allow conversion of XML virtual document to Json format? We were thinking to convert HL7 ADT message to XML via Ensemble DTL and then send it to another BP to convert to Json format for transmission via Web Services. To my understanding there isn't anyway to represent Json as a virtual object so it can be use for direct mapping of HL7 2.x message to Json via Ensemble DTL.

Thanks

Yuriy

Hola amigo! 😊 Cómo estás hoy,

I would like to share a small part of my learnings from my first ever official project: POS/EDC machine integration with our billing system. This was an exciting challenge where I got hands-on experience working with APIs and vendors. 

How does a Payment Machine actually work?

It's simple, start by initiating/creating a transaction, then retrieve its payment status.

Here, initiate/create refers to POST methodand Retrieve refers to GET.

Hi everyone,
I'm getting prepared to take the following certification exam: "InterSystems IRIS Development Professional".

Can you give some advice on how to prepare (aside from the official course page: https://www.intersystems.com/certifications/intersystems-iris-development-professional/)?
Do you have examples of quiz questions that simulate the real exam or any material that helped you getting prepared?

Thanks you in advance,

Arber

Hi developers!

How do you debug implementation code in .impl classes of REST.API in InterSystems IRIS?

Especially if you don't have access to globals, so no things like: 

Set ^AAA="here we are"

not possible in this case.

Suppose I have the following signature of the REST.API method called as POST and containing JSON. :

I would like to share with you a little trick to customize how messages are displayed in the Message Viewer. In particular, how you can display messages as JSON (instead of the default XML representation).

Messages are objects that are used to communicate interoperability productions components. In my example I have defined a message that later I serialize as JSON to send to an external API. This message is defined as a regular message and also as a %JSON.Adaptor so I can export / import directly to or from JSON.

Class interop.msg.DeviceOrderReq Extends (Ens.Request, %JSON.Adaptor)
{

Parameter %JSONNULL As BOOLEAN = 1;

Property externalOrderId As %String(MAXLEN = "");

Property orderStatus As %String;

Property requestedServiceId As %String(MAXLEN = "");

Property patientData As interop.msg.elements.PatientData;

}

Hey Community!

We're happy to share a new video from our InterSystems Developers YouTube:

⏯  Document Server: Improving Performance While Reducing Stored Data @ Ready 2025
 

What is XML?

XML(eXtensible Markup Language) is a flexible, text-based, andplatform-independentformat used to store and transport data in a well-structured way that is both human- and machine-readable. XML permits users to define custom tags to describe the meaning and organization of their data. For example: <book><title>The Hitchhiker's Guide</title></book>.

An XML document is self-descriptive and structured as a hierarchical tree of elements. Every document has a single root element that encapsulates all other content.

ObjectScript doesn't include any built-in method for appending one JSON dynamic array to another. Here's a code snippet I use that's equivalent to the JavaScript concat() method.

Call it with any number of arguments to concatenate them into a new array. If an argument is a dynamic array, its elements will be added. Otherwise the argument itself will be added.

ClassMethod ConcatArrays(pArgs...) As %DynamicArray
{
	set outArray = ##class(%DynamicArray).%New()
	for i=1:1:pArgs {
		set arg = pArgs(i)
		if ($IsObject(arg) && arg.%IsA("%DynamicArray")) {
			set iter = arg.%GetIterator()
			while iter.%GetNext(.key, .value) {
				do outArray.%Push(value)
			}
		} else {
			do outArray.%Push(arg)
		}
	}
	return outArray
}

For one of our customers I had to integrate with the AFAS imageconnector endpoint /imageconnector/{imageId}?format={format}. This endpoint returns in a json message with the image as a base64-encoded string property, in addition to the mimetype for the image:

/// Image Object
Class Mycustomer.Model.AfasGet.Image Extends (%SerialObject, %XML.Adaptor, %JSON.Adaptor)
{
/// file data (base64 encoded)
Property Filedata As %String(%JSONFIELDNAME = "filedata");

/// MimeType e.g. "image/jpeg"
Property MimeType As %String(%JSONFIELDNAME = "mimetype");
}

Introducing IRIS DocDB Explorer: A Sleek UI for Managing JSON Documents in InterSystems IRIS

IRIS offers a dedicated feature for storing and retrieving JSON documents using DocDB, without requiring a predefined schema.

Developers often need a quick and intuitive way  to browse, create, and edit documents without switching between multiple tools or writing repetitive code. To solve this, I created iris-docdb-ui — a CSP-based open-source application that provides a clean, responsive interface for interacting with DocDB effortlessly.

Hi all,

Let's do some more work about the testing data generation and export the result by REST API.😁

Here, I would like to reuse the datagen.restservice class which built in the pervious article Writing a REST api service for exporting the generated patient data in .csv

This time, we are planning to generate a FHIR bundle include multiple resources for testing the FHIR repository.

Here is some reference for you, if you want to know mare about FHIR The Concept of FHIR: A Healthcare Data Standard Designed for the Future

OK... Let's start😆

1. Create a new utility class datagen.utli.

The ObjectScript language has incredible JSON support through classes like %DynamicObject and %JSON.Adaptor. This support is due to the JSON format's immense popularity over the previous dominance of XML. JSON brought less verbosity to data representation and increased readability for humans who needed to interpret JSON content. To further reduce verbosity and increase readability, the YAML format was created. The very easy-to-read YAML format quickly became the most popular format for representing configurations and parameterizations, due to its readability and minimal verbosity.

Why This Matters

Managing IAM can be tedious when done manually — especially when your APIs are already well-documented using OpenAPI (Swagger) specs. Wouldn't it be great if you could automatically generate Kong services and routes directly from your OpenAPI spec?

That's exactly what this ObjectScript method does: it reads an OpenAPI 2.0 spec stored in the XData block of your spec class and generates a decK-compatible YAML file that can be used to sync your IAM configuration.

One of the most common kinds of integration we are asked to do is emailing. One of the most typical email services our customers use is Microsoft’s Office 365. After setting up the right configuration on the Microsoft side, we can email from IRIS with two HTTP requests. By the end of this article, we will be able to send an email with an attachment through our Microsoft 365 service!

Microsoft’s REST API, called Graph, allows you to do a lot of things within Microsoft’s various apps, and it is precisely what we will employ to send our email.

I am struggling in understanding how FDN works within Health Share, in particular those that are related to Provider Directory within Health Share. Does anyone have examples of using FDN that they would be able share?

FHIR Server

A FHIR Server is a software application that implements the FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) standard, enabling healthcare systems to store, access, exchange, and manage healthcare data in a standardized manner.

Intersystems IRIS can store and retrieve the following FHIR resources:

• Resource Repository – IRIS Native FHIR server can effortlessly store the FHIR bundles/resources directly in the FHIR repository.
• FHIR Facade - the FHIR facade layer is a software architecture pattern used to expose a FHIR-compliant API on top of an existing one (often non-FHIR). It also streamlines the healthcare data system, including an electronic health record (EHR), legacy database, or HL7 v2 message store, without requiring the migration of all data into a FHIR-native system.

What is FHIR?

Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) is a standardized framework created by HL7 International to facilitate the exchange of healthcare data in a flexible, developer-friendly, and modern way. It leverages contemporary web technologies to ensure seamless integration and communication across various healthcare systems.

I am trying to help another group within our organization access a SQL Table that I have created to populate Epic Department Data within our environment and came across the ability to use SQL Seach REST Interface using iKnow.

However, I am having issues trying to get it to work via POSTMAN before I hand off the solution...

the POST URL... https://<servername>/api/iKnow/latest/TESTCLIN/table/osuwmc_Epic_Clarity.DepartmentMaster/search

where osuwmc_Epic_Clarity.DepartmentMaster is the table

Hi folks!

Sometimes, when designing a class method and feeding it with more and more useful features, very soon the number of parameters can reach 10 and even more.

It becomes pretty difficult for users of useful methods to remember the position of the important parameter, and it is very easy to misuse the position and transfer the wrong value to the wrong parameter.

Here is an example of such a method (I asked GPT to create a method with 20 params):

ClassMethod GenerateReportWith20Params(
    pTitle As %String = "",
    pAuthor As %String = "",
    pDate As %String = "",            // e.g. 2025-09-03
    pCompany As %String = "",
    pDepartment As %String = "",
    pVersion As %String = "1.0",
    pFormat As %String = "pdf",       // pdf|html|docx
    pIncludeCharts As %Boolean = 1,
    pIncludeSummary As %Boolean = 1,
    pIncludeAppendix As %Boolean = 0,
    pConfidentiality As %String = "Public",
    pLanguage As %String = "en",
    pReviewers As %String = "",       // CSV, e.g. "Alice,Bob"
    pApprover As %String = "",
    pLogoPath As %String = "",
    pWatermarkText As %String = "",
    pColorScheme As %String = "default",
    pPageSize As %String = "A4",
    pOrientation As %String = "Portrait",
    pOutputPath As %String = "report.pdf"
) As %Status
{

// implementation
}

I have defined a class with a dynamic object property:

Class test.Dyn Extends %Persistent
{

Property json As %DynamicObject;

/// do ##class(test.Dyn).test()
ClassMethod test()
{
  do ..%KillExtent()
  for len = 100, $$$MaxStringLength - 1, $$$MaxStringLength, $$$MaxStringLength+1, $$$MaxStringLength *2 {
    set sc = ..save(len)
    write "Len: ",len, " Result: ",$case($$$ISERR(sc), $$$YES: $System.Status.GetErrorText(sc), : "OK"),!
  }
}

ClassMethod save(len)
{
  set json = {}
  set stream = ..getStream(len-8) // -8 because {"a":""}
  do json.%Set("a", stream, "stream")
 
  set obj = ..%New()
  set obj.json = json
  quit obj.%Save()
}

ClassMethod getStream(len)
{
  set stream = ##class(%Stream.TmpCharacter).%New()
 
  if len<$$$MaxStringLength {
    do stream.Write($tr($j("",len)," ","A"))
  } else {
    for i=1:$$$MaxStringLength:len {
      do stream.Write($tr($j("",$$$MaxStringLength)," ","A"))
    }
    do stream.Write($tr($j("",len-i)," ","A"))
  }
  quit stream
}
}

The issue I encounter is that if a length of a serialized json property is more than 3641144 symbols, the object fails to save with the following error (either MAXSTRING or STRINGSTACK):

Length: 100 Result: OK
Length: 3641143 Result: OK
Length: 3641144 Result: OK
Length: 3641145 Result: ERROR #5002: ObjectScript error: <MAXSTRING>%GetSerial+1^%Library.DynamicAbstractObject.1
Length: 7282288 Result: ERROR #5002: ObjectScript error: <STRINGSTACK>%GetSerial+1^%Library.DynamicAbstractObject.1

Is there a workaround? I need to store moderately large jsons (10-15 Mb) and dynamic object properties allow for a very convenient access.

$ZSTORAGE is set to -1.

I would like to know which are the best practices of using Streams in Interoperability messages.

I have always use %Stream.GlobalCharacter properties to hold a JSON, or a base64 document, when creating messages. This is fine and I can see the content in Visual Trace without doing anything, so I can check what is happening and resolve issues if I have, or reprocess messages if something went wrong, because I have the content.

But I think this is not the best way of using Streams.

This article is a continuation of the IRIS JSON project and features additional methods and insights.

Let's continue with the instance methods

%GetTypeOf(Key)

This instance method is used to determine the JSON data type of the %DynamicObject or %DynamicArray.

It returns one of the following strings:

USER>Set1

In this section, we will explore how to use Python as the primary language in IRIS, allowing you to write your application logic in Python while still leveraging the power of IRIS.

• Introduction Python First Approach in IRIS
  • How to use it (irispython)
    • What is irispython?
    • Example of using irispython
    • Pros
    • Cons
    • Conclusion
  • Using WSGI
    • How to use it
    • Example of using WSGI
    • Pros
    • Cons
    • Conclusion
  • DB-API
    • How to use it
    • Example of using DB-API
    • Pros
    • Cons
    • Alternatives
    • Conclusion
  • Notebook
    • How to use it
    • Example of using Notebook
    • Pros
    • Cons
    • Conclusion
• Bonus Section
  • Using a native interpreter (no irispython)
    • How to use it
    • Pros
    • Cons
  • DB-API Community Edition
    • How to use it
    • Example of using DB-API
    • Pros
    • Cons
  • Debugging Python Code in IRIS
    • How to use it
    • Pros
    • Cons
    • Conclusion
  • IoP (Interoperability on Python)
• Conclusion

Now that we have a good understanding of Python and its features, let's explore how we can leverage Python within IRIS.

• Introduction to Python in IRIS
• Language Tag
  • How to use it?
  • Pros
  • Cons
  • Conclusion
• Importing Python Modules (pypi modules)
  • How to use it
  • Pros
  • Cons
  • Conclusion
• Importing Python Modules (custom modules)
  • How to use it
  • Pros
  • Cons
  • Conclusion

Hey Developers,

Watch this video from our Tech Video Challengeto discover how to connect a FHIR Server and transform a batch file into SDA and then to FHIR JSON:

⏯ Mapping a Custom File to SDA

Dear community, I have a confession to make. I have not gotten over Zen yet. Alas, all good things must come to an EOF, so I am currently learning about Angular. I am working on proving to myself that with the right back end and Angular components, I can deliver to myself and my team a very Zen-like experience in this environment. Since this is my first attempt, here is a fair warning: I will be providing some rather large code samples before discussing them. Please warm up your mouse and hand for extensive upcoming scrolling!

I am making a FHIR request against Epic, in when I get the Response back using "fromDao" I am extracting the stream into HS.FHIRModel.R4.Patient. However, the patient's name comes back as name within a list that references HS.FHIRModel.R4.SeqOfHumanName.

• How do I extract the name from HS.FHIRModel.R4.SeqOfHumanName?
• Do I have to then do another "fromDao" to pull the list into string format?
• How do I navigate around the lists that are in a FHIRModel response, to extract the string values?

So I have been working in Healthcare Interops for about a month now and in IRIS. I am looking to implement SMART on FHIR and I am currently working to make an endpoint that works as the discovery endpoint. It is a custom dispatch class and unauthenticated is selected for access. I am trying to make a simple get request from Postman to test that the proper JSON is sent, but I receive a 403 Forbidden error. It is reaching IRIS it seems so I know its not a reverse proxy error. Here is an example of my custom Dispatch Class.

I am receiving a FHIR response bundle back with a resource of patient. Using fromDao, I attempted to take the stream and put it into FHIRModel.R4.Patient but it is not mapping correctly. When I attempt to take FHIRModel.R4.Patient and write it out using toString(), all I am seeing is the resource

{"resourceType":"Patient"}

so the response is not mapping correctly to FHIRModel.R4.Patient. How have others handled this? Do I need to translate it to an SDA since it does fit the model format?