- Useful Links
- General Information
- Installation and Upgrade
- Starting BridgeLink
- Running BridgeLink in Java 9 or greater
- Java Licensing
- License
Like an interpreter who translates foreign languages into the one you understand, BridgeLink translates message standards into the one your system understands. Whenever a "foreign" system sends you a message, BridgeLink's integration capabilities expedite the following:
- Filtering — BridgeLink reads message parameters and passes the message to or stops it on its way to the transformation stage.
- Transformation — BridgeLink converts the incoming message standard to another standard (e.g., HL7 to XML).
- Extraction — BridgeLink can "pull" data from and "push" data to a database.
- Routing — BridgeLink makes sure messages arrive at their assigned destinations.
Users manage and develop channels (message pathways) using the interface known as the Administrator:
BridgeLink installers are available for individual operating systems (.exe for Windows, .sh for Linux, and .dmg for Mac OS X). Pre-packaged distributions are also available for individual operating systems (ZIP for Windows, tar.gz for Linux, and tar.gz for Mac OS X).
BridgeLink installers also come with the option to install and start a service that will run in the background. You also have the option of installing and running the BridgeLink Server Manager, which allows you to start and stop the service on some operating systems, change BridgeLink properties and backend database settings, and view the server logs.
An optional Command Line Interface can be installed, allowing you to connect to a running BridgeLink Server using a command line. This tool is useful for performing or scripting server tasks without opening the BridgeLink Administrator.
The BridgeLink Administrator Launcher can also be installed, allowing you to manage connections to multiple BridgeLink servers and configure options such as Java runtime, max heap size, and security protocols.
After the installation, the BridgeLink directory layout will look as follows:
- /appdata/mirthdb: The embedded database (Do NOT delete if you specify Derby as your database). This will be created when the BridgeLink Server is started. The path for appdata is defined by the dir.appdata property in mirth.properties.
- /cli-lib: Libraries for the Command Line Interface (if installed)
- /client-lib: Libraries for the BridgeLink Administrator
- /conf: Configuration files
- /custom-lib: Place your custom user libraries here to be used by the default library resource.
- /docs: This document and a copy of the BridgeLink license
- /docs/javadocs: Generated javadocs for the installed version of BridgeLink. These documents are also available when the server is running at
http://[server address]:8080/javadocs/(i.e.http://localhost:8080/javadocs/). - /extensions: Libraries and meta data for Plug-ins and Connectors
- /logs: Default location for logs generated by BridgeLink and its sub-components
- /manager-lib: Libraries for the BridgeLink Server Manager (if installed)
- /public_html: Directory exposed by the embedded web server
- /server-launcher-lib: Libraries in this directory will be loaded into the main BridgeLink Server thread context classloader upon startup. This is required if you are using any custom log4j appender libraries.
- /server-lib: BridgeLink server libraries
- /webapps: Directory exposed by the embedded web server to host webapps
Once BridgeLink has been installed, there are several ways to connect to launch the BridgeLink Administrator. On a Windows installation, there is a BridgeLink Administrator item in the Start Menu which launches the application directly.
If the option is not available, you can connect to the BridgeLink Administrator launch page which by default should be available at http://[server address]:8080 (i.e. http://localhost:8080). It is recommended to use the Administrator Launcher to start the Administrator, which can be downloaded by clicking on the Download Administrator Launcher button. Clicking the Launch BridgeLink Administrator button will download the Java Web Start file for your server. Opening the file with the Administrator Launcher connects you to the server, which will be listening on https://[server address]:8443 (i.e. https://localhost:8443).
If running a new installation, the default username and password for the login screen is admin and admin. This should be changed immediately for security purposes.
If you are launching the administrator for the first time, you will notice that the libraries for the BridgeLink Administrator will be loaded. This feature allows you run the Administrator from any remote BridgeLink server without having to download and install a separate client.
You may also notice a security warning when starting the administrator (dialog box depends on browser being used). This is because by default BridgeLink creates a self-signed certificate for its web server. For now click Run to continue launching the administrator, but check out the User Guide for instructions on how to replace the certificate.
In order to run BridgeLink in Java 9 or greater, copy the options from docs/blservice-java9+.vmoptions and append them to either blserver.vmoptions or blservice.vmoptions, depending on your deployment. Then restart BridgeLink.
To run the Command Line Interface, create a new file named blcommand.vmoptions in the BridgeLink root directory. Copy all of the options from docs/blservice-java9+.vmoptions into blcommand.vmoptions and save before launching the Command Line Interface.
In 2019, Oracle made significant changes to the licensing model for official Oracle Java releases. As a result, BridgeLink supports OpenJDK along with various third-party distributions that comply with the new licensing structure. These supported distributions include:
- AdoptOpenJDK
- Azul Zulu
- Amazon Corretto
These distributions offer open-source, free-to-use alternatives to Oracle JDK, ensuring compatibility and compliance with the latest licensing requirements.
BridgeLink is released under the Mozilla Public License version 2.0. You can find a copy of the license in server/docs/LICENSE.txt.
All licensing information regarding third-party libraries is located in the server/docs/thirdparty folder.