Remote Entity API

This module provides an API that extends the Entity API, to use data from a remote source as entities. Multiple remote entity types can be declared on multiple remote servers.

With a remote entity type defined, you can:

• Execute queries on the remote data
• Load remote entities by a remote ID
• Load local copies of remote entities
• Save remote entities

Both querying and loading remote entities causes a local copy to be saved, which speeds up later loading. After a set time, local copies expire, and loading an expired entity will cause the remote version to be retrieved again (and also re-saved locally).

The Entity Metadata Property API is used to access properties of the remote entity. The Entity admin UI is used to provide a UI for local copies of entities.

Requirements

• Entity API
• Clients
• A remote entity resource implementation: currently this exists for MS Dynamics
• (Recommended only) Entity Operations, which allows quick building of a UI for custom entities, and for which this module has several useful operation handlers.

Credits: inspired in part by this blog post.

Related modules

• Web Service Data takes a very different approach to handling remote entity data, without any local caching or syncing.
• Code Server Code Server provides a framework for calling PHP functions on a Drupal site from code running on a different Drupal site.