tabase. This reduces the load on the BE server. 3. Since all proxy APIs implement the same interface as that in the BE, it is irrele- vant to applications using these APIs whether the APIs are from the BE or FE. Therefore, such an application can safely use the same interface for holding the reference irrespective of the server to which it is connected. 11.2.11.10 Utility APIs Used in FE Server The client to communicate with the FE server uses some utility APIs provided in the FE server. The categories of utility APIs are as follows: APIs bound in RMI extend the remote interface and are bound in the RMI regis- try of the FE server. The JDBC API has methods for getting database-related information such as col- umn names of table and aliases of property names used in tables. The Log API can be used to log some informatory messages/errors in the FE server's log files from an application running in a separate JVM. This will be help- ful in centralizing logging services and managing log messages. If some informa- tion about errors that occurred in clients are logged in the FE server, then it will be easy to track the problem. The generic FE API has some general methods managing the FE server. For example, the getActiveUser method returns a list of users who are currently logged into that FE server. Thin APIs or lightweight APIs have methods which use Java objects rather than objects of CMS. These APIs are provided for different modules and are used by corresponding session beans for their functioning. OSS for Telecom Networks 11.2.12 Client Framework The Java client framework provides a customizable infrastructure that can be used to develop and integrate user-defined applications. The Java client runs both in a client browser and as a standalone application. The GUI framework of the client is driven by a set of configuration files (written in XML) on a per-user basis. Applica- tions can extend the client with new screens and panels for specific information needs. The client framework makes it easy to customise client