Explanation + resolution of BCS "Cannot find any matching endpoint configuration"

Explanation

SharePoint BCS operates with external systems through the connection information in BDC Models, administrated in its metadata store. BDC Models can 1. be imported via Central Admin UI, Business Connectivity Services application; 2. provisioned via features; 3. and manually be created via SharePoint Designer.

When BDC administrates a new BDC Model, the BDC administration process reads the WcfMexDocumentUrl value from the LobSystem node in the model; and uses this to runtime retrieve from the WcfMexDocument (= Service Metadata) all the service endpoints. The received service endpoins in the WcfMexDocument are administrated in the internal WcfConnectionManager class.

When the BDC service application is invoked by a BDC client to interoperate with the external system, BDC uses the WcfEndpointAddress value from the LobSystemInstance node in the model as the service endpoint url. But it does not directly invoke the (WCF) service on that endpoint address. It first uses this endpoint address to retrieve additional endpoint configuration data (e.g. what character is used as wildcard in the external system) from the WcfConnectionManager class. Information that was derived when administrating and processing the BDC Model, and stored as key-value pairs with the key equal to a service endpoint address included in the service metadata / WcfMexDocument.

Now, in case the WcfEndpointAdress value in the LobSystemInstance node is not present as one of the service endpoints in the WcfMexDocument; BDC is not able to locate the additional endpoint configuration; and all BDC client invocations of this External ContentType will fault with the error message “Cannot find any matching endpoint configuration”.

Resolution

The above sketched situation originates from a mismatch in the BDC Model versus the WcfMexDocument. The fix is to make sure that the WcfEndPointAddress in the BDC Model, does have a match with one of the service endpoint addresses of the WcfMexDocument. This either means to adjust the WcfEndPointAddress value in the BDC Model to a correct and present vaue, and reimport the model. Or to modify the WcfMexDocumentUrl to include the WcfEndPointAddress value as one of the service endpoints. Note that as BDC builds up its internal administration in WcfConnectionManager on processing a BDC Model, also in the latter case the BDC Model must be re-imported despite that itself has not changed. Through reimport the situation in WcfConnectionManager will be reset and corrected.