subject: Service oriented architecture doesn't always have to be heavy-duty [print this page] What are businesses looking for in IT architecture? This interview with Ivo Totev by Javamagazin gives an overview of how he and Software AG see it. Here are the highlights:
In an architecture, "big things" should be broken down into small components so that different business departments can wisely collaborate with IT. Software AG keeps its customers moving along this road.
Different architectural tools are on the market but they can and need to be integrated. With CentraSite, Software AG offers businesses the right tools and infrastructure to take the first steps toward integration.
Service oriented architecture is about an architecture that combines agility with reusability. Modernizing and integrating mainframe systems is a primary reason why many enterprise move to this type of architecture. The advantages for a mainframe environment - reliability, manageability, security can be maintained while quickly moving along towards modern Web 2.0 interfaces for business applications.
SOA buzzwords, conflicting technologies, architectures and pitfalls. There's no single approach or "solution." It's actually an application architecture in which application components or "services' are well defined using common interfaces. The architecture utilizes a contract to define how services will be invoked, and interact in a loosely coupled manner. In this paradigm, the terms "client" and "server" are purely situational. At one moment, an application could act as a client by calling an external service, while moments later, it may act as a service-provider when called by another application to perform a task.
When properly implemented, this architecture promises to end the building and maintenance of point-to-point integrations. Businesses can use it to generate new services in a flexible and agile way by combining existing logic and exposing it via re-usable services.
Service oriented architecture doesn't always have to be heavy-duty
