Next Generation Application Integration: From Simple Information to Web Services

Integration Server Services

The services provided by integration servers can be put into the following distinct categories:

• Transformation

• Intelligent routing

• Rules processing

• Message warehousing

• Flow control

• Repository services

• Directory services

• Management

• APIs and adapters

The ability of integration servers to leave systems “where they are”—minimizing change while allowing data to be shared—lends tremendous value to application integration. As we've noted time and again, such a capability is critical to application integration, because you typically don't have control over the systems owned by your trading partners. Thus, you need to obtain information housed inside these systems through a nonintrusive point of integration, or perhaps through standards ...