A group of enterprise service bus (ESB) and Web Services management vendors have joined forces in an effort to design an open-source middleware framework for service oriented architectures (SOA).
Dubbed "Synapse" (i.e., the junction across which a nerve impulse passes from axon to neuron), the project promises to redefine the meaning of "loosely coupled" applications interoperability as currently applied to SOA environments. The interoperability approach, if blessed by the open source standards community, could enable manufacturers to mix-and-match applications within a common format, which could potentially ease the integration headache between plant floor and back-office software.
The Synapse proposal has been submitted to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF), an open source organization, by WSO2 (Web Services Oxygen), a Sri Lanka consulting firm. If approved by ASF, Synapse would not only gain credibility among open source devotees, but would receive technical services and some IP protection backing from the organization, which would provide some protection for individuals working on Synapse-related projects.
From a technical perspective, Synapse outlines a mediation layer that can be added to applications that organizations wish to connect. It acts as a service request broker that enables connectivity between multiple application communication points.
The software resembles the shared messaging layer contained within an ESB, which enables interoperability of specified applications. With Synapse, however, the mediation layer is not intended to be tied to any vendor's technology.
Ironically, two of the four vendors that have stepped up to support WSO2's Synapse Apache project are ESB vendors Sonic Software and Iona Technologies. Two other vendors backing the project are Blue Titan Software and Infravio Inc., both purveyors of Web Services management software.
These companies have agreed to work together to contribute intellectual property and expertise. In Infravio's case, the company is donating code from its X-Broker product, which is used to manage security, operations, integration and business terms.
While it will be a few more months before any formal announcement about a development framework is unveiled, people close to the project say a common platform is just what SOA needs.
As currently constituted, today's SOAs are little more than a set of best practices; it's up to each vendor to develop the software constructs that bring them to life, according to Jason Bloomberg, senior analyst at ZapThink LLC (Waltham, MA).
Synapse "will help sort things out, especially in the ESB space where it is already confused," said Bloomberg, in an interview. "Lots of vendors say they have ESB [but] they are selling different things."
Many times, in order to loosely couple applications between service providers, all the bells and whistles of an ESB are not needed. "But you do need an intermediary piece," Bloomberg said.
That's where Synapse's reference framework comes in. "Let's say you have 10 different points that you want to connect. Instead of making 10 different connections between every point, you can have them connect to an intermediary, which routes the traffic," explained Miko Matsumura, vice president of technology at Infravio, in an interview with Managing Automation. "It can do things like load balancing or things that help connect -- like a switchboard. It's like having an operator you can call who can make decisions about switching based on your needs."
It's smart middleware, Matsumura added.
Synapse is designed to be used with Axis2, a Web Services-centric version of Apache's SOAP handler as well as other Apache open source projects. In the Synapse proposal submitted to the Apache organization, the key features of the mediation framework will include: a messaging communications infrastructure based on principles of SOAs, providing a way to connect disparate systems.
It will intermediate and transform messages and service interactions independently of the endpoint applications. It is neutral with respect to the languages and platforms that are integrated, providing support for C, C++, COBOL, Java, and even .Net.
While still evolving, this project could change the SOA landscape in the near future. "The emergence of an open source Web service mediation project under the auspices of the Apache Software Foundation and its successful model for achieving wide-spread adoption represents a major step forward for the evolution of Web Services," said Sonic Software's vice president and chief technology evangelist, Dave Chappell in a statement. "Synapse provides the ideal open, community-based environment for establishing a common, interoperable mediation framework. ... it will be influential in driving adoption of SOA principles in the industry at large."