Is Orchestration the new Web 2.0?
In recent SOA discussions with people at work, the topic of orchestration often comes up. The problem is, like Web 2.0 before it, the meaning of what an orchestration (or orchestration layer) is differs depending on who you're talking with.
In my view, an orchestration simply refers to the process of integrating disparate applications. This idea is obviously not new. It's just a new name for an RPC or ESB-layer but relies on HTTP for communication instead of CORBA or something like JMS. This view is supported on Orchestration's Wikipedia entry which describes an orchestration as
In my view, an orchestration simply refers to the process of integrating disparate applications. This idea is obviously not new. It's just a new name for an RPC or ESB-layer but relies on HTTP for communication instead of CORBA or something like JMS. This view is supported on Orchestration's Wikipedia entry which describes an orchestration as
the process of coordinating an exchange of information through web service interactions.Speaking of the Enterprise Service Bus, it seems there is some confusion whether the "orchestration" lives at the same layer of the ESB or at a layer above the ESB and helps to coordinate ESB communications. I fall into the first camp, believing that "orchestration" is just a new way to do ESB. Wikipedia to the rescue again
the ESB is the piece of software that lies between the business applications and enables communication among themBecause of the confusion in defining these terms, it has been hard for the organization I'm with to gain much traction in implementing their SOA solutions. I'm sure we're not alone...
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