News about the project code-named Oslo

The codenamed Oslo project will provide messaging and workflow technologies with new upgrades in the next version of BizTalk Server and other products starting in 2009. Technologies This will be the center of Microsoft's platform for service-oriented architectures and mixed applications, the architectures that architects believe will deliver results faster and reduce costs in build new enterprise applications. Understanding Oslo also enables businesses to choose the right technology for today's applications, but Oslo is still the future and will represent a larger session that may not have been fully acknowledged. full.

Back to service-oriented architectures

Oslo is not only a product but also a project to upgrade Microsoft technologies for service-oriented architectures and for mixed applications built on those architectures.

Service-oriented architecture is one of the functions of major enterprise applications (such as a company's [ERP] enterprise resource planning system) provided as web services, components The software is highly scalable for communication by exchanging messages as announced. For example, a hospital can create web services to manage patients, schedule labs, medical records on ERP installations and existing medical systems. Oslo also provides Microsoft's next generation of message APIs, tools and services for building such Web services on Windows.

Mixed applications add a clear business process based on a service-oriented architecture, integrating multiple web services while retaining the logic of the business process (its workflow) separate from component web services. For example, a photo diagnostic center in a hospital can build a mixed application for patients who register themselves based on hospital management, lab schedules and disease records web services. project. Oslo also provides the next version of Microsoft programming tools and runtime support for workflows in mixed applications as well as new technologies for managing applications. Use mixtures in production environments.

Software architects at Microsoft and anywhere believe that service-oriented architectures and mixed applications will bring many benefits in deploying enterprise applications. Service-oriented architecture effectively transforms existing applications into component libraries (web services) so that many other software developers can discover and integrate into mixed applications and new. Mixed applications can automate the enterprise process across an organization's existing enterprise application, reduce the cost of running business processes and improve the reliability of they. Building component applications on Web services can prove an easier and safer way to support new business processes than customizing enterprise applications directly, things can affect existing users of the enterprise application and require software developers to know the custom technology of all enterprise application software vendors.

Oslo improves tools, workflows and correspondence

Oslo technology will probably not appear in 2009 or later, so any description of that technology is still an unofficial conjecture.

According to current plans, the primary means for Oslo technology will be the next version of BitTalk Server, which is not yet named but is currently called BizTalk Server V6. BizTalk Server is a Microsoft product for integrating applications, doing business between businesses, and managing business processes. Along with many other things, BizTalk Server has messaging technology to support the construction of existing application-based web services, a workflow technology (called Orchestrantion) for capture workflow of mixed applications.

However, BizTalk Server is not a product affected by Oslo: Oslo is also expected to upgrade the Visual Studio development environment and the System Center system management product line will also provide technology. Oslo, an online service from Microsoft will use Oslo technology to support mixed applications among businesses.

BizTalk Server messaging on communication platform

BizTalk Server V6 will release a new messaging infrastructure built on the Windows Communication Foundation messaging API. The Communication Foundation (introduced in the .NET Framework 3.0) enables reliable communication between web services and other components of mixed applications. It supports a wide range of network protocols and messaging formats, specifically Microsoft Message Queue (MSMQ) and WS- * protocols under the development of Microsoft, IBM and others.

Today, BizTalk Server uses messaging technology to date the Communication Foundation, although it can still connect to the Communication Foundation through interpreting components (provided in BizTalk Server 2006 R2). In contrast, BizTalk Server V6 will use the Windows Communication Foundation as its native messaging technology. The features of messaging are listed below:

Publish-subscribe routing . BizTalk Server V6 may support the publish-subscribe routing feature of the Communication Foundation correspondence. In this feature, web services and other components do not have to deliver messages to specific recipients, but instead can publish messages with information in their content and these messages are automatically distribute to recipients who have long-term subscriptions for that content. This feature simplifies the structure of mixed applications because web services' communication patterns and other components are not hard-wrapped and therefore often do not need to be changed to support new applications. . Communication Foundation does not currently have this capability at the present time. BizTalk Server V6 will probably support the WS-Eventing protocol, the WS- * protocol that can enable Publish-subscribe routing.

Adapter for business applications . BizTalk Server V6 will provide mail adapters for enterprise applications such as SAP's mySAP and Siebel CRM. An adapter can enable the application to send and receive notifications on the Communication Foundation, a crucial step to implementing an application-based web service. A recent version of the Oslo adapter technology has been released in a free set of tools called Line of Business Adapter SDK. However, BizTalk Server V6 will provide even better development tools for creating and delivering adapters for many major enterprise applications including mySAP ERP, Siebel CRM, and Oracle databases. A look at Microsoft's enterprise application adapters is provided in beta (trial version) BizTalk Adapter Pack; BizTalk Server V6 will have inside it an extended version of the adapter package. The adapter package will also continue to be offered separately, continuing to support organizations that want to build Web services on the Communication Foundation and their enterprise applications, but do not need much of BizTalk Server's other capabilities.

Design tools . Today BizTalk Server provides graphical tools that are useful for describing messaging formats for specific applications and for switching between them. In BizTalk Server V6, these tools may be upgraded to use the Communication Foundation messaging infrastructure.

BizTalk Server switches to the workflow platform

BizTalk Server V6 will provide new improvements to Microsoft's technology for workflows, Windows Workflow Foundation. Workflow Foundation (also introduced in the .NET Framework 3.0) runs programs (called workflows) in a simplified language designed for enterprise processes as steps in a login process. of the patient. Workflow Foundation can simplify the creation and assurance of composite applications with its simplified graphical tools and language.

According to current plans, BizTalk Server V6 will have the Workflow Foundation mechanism, providing new design and deployment tools for workflows running on that mechanism. Today, though, BizTalk Server uses its own workflow technology (called Orchestration), which provides a number of tools for checking Workflow Foundation workflows. Features for V6 are listed below:

Deploy . BizTalk Server may provide tools for centralized deployment of Workflow Foundation workflows to servers and server farms (server repositories), similar to today's Orchestration tools. Supporting server repositories would be important for limiting machine downtime and allowing large transaction publications in mixed applications. Today some specific applications (such as SharePoint Server) have embedded Workflow Foundation mechanism and support workflow deployment, but there are still no tools for scalable Workflow Foundation deployment in Custom application.

Check . BizTalk Server V6 will provide a number of new tools that allow administrators and enterprise employees to test running Workflow Foundation workflows. With BizTalk's test feature, company employees can check the progress of the business and get reports from the selected browser or Office applications. BizTalk Server 2006 R2 provided this feature support for Workflow Foundation workflows, but this feature can still be reviewed and extended in V6.

Design . BizTalk Server will provide some tools for graphic design and change Workflow Foundation workflows by business analysts. Today, software application developers can design Workflow Foundation workflows in Visual Studio, and SharePoint Designer provides a principles editor (similar to Outlook's principle editor). to allow enterprise users to create simple workflows with SharePoint Server. BizTalk Server V6 will probably provide a more general-purpose workflow tool for business users, like the Visio-based Orchestrant Designer of previous versions.

Oslo and product release scheme

News about the project code-named Oslo Picture 1

The release is expected by Microsoft in November 2007 later

The technologies that Oslo will be offering in a set of products begin in 2009. Shown here is almost a schedule for releases.Oslo is a code name for distributing Microsoft initiatives on messaging and workflow technologies, which adds a new business process based on an organization's existing enterprise applications ( for example, the enterprise resource planning system [ERP]) and communication with these enterprise applications through Web services.

The most important product in the Oslo initiative is BizTalk Server V6, which will deliver a new messaging component based on the Windows Communication Foundation. Both the Communication Foundation and Workflow Foundation were originally released in the .NET Framework 3.0 and will continue to be provided in subsequent versions, including the Oslo version (unofficial name here). However, BizTalk Server V6 will provide additional components beyond the Framework such as support for adding Publish-subscribe routing and Adapter features to enterprise applications to enable connection of key enterprise applications (such as mySAP ERP and Siebel CRM), and support for workflow deployment on server system repositories.

In addition, the Repository component is used to save workflows, Web service agreements and other components of mixed applications, to help centralized deployment and management issues. Repository is designed for use by BizTalk Server V6 but is also used for both Visual Studio and possibly some later versions of System Center products (eg products that check Operations Manager and products) Configuration Manager for software upgrades and inventory. However, the means for distributing Repository is still unclear. Along with other capabilities, it can be a feature of the .NET Framework '4', a separate product or a feature of Microsoft's SQL Server database management system.

Visual Studio will continue to have tools for BizTalk Server software development professionals in creating messaging components and workflows.However, BizTalk Server V6, like recent versions, may have workflow testing and design tools that do not require Visual Studio to support enterprise analysis.

Online services and Repository

In addition to the changes in BizTalk Server V6, Oslo provides additional online services to support mixed applications across businesses across an independent organization, a configuration database named Repository to store mixed application components.

The BizTalk service . A planned set of Microsoft online services called BizTalk Services will provide new features such as publish-subscribe routing workflow configuration and other services for mixed applications. . Available today in a preview version, this service will provide most of BizTalk Server V6 capabilities in a master configuration. However, they will also provide some features such as fireware traversal, a feature specifically required for the entire enterprise application.

Repository . This is the codename of a planned database technology, which will provide centralized storage for mixed application components, including workflows and service contracts. web. Under the current plan, Repository will also save the healthy models, configurations and discoveries required by system management tools such as Configuration Manager and Operations Manager. BizTalk Server V6, a future version of Visual Studio, and System Center products will all use Repository and allow organizations to maintain a shared database with all components. of each mixed application, can completely simplify development and management.

The means for distributing Repository is not really clear . Along with other capabilities, it could be a future of the .NET Framework '4', a separate product or a feature of Microsoft's SQL Server database management system.

Vision requires broader changes

Oslo supports the principles - service-oriented architecture and mixed applications that Microsoft believes will master future enterprise application development. Even so, organizations today still have reasons to be cautious.

BizTalk Server conversion . Switching to the Windows Communication Foundation and Workflow Foundation in BizTalk Server V6 implies that BizTalk Server's current Orchestration and messaging technologies will have some additional development from Microsoft. Microsoft can continue to bring current technologies into V6 with new technologies, and research-supported products will be used for current technologies at least through 2017 (when supported). BizTalk Server 2006 R2 support expires). However, customers may want to limit new development based on BizTalk Server's existing messaging and Orchestration technologies.

Technology and architectural changes . The current understanding of how to build mixed applications may change over time when Oslo is completed. In the past, we did not have to wait too long to get the distribution of object systems such as DCOM and CORBA as the development level of technical science for enterprise development. More recently, some organizations have approved a website-like architecture for web services called REST (stands for Representational State Transfer) compared to the majority, but the more complex mail-oriented architecture has implied by WS- * protocols. Organizations that are evaluating Oslo will want to verify through technologies like WS- * correspondence and look for increasing success in developing mixed applications in their fields.

The enterprise application competitors . Microsoft still leaves a small part of the business applications that customers will need in web services for mixed applications: SAP and Oracle capture the larger share in this division, and so their customers. they may want to invest in their mixed application platforms alongside Microsoft. Microsoft can compensate in part by offering an important library of mail adapters in BizTalk Server V6, something that has been done in previous versions of BizTalk Server.

Use what you have . All companies are facing a service-oriented architecture on one issue: Most existing enterprise applications are not designed to support web services. Moreover, in many organizations, business units have little incentive to redesign their applications to support web services: Benefits of running Web services to other business blocks , while the main cost is poured into the service organization block. However, by improving tools and infrastructure, Microsoft can reduce the costs of service-oriented architecture.