An Introduction to Web Services
by Rogue Wave Software, a QUOVADX™ Division

Abstract:
 
For years, IS teams have faced a thorny problem: how to flexibly modify, increment, and connect heterogeneous applications to meet the requirements of business. The Web services paradigm has emerged as a powerful mechanism for integrating disparate IT systems and assets. Combining the best aspects of component-based development and the Web, Web services leverage a concept known as Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA).
 
A "service" is a network-enabled component. Like components, services in general (and Web services in particular) represent functionality that can be easily reused without knowing the details of how the service is implemented. And, since Web protocols are completely independent across vendor, platform, and language implementations, the result is an application that integrates well with the rest of the enterprise while being flexible enough to modify as business needs change.
 
Applications designed using SOA can provide the same functionality as that found in a monolithic architecture coupled with the following additional benefits:
 
* Easier extension of legacy logic to work with new business functionality
 
* Greater flexibility to change without the need to constantly re-architect for growth
 
* Cost savings by providing straight-forward integration
 
This paper provides an introduction to Web services, discussing key underlying technologies and standards, the benefits of using Web services, and the challenges inherent in integrating Web services technology into applications. In addition, this paper introduces Rogue Wave's Lightweight Enterprise Integration Framework™ (LEIF™), a product that allows you to quickly expose C/C++ applications as Web services through the use of code generation, an appropriate accompanying framework, and a service hosting platform.