Datasheet

c01_1 07/08/2008 28
GET YOUR SOA TOOLS PLATFORM ‘‘RIGHT’’
This SOA ‘‘right’’ is essential to the realization of your SOA strategy, yet
our field experience shows that many organizations implement their SOA
technology platforms before they understand their services requirements.
When we say get your SOA platform right, we mean making sure your SOA
run-time technical platform supports your planned and current services and
your target state architecture. Ensure that your SOA platform does not
place dependencies or limitations on your services. Understand the trade-
offs of investing in various SOA platform elements such as service registries,
enterprise service buses (ESBs), Web services management tools, and SOA
security solutions.
Many organizations invested prematurely in UDDI service registries be-
fore they had any services available, or even an SOA strategy and roadmap
to guide their investment decisions. Similarly, before buying an enterprise
service bus, make sure you really need one. Perhaps your organization’s
messaging and integration requirements can be addressed by Web services
management (WSM) solutions or other alternatives. Most likely, you will
end up with both solutions anyway, but if you are budget-challenged and
can only implement one or the other, understand what you are buying with
your SOA platform investments. Below are a few guidelines to consider as
you try to get your SOA platform right:
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Services-Driven Platform Selection. Select your SOA platform based on
the requirements of your services. This is what we mean by services-
driven. If you pick your SOA platform before you understand what
services you will be building, you may end up with a mismatch of SOA
enabling technology and services requirements.
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SOA Strategy–Enabling. Be sure your SOA platform supports your
SOA strategy and enables the right services that support your SOA
strategy. Your SOA platform should not limit the realization of your
SOA goals and objectives.
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Provides the SOA Platform Core Functions. BesureyourSOAplat-
form will eventually include coverage for the four core SOA platform
requirements: Web Services Management (WSM), Reliable Messaging/
Transport (ESB, WSM or other messaging solutions), Service Registry
(UDDI), and SOA Security. Start with these core functions before you
get distracted by orchestration tools, BPEL engines, and other ancillary
tooling.
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Separate Your Services from Your Platform. Make sure your platform
supports your services, but do not let your platform constrain your
services. Decouple your services from your SOA platform.
28 THE SOA GOVERNANCE IMPERATIVE