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Web ServicesWeb Services
It’s About Standards, Not Infinite Choices
Barry Walsh
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
ThanksThanks To many, but especially these four valued colleagues
Carl Jacobsen, U Del
Bob Kvavik, U Minn
Ed Lightfoot, UW
Mark Olson, NACUBO
Steve Relyea, UCSD
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Today’s OverviewToday’s Overview
Emerging Technology – Web Services
Standards…who needs them???
Intra-institutional systems implications
Q & A
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web ServicesWeb Services
Some of the following slides on Web Services borrow from the remarkable work in the current EDUCAUSE Review article on Web Services by Carl Jacobsen, University of Delaware, and are used with the express permission of the author and EDUCAUSE.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
DefinitionsDefinitions
Web Services refers to an architecture that facilitates the interoperation of software through common protocols. IDC predicts that Web Services, which is still in its infancy, will grow from a $1.6 billion market in 2004 to $34 billion by 2007.
Now we know why the big boys are singing from the same hymnal
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web serviceWeb service
Definition: A Web service is a software application identified by a URI/URL, whose interfaces and binding are capable of being defined, described and discovered by XML artifacts and supports direct interactions with other software applications using XML based messages via internet-based protocols
Web Services Architecture RequirementsW3C Working Draft 29 April 2002
http://www.w3.org/TR/2002/WD-wsa-reqs-20020429
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web ServicesWeb Services
“Web services are a new breed of Web application. They are self-contained, self-describing, modular applications that can be published, located, and invoked across the Web. Web services perform functions, which can be anything from simple requests to complicated business processes… Once a Web service is deployed, other applications (and other Web services) can discover and invoke the deployed service.”
“A Web Services Primer” quoted by Venu Vasudevan Senior Researcher, Motorola Labswww.xml.com - from IBM tutorial
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web ServicesWeb Services
“The promise of Web services lies in its ability to resolve the differences among shared, networked applications. Applications from different vendors, of various vintages, written in different languages, running on disparate platforms, easily communicate and cooperate, resolving their differences to act in concert.”
Carl Jacobsen, University of Delaware
EDUCAUSE Review March/April 2002
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What’s What’s NOTNOT a Web Service? a Web Service?
Standard web applications
Wrappered front ends to legacy systems
Unless they have the WS attributes
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services: THE ACRONYMSWeb Services: THE ACRONYMS
XML
SOAP
UDDI
WSDL
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services: THE ACRONYMSWeb Services: THE ACRONYMS
XML – like HTML, XML is a “markup language” and the “x” stands for “extensible”
While HTML uses text tags to describe how the contents of a document will appear (tags for bold, header, underline, etc), XML uses text tags to describe how a document will be used (tags for invoice number, item number, price, grading format, etc.)
HTML is used to describe how a document will be displayed on a browser; XML describes how a document can be processed by a program, or application or system.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services: THE ACRONYMSWeb Services: THE ACRONYMS
SOAP – stands for “Simple Object Access Protocol” and is just a messaging standard or protocol to allow Internet applications to communicate.
SOAP allows process control to be passed between two networked applications
It is not a language, nor a component, but a communications protocol that defines rules for disparate systems to interact.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services: THE ACRONYMSWeb Services: THE ACRONYMS
UDDI – is the “white pages” and the “yellow pages” of Web Services.
Stands for “Universal Description Discovery and Integration” and is a Web directory that allows applications to announce its availability and services to other applications.
Web services registered in a UDDI directory may be “discovered” by other Web applications hunting for specific services, goods or partners.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services: THE ACRONYMSWeb Services: THE ACRONYMS
WSDL – Web Services Description Language is an XML format used to describe the capabilities and interoperability required of a Web Service
WSDL provides an abstract definition of the communication details/rules between two applications, how a Web service will work with another application.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Application Services
ApplicationService D
ApplicationService C
ApplicationService B
ApplicationService A
Web Services Architecture Layers
Shared Utilities
Security, auditing and assessment of third party performance, billing and payments
Service Management UtilitiesProvisioning, monitoring, ensuring quality of service, synchronization, conflict resolution
Resource Knowledge Management UtilitiesDirectories, brokers, registries, repositories, data transformation
Transport Management UtilitiesMessage queuing, filtering, metering, monitoring, routing, resource orchestration
Service Grid
Standards and Protocols
Software StandardsWSDL (Web Services Description Language)UDDI (Universal Description, Discovery and Integration)XML (eXtensible Markup Language
Communication ProtocolsSOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol)HTTP (HyperText Transoprt Protocol)TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
Web
Services
Implementing the traditional way Implementing the traditional way vs. using Web Services: vs. using Web Services:
Point of Comparison Traditional Upgrade Solution
Web Services Solution
Cost to enter High Moderate
Cost to maintain Very High Low
Cost to upgrade Very High Low
Total Cost of Ownership Very High Moderate
Return On Investment Low Very High
Expertise Required Very High High
Ease of Implementation Very Low High
Timeframes High Moderate
Success Rate Moderate Very High
http://www.webservicesarchitect.com/content/articles/apshankar02.asp?m49
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services offers advantages
Capitalize on existing investments: Portability: A Web Services solution is not only
portable across platforms, it also facilitates cross technology integration.
Scalability: Web Services are highly scalable components, supporting industry strength scalability requirements.
Multiple client access: In addition to PCs-- palmtops, PDAs, cell phones etc.
Low costs: Web Services solutions may be cheaper to develop, maintain, and upgrade.
http://www.webservicesarchitect.com/content/articles/apshankar02.asp?m49
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Why is the concept of web services Why is the concept of web services important to us on campus?important to us on campus?
External services FSA EBPP Grant submission Etc.
Internal development standards
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What’s the big deal about standards What’s the big deal about standards anyway?anyway?
Windows; Linux; Unix; MacOS, ES390
Java, VStudio.Net, Cold Fusion, Lizardware
HP, Sun, IBM, Intel, ??
Outlook, Lotus Notes, Groupwise
Client server, web, mainframe
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Let’s look at some other standards?Let’s look at some other standards?
Electrical
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What if we let the electrical engineers What if we let the electrical engineers decide what standards they wanted?decide what standards they wanted?
Voltage/Current: Highest/lowest possible?
Frequency: Highest?...motor speed? Lowest?...circuit breakers
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What if the campus departments chose What if the campus departments chose the voltage?the voltage?
Physics would want 3 x 106 Volts
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What if the campus departments chose What if the campus departments chose the voltage?the voltage?
Math would want 3.1415926535897932 Volts
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What if the campus departments chose What if the campus departments chose the voltage?the voltage?
English department would want ?? Volts
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
What if the campus departments chose What if the campus departments chose the voltage?the voltage?
Controller would want 34 or 35 Volts
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
So what do we actually have?So what do we actually have? (in the US) (in the US)
115 v @ 60hz
Why?
We need a standard
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
How do the engineers cope????How do the engineers cope????
Because it’s a standard!!!!
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web ServicesWeb Services
“Web services won’t (in and of themselves) transform business. Business transforms business… Technologies only provide new opportunities; if enterprises are unwilling or unable to change their cultures and approaches to business, then very little transformation will occur.”
Gartner Research Note:
“What Web Services Will and Won’t Do”
February 19, 2002
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
So What’s the Problem?So What’s the Problem?
Institutional Vision Portal based Service Delivery-one place! Larry Faulkner at UT Austin has it
Stove piping Functional Technical
Provider-Centric view of Service Delivery
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Architecture Design Principles for a Architecture Design Principles for a Proposed Higher Education ApplicationProposed Higher Education Application
Design a highly functional and flexible financial information system and infrastructure by utilizing component-based design and development methodologies
Facilitate integration with existing university portals, enterprise applications and departmental systems
Select and utilize technologies that balance cost, vendor viability, support, functionality, and portability
Provide transactional document workflow and routing capabilities based on XML documents and technologies
Utilize web services to support application services and application integration.
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Technical ArchitectureTechnical ArchitectureClient Desktop
Internet Explorer / Netscape / Mozilla
MS Windows, Macintosh OS/XUnix, Linux
Web Server(s)
Apache
Unix
Apache StrutsApplication Server(s)
J2EE (Websphere)
Unix
JDO log4j
Database Server(s)
Oracle
Unix
HTTP
HTTP
JDBC
IP SOAP
XML
3rd Party Systems
SOAP
JDBC
IP
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Workflow ScenarioWorkflow Scenario
Workflow: aka routing and approval In the following workflow scenario, the term
‘document’ refers to any electronic transaction designed to perform or complete some business process for the institution Student requesting a drop/add approval A purchase requisition A hire event in HRMS A transfer of funds in the fiscal system A timesheet approval for student hourly Etc. Hundreds of possible txns
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
ScenarioScenario
Sample scenario describing workflow interaction with system:
1. ‘Document’ (transaction) is entered into the system2. Routing instructions are created based on document
type and additional input from user3. Instructions are stored in associated XML document4. System submits XML to route modules5. Route modules scan XML for specific routing
instructions and match to action request rules6. Route modules return list of action requests for this
document
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Scenario (cont’d)Scenario (cont’d)
7. System activates appropriate action requests by placing them on users’ action lists---in the portal!!
8. Users view the list of documents requiring their attention
9. User can view document in originating application, and can then perform an action on the document
10. If action is performed, the XML doc is updated with this info and sent back to the routing modules, where is then routed to the next destination
11. This continues until all routing is complete.12. Every action along the way is logged for audit trail
purposes
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web ServicesWeb Services
A powerful standard emerging in the Web world Supported by all the major vendors Enables loosely coupled business processes Currently, the emphasis is on external partners such
as FSA and others Web Services model can accomplish the same
objectives inside the academy common application standards and protocols
Java or .Net Significant downstream payoffs in system support and
maintenance Encourage creation of services that can be called as
components Enables the decentralization of application development
without losing integration opportunities
EDUCAUSE/NACUBO Business Forum 2002
Web Services:Web Services:
Loosely coupled – “forgiving” interfaces rather than traditionally strict integration requirement of our legacy systems, including our “new” legacy systems
Self-describing and self-announcing: all specifications related to the use and behavior of a service are part of the service itself
Applications may invoke remote processes or applications as if they were a part of the invoking application
Specific technologies to: build, publish,and relate business and learning components across the network