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Technical Information
Data from the data source is passed through an adapter to a messaging
server and then transformed using business logic objects to the
destination workstation. Data can be from one or from multiple data
sources. The system can be used by a single agency for applications
involving warrants, RMS data, JMS data or other agency information.
The system is scalable to be used across multiple agencies to share
data among disparate systems.
Done securely with enterprise level scalability, open architectures
allow pervasive interaction between applications in a way that gains
the greatest cost effectiveness within an enterprise. In keeping
with this philosophy, DataWorks Plus ascribes to the Java J2EE components
that apply to the needs of enterprise customers today. Additionally,
the open source Apache project has brought a great deal of benefits
to the Java community, especially with the Tomcat (Java-based Servlet
architecture), Cocoon (XML and XSLT tools), and Axis (SOAP Framework)
projects. DataWorks Plus has incorporated these technologies into
the core server solution that we provide. We have followed with
great interest the advent of Java Messaging Services (JMS) and the
use of such an architecture to connect to diverse systems. By incorporating
a middleware solution into the architecture, a secure connection
can be achieved quickly and easily, and abstraction of the location
of information and applications is achieved. Publishing large quantities
of information to multiple recipients also becomes much simpler
from an architectural and administrative standpoint as well as from
a distribution standpoint.
Past Mistakes
Because of these and other features of the JAVA Messaging Service
architecture, DataWorks Plus has incorporated a JAVA Messaging Service
solution at the core of its infrastructure, routing all communications
between disparate or disconnected systems be done through this environment.
JAVA Messaging Service allows us to bring key scalability features
to the design as well, with messaging servers that can be clustered
and replicated for redundancy and scalability, as well as allowing
local messaging ontologies to be routed to external servers with
little administration effort. Messages, when connecting to internal
or external data sources, are guaranteed to be delivered from point
to point, regardless of whether systems are connected on a continual
basis. This enterprise level of information exchange is required
– and will be demanded by enterprise interaction over the
public network.
Connectivity to the JAVA Messaging Service servers is facilitated
through a small client application running as near to the actual
data source as possible. Where practical, this client should actually
operate on the same machine as the source application or data. Realizing
that this is not always feasible or recommended, DataWorks Plus
allows the components to be run anywhere within the enterprise that
allows physically secure connectivity to the source data.
The adapter can proxy through any port that is available on the
firewall (with HTTP, HTTPS or SSL and SMTP being the most common
ports), making implementation simpler that other integration architectures.
Security is also a concern both internally and routing information
externally. Aware that this is of paramount concern in exchanging
enterprise data, DataWorks Plus has built into the core architecture
the ability for each piece of information that is exchanged (internally
or externally) to be encrypted at two levels. Each socket connection
to the server can be facilitated through an SSL link to the server,
with the contents of the documents also encrypted (payload encryption)
using a public/private key architecture and standard encryption
algorithms.
Delivery of information can be very complicated. It’s simple
enough when you just have two systems that want to pass a transaction.
It becomes much more complicated when you want an external business
partner to have access to real time inventory quantities. You don’t
want an external source knowing what IP addresses are used within
your network. Better yet, you want to be able to change internet
service providers without having to notify all those partners of
that change. Or, you may want to expand operations to allow multiple
or clustered servers to respond to requests. The messaging architecture
and queuing ontology that DataWorks Plus uses allows that change
to be as simple as restarting the agent on a new machine and connecting
to the server again.
Sources of information within an enterprise may vary greatly. Everything
from a relational database, to legacy applications, to Excel Spreadsheets,
to flat files exported from a batch process, to EDI, to robust APIs
may be available. We believe that to be truly effective and pervasive
within the enterprise architecture, we should be as non-invasive
as possible. That means connecting to whatever is there, however
we can. In order to do this, we must have an architecture that minimizes
custom programming, and facilitates connectivity as quickly as possible
to the core architecture. It also means being able to take the source
data and transform and translate the data from and to any format
that might be needed.
Many times no customization is needed when connecting….
In order to do this, we have created an object-oriented approach
that allows 80-90% of the connectivity components to be reused,
only requiring 10-20% to be written for a custom connection. Many
times, no customization is required when connecting to a standard
data connection such as a database or a known API. We call these
connection points adapters, and each one can be a subclass of the
core architecture that allows the connections to the server, to
the backend data, or to the partner system. The adapter framework
is a key component that sets us apart from our competitors, allowing
us to quickly adopt new data points and interaction, and making
that data available to those in the enterprise you want to have
access to it. Secure access to connections is controlled at the
point of data origin, allowing very strict, or global access to
one or more pieces of data that are defined in the adapter connection
and mapped through the server-based process.
Adapters are used for connecting to all types of data, and are
used for reading and writing data to the data sources. Scalability
of connections to data sources that were traditionally not able
to add many users can be facilitated through this approach as well,
since one adapter connection to the data source can manage many
client connections.
Similar to the adapter framework, we also have incorporated some
key agents in the architecture that perform specific functions to
the overall community of components used by any node or set of nodes
in the network.
Translation of data from one format to another is one example of
an agent that is built into the DataWorks Plus framework. This agent
receives data in whatever format it is sourced from, along with
routing information for where the data needs to be sent. Once translated
into its destination format, it is routed to the destination, and
so on, until communication between the endpoints is complete. Using
this methodology, one engine can be used to incorporate translations
between many varied clients and applications quickly and efficiently.
Application agents that facilitate interaction between a web page
and the architecture combine multiple adapters and user interface
components to allow users to view and update information from diverse
data sources through a common web-based design. Many of our customers
have used this agent to facilitate additional functionality or review
of information for approval before routing to the eventual endpoint.
Providing a web-based design allows users to access information
anywhere through a common interface.
The DataWorks Plus architecture supports open standards and connectivity
to all types and sources of data within the enterprise and with
business partners. Connectivity is facilitated quickly and easily
through a robust object-oriented design, and is transformed and
delivered securely and reliably to any destination anywhere. Application
functionality is built into the system quickly and easily through
agent technology, expanding functionality without modifying existing
applications. Fusion-IM is your total connectivity solution.
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