Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Middleware (distributed applications)
open-in-new
<p>Middleware in the context of <a href="/facts/Distributed_application/o5nyhqTF">distributed applications</a> is <a href="/facts/Software/RP79lVSW">software</a> that provides services beyond those provided by the <a href="/facts/Operating_system/8XTuvMh2">operating system</a> to enable the various components of a distributed system to communicate and manage data. Middleware supports and simplifies complex <a href="/facts/Distributed_application/o5nyhqTF">distributed applications</a>. It includes <a href="/facts/Web_server/A4GS6thA">web servers</a>, <a href="/facts/Application_server/wHYtgYK5">application servers</a>, messaging and similar tools that support application development and delivery. Middleware is especially integral to modern information technology based on <a href="/facts/XML/clNgUfWk">XML</a>, <a href="/facts/SOAP/vXlAMnjp">SOAP</a>, <a href="/facts/Web_service/qxrwqB3D">Web services</a>, and <a href="/facts/Service-oriented_architecture/g8krR0dk">service-oriented architecture</a>. </p><p>Middleware often enables <a href="/facts/Interoperability/7WgqUbXU">interoperability</a> between applications that run on different operating systems, by supplying services so the application can exchange data in a standards-based way. Middleware sits "in the middle" between <a href="/facts/Application_software/YQuj7Kog">application software</a> that may be working on different <a href="/facts/Operating_system/8XTuvMh2">operating systems</a>. It is similar to the middle layer of a <a href="/facts/Multitier_architecture/cUTM2sU9">three-tier</a> single system architecture, except that it is stretched across multiple systems or applications. Examples include <a href="/facts/Enterprise_Application_Integration/EaXMz4mI">EAI</a> software, telecommunications software, <a href="/facts/Transaction_Processing_System/FxEUdWIt">transaction monitors</a>, and messaging-and-queueing software. </p><p>The distinction between operating system and middleware functionality is, to some extent, arbitrary. While core kernel functionality can only be provided by the operating system itself, some functionality previously provided by separately sold middleware is now integrated in operating systems. A typical example is the <a href="/facts/TCP%2fIP/KNkxtSpw">TCP/IP</a> stack for telecommunications, nowadays included virtually in every operating system. </p>