Middleware can solve interoperability problems in VoIP (voice over IP).
Middleware is a type of software that allows communication between different applications . In this way it acts as a link that promotes connectivity and facilitates development.
What middleware does is function as a bridge between different databases and technologies, enabling them to be integrated into the same system even when they were not designed for that purpose. Currently, the architectures created for cloud computing are based on middleware.
History of middleware
The history of middleware began in the late 1960s . It is often noted that the term was used for the first time in 1968 , at the first conference dedicated to software engineering promoted by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ).
In its beginnings, middleware focused on connecting old systems with new computer programs without the need to rewrite previous code . It was, above all, a type of software that was used to manage networks.
Already in the 1980s , middleware became a paradigm for managing data in distributed systems. Today it is a category of software that developers appeal to as support when creating applications and achieving simplification of work processes.
Security middleware protects applications by managing data encryption, authentication, and authorization.
Its operation
The middleware is responsible for simplifying the communication process between the various components . In this way, the frontend application communicates only with the middleware, avoiding the need to interpret the language of the rest of the backend software components.
To accomplish its mission, middleware relies on a messaging framework that provides a common interface for applications on different platforms and languages. This allows applications to access data in a standardized format.
There are several messaging frameworks that make it possible for backend and frontend applications to exchange data. SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) , REST (Representational State Transfer), JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) , XML (eXtensible Markup Language) and web services are some of the most used.
It should be noted that middleware consists of different components that constitute its architecture. In this way, through the middleware that is responsible for processing to achieve compatibility , the data goes from one application to another. Management console , session manager , contract manager , runtime monitor , platform interface , internal interface , and client interface are among these components.
It should be considered that without the intervention of middleware, developers would be forced to create data exchange modules for all the software elements that intend to establish a connection with the application.
Distributed object middleware makes it possible for objects on different computers to interact in the same way as if they were in the same location.
Types of middleware
Middleware can be categorized or classified based on application class, connectivity , or other factors. Among the most used are:
- Remote procedure call (RPC) middleware : Makes it possible for one app to activate a process in another, whose execution can be carried out on the same computer or on a different one, in the same way as if the two were the same application on the same computer.
- Message-oriented messaging middleware (MOM) : Thanks to this resource, application components can communicate using different messaging protocols. Message-oriented middleware also routes messages to arrive at the corresponding destination in the proper order using message queues.
- Enterprise Integration Middleware (EAI) : It is used so that an entity can have a business integration center, standardizing the connection of all its applications, business processes, backend data and components.
- Database Middleware : This is a type of SQL database server that facilitates access to backend databases.
- Robotics Middleware : Helps integrate software, firmware and hardware from different manufacturers.
- Transactional middleware : Provides services so that data transactions can be executed on a distributed network.
- Portal Middleware : Allows the integration of app functionality and content on the same screen level for the creation of a composite application.
- Device middleware : Provides various connectivity and integration functionalities for the development of apps for a particular mobile operating system.
Its importance in cloud computing
Middleware has great relevance in cloud computing. This is because cloud computing involves the development and implementation of native apps on different infrastructures , with which middleware makes the work easier.
What middleware does is take over the configuration and selection of functions and frameworks to develop, deploy and run applications. Therefore, each app can be deployed on various infrastructures and function properly. Middleware, in this context, works with applications that are created from microservices and deployed in containers with Kubernetes .