Use IBM® Integration Bus nodes and services to connect to other Web services providers and consumers.
A Web service is a software system designed to support interoperable computer-to-computer interaction over a network. It has an interface described by an XML-based specification; specifically, the Web Service Definition Language, or WSDL.
Web services fulfill a specific task or a set of tasks. A Web service is described using a standard, formal XML notation, called its service description, that provides all the details necessary to interact with the service, including message formats (that detail the operations), transport protocols, and location.
The nature of the interface hides the implementation details of the service, so that it can be used independently of the hardware or software platform on which it is implemented. The interface is also independent of the programming language in which it is written. This interface handles Web service-based applications as loosely coupled, component-oriented, cross-technology implementations. Web services can be used alone, or with other Web services, to carry out a complex aggregation or a business transaction.
To call a Web Service as part of your message flow, include SOAPRequest nodes in the message flow appropriately. For more information, see Message flows for Web services.
For more information about how IBM Integration Bus acts as a Web Service provider or consumer, and how it complies with external Web Service standards, see IBM Integration Bus and Web services.
IBM Integration Bus supplies a Java™ servlet that you can use in an external Web servlet container such as IBM WebSphere Application Server or Apache Tomcat, to receive HTTP requests from Web services client applications. The HTTP proxy servlet is described in HTTP proxy servlet overview.